Protein shakes - When?

[dave_the_nerd]

Meal replacement, or after a workout? I have two brands with the same ingredients and nutrition info. One says either, one says only after a workout.

Or both? (dammit, these things aren't cheap...)

 

[SociallyChallenged]

About an hour after a workout. I've read some research and articles on it showing that the body is most receptive during that time. In all honesty though, if you're eating enough and getting enough protein in throughout the day, timing won't matter all that much.

 

[dave_the_nerd]

Fair enough. Been eating them as breakfast.

 

[RbSX]

Fair enough. Been eating them as breakfast.

That's probably not the smartest move. From what I understand your body doesn't absorb as many nutrients when what you're consuming is in liquid form.

As a general rule of thumb, I have a protein shake every OTHER meal e.g. I if I eat lunch I'll have one at 2:00, eat a late afternoon meal, then have another at 6.

In general I don't have more than 2 per day, unless I have a casein one before bed.

 

[Lamont Burns]

Whenever you want to. Someday everyone will catch up to the fact that it's largely irrelevant to 99.99% of the population.

Macros, not micro

 

[QueBert]

Not cheap? which brands did you buy? You can get a 5lb tub of Whey isolate Protein for like $35 if you look around. I get Muscle Pharm Combat 4lb for $40, it's 52 servings and I loooooove the taste of the Cookies N Cream. Going to buy the Chocolate PB in a few days. Combat has some added fiber too, so you'd feel a bit fuller after taking it over a protein that doesn't have fiber. Syntha-6 has a lot of fiber and tastes awesome.

 

[SociallyChallenged]

That's probably not the smartest move. From what I understand your body doesn't absorb as many nutrients when what you're consuming is in liquid form.

As a general rule of thumb, I have a protein shake every OTHER meal e.g. I if I eat lunch I'll have one at 2:00, eat a late afternoon meal, then have another at 6.

In general I don't have more than 2 per day, unless I have a casein one before bed.

What? Say this out loud and ponder if it makes sense. Liquids are frequently more quickly processed within the body, compared to meals (due to fiber, required breakdown, lesser surface area). The body will digest whatever it can no matter what. It being liquid form doesn't matter.

I will support the fact that taking it in at breakfast is kind of a waste. Why not just eat real food with some milk? Save the whey for post-workout and before bed. Otherwise, just eat everything in sight (good, healthy, calorically dense food, that is).

 

[elitejp]

something i thought worked well for me was just sipping on a shake throughout the day. However i also never used shakes as meal replacements unless i added my own carbs.