NOW Whey Protein Isolate Powder

The vanilla flavour is quite overpowering.

This review is my personal view, others may like the taste but not me. It was not acceptable and I gave up. I ended up adding way too much other stuff to get past the taste. Kind of counter productive.

This stuff is great. I don’t usually write reviews, but I’m really happy that I got this.

I was looking for a protein powder with the lowest cost per gram of protein I could find, and I looked at quite a few different products. Many were about 40 cents per gram, and this 10 lb bag was only 28 cents per gram.

It’s unflavored, so I figured it would be pretty gross, given that many of the other flavored powders I’ve tried weren’t that great. It turns out that other protein powder producers are making theirs taste worse by adding flavors. I mixed a pretty concentrated shake with milk and a serving of this stuff, and it really doesn’t taste like much more than milk. It’s very easy to drink, and I actually look forward to my next protein shake now, instead of the mild dread I felt when preparing to drink a mix of the other flavored stuff I’ve been using.

I added a tiny bit of chocolate caramel coffee creamer to it and it went from fine to straight up delicious. I would drink that mix just for fun, similarly to how one would enjoy a regular chocolate milkshake.

Also, this stuff is more concentrated than most protein powders, so it goes farther. One serving of this is a smaller scoop and contains as much protein as one serving of most other powders which use a larger scoop.

I reckon you could mix this stuff with just about anything and it wouldn’t alter the flavor too much, or at least not nearly as much as typical flavored mixes.

I’m no expert but I feel like this is one of the better Whey proteins out there. No added junk, just pure whey. Others have reviewed the nutrition merits so I’ll go into consumption.

When taking this I recommend only 1 cup of water per scoop. If you add more water I think it tastes worse. When I first started taking this I didn’t like the taste and needed to add a spoon of my hot chocolate mix to it for taste. Now I actually really like the taste of it with nothing added. If you didn’t know Whey is actually the protein from milk. It doesn’t taste like milk but you get maybe a hint of that taste. I can’t really describe it.

Another trick I use is if you mix 1 cup of fruit punch and 1 scoop of Whey you get something that tastes like a delicious berry smoothie. This will also give you a 1:1 carb / protein ratio in itself. If I’m not working out at home I take one of these drinks with me so I can take it immediately after my workout or hockey game.

Now just some tips I’ve picked up since you’re looking to get Whey – muscle bulked up. (keep in mind I’m on that route but I’m not all muscle yet)

Carbs are you energy – I recommend getting your carbs in the morning, before your workout so you have enough energy to get through it, and post workout to help restore energy. Half of a PB&J sandwich is my go to energy carb right now. White bread gets absorbed and converted to energy very fast and it works well for me. Carbs are needed to get the protein where it needs to go so don’t go cutting them out completely. Update – Sounds odd but don’t neglect fat – you want about half as many grams of fat or less (preferably unsaturated) as you do protein. You will suffer if you don’t have any fat in your diet. Sunflower seeds, nuts, peanut butter, avocados all have some fat you can use.

I’m trying for somewhere around a 2:1:.5 to 1:1:.3 grams of carbs:protein:fat per pound daily.

When to take your Whey? There’s some debate on whether to take Whey pre-workout or post-workout. Some say both. I used to go post but I recently switched to taking it pre-workout when I take my carbs (simple carbs around 45 minutes before workout) – logic being the protein will already be in your system for muscle repair. I haven’t practiced it enough to say which way is best though. I also take a scoop in the morning. If you go for the daily recommended 1 gram per pound you’ll be taking it throughout the day.

Burning Fat: I’m a fairly skinny guy – however I’ve always had fat over my lower abs. I want abs so that had to go. I’ve lost almost all of that fat and here’s how I did it. To lose weight you simply need to burn more calories then you take in. First, small meals / I make half sandwiches instead of whole ones now – when you go out to eat take home some of your meal in a doggie bag rather than forcing it all down. I only eat when I’m hungry, wait for your hunger pangs and fight them a little. If you’re preoccupied with other things you can ignore hunger pangs easier. If they get too bad go make make yourself a small meal. If you fight hunger pangs for too long your energy levels will drop so go eat some carbs and it will pick them right back up. I’d take a multivitamin to make sure you’re getting everything you need. Do this and watch fat go away – it doesn’t take long, I can see / feel a difference in my stomach every day. When I do have a cheat day – sometimes the stomach wins or peer pressure and you just want to eat – the extra fat added on my belly is noticeable – but don’t fret, you can burn it off in a day or two.

Doing the above routine I lost a lot of fat eating a small bowl of cereal in the morning and a homemade hamburger for dinner. So honestly I don’t think what you eat matters so much as waiting for and resisting the hunger pangs a bit. The end goal is to just burn more calories then you take in – so simply taking in less is an easy way to do that.

Eating healthy: Recently I started eating healthier. It’s a lot easier then you think. Vegetables, low fat meats, egg whites. Spend some time in the produce section of the grocery store and you’ll find a lot of good, quick finger food you may have not considered before. My lunches are mostly all vegetables now. Cherry tomato’s, broccoli, mushrooms, baby carrots, lettuce. All things you can just grab out of your fridge and snack on. Hard boil some eggs, put them in a bag in your fridge and you’ll have egg whites whenever you want. Tuna, mackerel, sardines, frozen tilapia fillets (microwave for 1:30 or so) for fish protein. Skinless chicken breasts or whatever – marinate them in Italian dressing – sprinkle some Weber Gourmet Burger seasoning on right before cooking – cover in tin foil and pop in the oven at 350 degrees for around 40 minutes – delicious. I cook extra to refrigerate and microwave later. Not as good as out of the oven but still good. I’ve never been much of a chef – just picking up stuff along the way. If you have other healthy foods you like please share. I’m always looking to add to my menu.

Workouts: Why the heck is this last? Hah, I’ll just say I’ve been doing the p90x routine, I’m on week 5 and loving it. I find it helps to have something guide you rather than just going to the gym and doing whatever you feel like. When you’re working out you get exhausted and don’t want to think so I would find a good complete routine that switches things up, allows rest days, keeps you motivated, and is easy to follow. Of course take that with a grain of salt, as I said I don’t have huge muscles yet – this is just what I’ve learned so far.

El producto es prácticamente 100% WPI, sin saborizantes, gomas o endulzantes. Así tu puedes utilizarla en la receta que quieras, ya sea licuados, pancakes, panes horneados, etcétera y no modifica el sabor. Yo he hecho pancakes con esta proteína para mis niños y se los comen muy bien.