Protein powder??

The simplest use is to mix with water or milk to supplement your protein intake. I think most people put it in smoothies, because it seems to mix better with more ingredients than just liquid. My default smoothie recipe includes yogurt, coconut milk, frozen berries, and whatever leafy greens I have (usually spinach).

But you can use your imagination. My nephew is a picky eater who will pretty much only eat bread. So my sister bakes home-made bread for him with chocolate protein powder.

The food you add it to, will depend on your diet restrictions. For example, I'm low-carb so no protein bread for me and I only use a small amount of berries. A lot of people load up on vegetables by using them in smoothies - which is a great idea if you don't like vegetables. It makes them much more palatable.

It's usually available chocolate or vanilla flavored.

I've seen two kinds: Whey and Soy. A trainer once told me that whey protein is better, but I can't remember why. I personally have no brand preference, I try to buy it in bulk because it lasts a long time and I use it nearly every day. So it's a question of picking the best volume value. I've never had any that I didn't like, nor any that stood out above the rest.

One piece of advice for starting up: The brand I bought came with a scoop that's about 1/4 cup. This adds 27 grams of protein. I found, to begin, that I couldn't stand that much. So I just used half a scoop for a while, then increased it to a full scoop when I got used to it.

I suppose one question you might want to consider before getting into protein supplements, is how much protein you should be eating. Do a Google search to find out how to calculate this. The source I read (if I remember correctly) said to have 0.36 g protein per lb of lean body weight to maintain lean body mass; or 0.7 g per lb to increase lean body mass. That same source recommended 0.7 g/lb for people trying to lose weight.

Notice that says "lean body weight". So you'll also have to estimate your percent body fat to calculate your lean body weight. I used a bathroom scale with a feature that calculates % body fat. There are also several formulas involving measuring various parts of your body. I don't know what's more accurate, but I figure I just need to get in the ballpark (especially since I used 0.7 g/lb rather than the maintenance number).

I didn't know anything about that when I started using protein powder. Which is probably why I didn't use it consistently for a long time. Now I understand and I use it as needed to make sure I meet my protein needs.

That's all that comes to my mind about protein powder. Good luck!

A lot of people make shakes/smoothies. Some good recipes are here:

http://dashingdish.com/recipe/dashing-dish-official-protein-shake/

As the author says, cottage cheese sounds weird, but if you follow the directions, they turn out quite nice. Almost indistinguishable from a real milkshake . . .

Using the protein powder after work outs helps the muscle heal faster. Increases of protein and calories together can help your muscle bulk.

I tend to go for 1g per 1lb of bodyweight. But I'm always on a high protein diet to try and gain muscle. You could drop this by 60% if you're not weight training and muscle gain isn't your goal. A high protein diet also puts a strain on the liver and kidneys ( slight strain if intake is high)

There is no particular brand that is the best. It's all down to personal preference based on taste and nutritional requirements. One thing I would watch out for when buying a shake is how much sugar it contains (carbohydrates of which sugar). Ensure you are not buying one filled with sugar to make it taste nice

Three types you can buy - whey, caesin and soy.

There is such a thing as protein bio availability. It's how much of the protien in a food that the body actually absorbs. Eggs are the highest with the body absorbing nearly all the protein from an egg. Chicken, white fish, turkey and next on the list with the body absorbing good amounts of the protein. Further down this list is soy. I wouldn't bother with soy full stop. The absorption rate of soy is low. So if a scoop has 25g of protein you may only absorb half of this.

Whey has the same bioavailabilty as eggs. It gets into the system quickly and you absorb pretty much all the protein.

Caesin has a lower bioavailabilty but has the advantage of being absorbed slowly rather than quickly. A good one to drink in the evening to keep you feeling full

Here's the bioavailabilty index

Whey protein 100-150
Egg 100
Cows milk 91
Fish 83
Beef 80
Chicken 79
Casein 77
Soy 59
Beans 49
Peanuts 43

Hope the above helps you decide on which protein to buy.

Whey can exacerbate some mental health problems, in my experience, due to the large quantities of unbound amino acids such as glutamic acid. Being highly bioavailable is not always better.

Exacerbate mental health problems???? Please quote the study that gave you this statement!

It's not just for those on a high protein diet. It's a meal replacement. A way of adding a low fat protein meal into your day. Will certainly keep your calorie intake down if taken as an alternative to a solid meal

Whey can exacerbate some mental health problems, in my experience, due to the large quantities of unbound amino acids such as glutamic acid. Being highly bioavailable is not always better.

Exacerbate mental health problems???? Please quote the study that gave you this statement!

It's not just for those on a high protein diet. It's a meal replacement. A way of adding a low fat protein meal into your day. Will certainly keep your calorie intake down if taken as an alternative to a solid meal

If you notice I said in my experience. Anxiety is common with whey, look it up. Also look up about bipolar mania and role of excess glutamate, which is what too much unbound glutamic acid causes. Mood stabilisers work to reduce the effects of excess glutamate.
Why so surprised? I'm guessing you don't experience mh problems, otherwise you would know lots of things can affect them, including foods and supplements. If you are bipolar there are specific unbound/free amino acids you should avoid or minimise. Some amino acids do convert to neurotransmitters and can change their levels, so taking large quantities of free ones that are very quickly absorbed can unbalance them if you already have a problem.

Ditto for other mh conditions I'm guessing but I don't know about them in any detail.

I use Nectar whey isolate protein powder as I am a bariatric patient. I use cappuccino,, kiwi strawberry , vanilla torte and carribean cooler all good flavors. Mix with water but you can mix with skim milk or any of the soy milks. the cappuccino besides water I put davinci sugar free chocolate syrup. with the others I use water and strawberry crystal light. Unjury is another brand that is great

Three types you can buy - whey, caesin and soy.

Hemp and pea protein powders are available as well.