Thursday, March 21, 2013

So what's this WHEY stuff???


We contently have people asking: What is Whey? So lets take some time to go back to the basic and go over what WHEY is.
There are many benefits to including whey protein as part of your daily diet. Whey protein is a convenient way to get your protein. That does not mean that you should replace your meals with a protein supplement. Whey protein can be used in addition to eating whole foods or supplementation of your diet.  Benefits include weight loss when used alongside a well-balanced diet, a convenient snack, when taken post workout it restores depleted amino acids and also inhibits production of cortisol.
                     
After a workout your muscles are depleted of glycogen and amino acids. To restore the glycogen lost a fast digesting carbohydrate is needed to spike your insulin and push the carbohydrates directly to your muscles. At the same time you also want to ingest a quick digesting protein to restore the amino acids in your muscles.

There are three types of whey protein. I’ll start with the “good” type. A whey protein concentrate is good. It is a quick digesting protein when compared to whole food; however it has a slower absorption rate than the other two types of whey protein. About 70% of the protein is actually digested and absorbed by the body. The rest just passes through your body  and may cause gas and bloating. Examples of a concentrate are BSN Syntha-6 and Dymatize Elite Gourmet.
The second type "better" than the first. This is a whey protein isolate. Isolates have the fat and lactose removed. The molecule is slightly smaller than a concentrate. Still on a percentage of it is absorbed and the rest goes to waste. Examples are Met-RX Isolate and BSN Syntha-6 Isolate.

The third type is the "best". It's hydrolyzed whey protein. The process of hydrolysis involves introducing food grade enzymes to the molecule outside of the body slicing it in to smaller pieces. It's essentially pre-digested before it enters your mouth. Hydrolyzed whey proteins are absorbed 100% completely. This type of protein will not cause gas or bloating and it is perfect for pre or post workout, athletes and bariatric surgery patients. Examples include BNRG Proto Whey, Intek Isolate and ON Hydrowhey. So when choosing a  protein, choose wisely and choose what feels best to your body.
So that's the in's and out's of WHEY protein. Feel free to come by and let us give you some samples of the different types of WHEY that we have at 4X!

Til next time,
Seth

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