Best protein powders?

For me, whey of choice is Optimum Nutrition Gold Standard Whey. Cheap, solid, and tastes good enough.

Anonymous said:I just need to put on weight, plain and simple...
If this Mass stuff doesn't work, I'm moving on to something else...

Who cares about weight if you're just packing on fat? Using Mass is a one-way ticket to getting soft.

Look, stay away from Mass and cut out the sugar. There’s barely any protein in that junk. How exactly do you plan on building muscle if you aren't giving your body the actual building blocks it needs? My advice—take it or leave it—is to fix your diet first. If you actually struggle to eat enough calories, just grab a decent MRP instead, like this one or something similar.

Anonymous said:So, I decided to kick things off yesterday by picking up... ovo Well, we'll just have to wait and see if it actually does anything...

As analogmarlin41 pointed out—you basically just bought sugar. 😉

If you had bothered to ask before jumping in—just a thought. I suppose I should have expected nothing less—was anyone actually surprised? tih $48!
If there's nothing else, I might just have to send you to... Well? The topic at hand—if one can even call it that—remains open. Shall we begin? 🙂

Well, it certainly looks like you have the budget for it when you're buying like that.

If I were you, I’d consider picking that up—really. Whey protein—it’s become such a staple that people practically treat it like a food group now. Is it actually necessary, or just clever marketing? ($57Grape sugar (0.5kg)—enough to sweeten a lifetime of regret, I suppose? $4.00(I’ve already sent you the details in your DMs)—oatmeal (1kg bag). $2.00(Target, Walmart) — if you ask me, this is the absolute baseline.
Mix some whey with oats for your first meal—just one scoop of whey, about 75g of oats, and water (though you could probably get away with a splash of milk if you're feeling indulgent).
Whey protein plus dextrose—just make sure you hit that window within 40 minutes of training. One scoop of Whey protein and one scoop of dextrose (roughly 45g)—simple enough?
As for your other meals—of which you really ought to be having more—take a look at this. vamo

By the way—just a side note.
Read it. http://forum.teretana.net/viewforum.php?f=10

Here are the basics. 😉

Alright, I'll grab the whey. Money's meant to be spent anyway, and hey, you live and learn from your mistakes... on to the next one...

Anonymous said:Fine, I'll just grab some whey—money's meant to be spent anyway, and you learn from your mistakes... moving on...

And don't forget to actually eat plenty of real food. 😉

analogmarlin41 said:And don't forget to load up on plenty of whole foods too. 😉

I'll definitely try... but honestly, that's my biggest struggle—I can barely stomach much "real" food. I just hit a wall where nothing else fits. That's exactly why I rely so much on all these powders and supplements... Anyway, I just started this routine two days ago, so let's see where I'm at in about a month.

I’m looking for some insight on BioTech—I’ve heard rumors that their whey isn't actually any good. Also, I'd love to get your thoughts on those protein bars you find at CVS that only pack about 12g of protein.

You get what you pay for, I suppose. Honestly, I find myself grabbing them whenever I’m too swamped to sit down for a real meal.

jadetiger962 said:You get what you pay for. Honestly, I just grab them whenever I’m too busy to make a real meal.

Yeah. Only problem is—I'm starving right after, like I didn't even eat anything at all.

So, what’s the deal with BioTech?
I’ve been training pretty intensely for running lately, so I’m trying to be picky about what I put in my body. A buddy of mine mentioned that some of the whey they make isn't actually any good—the one I was looking at, specifically—but he didn't really give me a reason why, and honestly, he isn't exactly an expert in nutrition. So, anyway, does anyone have any advice or insight on this?

Personally, those cheap protein bars you find at CVS don't even come close to filling me up, even if they are dirt cheap.

I haven't checked it out yet.
But man, how cheap is that actually?
I’ve been thinking about grabbing a stash of protein bars to toss between meals.

$1.25, they only have 12g of protein

Tyler Stewart79 said:$1.25, they’ve got 12g of protein

Is that actually any good? I mean, what kind of bars are we talking about here—brand name, manufacturer, everything? Personally, back in the day, I used to just grab one of those vanilla soy shakes from CVS after hitting the gym... nothing fancy, just something to tide me over...

