Protein
Powder - The King of Supplements
One
of the fastest ways to improve health and performance is through
diet. Dietary changes can be made on both micro and macro levels.
Making “macro” , or large scale changes to your diet is fast and
easy way to start seeing the results your after. Looking at basic
dietary needs from a macro level reveals the three nutrient groups
the body uses for fuel: carbohydrates, fats, and proteins. Today’s
diets include far to many of the first two and not enough of the
last.
When
carbohydrates and fats begin to dominate your caloric intake, the
body natural reaction is to create fat stores. The reason for this is
two fold:
#1.
rapidly assimilating carbohydrates, ie: sugars, cause the body to
release the hormone insulin. Insulin release signals to the body
that a whole lot of energy is coming this way, lets store some for a
rainy day, to guard against possible starvation. Complex
carbohydrates release insulin slowly, allowing the body to metabolize
the sugars more slowly slow they are used as energy and not stored as
fat.
#2. Fat
has over twice as many calories per gram as sugar, 9 and 4
respectively, so a little fat goes a long way. Now when fat
is consumed in combination with sugar you have the perfect recipe for
fat storage. High insulin levels with a ton of extra calories the
body can't use....the result, slow steady weight gain over time that
takes along time to get rid of.
So, now
we look at our remaining macro nutrient component, protein. Protein
has as many calories per gram as sugar – 4, but is not utilized
primarily as an energy source like the other two. Proteins' role in
the body is to rebuild tissue and help you recover from activity.
Supplementing your diet with additional protein and balancing out
your daily caloric intake will ensure you can properly recover from
any exercise or training you do. Adding an additional 50 grams of
protein from protein powder supplementation can pay huge dividends
for your body, but what type should you get?
There
are several types of protein powders out there, but we will focus in
on the 3 most popular. - Whey
protein: is a fast
digesting protein with a bio-availability (BV) score of 104 out of
100. This means the body can readily use and assimilate this protein
source quickly and efficiently. Whey is typically categorized by the
speed of its assimilation: Concentrate, isolate, and hydrosylate are
three types of whey protein in order from slowest to fastest
assimilating. Speed is a relative term in this case as Concentrate
may take 20 minutes to absorb and hydrosylate may take only 7
minutes, both are extremely fast compared to say beef protein which
may take over an hour. Whey, because it moves through the body so
efficiently can sometimes lead to gastrointestinal issues, like gas
or bloated feelings in some people.
- Egg
Albumin: egg white protein
is a great alternative to whey. It does not absorb quite as fast but
still has a high bio availability rating of 91 in powdered form. Egg
protein is offered in flavored forms like vanilla and chocolate and
mixes easily with water or milk to make shakes.
- Casein:
this is the left over milk protein when whey has been removed- it is
a slow digesting protein with a BV of 77. Why would you want a slow
digesting protein? For nighttime replenishment...faster digesting
proteins like whey would leave the body wanting for protein shortly
after sleep begins, so supplementing with a slower digesting protein
like casein gives the body a “slow drip” throughout the night to
help fight catobolism. This protein source is for advanced trainers
whose diet and meal regularity would allow for this type of
precision to be effective.
No
matter what your activity level, adding protein powder to your diet
is a great idea if you want to improve general health as well as
speed recovery from activity. People who supplement with as little as
50 grams a day of additional protein report feeling stronger during
activity as well as showing steady decreases in fat stores over time.
Choose a protein powder supplement today and get on the road to
better health and vitality.
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