How to choose the best protein powder for you…

So you’ve made the choice to head back to the gym and looking for something to ‘replenish’ your muscles with, or you’ve read up about blood sugar and want to add a good quality protein source to your morning routine to avoid your sugar crashes and energy throughout the day, or maybe you just want something to boost your protein intake through the day and love a good tasting smoothie! Whatever your motive, protein powders have been attracting a lot of attention over the last decade with conflicting beliefs over their benefits.

***Benefits of increased protein intake***

Before we dive into which one is best for you, what’s the reason behind the sudden need for ‘more protein’. Gone are the days where we saw protein intake as the requirement of the maxi-muscle body builders, weighing eggs and chicken breast for ‘#gainz’.
Protein is found in every cell of the human body. A protein consists of a chain of amino acids. In order for your body to repair and make new cells, you need protein in your diet. Protein is also needed for growth and development in children, teens, and pregnant women as well as the basic building blocks of our body tissues such as our skin, hair, nails and bones.

Not only do we require protein to build the anatomy and physiology of the body, but also in order for the systems in our body to run smoothly. Without adequate protein intake, we are unable to create the digestive enzymes required for healthy digestion, often resulting in symptoms of bloating and discomfort. Similarly, the amino acids that form these proteins are also the same amino acids required to build our essential hormones such as cortisol, adrenaline and melatonin for our sleep/wake cycle as well as having significant impact on our sex hormones.

With the growing understanding of the role of blood sugar as a foundation of our health and with infographics and books such The Glucose Revolution from The Glucose Goddess, we are understanding the importance of using protein to not only build and repair our bodies, but how including a high protein breakfast can have such an impact on our blood sugar, resulting in weight loss, happy hormones, clearer skin and the banishing of the afternoon slump. By blunting the absorption of carbohydrates and sugars, protein has been shown to stabilise blood sugar levels. The effect of protein on blood glucose levels tends to occur gradually over several hours since protein breaks down into glucose more slowly than carbohydrates.

Types of protein and protein powders

To understand protein and its usage in the body, we should understand that there are two different forms of protein – animal and plant. From a anatomical perspective, the structure of animal protein is most similar to what we will eventually turn it into with in the body and is therefore a ‘complete protein’. It contains all the amino acids that are required by the body to grow and repair muscles as well as supporting the replenishment and functioning on a cellular level. Now you can probably tell from this that the alternative to a complete protein is an ‘incomplete protein’ which is the plant sources of protein. In order to get the full benefit of an ‘incomplete protein’ we need to pair and serve them with complimentary ingredients and other sources to enhance their bioavailability.

With this same concept in mind, we can apply this knowledge to our choice of protein powder also. Whey-based proteins are complete, whereas vegan products require a number of plant-based protein sources combined into one powder or we must be choose them with the awareness that they are in fact an incomplete protein. With most supplemental products, I suggest choosing an organic product, especially if you are using an animal protein such as whey, as you won't be ingesting any additional antibiotics, hormones, pesticides, etc. that are unfortunately permitted in non-organic production.

Similarly, when choosing a protein powder, we want to abstain from those colourful packaging boxes and are often priced at the lower end of the spectrum. It’s incredibly frustrating to turn over to see a label with synthetic protein sources, full of additives, colourants, sugar, sweeteners, bulkers and nonsense that quite simply counter products the reason for taking them in the first place and brings a whole host of weird symptoms we want to steer clear from.

***Recipe Idea***

Use your protein powder of choice to make Salted Cookie Dough Balls.
Recipe here

Do I need a protein powder?

Our protein requirements all vary in different stages of our lives. The general guidance explains that we should require 0.8g per kg of your body weight of protein per day – however, those who live active lifestyles, are pregnant, recovering from illness/surgery or suffer from energy issues throughout the day will have an increased requirement. You should work with a Nutritional Practitioner to safely understand your protein requirements. It’s also important to know that in the modern western world, we see more frequently individuals under-achieving their protein intake rather than over-exceeding.

We can naturally include protein rich ingredients into our diets with animal foods such as lean meats, poultry, fish and sea food, eggs and dairy based products such as Greek Yoghurt. Similarly, plant based proteins such as nuts, seeds, lentils, pulses, and tofu are also great options to include into your diet – but don’t forget, you will need to combine all of these ingredients in order to intake a complete protein.

Like most food and mineral supplements, I recommend considering protein powders as an addition or ‘top up’ to your healthy and balanced lifestyle. Along side including the foods mentioned above with plenty of beautiful coloured fruits and vegetables you can top up your protein intake with a good quality protein powder. Being stirred into your normal yoghurt bowl for a little ‘top up’ of protein or creating snack balls to have on hand to keep your blood sugar in check or even having a little protein boost as a smoothie knowing you’re going to have a late lunch and don’t want to reach meal time in a shaky sugar drop mode.

You can read more about the different forms and types of protein in my recent post with Equi London here

Brands to choose from:

It can be challenging to know what to look for on the shop shelf, so here are some of my go-to products:

Animal Based: