What's with the shakes?

2

Replies

  • mortuseon
    mortuseon Posts: 579 Member
    Chicken breast, turkey, almonds, protein bars, fish, There's lots of ways to get protein aside from shakes, I use them right after my workout not the whole day.

    Those things either cost a lot of money (I get $25 a week for food maximum) or don't give much protein. :/ I want something that will give me 60g of protein for 300 calories and it just doesn't exist outside of science and fat wallets. :/

    Things like canned tuna/salmon can be a cheap-ish source of protein if you can't afford shakes or other meats.
  • karinefitness
    karinefitness Posts: 336 Member
    I use protein powder once or twice a day... and sometimes I don't. I mostly mix a scoop in my oatmeal in the morning and sometimes I'll drink one post-workout. I don't like to rely on it, but really, it's helping me reach my protein goal. There's only so much meat I can stomach in a day (as well as yogurt and etc.). I'm trying to rely on 'real' food more, but with my protein intake, it sometimes get tricky. Especially when I'm not home and need something I can eat/drink on the go.

    I always buy my protein on sale and it's really cheaper than every other source of protein but real food is obviously better I guess.
  • Elsie_Brownraisin
    Elsie_Brownraisin Posts: 786 Member
    Beans and chickpeas and other pulses? Bought dried they are cheap and they are filling.

    Tinned tuna and sardines are good too.

    I like the animals who provide my meat to have had a more privileged upbringing than myself and can't afford a great deal of it either.
  • Staniel_2013
    Staniel_2013 Posts: 120 Member
    I buy the MusclePharm Protein at Costco, $0.66 cents a serving. Honestly this is a cheaper route for me rather than buying a crap ton of egg whites and such. I eat chicken almost every day but still, I just can't afford to be spending a fortune on my food and this helps.

    I do 1 in the mornings on days I don't work out but if I do I have one post workout. Might change that and start having 2 a day without a workout. I notice after workout this has helped tremendously with recovery.

    Honestly, if I didn't have the powder, I wouldn't be able to eat the amount of stuff required to get close to the 180+ goal I have too. Sorry but eating a gallon of egg whites and 5 chicken breasts just doesn't sound all that good, no matter how or what it's cooked with.
  • JMoore221979
    JMoore221979 Posts: 266
    Beans and chickpeas and other pulses? Bought dried they are cheap and they are filling.

    Tinned tuna and sardines are good too.

    I like the animals who provide my meat to have had a more privileged upbringing than myself and can't afford a great deal of it either.

    Excellent point beans are a great source.
  • JMoore221979
    JMoore221979 Posts: 266
    I buy the MusclePharm Protein at Costco, $0.66 cents a serving. Honestly this is a cheaper route for me rather than buying a crap ton of egg whites and such. I eat chicken almost every day but still, I just can't afford to be spending a fortune on my food and this helps.

    I do 1 in the mornings on days I don't work out but if I do I have one post workout. Might change that and start having 2 a day without a workout. I notice after workout this has helped tremendously with recovery.

    Honestly, if I didn't have the powder, I wouldn't be able to eat the amount of stuff required to get close to the 180+ goal I have too. Sorry but eating a gallon of egg whites and 5 chicken breasts just doesn't sound all that good, no matter how or what it's cooked with.

    I use the Muscle Tech brand from Sams Club, I don't have a membership but I have a buddy pick it up for me. It's a little cheaper then Costco but may just switch over for convenience.
  • ChancyW
    ChancyW Posts: 437 Member
    As a vegetarian I am guilty of drinking a lot of shakes. I can barely tolerate eggs. So I get the protein where I can. I also add greek yogurt to my shakes. Although, greek yogurt isn't the cheapest either. I feel that getting the recommended amount of protein is a constant struggle. There are some decently priced powders out there as well. Unfortunately, I never seem to like those ones. >.<
  • slouip1112
    slouip1112 Posts: 7
    I don't do the protein thing, but I do Shakeology, and drink it for it's health benefits. Just as quick to grab a piece of fruit, but I like knowing I can have chocolate, and not totally kill my sugar intake. Plus I love all the superfoods in it. It's a win win for me.

    10namaf.gif

    I don't know what Shakeology is, but this response was highly amusing!
  • symba1130
    symba1130 Posts: 248 Member
    If you don't like eggs, cottage cheese is decent or low fat yogurt. Not going to get near the amount but can definitely help. What you are going for and what I are going for are so far apart that you can probably get away with small things like that.

    I eat yogurt and cottage cheese, but 12 isn't adding up to 120...

