Are protein shakes worth it?

[Xl House lX]

So I'm thinking about getting a tub of protein powder because I've been getting a little more intense on lifting and I know protein helps build muscle and all that good stuff, but is it really a necessity? Almost everyone I have ever met that does lifting uses protein stuff of some kind.

My main concern is losing weight, but if it really could help, I wouldn't mind sacrificing 250-300 calories to help build muscle.

[lasheric]

The point is to also use this as a meal replacement. If you are lifting weights hard, the protein will help keep the muscles strong. Strong muscles use more energy (burn down more calories) than weak ones, or fat, so in the end it's all helping out. Your idle setup is something like 5 meals a day, 2 being protein shakes.

If you are lifting hard, I'd say that yes it is worth it.

[Exac]

but is it really a necessity?

No.

Try running. Obviously it will help.

[Benitora]

It's not a necessity, it just helps the process along.
Having a protein rich diet should be enough, but if you want to go the extra mile, then protein shakes should do.

I personally see no reason to use it though.

[Karokol]

It isn't a necessity, but it is helpful, especially since it can hold the place of a meal. I specifically like using them in the place of breakfast when I'm running too late to get real food. I would say that overall, they're more helpful than weight loss than lifting, but it probably depends on how you use it and it definitely couldn't hurt.

[Dakara]

If your main goal is to lose weight, then I wouldn't bother. But if you decide to get protein powder, don't go with weigh protein, aim for one with a very low Carb count. You don't want/need a mass gainer.

As for protein shakes themselves in general. They're not needed, just convenient. When I'm working out heavily, I have protein shakes consisting of eggs (one yolk, few whites), milk and bananna. Tastes better than the store bought stuff and atleast I know what's in it.

[KennyBoi3]

Yeah, I'd be careful with protein. Most of them are laced with chemicals that are harmful to the body. As a former bodybuilder and former supplement whore, stay away from it. Most of it is toxic and it's best to just eat natural. Heck it's best to just eat like a vegetarian. It's still your life though. If you wanna trade 3 years of looking big and buff (which most girls laugh about anyway) for a lifetime of irreversible internal damage, go for it. YOLO.

[endersblade]

If your main goal is to lose weight, then I wouldn't bother. But if you decide to get protein powder, don't go with weigh protein, aim for one with a very low Carb count. You don't want/need a mass gainer.

As for protein shakes themselves in general. They're not needed, just convenient. When I'm working out heavily, I have protein shakes consisting of eggs (one yolk, few whites), milk and bananna. Tastes better than the store bought stuff and atleast I know what's in it.

I seriously tried to find the 'like' button for this lol.

I've never used that stuff, but I have had plenty of friends do it. They all said this exact thing - don't bother with the powder. There are plenty of CHEAPER ways (like this guy listed) of getting more than enough protein for weight lifting. It's slightly healthier, and it's far more cost efficient. You also know what you're getting, because you're making it yourself.

[Calgus-CC]

Sorry, I disagree with the vast sentiment here. It is definitely worth it. If you're planning on eating a "balanced" diet, that means cutting back on a lot of fatty beef. You should be eating a large portion of protein and veggies and some carbs to keep you fueled. Unless you want to cram tons of chicken breasts and fish into ever meal, you're going to need another source of protein. Keep your cardio and activity level high and use protein shakes to supplement your protein intake on days when you don't seem to get enough. Remember, you should be getting 100g+ of protein a day, even when losing weight to help build muscle and reduce fat.

[FatRastafarian]

