Protein Powder
I have a love/hate relationship with protein powder. First I hated it, then I loved it, then I hated it, now I love it again but I'm a bit of a freak about quality and purity.

I started using protein powder in my bodybuilding geek phase. Most protein powder ten or twelve years ago tasted like rat poison sweetened with antifreeze and it mixed like concrete (old Optimum, GNC and Met-Rx). I didn't like it but I thought I was supposed to ingest it if I wanted to look all muscley so I dutifully drank 2-3 servings per day and lifted heavy things.
Eventually, protein powder evolved. It became easier to mix and was sweetened with sucralose and ACE-K, which tasted much better even if it was an unholy chemical cocktail (EAS, Designer, Syntrax). I loved it! I bought it in 5 pound tubs.
After years of daily consumption, I grossed myself out on the stuff. I was sick of bodybuilding food and bodybuilding rules. I wanted to hurl my egg whites, protein powder, steamed vegetables, oatmeal, and grilled chicken.
I started reading Michael Pollan and became suspicious of edible food like substances. I decided that protein powder wasn't food and quit buying it for myself. My husband thought I'd gone nuts (again LOL) and kept drinking it himself.
After being anti protein powder for a while, I'd taken my "mostly plants" approach to the point of being nearly vegan and going weeks at a time without any animal products at all. To bump my protein intake a little, I found a raw vegan protein powder with no chemicals (Sun Warrior) and started adding it to my green smoothies.
Ok, so, happiness! I have my Sun Warrior that I enjoy a couple of times per week. Husband is very happy with his daily EAS 100% Whey. Then the Consumer Reports investigation about heavy metals in protein powders came out. They found mercury, cadmium, arsenic and lead in many of the biggest brands. EAS, Designer, GNC, Optimum, Muscle Milk, and MuscleTech all had contaminants. (Click on the "Our recent investigation" and "three of the products" links in that CR blog post to see more.)
I wasn't thrilled with the report. I wish they'd given more information, like how common are these substances in other foods? How does it get into the protein powder? Which brands tested safe? Maybe they went into more detail for subscribers but the little snippets posted on the web scared the hell out everyone with no real answers.
My first course of action was to toss the husband's EAS. He likes the taste of my Sun Warrior rice protein but won't use it because it doesn't mix easily with a spoon. (I'm a blender junkie.) I started looking for a high quality natural whey and found some good ones. That crazy Mercola guy makes an ultra-pure and natural Miracle Whey but it's insanely expensive. Mercola is paranoid enough that I'm sure his product is freaky safe, but it was something like $38 a pound compared to $9 a pound for EAS. (Yes, when I saw the price I clutched my chest and stumbled around in a circle.) Of course, it was all the most popular and affordable brands that were full of toxic waste. Who knows if they even tested the high-end natural brands or what they found. Does anybody subscribe to Consumer Reports or have the whole article?
After a trip to the health food store for samples, I found Jay Robb whey. I also bought some Jay Robb rice protein and a packet of Vega Sport rice, pea, hemp, alfalfa protein.
The Vega Sport was very...plant tasty. It was good, but all of the ingredients have strong plant flavors. It would be perfect in a green smoothie but might overwhelm something more delicate and fruity. I got the berry flavor and all I tasted was alfalfa and peas. It's also in that scary $30-$35 a pound price range. It's crazy nutritious but I prefer the taste of Sun Warrior.
The Jay Robb whey is delicious. The tub says it's "The best tasting protein on the planet" which made me roll my eyes but damned if that isn't an accurate statement. Chocolate, strawberry and the tropical dreamsicle flavor were all fantastic. It changed my opinion of whey protein. It has a thin consistency, mixes easily, comes from grass fed, hormone free cows, is sweetened with stevia, and costs a fortune compared to EAS. However, it's not quite as expensive as Vega Sport or the Mercola stuff. It's around $25 a pound, roughly the same as Sun Warrior.
Here are some of my favorite smoothies. I freeze all the fruit and veggie ingredients to make the drinks frostier. If I want to save some calories I use 50/50 almond milk and ice water instead of all almond milk.
spinach, mango, banana, almond milk, vanilla Sun Warrior
blueberries, blackberries, raspberries, strawberries, banana, almond milk, strawberry Jay Robb
banana, peanut butter, almond milk, chocolate Jay Robb
pineapple, mango, banana, almond milk, tropical dreamsicle Jay Robb
So, there's my giant protein ramble. Disclosure: I don't make any money on protein powder. Quite the contrary! LOL
Do you use protein powder or avoid it? Has that changed over time? What's your favorite brand and flavor? Did the Consumer Reports article change your buying habits? Got a favorite blender recipe?
Posted by skwigg
at 9:00 PM CDT
Updated: Monday, 16 August 2010 9:28 PM CDT