Pre Workout, Post work out and Protein!

I will start with preworkout drinks, What exactly do theses even do? Do i need them and what ones do you recommend?

There are some pre-workout supplements that may help you if you are suffering from performance/energy issues in the gym. I do not have this issue and if I did, I would look to diet first and supplement last. As such, I can't recommend one over the other but suffice it to say it is not a necessity to have one.

Protein Shakes: I have been seriously looking into theses as a meal replacer. I have insulin resistance so I need to watch my carb intake but up my protein intake. I was considering Labrada Lean Body because there is so much protein, enough calories to make it an actual meal replacement but I am not sure if the carbs are too high. Does anyone have any recommendations? I am open to making my own shake and adding a lower calorie lower carb protien powder to it.

I believe IsoPure is a zero carb protein shake but I'm not 100% certain. There's really no need to replace a meal with liquids but adding in whey protein can be helpful to hit your protein targets for the day.

Post workout drinks: What are the purpose of theses and what are they? I was actually thinking about this more for my hubby but could he just use whatever I get for protein powder as a post workout drink or is there more to them than that? Open to recommendations!

Short answer: If your husband has issues hitting his protein goals for the day he can just use whatever you purchase. The protein drink itself isn't anything special that he can't achieve by eating food.

So basically, if you can get adequate nutrition without supplementing protein, more power to you and you're not really missing out on anything. But, whey protein is very bioavailable, it is inexpensive relative to the grams of protein, and it's very, very convenient. In that regard, you may find it helpful.

All of the pre workouts I've looked at are basically powdered energy drinks. I use MusclePharm Assault and it has both caffeine and taurine as well as creatine. The one my girlfriend uses is vegan friendly and doesn't have any added caffeine, but is made up of a whole bunch of different tea extracts, so it may contain caffeine from there. I do worry about becoming dependent on the caffeine because I drink it right as I wake up, so I make sure not to drink it on the days I don't work out.