The first thing to focus on when getting into the supplement world is what kind of protein you are taking in. It should be a staple in everyone’s diet. For the average person that is just wanting to get in better shape, it is good to shoot for about 0.8g – 1g per pound of bodyweight a day.
If wanting to gain weight and muscle mass, it’s better to shoot for at least 1.5g per pound of bodyweight a day. This will ensure that your body is staying in an anabolic state and focusing on building muscle and burning fat, versus the catabolic state where your body is wasting muscle and preserving fat.
The majority of your daily protein intake should be through lean whole food sources but shakes can be an easy, cost effective way to get to your daily protein requirements. That being said, not all proteins are created equal, and they are all used for different purposes and these purposes coincide with their digestion rate.
Three different types of protein powder
Without going into every individual type that companies use, I will breakdown three different types of protein powder and how they should be incorporated into your diet!
1. Whey Isolate Protein
Great for post workout because it digests in about 45 minutes. Not optimal for a meal replacement because it digests so quickly.
2. Blended Protein
Consists of a Whey blend, egg and either a milk or casein proteins. These work great for a meal replacement because of the time released digestion. The whey will digest in about 45 minutes, the egg one will digest in about 2-3 hours, and the casein will digest in about 4-6 hours. This keeps your body in an anabolic state even when you do not have time to get a meal in!
3. Casein Protein
Great for before bed because it takes 4-6 hours to digest, can be very thick and hard to drink. Will keep you in an anabolic state overnight.
In a perfect world, you have all 3 types in your daily regimen. I understand that this can get pricey so if you have to choose one to use for meal replacement, post-workout, and before bed, go with a blended protein!
I hope this helps you guys kind of make sense of all of the different types of proteins that are out there!