So, if I'm out of Whey protein, can I just smash those chocolate bars instead?
How long does it actually take them to digest? Like, roughly speaking, are we talking fast or slow absorption here?
And if I want to kickstart the process and get them into my bloodstream faster, would it help to wash them down with some glucose?

No, those candy bars aren't really what you want hitting your system right after a workout. If I were you, I’d just grab a shaker bottle and put together a classic combo of Whey protein and some glucose. Just add water, give it a good shake, and you're set.

Keith Watson10 said:So, if I'm out of whey, can I just eat those chocolate bars instead?

Honestly, after a workout, you're better off grabbing a candy bar than eating nothing at all—anything to keep your body from hitting that exhausted, catabolic state.

How long does it take to break down—roughly? Is it fast or slow?

I can't remember the exact formula—probably some soy and dairy blend—but honestly, it doesn't even matter. Regardless of the protein type or the carb count, don't overlook the fat content in those bars. Fat slows down digestion, which means those essential macros aren't hitting your bloodstream when you actually need them. Plus, eating fats right after a workout while your insulin is spiked is a recipe for disaster—it basically tells your body to stash that fat straight into your cells. The carbs go toward glycogen, sure, but the fat just ends up stored. Not exactly what anyone's looking for.

Would pouring glucose over them speed up absorption into the bloodstream?

Doesn't matter. Just stick to mixing glucose and Whey protein—it’s a proven formula for hitting that anabolic sweet spot without packing on extra fat.

Look, I get it, but I was just thinking about what to grab when I'm out of whey—you know, some kind of substitute.

Sometimes when I'm stuck studying at the university, I'll just munch on those protein bars to have something to snack on. Honestly, I figure that's a hell of a lot better than grabbing a bag of Cheetos or some greasy chips.

And analogmarlin41, thanks for the incredibly precise breakdown.
👍

Keith Watson10 said:Yeah, I get it—I was just thinking about having a backup if I run out of whey.

Look, like I said before—I'd rather take an extra couple grams of fat than let my body eat the muscle I've worked so hard to build. Anything is better than nothing. 🙂

Sometimes I'll just grab a candy bar while I'm sitting in class to have something to snack on—honestly, it feels better than eating chips or junk food.

Too true.

And thanks to analogmarlin41 for the spot-on answer.

👍

Don't mention it. Anytime. 🙂

Tyler Stewart79 said:I'm curious what everyone thinks about those protein bars from CVS with only 12g of protein.

They're definitely overpriced—honestly, most protein bars are, once you actually look at the price tag.

Picked up some peanut butter yesterday (I've already got the chocolate Whey protein, oats, and honey)—now I'm going to try making this myself.
Even if it fails, at least it'll be a bit of fun, right? 🙂

Could someone maybe give me a hand here? I’ve recently started hitting the gym because I really want to put on some mass. When I say mass, though, I don't mean packing on a spare tire around my waist—I'm talking about building actual muscle. Most people tell me I'm just naturally skinny anyway.
So, I asked a buddy of mine for advice, and he suggested I just head down to a supplement shop, find a guy there, and explain exactly what I'm looking for so he can walk me through it. I ended up going to the Weider shop over by Baschiera, but honestly, after reading through some of this stuff online, I feel like it was a total disaster. I told the guy I wanted to gain weight without just adding fat, and mentioned I’d be training about three times a week. He just started reciting this scripted little speech like he’s said it a thousand times before. It was all just "you don't just need protein, you need carbs," blah, blah, blah. Eventually, he pushed some Weider Weight Gainer on me. He told me to take it twice a day, regardless of whether I'm training or not—specifically an hour and a half before my workout and an hour after. I checked the label, and it looks like 100g gives you roughly 22g of protein and about 60g of carbs, plus other stuff. When I questioned the clerk about it, he insisted it was the perfect ratio, something like 3:1 in favor of the carbs.
Based on everything you guys have been posting here, it feels like that guy was just talking nonsense. So, what would you all actually recommend for someone like me? I'm looking for a specific product that's good for a beginner, where the price and quality are actually somewhat reasonable.