How To Pick Your Protein Powder: Step by Step

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Why would you even need a Protein Powder?

The reasons to use a protein supplement can be three-fold. 

1. Not obtaining a sufficient intake of protein from whole foods. Utilising supplemental protein can provide a convenient way to 'top-up' total intake to sufficient levels. 

2. Providing a protein bolus at appropriate times where convenience due to scheduling may make consuming a protein-dense whole food meal, not feasible. For example; post morning exercise, rushing to work and won't get a chance to eat for a few hours. 

3. A convenient source of protein that goes well with certain meals that needs a 'protein boost'. Certain meals are not well suited to the inclusion of protein-dense whole foods. For example; You're not going to put a chicken breast in your morning PB oats w fruit. Protein powder can provide the solution here. 

What to pick - Step by Step

Whey protein. The cheapest, most common and most effective with the 'most powerful' amino acid profile. Whey protein concentrate (WPC) is the cheapest and does the job just as good/better than more expensive alternatives. If you have problems mild digesting lactose, opting for the slightly more expensive, further proceeded whey protein isolate (WPI) is a good idea. Hydrolysed whey protein powders are not worth it.

Vegan / no dairy. 
If you're vegan or avoid dairy for preferences or digestive issues, a rice and pea vegan protein blend is your best bet. The blend of these two plant-based proteins provides an amino acid profile closest to the 'more powerful' protein source being dairy. Find the right one and it's still relatively inexpensive.

Probably not worth it:
Collagen protein: Collagen protein rates poorly in it's the ability to spike muscle protein synthesis to promote a net positive protein balance, which fundamentally dictates whether muscle is gained, lost or maintained. This is due to it's lacking leucine content. Research on the utility of collagen protein on joint health is mixed and not robust. Combined with the fact collagen protein is expensive, it's a gamble at best to say it's worthwhile. 

Weight gainers or 'post-workout blends'
If you're an athlete who does a lot of exercises who needs to eat well beyond hunger, if you're someone looking to gain muscle requiring you to eat beyond your hunger, and/or if you're an athlete who does very frequent bouts of exercise and needs to replenish glycogen rapidly (carbohydrate/glucose 'storage tank's). 'Weight gainer shakes' or 'post-workout protein blends' have some utility. However, they're really just (most of the time) a regular whey protein mixed with carbohydrate powder, commonly in the form of 'a powdered sugar'. They're overhyped and you're probably better off buying whey protein and adding you own carbs from whatever appropriate source you prefer. Not only is this potentially a tastier way to get in additional carbs (if needed), it also gives you the ability to adjust protein to carbohydrate ratios as per needed. When consuming ample amounts of carbohydrates, taste and palatability play a role in how easy and comfortable it is for these high intakes to be achieved.   

BCAA's: Branched-chain amino acids are just 3 of the 9 essential amino acids. They're the 3 most 'powerful ones' that spike muscle protein synthesis the most, but without the rest they're not useful. There is nothing a BCAA supplement can do that a regular protein powder can't and they're very expensive. Save your money.

Fluffy 'health' protein powders. These are the wildly expensive 'health food store' kind that your favourite naturopath or 'woo-woo wellness expert' recommended. The additional ingredients can do a few things.

• Add no additional needed benefit, vitamins and minerals to a diet that is already well rounded, whole food-centric with sufficient plant matter.

• Potentially blunt adaptations to the training stimulus that you're after through the needless inclusion of 'extra' antioxidants.

• Reduce the protein content per serve/100g of the protein supplements.

• Drain your bank account. Save your money. 

'Lean protein'. 
Basically take regular protein powder, add some fancy fluff that does nothing notable if anything to change your energy expenditure and/or Calorie intake, stick a different label on it and you have 'lean protein'. Energy balance over time underpins weight change, and the 'fat loss fairy dust' they add to 'lean proteins' is not going to change any part of that. 

Side note: Athletes & athletes in tested sports. 
As mentioned, weight gainers may have their utility in those with high exercise loads who are required to eat a dose of carbohydrates well beyond their hunger and/or have planned exercise bouts at frequent time intervals. But for the prior mentioned reasons you're likely better off using regular protein powder and adding any additional carbohydrates as per preference, the dose required, comfort and speed of digestibility and absorption. 

Safety of supplements for tested sports. 
The following applies to any supplement for use in sports that are subject to performance-enhancing drug/banned substance testing. No supplements are completely safe from banned substances. When considering the use of a supplement a risk versus reward evaluation should be conducted. To minimise risk, choosing supplements that are certified by Informed-Sport is a really good idea. Check the Informed-Sport website for certified products and proceed with caution. 

