Can you take protein powder without working out?
Can you take protein powder without working out? You should take protein powder without working out if you need the protein. Learn more about how to use protein powder.
You can take protein powder without working out.
What is protein powder?
Why use protein powder?
Can you take protein powder without working out?
Why drink wholesome?
What is protein powder?
Protein powder is a powdered form of high-protein foods like eggs, peas, and milk. It alone will not make you stronger or make you lose weight. In other words, do not expect it to do anything for you that other high protein foods cannot. It can certainly help you achieve your diet and fitness goals, but only when paired with thoughtful exercise and nutrition. If you use protein powder to achieve calorie deficit, for example, it may help you lose weight. If you use protein powder to achieve a calorie surplus, it may help you gain weight. Achieving a calorie deficit or surplus, however, has a lot more to do with overall diet and lifestyle than with protein supplementing.
Why use protein powder?
Protein powder is for everyone, not just bodybuilders and swimsuit models. Here are a few of the reasons why people use protein powder:
1. Protein powder is a supplement. It can be used to supplement your diet, ie. boost your protein intake if you are not getting enough protein. Many vegans and vegetarians use protein powder for this reason.
2. Protein powder is convenient. It is easier to drink your food than it is to chew it. It is also easier to make a protein shake than it is to cook a meal. Many people therefore make a protein shake when they are in a hurry.
3. Protein powder is easy to digest. Many people with sensitive stomachs, including bariatric patients, use it for this reason.
Most people use protein powder to simply boost their protein intake. They are not necessarily trying to gain or lose weight, they are just trying to eat enough protein (roughly 1 gram per kilogram of body weight per day). It therefore does not matter if they hit the gym or go on a special diet. As long as protein powder is helping them to reach their daily protein goal, it is working for them.
Can you drink protein powder without working out?
Drinking a protein shake without working out is perfectly safe, and if you need the protein or calories, it is good for you. If you are not engaging in regular exercise or strength training, your protein requirements may be lower than someone who is more physically active, but you still need protein. Moreover, if you are struggling to meet your daily protein needs through regular food alone, adding protein powder to your diet is a great idea. Vegetarians and vegans, the elderly, and people with certain medical conditions frequently use protein powder with no intention of going to the gym. They just need an easy way to hit their protein goals.
What constitutes enough protein is different from everyone, but you should be eating at least 0.36 grams per pound of body weight per day. This means that if you weigh 150 pounds, you should be eating at least 54 grams of protein. Use our Daily Protein Intake Calculator to figure out how much protein you need. Keep in mind that most of your protein should come from high protein foods like eggs, fish, and meat. Protein powder should just be used to fill in the gaps, or when cooking and eating a meal is not convenient.
Consuming too much protein is not dangerous per se, but you should be careful about how much protein powder you consume. This is because many protein powders are made with added ingredients that can cause side effects. Keep reading to learn more.
Why drink wholesome?
drink wholesome is additive-free.
One of the reasons why we make the best protein powder is that we do not use food additives. Most protein powders, on the other hand, are full of food additives.
Food additives may improve characteristics like taste, texture, and shelf stability, but they can also cause uncomfortable side effects and long-term gut damage. Basically, because they look nothing like real food, food additives are hard to digest. They therefore sit in your gut for longer than food should, which gives your gut bacteria more time to eat. As they eat, these bacteria produce gas, causing bloating and stomach pain.
Gas also slows colonic transit (the amount of time it takes food to travel through the colon), which can lead to constipation. Over time, food additives can add up (especially if you drink a protein shake every day), and disrupt regulatory pathways in the intestine. Eventually, this can lead to the development of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) and systemic inflammatory disorders.
When buying protein powder, one additive to avoid in particular is artificial sweeteners. Artificial sweeteners are among the most harmful food additives in the long term as they alter the composition of your gut microbiota. This can lead to serious, chronic GI problems, widespread inflammation, and permanent damage to the gut microbiome.
Some sweeteners, especially sugar alcohols like xylitol, are poorly absorbed by the gut, meaning they feed your hungry gut bacteria. They can also cause diarrhea because they draw water into your intestines. Now you may finally have something to blame for those post-protein shake trips to the bathroom!