Soooo much 'false' information been posted in this thread so far when it comes to building muscle.
Protein powder is a supplement. Low carb or high carb, it doesn't matter. If you're not getting enough protein, then use it. If it were up to me, I'd happily scoff down 180g of protein a day in chicken breast or steak, rather then a shake.
When it comes to building muscle, protein is important, yes, but if you're not eating enough, you won't gain any muscle. Period. A lot of people believe they gain muscle when they lose weight too, but it's an illusion to the eyes. You're on a diet. You're losing fat (and muscle). The less fat you have, the more the muscle is exposed, hence making you look bigger.
Your body can't lose fat and build muscle at the same time. It's doing one or the other.
If you're ultimate goal is to build muscle, you gotta eat at a surplus (300-500 above daily maintenance will minimize fat gain) and consume at least 1-1.5g of protein per pound of LBM and of course lift heavy - minimum 3x a week.
If you're ultimate goal is to lose fat, your hopes of gaining muscle are out the window so you want to hold onto as much strength and muscle as possible, so still consume your 1-1.5g of protein per pound of LBM, lift heavy (don't focus on isolation too much, compound will benefit more to maintain strength) at least 3x a week and eat at a deficit (300-500 is a good start)

[Rooflesstoofless]

My main concern is losing weight, but if it really could help, I wouldn't mind sacrificing 250-300 calories to help build muscle.

I started doing protein shakes as meal placements while cutting weight. Even had the nasty ones with almost no carbs in them. Even tho I was taking in less calories and still 'thinning out' my actual weight loss stopped. When I stopped using them and I was filling my belly with animal and vegetable protein I started losing weight again. YMMV tho.

[Hedleyazg]

If you're just trying to lose weight, protein shakes are a waste of money.

[Khwaj]

necessary? no
helpful? yes

most common protein powder is made from milk (by product of cheese production)
the need protein powder will depend on your diet, i would say get as much nutrients from whole foods as possible

if you can get all your protein from foods like fish/chicken/beef/soy/etc then you dont need powder, although i try to get my protein from real foods as much as possible, jsut sometime you just dont feel like eating so this is where protein shakes come in

[Souichirou]

It's not a necessity, it just helps the process along.
Having a protein rich diet should be enough, but if you want to go the extra mile, then protein shakes should do.

I personally see no reason to use it though.

That's true and false for two reasons, IT depends how much he weighs as well as since his goal is to build muscle its ideal to get around 1-1.5 grams of protein per pound of body weight so eating a few extra steaks, chicken etc is going to add anywhere between 300-500 calories which would be bulking due to a caloric surplus. But a protein shake like Isoflex has 110 calories and 28 grams of protein along with tons of BCAA's.

I seriously tried to find the 'like' button for this lol.

I've never used that stuff, but I have had plenty of friends do it. They all said this exact thing - don't bother with the powder. There are plenty of CHEAPER ways (like this guy listed) of getting more than enough protein for weight lifting. It's slightly healthier, and it's far more cost efficient. You also know what you're getting, because you're making it yourself.

That's also false since a 5lb tub of isoflex for around $80 which has 75 servings so its around 1.06 per serving, if you factor in the cost of all the ingredients to make a shake that match's the protein content you would be spending more if you do the math for milk 1 gallon would be 15 shakes at 8oz per serving which would cost $4-5, carton of eggs about $3 so that's 12 eggs, 500ml egg whites about $4-5 it might SEEM cheaper as the cost is spread out and lower in total BUT that would only make about 12 shakes so multiply that by 6 to get 72 shakes which would total to $78 BUT the shake would only consist of 1 whole egg 1 egg white and 8oz of milk which protein totals to roughly 17 grams vs the 28 grams from Isoflex.

Now lets take a look at the additional calories per "CHEAPER" shake 100 calories from 8oz milk (skim milk), 70 calories from 1 whole egg, 20 calories from 1 egg white which totals 190 calories for 17 grams of protein you would need to add 1 whole egg, egg white and 2 oz milk to match the protein content which would bring the total to 280-290 calories and 28 grams of protein which is almost 3 times the calories to get the same amount of protein in turn would increase the cost of materials which would cost you more to make your own shakes vs buying.

Now lets look at the big picture since the OP's goal is to lose weight so along with his caloric restriction which limits how much he can consume the "CHEAPER" shake would hinder the caloric deficit hes trying to create since each "CHEAPER" shake would put him in a caloric surplus being almost 300 calories. In the end it would cost him MORE to make his own over all and about 3 times the calories to match protein content.

[Deleted]

The only reason you would need protein shakes are

A. If you cant get enough protein from your diet ( which i highly doubt )
B. You have a small apetite and find it easier to drink it.