We want to make sure our clients and community are making informed choices when it comes to where they spend their time, effort and money to make sure they are getting a worthwhile return on investment. We review products based on their effectiveness and based on what the research says.

To learn how about how our team of coaches and nutritionists can help you make informed decisions by improving your knowledge and understanding of nutrition, contact us today.

Protein Requirements for Vegans

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DO VEGANS NEED TO EAT MORE PROTEIN?

There is a rather strong rational argument that those who don't consume animal-based foods require more protein to be within optimal protein intake ranges especially if the goal is to maximise muscle growth or maximise muscle retention efforts during a fat loss phase.

What is this rational, why is this the case?

Plant-based proteins are slightly 'lower in quality' than their animal-based counterparts. What is referred to here is the amino acid composition of the different protein-containing foods, and whether they're a 'complete protein' containing all 9 essential amino acids (EAA's).

A complete protein is made up of 20 amino acids. 9 of them are essential (EAA's) meaning the body 'can't make them from other stuff', so we must get them through diet. While animal-based protein-containing foods contain all 9 EAA's, plant-based protein-containing foods often lack in 1 or more of the 9 EAA's. So in this sense plant proteins are 'less powerful', or 'less effective' for muscle growth or retention.

However, this isn't really an issue and rather just a slight inconvenience that is easily solved with slightly higher protein intakes and a wider variation of food sources to ensure all EAA's are present within the diet at sufficient amounts, and to 'make up for the lower quality'.

The main 'inconvenience' present is that many protein-containing plant foods come with 'extra baggage' in the form of additional carbohydrates and fats in high amounts. While almost all protein-containing foods come with carbohydrates or fats as well, and it's rare to find a food that is 1 macronutrient in isolation. The relative amounts, or 'protein to carb & fats ratio' is often less favorable for those trying to hit a 'higher protein' intake whilst keeping total Calorie intake within a ceiling required for fat loss to occur.

If we're going to put it down to numbers. Most people who eat animal foods can likely maximise muscular potential with protein intakes as low as 1.6g's per kilo of body weight per day, whereas this threshold for vegans may fall somewhere around 2g per kilo with 2.5g/kg likely around 'whats arguably optimal'. Unfortunately, really precise recommendations are difficult as protein requirements fall on a scale that may change based on the person & their situation. Just understand vegans probably need a little more.

Take home: Plant-based diets can be just as powerful as their animal containing counterparts in terms of muscle, it might just be less feasible from a real-world practically standpoint. A slightly higher total protein intake coming from a wider variety of food sources likely counteracts any potential drawbacks. The feasibility of protein targets and Calorie ceilings may be a little difficult if animal-based foods are off the menu, but it certainly can be done with some guidance from an FNC coach.

[1] Consumption of fat-free fluid milk after resistance exercise promotes greater lean mass accretion than does consumption of soy or carbohydrate in young, novice, male weightlifters.

Protein Bar Review

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I love protein bars. Yes they don't taste as good as a real cookie, or chocolate bar. But knowing they're providing protein towards my daily totals and somewhat lower in Calories compared to something really 'naughty' just makes them taste that much sweeter to the point I am willing to admit I sometimes enjoy them to the level of a legitimate cookie.

In combination with that, protein bars can be a great snack than can almost serve as a meal replacement which is perfectly fine provided the overall healthfulness of the diet is good, whole foods are high, and fruit and vegetable requirements are met. They're a useful tool for buys people as an alternative to reaching for the office kitchen cookie tin.

I'd consider myself a 'protein bar connoisseur'. I've been buying and trying protein bars for a while now and have even had streaks of 'must try all the flavours'. I don't think there would be many protein bars on this planet I haven't tried. So I think I'm a pretty good person to make a few recommendations.

So over time, I've developed a bit of a top 'hit-list'. Here it is.

But before I dive in, IMO the factors that make a protein bar great are as follows.

1. Calories per bite

2. Protein content

3. Taste & texture

4. Digestive comfort

5. Quality of ingredients

Typically protein bars lie on a spectrum of 'full of low quality protein and ingredients that will likely upset your guts', through to 'fake health hipster bars' (the 'raw-natural' kind) that are no better than the 'unhealthier' ones despite the fact they're marketed as being 'natural', and free from 'bad things'.

