Protein food /shakes on a budget + other

AdventureRocks

I would like to up my protein in take to assist in the muscle building process.

What is the best value protein shake i can get which is a good quality not full of Soy and has many natural ingredients and few artificial as possible please? If i am having two of the shakes a day it is very important to me that i am not consuming any ingredients which are harmful. The best i have found so far is "Whey Protein 80" from Go Nutrition. I have also found 5kg for £33 of "Olympus Health Premium Protein PRO-XL 5kg" which i am guessing is going to be full of rubbish?

Also what are the cheapest foods which are packed with protein? Anything cheaper than shakes? I love Tuna but you can not eat a lot due to the mercury which is a shame.

Thanks :beer:

Sharon87

Chicken is packed with protein and quite cheap. I tend to eat a lot of salmon, but it's not that cheap, I tend to buy it when they're reducing it at the end of the day, or you could try frozen, it's supposed to have more nutrients in frozen.

I don't know about the powder you're asking about, I can't stand the taste of them, so go for premixed ones, which probably have some artificial things in you don't want!

AdventureRocks

Ready mixed ones? Did not realize you could get them already done , any recommendations?

StuC75

The ready mixed ones are often UHT treated (long life) and so may have an aftertaste too?.

Ive always preferred powder and a good mixer (usn tornado one), also sometimes leaving it for 5 mins after mixing (then giving another brief shake) improves the consistency..

I would be wary of 'too much' protein, but that depends on what your looking for bulk wise..

I do more cardio \ cycling distance so current prefer the SIS Rego mix, and Meal Replacement shakes (USN Diet Fuel) - that's protein and carbs and that helps with the recovery and so gives less muscle aches when cycling day to day, with the meal replacement helping with Fat loss.

if its your first foray into these , then look to try the smaller sizes first (although not as cheaper per kg), but it will help you decide if you like the taste of it -- nothing worse then having 5kg of something you don't like..

Fluff15

I've found The Protein Works whey 80 sf (soy free) to be the best value - plus they have 20% off at the moment. It's almost the same nutritionally as Optimum Nutrition gold standard whey, but half the price. Mixability is great, it's a nice smooth shake and all the flavours I've tried so far I've liked. Caramel macchiato is my favourite.

AdventureRocks

Fluff15 wrote: »

I've found The Protein Works whey 80 sf (soy free) to be the best value - plus they have 20% off at the moment. It's almost the same nutritionally as Optimum Nutrition gold standard whey, but half the price. Mixability is great, it's a nice smooth shake and all the flavours I've tried so far I've liked. Caramel macchiato is my favourite.

This stuff looks awesome thank you very much for the recommendation!

I did find Optimum Gold in my research but as you say the cost is very expensive.

AdventureRocks

StuC75 wrote: »

The ready mixed ones are often UHT treated (long life) and so may have an aftertaste too?.

Ive always preferred powder and a good mixer (usn tornado one), also sometimes leaving it for 5 mins after mixing (then giving another brief shake) improves the consistency..

I would be wary of 'too much' protein, but that depends on what your looking for bulk wise..

I do more cardio \ cycling distance so current prefer the SIS Rego mix, and Meal Replacement shakes (USN Diet Fuel) - that's protein and carbs and that helps with the recovery and so gives less muscle aches when cycling day to day, with the meal replacement helping with Fat loss.

if its your first foray into these , then look to try the smaller sizes first (although not as cheaper per kg), but it will help you decide if you like the taste of it -- nothing worse then having 5kg of something you don't like..

Thank you for the advice!

With the too much protein what is the situation? I have read varying facts is it 1.4grams per kg of body weight?

dixon-bainbridge

I use the unflavored Impact Whey from MyProtein and add it to meals (pancakes, smoothies etc). Cheap and effective.

In terms of low cost protein foods, some examples I can think of are chicken breast, turkey, greek yogurt, any type of fish (coley, mackerel etc is cheap.), tinned beans. The following link might be useful.

http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/ultimate-list-40-high-protein-foods.html

Fluff15

AdventureRocks wrote: »

This stuff looks awesome thank you very much for the recommendation!

I did find Optimum Gold in my research but as you say the cost is very expensive.

It is good. Why are you having two shakes a day? Is it to supplement the lack of protein in your diet? Remember these shakes are supplements, not meal replacements.

High protein foods: chicken breast (buy in bulk and freeze), turkey mince/any turkey, eggs, quark, cottage cheese, fish, beef jerky/biltong, beef steak, pork chops, nuts and nut butters, tofu, beans.

If you are following a heavy bodybuilding exercise regime, remember you only need 1.7g protein per kg of body weight. So me, a 57kg female, needs around 97g a day. I usually go slightly over this with one serving of a shake, but for me this is good because of my exercise regime.

Feral_Moon

Milk! No need for expensive artificial food. Make sure it's raw though, not pasteurised.

AdventureRocks

Feral_Moon wrote: »

Milk! No need for expensive artificial food. Make sure it's raw though, not pasteurised.

Milk has a lot of sugar and carbs in though?