"real" vs. "fake" protein

I've been wondering about this too...

Well, my personal trainer suggest eating your weight in protein in grams. So i weigh 115 lbs so he wants me to eat about 115 grams of protein a day, and he recommends shakes and protein bars. He suggest a high protein, moderate carb, and low fat diet, so your protein count should be a little bit higher or equal to your carb count, with fats being the lowest.

I've been working out with him for 6 weeks and I have lost about 6 lbs I'm fairly small already, so its hard for me to lose weight, but his advice is amazing.

Also, he suggests checking every single protein shake/bar/ any food at all for high fructose corn syrup, sucrose, or chemical sweeteners .. those actually make you put on weight, and they are even in so called healthy foods such as some oatmeal brands.

Hope i helped

My trainer eats bars and shakes and she isn't trying to bulk up-just stay in shape. I eat a bar in the am B4 my hard core days and if I am hungry in the afternoon between lunch and dinner, I will eat a shake. I only get about 100 protein a day though, so I may not be that helpful...the bar and shake are about 1/2 my daily intake as well

Great question

I try to eat real food whenever possible, but I do have add a bar sometime. For some reason, drinking a shake just doesn't stick to my ribs like actually chewing something up and eating it does.

i dont think there's a difference besides a psychological one. i personally prefer having to chew the majority of meals and for most of them to be hot. so i'll do at most 1 smoothie or bar a day, but i'd much rather prefer to eat extra eggs, an extra chicken thigh or more yogurt and avocadoes

i dont think there's a difference besides a psychological one. i personally prefer having to chew the majority of meals and for most of them to be hot. so i'll do at most 1 smoothie or bar a day, but i'd much rather prefer to eat extra eggs, an extra chicken thigh or more yogurt and avocadoes

I'm a vegetarian, and I tend to rely on soy products and protein bars to get my protein (since I can eat so many nuts!). That being said, many protein bars are filled with sugar, so you want to be mindful and pick one that's lower in sugar.

theres no difference. food is food. But just keep track of how much sugar & stuff is in the shakes/bars/etc...

Hi all. I just recently came to the revelation, oh hey, maybe everyone isn't making this whole "eat a bunch of protein" thing up. I have my macros set at 40/30/30 and it's been awesome. I used to have problems with binge eating and I don't anymore because I always feel full.

My question is... Is there a difference between getting your protein from food and getting it from protein bars, shakes, etc.? I probably get about half of my 135 grams of protein from shakes and bars. That seems high to me. I'm sure it would matter if you're hardcore about not eating anything processed, but I'm not really a stickler for that.

Thoughts?

Not really, the only reason you may want to opt for whole foods would be satiety reasons, generally people find whole foods more filling than shakes/bars

Correct, typically whole foods keep me fuller for longer. Probably because it takes longer to digest. But it's not a huge difference. I do a shake every morning for breakfast and a bar for a snack later on. Just avoid the shakes and bars that are just milkshakes and candy bars with a small amount of protein in them. At least 20g of protein in your bar or 20-25g per scoop in a shake is what I aim for. I generally shoot for an average of 225g per day so the supplements help.

I have tons of shakes. I don't like meat. I eat the meats that I do like, but it ends up not being enough usually. Plus I love protein shakes. I dare someone to have a protein shake made with cottage cheese and psyllium husk powder and not feel satiated!

I don't believe there really is NOT a difference. I have stopped doing protein shakes but I still eat protein bars on days that I lift weights. I usually get my protein from MEAT lol, eggs and Greek yogurt. I generally can hit 90 - 120 grams of protein w/ out bars or shakes if I pre-plan my meals.

I am hitting 126g protein some days, with no supplements and being a pescetarian. I have eggs, cottage cheese, a lot of 0% Fage yoghurt, fish, seafood and avocados. I have no issues eating enough and often go well over my daily protein goal, tho my macros are set to 45, 30, 25 or somesuch. I need my carbs to fuel the amount of cycling I do.

Sameish. I hit 130g+ without any protein powder... I don't find it hard at all. In fact I typically hit 130-160g on good days and can actually still be under on carbs, fat, sodium and cals.

Just focusing on the mostly protein foods I have in a day:

• 4+ egg whites at breakfast
• 4-6 oz chicken or turkey for lunch
• serving Fage 0% (single serving container)
• cheese (like Feta or goat)
• lean meat for dinner - typically around 6-8oz
• peanut butter (Bell Plantation/BP2 = low in cals, high in protein, still good fat...)

I guess just do your research and of course eat whatcha want and like but this is my experience.

if i can take my protein with whole foods then i'll do it, but in times that i'm missing then would rather take the protein shakes, at least it's better than nothing.