Protein Powder vs Hydrolyzed Collagen

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beabria
beabria Posts: 541 Member
in Food and Nutrition
I'm working on losing ~100 lbs (~25lbs down so far!) and am working pretty hard tracking calories. I've been including some protein powder (mostly whey isolate) in my morning coffee/tea and in the occasional smoothie (and tracking it of course).
In the past, I was of the opinion that adding protein powder was "just adding calories" and avoided it. I've found recently, however, that while it does add calories, it seems to keep me full for much longer, and I'm hoping this (together with weightlifting) will help minimize muscle loss as I lose weight. Recently, though, I've been reading about collagen powder. Obviously this is also a protein powder, and I'm particularly interest in the possible secondary benefits (re: skin, ligaments etc.) of collagen.
I have questions though. Do you find collagen is as filling as other protein powders? Do they play very different roles? Is one better than the other for certain people? Or for different times? Other thoughts?
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Replies

  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 32,436 Member
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    Collagen is not as complete in essential amino acids (EAA) as whey, so it's not likely as beneficial from a protein standpoint for supporting muscle growth. I don't have any knowledge about it as an aesthetic aid (skin, etc.), or how filling it is - I'm vegetarian, it's not; but I know about protein EAA completeness because that's relevant for people who get a lot of their protein from plant sources.

    I do know that there are multiple forms of collagen. Examine (a good source for science-based supplement info) has an article about type II collagen, the one reportedly most helpful for bones and joints, with a summary of research:

    https://examine.com/supplements/type-ii-collagen/

    They don't have a report on type I, which is more touted for hair, skin, nails.

  • Xellercin
    Xellercin Posts: 924 Member
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    I'm pretty wary of the collagen supplement supply chain, it's pretty filthy, so I refuse to pay a premium for a supplement that is virtually impossible to ensure has a clean supply chain.
  • ksnolte87
    ksnolte87 Posts: 8 Member
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    Meh, I'd pass on the collagen.
  • Qbaimee
    Qbaimee Posts: 157 Member
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    I do both. I put one scoop of collagen in my coffee every morning (the unflavored one) and I also try to keep my protein intake up as well and I have a protein shake (whey) every afternoon.

    this is the collagen I use. I've tried many and I find myself going back to this one. I've been taking collagen for years. I have nothing bad to say about it.


    hugbwzxapi29.png

  • perryc05
    perryc05 Posts: 214 Member
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    I just use gelatin. 5 grams per day. It's a more broken down form of collagen and is more easily absorbed and it's also much cheaper than collagen. You just have to bloom gelatin in a little cold water first before disolving in a hot liquid (although you could just chuck it in a smoothie and blend it up):
    https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/collagen-vs-gelatin

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