    I think the plain greek yogurt from Costco is 24g for 1C. I eat it plain or doctor it up :-)
  • ShreddingIt_84
    ShreddingIt_84 Posts: 141
    P28 FTW!
  • Francl27
    Francl27 Posts: 26,372 Member
    I haven't had a shake in ages... I guess they don't fill me up that much and I always forget to get almond milk anyway. I meet my 125g goal most days with Greek yogurt, cheese, spinach, eggs, egg whites, chicken, fish, lean beef etc.
  • Siriku
    Siriku Posts: 22 Member
    I'll have to start drinking shakes soon to increase my protein intake, as it's a little low for my goals. Lentils are a pretty good way of getting more in though, if you haven't already added them.
  • auddii
    auddii Posts: 15,357 Member
    I have protein shakes, but only because I like them, and I'm usually well over my protein goal for the day. I buy 10lbs of chicken and shread it up, and it usually makes about 20 servings of chicken or so. That's about $0.85 per serving depending on the price of the chicken for the week. If I bought a whole chicken it would be cheaper, plus I could make my own bone stock, but I'm rather lazy and don't like breaking down a whole chicken.
  • TBoom915
    TBoom915 Posts: 115 Member
    If you don't like eggs, cottage cheese is decent or low fat yogurt. Not going to get near the amount but can definitely help. What you are going for and what I are going for are so far apart that you can probably get away with small things like that.

    I eat yogurt and cottage cheese, but 12 isn't adding up to 120...

    You sound like me where I don't like eggs except if they are hard boiled, nor do I like peanut butter, yogurt, milk, or nuts for that matter, but I get 120+ g of protein a day. I do have one protein powder smoothie a day, when I don't use the powder I use greek yogurt and almond milk for protein. Meal two is where I have a boiled egg and turkey bacon w/ low-fat cheese on a whole wheat bagel thin, meal three I have at least 4 oz of lean meat with veggies and whole grains, meal 4 I have at least 4oz of lean meat with veggies, meal 5 (post workout/dinner) I have anywhere from 6-8oz lean meat/fish with veggies. Oh sometimes my proteins come from beans/legumes. You can def eat your way to 120g of protein.
  • auddii
    auddii Posts: 15,357 Member
    Also, this might be useful:

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/926789-protein-sources
  • shellbatronic
    shellbatronic Posts: 193
    Cartons of egg whites are fantastic, I mix that with a whole egg for omelettes and stuff. I also mix the whites with half a scoop of protein powder and make a pancake. That's a pretty common post-workout breakfast for me because it's not super sweet. Ground turkey is the bomb diggity for lean protein as well, I make a bunch and throw 'er in everything.
  • rainbow198
    rainbow198 Posts: 2,245 Member
    I make a shake in the morning with my breakfast mainly to get more vegetables in. Not as meal replacements and not necessarily for the protein - although some days I need to add it in.

    To hit my protein goal I eat several of the following daily:

    Protein source: chicken breast, seafood, bacon or fish (salmon, cod etc)
    Carb source: potatoes, broccoli, brown rice or pasta
    Dairy source: eggs, yogurt, cottage cheese, cheese (mmmmm)
    Nuts and Seeds: almonds, pumpkin seeds, walnuts, flax etc.
  • clareyoung80
    clareyoung80 Posts: 177 Member
    I always wondered this - like, I really don't want to be drinking protein drinks forever. If I can't get it by comfortably eating it, then tough my little muscles, tough.

    I average about 90g of protein a day.

    I have about 2 eggs a day for either breakfast or lunch, I have some kind of meat for lunch (tuna, chicken etc...), I have an iced coffee quite often (milk protein), and meat for dinner. Plus bits of cheese here or there.

    That's all I can do. Sometimes I may have bacon, but I'm really not prepared to do more then that. I've got to be sustainable in my diet, and be able to afford it.

    I did see some 'protein flakes' at the store the other day - anyone tried them? I was intrigued, I could shove them in lots of my meals. Is it necessary?!
  • tedrickp
    tedrickp Posts: 1,229 Member
    I rock a smoothie each morning - for miconutrients (i hate eating fruit and leafy greens unless it is crushed into a delicious smoothie mash). I throw some protein powder into that to boost the protein (like to get about 20g per meal). Rest of my protein comes from whole foods...or quest bars :p
  • chriamaria
    chriamaria Posts: 76 Member
    $25 a week isn't very much but I know exactly where you are coming from. I was there at one point having about that much per person in my family. I wasn't aware that the 1 gram of protein per body weight was the body weight that we are supposed to be at. I thought that it was the body weight that we are at now, which for me is very discouraging- I can't see myself eating over 200 grams of protein per day without blowing my calorie goals. I have just started focusing on protein and am usually hitting about 90 grams per day. That is with eggs and chicken though. One thing that is helping is some homemade chili or lentil stew that I made using dried beans. Neither has meat in it but has a decent amount of protein in it. I used a crockpot to put it together. There are some awesome recipes on allrecipes. One way we have been able to eat meat on a limited budget is to look for the pink tag specials. We have found chicken, ground turkey, ground beef, and even small steaks on sale this way. Frequently you have to go early in the morning to get in on this. I haven't been drinking any protein shaked, but have thought about it. Some of my online friends drink them but usually only once a day. I have never seen anyone who was drinking all shakes all day- that seems a little preposterous to me.

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