While on and off my fitness kick this year, I have supplemented my daily diet with a morning protein shake mixed with fat free milk, water, ice, and various fruits that would mix with protein powders well. I have been on the quest for the perfect protein powder with no real success, although Muscle Milk, chocolate flavored powder wins thus far. It got me thinking… Would protein powders and mixes be a good prep item to keep in my staple of food preps? Going out on a limb and giving it some thought, the answer I have is yes, for various reason.
Here are a few reasons that I have come up with:
- I can add additional protein and flavor to meals such as oatmeal and baked goods. It adds additional flavor, and a scoop gives me “up to” my full daily allowance of protein, an essential item if living off some of those vegetarian food preps.
- Protein processes through the body slower, so if you make a “chocolate milk/shake” or add it to food, it should help to curb your food cravings longer than without.
- Portability. I can put it in a plastic zip-lock bag and take it with me if I want, and it weighs almost nothing. I can have a meal supplement with very little weight if I want to.
- Kept in a cool dry place, un-opened it has a long shelf life. I am not sure how long. Maybe two or three years. I have never tested it. But, it is powdered, so I have to believe in a cool dry place you can get 2 — 3 years out of it.
- For what you get in a container of whey protein, it really is not that expensive. If you get 30 servings out of the container and the container costs you $25.00 then a serving costs you only $0.83.
Fact, there are only a couple of protein powder manufacturers that I know of. Everyone buys from them. I like Muscle Milk because of the flavor. However, if price is an issue, you can look at the lowest cost container and know you are not getting a bad product, but maybe made differently than the other brand. So I look for things like “grams of protein per scoop,” “calories per scoop,” etc. and make my decision from there.
Yet another reason for GNC to hype their stuff!
Possibly. I use it as a meal replacement. The Muscle Milk brand has a LOT of vitamins and minerals added to it, so I don’t feel bad about missing a meal with it mixed in water or a glass of milk. It also curbs my hunger cravings for a couple of hours.