So here is my pick of the bunch

ALL-TIME NUMBER 1: Smart Protein Bars
Uncooked and free from sugar alcohols making them easy on the guts. The protein quality and content is great and the Calories per 60g bar are the lowest I've seen. The fact they're hard to find and have a questionable texture isn't enough to rid them of my number one spot. They're also not the best tasting bars, but it's a small trade-off and I think they still taste pretty damn good. Unless it’s the coconut flavor, certainly avoid that one.

Number 2: MRE bars.
Probably my favourite tasting bar with fantastic ingredients that are easy on the guts. Only second to the SPB because they're slightly higher in Calories which would be okay if protein content was the same, but unfortunately, they match the SPB at 20g protein meaning the additions in Calories are coming from carbs and fats. Not really a bad thing, but a lower Calorie bar means you can eat more other stuff later on.

Number 3: ONE bars
Up there in taste, not too bad on the Calories but can and do cause some gastric distress. Also, get a point off as they're not available in Australia as far as I understand. If they were they'd be a fair few points in front of Quest bars.

Number 4: Quest bars
Probably the brand that defines the protein bar, they're common, easily obtained, taste pretty good, are decently low in Calories and provide the upper industry-standard of 20g protein. However they can be a little rough on the guts, so proceed with caution. They're very close IMO to the ONE bars but are slightly edged out due to taste. The best part about Quest bars is that they're available almost everywhere!

4 Factors of a Good Diet

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A very common question, that is easily answered via a self-assessment using the following 4 criteria / questions. 

Whether the following criteria are adhered to via a tracking or non-tracking / mindful eating method doesn't matter. Tracking might make assessment easier, which may be a needed to eliminate variables if tight control is required and/or if mindful eating dieting methods are not yielding progress. 

1. Calories. 
Is roughly the correct amount of Calories being consumed on average over time? For the goal of fat loss, this will be a deficit relative to energy expenditure, also terms an energy deficit, Calorie deficit or negative energy balance. 

2. Sufficient protein
Is a sufficient amount of protein being consumed access a daily basis? For the tracking crowd anywhere between 1.4-2g/kg per day will suffice. 

3. Sufficient plant fibre
Current recommendations stand at 15-18g per 1000 Calories consumed [1]. Of that 80% should come from plant matter. Current recommendations for fruit and vegetable intake start at around 300g, & 400g respectively [2]. 

4. Mostly wholefood food selection. 
Most of your diet should come from minimally processed whole foods with the general rule of thumb being 80%+. 

So before you message every Insta diet guru (most of which don't know much about much) just self asses 'the diet' in question against the above. There you will find your answer.  

Bonus factors. 

1. Post diet transition to maintenance eating. 
Sustainability of a diet is surprisingly not a factor here as doing something slightly unsustainable is perfectly fine provided someone has the ability to healthfully, and effectively transition into the post diet maintenance free from rebounds, development of disordered relationship with food etc. For this to be obtained often basic diet know-how, autonomy and education is required. Which begs the argument of another important factor of a successfully diet being; education & autonomy. 

2. Ratios & amounts of carbohydrates & fats. 
Are sufficient carbohydrate amounts being consumed to meet needs? For most 'general-pop' folks who have low levels of activity, and low/ if any training volume and intensity carbohydrate needs are low so how you fill the rest of your Calories after protein has been covered doesn't really matter, so use preference. 
For high-level athletes or those with high training demands carbohydrate needs may be hugely elevated compared to the typical so a carbohydrate bias ratio is almost certainly the best idea with fat intakes only meeting minimum requirements of about 1g/kg of body weight, or 20% of total intake. Typically speaking there are more benefits to learning towards a carbohydrate bias in most situations. Your "body type" is not a factor to consider here.

3. Meal frequency, meal timing, and nutrient timing. 
Again for most people the number of meals you eat, when you eat them and when you time certain macronutrients (Protein, carbohydrates, and fats) relative to the day or training doesn't matter so dedicate your stress elsewhere. 
For high-level sports, or physique athletes and/or goals, or those who are very lean looking to get leaner timing of meals but more specifically protein feedings matters. Ideally, protein should be evenly spread across waking hours in even dosages. Carbs should be emphasised around training to promote best training performance for sports progression and/or optimal muscle growth / retentive stimulus. Timing of fats doesn't matter a whole lot, but I see value in going on the lower end of fats in the pre training feeding window. 

[1] Dietary guidelines for American 2015-2020

[2] Australian dietary guidelines