What Is the Best Protein Powder for Endurance Athletes?

Are you looking for the best protein powder for endurance athletes​? Discover how to supplement your protein intake as an endurance athlete.

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Protein Powder for Endurance Athletes

Is Protein Powder Good for Endurance Athletes? 

Protein is just as important for endurance athletes as it is for weightlifters because it helps with exercise recovery, injury prevention, and even immune system health.

Plus, many endurance athletes do not consume nearly enough protein, which can have a serious negative impact on their performance and development.

If you do not get enough protein when training hard, your body will break down muscle for use as fuel, which will eventually make you slower.

As a reminder, building and maintaining muscle mass is beneficial for endurance sports for several reasons, including: 

• Efficiency: Stronger muscles lead to more efficient technique.
• Power: Increased muscle mass can contribute to greater power output, enabling you to move faster and for longer.
• Injury prevention: Strong muscles provide better support and stability, decreasing the risk of injury.

How Much Protein Do Endurance Athletes Need?

It is recommended that endurance athletes consume 1.2-2 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight per day.

And optimal intakes tend to be at the upper end of this range (1.8+ grams per kilogram per day).

Eating this much protein can be challenging for some athletes, especially those with busy schedules or dietary restrictions, which is where protein powder can help.

Adding a scoop of protein powder to your diet is a convenient way to reach your protein goals and fill in gaps in your fueling regimen. 

It can easily be added to smoothies, oatmeal, and other recipes, or simply mixed with milk or water to make a protein shake.

Keep in mind that protein supplementation is most beneficial when dietary protein needs are not met through whole foods.

All endurance athletes should try to get as much protein as they can from foods like dairy, eggs, fish, legumes, meat, nuts, and seeds.

The decision to consume protein powder should thus be individualized, based on a thorough dietary assessment and specific training goals.

What Is the Best Protein Powder for Endurance Athletes?

The type of protein powder that you add to your diet is not particularly important.

That is, as long as you are eating a balanced diet (getting protein from a variety of sources), any type of protein powder can help achieve your performance goals. 

Not all protein powders are created equal, however.

Many protein powders contain ingredients that can contribute to health problems known to impair athletic performance.

Among the most problematic ingredients are food additives and protein concentrates/isolates.

Avoid Food Additives

Regularly eating food additives like emulsifiers, thickeners, artificial sweeteners, and other ultra-processed additives can alter the composition and function of your gut microbiome.

Over time, this can lead to gut dysbiosis, which can impair athletic performance.

This happens due dysbiosis-driven changes such as increased intestinal permeability, systemic inflammation, altered nutrient absorption, and reduced production of short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs).

Did you know that SCFAs modulate skeletal muscle metabolism, preserve muscle glycogen, and reduce inflammation, all of which are important for optimal endurance?

Here is a list of the most common food additives in protein supplements:

• acacia fiber
• acacia gum
• acesulfame potassium
• artificial flavors
• ascorbic acid
• aspartame
• calcium carbonate
• carrageenan
• cellulose gum
• dextrin
• dicalcium phosphate
• dipotassium phosphate
• erythritol
• gellan gum
• guar gum
• gum arabic
• inulin
• locust bean gum
• maltitol
• maltodextrin
• mono- and diglycerides
• ‘natural’ flavors
• rice bran extract
• rice dextrin
• rice hulls
• rosemary extract
• silica
• silicon dioxide
• sodium alginate
• soluble corn fiber
• sorbitol
• soy lecithin
• sucralose
• sunflower lecithin
• tocopherols
• tricalcium phosphate
• xanthan gum
• xylitol
• zinc oxide

As a rule of thumb, if you could not find an ingredient in nature or make it at home, it should not be in your protein powder.

Avoid Protein Concentrates and Isolates

You should also consider avoiding protein concentrates and isolates.

Most protein powders are made from one or both of these protein sources, which have been mechanically and/or chemically stripped of everything but the protein.

This includes the enzymes, fiber, and other natural digestive aids that help you break them down.

You therefore do not digest them in the same way that you do whole foods, which can affect your gut health.

In fact, studies show that regularly eating protein concentrates and isolates can disrupt your gut microbiome and cause the formation of toxic byproducts in your gut.

Sticking to whole food protein sources is thus a good idea​, especially if you are an endurance athlete.

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Drink Wholesome Is the Best Protein Powder for Endurance Athletes

Finding a protein powder free from food additives and protein concentrates and isolates is hard.

In fact, 99% of protein supplements contain one or more of these problematic ingredients, which is why we created Drink Wholesome.

We make the best protein powder for endurance athletes because we use a short list of simple ingredients.

Our Ingredients

egg whites

coconut

vanilla

monk fruit

NOT Our Ingredients

• acacia gum

• acesulfame potassium

• artificial flavors

• carrageenan

• erythritol

• guar gum

• inulin

• maltodextrin

• 'natural' flavors

• silica

• soy lecithin

• sucralose

• xanthan gum

• xylitol

Note that instead of using protein concentrates or isolates, we use whole food protein sources like egg whites and almonds, which are easier to digest and absorb.

It follows that our customers experience fewer gut health-related issues with our Protein Powder than with any other type of protein supplement.

Order Samples to see for yourself.