Best protein powders for muscle gain?

Legica... those news additives, right? 😬 I told you it was a silly question... because honestly, up until now, I've always just focused on how much glucose is in the measurement, rather than worrying about the sugar or the rest of the composition.

Brandon Lewis2 said:Don't make things harder than they need to be. If you prefer mixing it with milk, go right ahead—use whatever works for you. If you force yourself to drink something that tastes terrible, you'll eventually develop a psychological aversion to it.
No matter how much nutritional value a supplement provides, if the flavor is unpleasant, the chances of you sticking to the routine long-term are virtually zero.

That is very wise advice.😉

jadeowl said:I’ve got a quick question... I just can't stomach whey mixed with water; it honestly makes me want to gag every single time. Is it actually okay to mix it with milk instead? Maybe something like skim or 1% so it isn't too heavy? 😁
I know everyone and their mother swears by mixing it with water for faster absorption, but my stomach just won't have it. 🙂

Just grab some basic fruit juice from a concentrate—lemon, orange, cherry, blueberry, elderberry, strawberry... whatever you're feeling. Or even a Gatorade if you want. Use your imagination. 😉

Steven Lopez35 said:I’m still sticking to my guns: you don't need to "save" creatine for later. Personally, I didn't jump on it right away, but we dragged a buddy of mine into the gym with a solid program, proper nutrition, and correct technique. He made a massive leap in just a few months, and frankly, we’ll never know how much better he could have looked if he’d had creatine from day one. We put way too much weight on something as mundane as creatine—not to mention cycling or ephedrine (which, let's be honest, isn't really my lane since I'm not looking to go down that road right now). As for loading phases, I don't think they're strictly necessary, but if you want to hit peak saturation faster, why not?

Did you guys actually test him before and after his cycle? How much progress did he make? Did you run something like a VO2 max treadmill test? What sport does the guy even play? It’s honestly "weird" to claim a guy ballooned in size just from taking roughly 25g of creatine a day🙂.
I’m not going there regarding ephedrine, and I don't want to keep repeating myself about the creatine.

jadeowl said:I have one question... mixing whey with water just doesn't sit right with me; it constantly makes me nauseous. Could I get away with using milk instead? Maybe something like 1% or something similar, nothing too heavy. 😁
I know everyone insists you have to use water so it absorbs faster, but it's just not working for me. 🙂

You can absolutely mix whey with low-fat milk. Grab some 0.5% Visa.

slydriver52 said:You can always mix your whey protein with low-fat milk. You could even go with something like Nestlé's 0.5% milk.

That is actually what I tried recently, and I found it quite pleasant. I think I will stick with that approach moving forward.😁

What would actually happen if you mixed this with some 2.8% milk?

slydriver52 said:So, did they actually test him before and after his cycle? How much progress did he make? Did they run a treadmill stress test or anything? What kind of athlete is this kid? It’s honestly "weird" that someone would blow up just from taking maybe 25g of creatine a day🙂.
I'm not even going to touch the ephedrine topic, and I don't want to go in circles about the creatine again.

We didn't run any formal tests. The kid just asked what we were using, we told him whey and creatine, so he decided to start on that too. In two months, he went from a 20lb dumbbell bench at 35lbs to hitting 130kg on deadlifts from 70kg, etc.

He doesn't do anything besides hit the gym.

That's my point—I have no clue how much of that was the creatine or not, and we're never gonna know🙂

Tyler Wood4 - absolutely nothing. It's totally irrelevant what kind of milk you mix it with.

Thanks, I really needed to know that. Small problem though—I didn't get one of those little scoops you usually find in protein tubs to show you the serving size. Any idea how I can eyeball out 30g? Like, how much is in a standard tablespoon or something?

Two little monsters for the soup, about 30g total...

Is it actually fine to knock back some whey with milk right before hitting the sack on training days?😁

Henry Evans3 said:Is drinking whey with milk before bed actually a good move on training days?😁

Protein shakes? They work. But timing is everything. Best bet is right after a workout. You can also toss one back in the morning or before you hit the sack. It all just depends on what kind of results you’re actually chasing.

Jack Ward82 said:Yeah. But honestly, it's probably best right after you hit the gym. I mean, you could drink it in the morning or before bed too... I guess it just depends on what kind of results you're actually chasing.

Can I just blast it three times a day?
The bag says one hour before and immediately after training, and not to go over the dose😁

Two tablespoons. Am I talking heaping scoops here, or should they be level?

Kenneth Jackson3 said:Can I blast through this three times a day?
The bag says one hour before and immediately after training, and don't go over the dose... 😁

Two tablespoons. Should I scoop them full or level?

Man, don't stress out over the small stuff. What really matters is hitting that 28, 30, or 36 grams per serving... just grab two medium-sized scoops and call it a day.

Kenneth Jackson3 said:Can I slam this three times a day?
The bag tells me one hour before and right after training, and don't go over the dose 😁

Two tablespoons. Are we talking heaping scoops or level?

Whey is just a supplement. Look, if you factor in that you need roughly 2 grams of protein per kilo of body weight—do the math 😉 (80 kg x 2 g protein = 160 g). You’re going to get the bulk of that from actual food, and then use the whey to fill the gap. It's basic logic. If your diet is garbage, drinking whey isn't going to save you; you're just swapping one protein source for another. Of course, to give you a real answer, I'd need to know what you're actually aiming for (bulking up, cutting down, etc.)

Jack Ward82 said:Look, whey is just a supplement. If you follow the rule of thumb that you need about 2 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight—so, let’s do the math on 😉 (80 kg x 2 g protein = 160 g)—you’ll get most of that from your actual meals, and then you just use the shake to fill in the gaps. It won't do squat if your diet is trash and you're just relying on whey; at that point, you're basically just swapping one protein source for another. I mean, obviously, to give a real answer, I'd need to know what you're actually trying to do, like whether you're bulking up or cutting down, etc.

Nah, I eat right, I totally get that it's just a supplement. I just didn't realize I was allowed to have more than two shakes a day as a supplement.

What’s the best way to fuel up before and after a workout? I’m not hitting up a gym or anything—just grinding through Insanity, Asylum, and P90X at home. Is slamming some Weider Protein 80 Plus a good move once I'm finished?

Steven Lopez35 said:We didn't run any clinical trials here. The kid just asked what supplements we were using, so we told him whey and creatine. He decided to jump on board, and within two months, he went from a 35lb dumbbell bench to 70lbs and bumped his deadlift from 150lbs to 285lbs.

Just focus on the gym and leave the rest alone.

That’s my point. I have zero clue if the creatine actually moved the needle for him or not; we’ll never truly know.🙂

Tyler Wood4 - absolutely nothing. It's irrelevant whether you mix it with milk or water.

It’s obvious the kid left out some key details.😉
This isn't about the creatine.

slydriver52 said:It's obvious the guy just left some details out.😉
Creatine has zero to do with this.

He didn't leave anything out. He said he was doing pushups at home and squatting his sister (she's like 100-110 lbs), I'm 100% sure about that.

I didn't even mention that his squat jumped from 110 lbs to 200 lbs in sets, or that he's hitting 150-175 lbs ATG...

Steven Lopez35 said:He didn't stay quiet about anything! He actually said he was doing push-ups at home and squatting his sister (who's like, maybe 100-110 lbs?), I'm totally positive on that.

And that's really what made him grow? Wow.

I guess the big question for everyone else in this thread is probably how old that sister actually is.

-briskjackal5