Whey to Go?

I still remember the first time I ever tasted it. I was in the sixth grade on my way to dance practice, and my mom was concerned about me getting enough protein because I had just gotten braces. She got me a strawberry milkshake from McDonald's and a jug of protein powder probably from GNC because this was the 90's - way before widespread health food grocers and before protein powder was used by people other than body builders and prepubescent boys looking to bulk up for the ladies aka sixth grade hotties with braces like me (riiiiiight!). Anyway she mixed a heaping of the powder in with my shake and licked the spoon after she finished.

I should have placed the shake directly in the trash right then and there with the face that she made, but being the dutiful daughter that I always was (Isn't that how you remember it, Mom?!), I gave it a try.

YUCK!!! I think a few sips was all I managed and even those came with some coaxing from Mom.

Well here I am, 14 years later (Eek! Was it really that long ago?!) thinking about giving protein powder a second chance.

I am not a big meat eater and not really into dairy either other than my beloved Greek yogurt, so my main sources of protein on a daily are from nuts and beans. While they are both great, nuts are high in fat (mostly good fat mind you, but nonetheless), and I'm not looking to serve beans for every meal mostly to save myself from my husband ("Beans, beans the musical...").

So I have been doing a little thinking and reading on my healthy eating food blogs (Peas and Thank You and Carrots 'N' Cake) about adding protein powder to some of my cooking. I hopped over to Amazon's Subscribe and Save to search for some deals on vanilla protein powder.

I was overwhelmed by options. How do I know which one tastes good and which one will give me traumatic flashbacks? But then I thought, "What do I really know about protein powder?"

And my answer was "Nothing." So I decided I needed to educate myself before I purchased some.

I learned that there are many types of protein powder:

• Whey: derived from the process of making milk into cheese
  
• Casein: another milk based powder that provides a slow, sustained release of amino acids and bodybuilders commonly use this kind because it helps them maintain an anabolic state
  
• Soy: made from dehulled, deflated soybean meal and is found in a lot of health food products
  
• Egg White: a lactose and dairy free type of protein powder
  
• Hemp: seed contains complete and highly digestible protein and the oil is high in essential fatty acids
  
• Rice: vegetarian protein powder that tends to be digested easier than whey
  

Also learned some benefits of adding protein powder to your diet:

• Endurance Support: Helps recovery after a cardiovascular endurance workout (like your LONG Saturday run) and helps fight muscle soreness (Hmm...might be interested in trying it for that reason alone in light of my recent problems)
  
• Weight Control: Protein digests more slowly, helping to keep our appetite in check :)
  

After doing some research and reading through some recipes, I think it is at least worth a shot. I'll probably try whey or rice. I have tried to find rice protein powder and it seems a little harder to come by so if I can't find that I'll go with whey.

I'll let you know how it goes! Bottom's up!!