Whey Protein Shake Drink Helps Promote Healthy Weight Loss

DO PROTEIN SHAKE DRINKS ADD POWER TO YOUR SPORTS DIET?

"Which brand of protein shake drink is best for gaining weight?"

"How many protein shakes should I drink a day?"

"Is designer protein better than chicken?"

Active people have lots of questions about protein, protein shakes and their role in an exercise program. Do these engineered foods provide superior sports nutrition? Looking around a health food store, the abundance of protein shakes suggests they are a popular item. Promoted as a simple way to eat well without cooking, ads also suggest these "designer foods" are better than chicken and tuna.

If you are wondering about the role of protein shakes in your sports diet, the following information can help you evaluate the best ways to optimize your protein intake--and save money.

QUESTION: "I want to bulk up and gain weight. Following the manufacturer's recommendation, I drink three protein shakes per day. Is this enough or too much?"

ANSWER: To decide how many protein shakes you need, you should first determine how much protein your body can use. While adequate protein is important to enhance muscle growth, more may not be better. Excess protein does not get stored as muscle. To bulk up, you need extra calories, adequate protein, hard training and the right genetics.

Most exercise scientists agree that approximately 1 gram of protein per pound of body weight is a generous protein allowance for athletes building muscle mass. This means a novice 180 pound body builder gets more than enough protein with 180 grams of protein per day. This amount of protein can be easily acquired from one quart of skim milk, two cans of tuna and two small breasts of chicken (8 ounces). Because you can obtain more than enough protein from your daily diet, you don't need to consume shakes. You simply need more quality calories--easily obtained from extra juice and milk.