Here is a list of the most common food additives in protein powder:
acacia gum, acesulfame potassium, artificial flavors, aspartame, carrageenan, cellulose gum, dextrin, dextrose, erythritol, gellan gum, guar gum, gum arabic, inulin, locust bean gum, “natural” flavors, maltodextrin, rice syrup solids, soy lecithin, silica, sucralose, sunflower lecithin, xanthan gum, xylitol
When it comes to identifying food additives, go with your gut. 😉 As a rule of thumb, additives are ingredients that you cannot pronounce. Food additives are not the only thing to avoid when buying protein powder, however. There are several other ingredients that can upset your stomach.
the alternative:
Protein Matrix Comprised of (Whey Protein Concentrate, Whey Protein Isolate, Calcium Caseinate, Micellar Casein, Milk Protein Isolate, Egg Albumen, Glutamine Peptides), Polydextrose, Sunflower Creamer (Sunflower Oil, Corn Syrup Solids, Sodium Caseinate, Mono- and Diglycerides, Dipotassium Phosphate, Tricalcium Phosphate, Soy Lecithin, Tocopherols), Natural and Artificial Flavor, MCT Powder (Medium Chain Triglycerides, Nonfat Dry Milk, Disodium Phosphate, Silicon Dioxide), Lecithin, Cellulose Gum, Salt, Yellow 5, Sucralose, Acesulfame Potassium, Papain, Bromelain.
*This is the actual ingredient list of one of the best-selling protein powders in the United States.
drink wholesome is dairy-free.
Another reason why we make the best protein powder is that we do not use dairy-based proteins. Many protein powders are made with whey and casein, which are byproducts of cheese and yogurt production, and known to cause digestive issues. This is especially true for people with lactose intolerance and irritable bowel syndrome (IBS).
drink wholesome is made with real foods.
A final reason why we make the best protein powder is that we do not use protein isolates. Most protein powders, on the contrary, are made with protein concentrates and/or isolates, foods stripped of everything but the protein. They appear on the ingredient list as “pea protein” and “whey protein” as opposed to “peas” and “whey.”
I will not go into the details, but protein concentrates and isolates undergo heavy mechanical and chemical processing before becoming protein powder. Sometimes, manufacturers use chemical solvents like hexane to isolate (separate) the protein from the food. This means that what you end up putting into your body looks nothing like real food.
If you think about it, your gut was designed to digest naturally occurring foods, not laboratory formulated imitations, so if you feed it anything but real food, it might get upset. The long term implications of eating processed foods like protein isolates are still not well understood, but more and more research is finding that it can alter the composition of your gut microbiota, and lead to permanent damage to your gut microbiome.
Your gut does more than just help you to digest food; it protects against pathogens, educates your immune system, and affects directly or indirectly most of your physiologic functions. Disruptions to the gut microbiome have therefore been linked to the development of many chronic diseases. It follows that it is in your best interest to avoid protein powders made with protein concentrates and isolates.
Instead of using protein concentrates or isolates, we make the best protein powder with whole foods like egg whites and almonds. Egg whites are simply pasteurized and dried before becoming protein powder. Almonds are just roasted, pressed to remove some of the oil, and ground. Whole foods like these are an easy to digest, gut-friendly alternative to protein concentrates and isolates.
Whole foods contain a variety of enzymes and other digestive aids that help to break down the food, making it easier for the body to absorb the nutrients. Protein isolates and concentrates, on the other hand, have been stripped of these digestive aids, making them harder for the body to digest and absorb. Moreover, minimally-processed plant-based foods like almonds are rich in fiber, which helps promote healthy digestion and regular bowel movements.
Unless you have a sensitivity or allergy to eggs, egg white protein is the best protein for your gut. Egg whites are low in fiber, low-FODMAP, naturally alkaline, and have the highest protein digestibility-corrected amino acid score (PDCAAS) of any whole food. Our customers have experienced fewer digestive issues with egg white protein powder than with any other type of protein powder.
If you cannot eat eggs, try our vegan almond protein powder. We prefer almonds to other plant protein sources because they are more gut-friendly. Research suggests that almonds possess prebiotic properties that can improve the diversity and composition of the gut microbiome.
drink wholesome is the best protein powder.
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This content is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. drink wholesome is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease.