[gHouLwiNg]

If you have enough money to maintain the diet with shakes and natural food well go ahead bro, it's totally worth it, trust me. And remember: proteins AINT the same thing with steroids, and DONT have the same adversary effects.

[Deezlar]

Never EVER use a protein shake as a meal replacement.. that is just really bad advice.

Protein shakes are useful, not essential.
They definitely have a place in a cutting diet AND a bulking diet.

I go with a Keto based cutting diet and use a low carb protein shake after lifting, coupled with a calorie deficit.
This way has been shown to preserve more muscle mass during a cut than traditional glycogenic weight loss, although for me I use it as I tend to overeat on a 40/40/20 diet as I LOVE things like rice, pasta and bread so much and cannot easily control portions.

In the words of Homer Simpson "In this house we obey the laws of Thermodynamics!"

Eat less, lift more, supplement sensibly

[Elegiac]

If you're just trying to lose weight, protein shakes are a waste of money.

I disagree. Ketosis-based diets are highly effective for losing weight and protein shakes can be an excellent way to help deal with weaning off carbohydrate addiction.

[Deleted]

So I'm thinking about getting a tub of protein powder because I've been getting a little more intense on lifting and I know protein helps build muscle and all that good stuff, but is it really a necessity? Almost everyone I have ever met that does lifting uses protein stuff of some kind.

My main concern is losing weight, but if it really could help, I wouldn't mind sacrificing 250-300 calories to help build muscle.

It will mostly help for replacing 1-2 meals, which is a god sent. Unless you have your own chef which prepares you 4 balanced meals throughout the day, I'd recommend you to buy a good source of protein powder ( 100% whey gold standard from Optimum Nutrition is good, and at a decent price )

[Deleted]

Hey there

Ok so there are a lot of different answers here and some of them touch on the FACTS but most are just opinion or "I read this on a site with a guy with big muscles on the picture".

I'll put this as simply as possible in a few points for you:

1. 100% Whey Protein will assist you in muscle growth as well as assisting partially in recovery between workouts.
2. 100% Whey Protein is NOT the same as eating the same amount of protein in whole foods (i.e. chicken, etc).
3. Protein powders can contain ingredients that you may not be able to take. (i.e. dairy)

Now a little more in depth (If you want some serious information then feel free to inbox me):

1. Protein is the nutrient that your muscles NEED to be able to grow. No protein, no growth. It's not just your muscles that grow from protein intake, it's everything - even your hair! During workouts your muscles "micro-tear" which is, as it is named, tiny little tears in the muscle tissue. This tissue then repairs bigger and stronger to try to deal with the stress you put on it in the workout previous. The building agent in this rebuilding is protein.

2. Consider your digestive system for a second; when you eat anything, your body digests it, it takes what it needs to be able to digest it and then the rest is distributed around the body to the correct places it is needed. When you drink something, your body still has to digest it, but it takes A LOT LESS energy to digest. Therefore, by taking pro dominantly 'liquid meals', your body is able to absorb the protein not only faster than through whole foods, but also a higher % of the 'in the mouth' nutrient quantity.

Nutrients absorbed = Nutrient in - digestion requirement

3. Pretty obvious but it is definitely worth mentioning. Protein powders can come in different forms of protein source. This can be egg protein, soya protein, and others. If you have an intolerance to something then make sure you check before ordering!

Ok before I head off I'd just like to give my opinion as I guess that's really what you're looking to get as well as facts:

Yes, protein is a requirement in my eyes but only after you reach a plateau or see considerable slowing of results. If you decide to go for it - Optimum Nutrition 100% Whey is what I would suggest. The prices are brilliant and a large tub can last you anything up to 3 months depending on how much you decide to take.

Good luck and inbox me if you need any help at all

Pete

p.s. Look at taking 0.25 X bodyweight in pounds per meal. More than this cannot be absorbed by the body and the excess will be wasted, literally. The only except to this is the "window of oppurtunity" which is a window of around 30-60 minutes after a workout that your body will soak in more than at normal rate - roughly double.

In short - normal times = 1 scoop, after = 2 scoops.