I just opened a new jug of whey protein, and the scoop was on top!
Proof:
I wasn’t expecting this because normally I have to dig around for the scoop whenever I open a new container of whey protein.
Sweet, must be my lucky day!
Archives For whey protein
I make my own homemade protein shake/energy drink combo that I sip throughout my workout. I usually take a sip before my workout and will have a little bit left over after my workout.
I also add creatine and the controversial but effective (and cheap) ephedrine and caffeine stack to my protein shake, so I get a steady dose of stimulants over a 2hr+ period of activity.
You could probably find something similar in those commercial energy drinks that contain protein.
Personally I’m not a big fan of energy drinks in North America. I think they’re overly priced, overly hyped and heavy on the marketing. I used to buy the original Red Bull in Thailand. It was super cheap (10 baht, which is about 33 CENTS) and way more potent compared to the Red Bull that’s available in Canada.
Also, about the caffeinated protein drinks: I’m not sure about the quality of the protein in prepackaged “protein drinks”. How good can they possibly be compared to something like Optimum Nutrition Gold Standard 100% Whey or other stand alone protein powders on the market??
Ok, onto the instructions on how I make my super protein energy shake!
Stuff You Need
- Shaker cup
- Protein powder (roughly 50g of protein)
- 200mg Caffeine
- 16-24mg Ephedrine HCL (optional)
- 5g Creatine
- Water
Here’s how I put it all together:
Steps
Step 1
Put the caffeine and ephedrine into the shaker cup. Add water (about half way full) and shake until you see that both pills are dissolved. The ephedrine I have breaks down the instant I pour water over it, but the caffeine pill tends to stay in pill form until I shake it for a few seconds.
If you mix all the other ingredients at once, the caffeine pill might not dissolve and you might sip a big chunk of caffeine instead of ingesting it throughout your workout.
Step 2
Add creatine and 2 scoops of protein powder.
Step 3
Fill the shaker cup with water
Normally I’ll screw the lid on, and fill the shaker with water almost until the top of the opening.
Step 4
Shake it up and drink throughout my workout.
Final Note
I’ve been making and drinking this shake for about 6+ months now. However, this shake with the added ephedrine and caffeine combination isn’t for everyone, especially if you have heart problems, hypertension, thyroid disease, diabetes, or any other health condition.
Use at your own risk!
Or simply omit the ephedrine (which my or may not be readily available OTC depending on where you live) and enjoy your creatine laced, caffeinated protein energy drink throughout your workout.
I’ve already finished my 25lbs bag of protein from CanadaProtein, and I’m nearly finished the 10lbs bag of Optimum Nutrition.
So I decided to open up the 10lbs box Dymatize Elite Whey Protein Isolate I had sitting around and making my living and dining room smell delicious for a few months.
The flavor is “Gourmet Vanilla”, and unlike the other proteins I have purchased in the past, it comes packaged in a box, rather than a food grade bag or plastic container. This seems to make sense from a merchant’s perspective: it would be easier to store and stack boxes on top and beside each other compared to bags or tubs of protein.
Upon opening the box, I saw that the protein was inside a huge Dymatize branded zip lock bag.
I felt some powder on the outside of the bag before opening it. I’m not sure if there was a hole in the bag or the powder was a result of the package process.
The bag felt thinner than I’m used to, and the zip lock seemed a little flimsy compared to the bag from Optimum Nutrition, and other food grade bags that I’ve come across in the past. Even the sandwich zip lock bags feels more secure.
When I opened the bag, the aroma of artificial vanilla rushed into my nose. It smelled great!
Unfortunately, the scoop was not at the top (does this even happen in real life??), so I used my old scoop from another batch of protein to dig around. The Dymatize scoop wasn’t hard to find since it was just below the surface.
When I pulled out the scoop, this is what I found:
Nice looking scoop!
This scoop is branded, and there are 2 sets of measurements on the side. This would make it easy to get the exact quantity of the powder if you’re into exact measurements.
It’s also narrower at the bottom. I’m not sure what function this serves however.
Ingredients
Even though the brand name is “Dymatize Elite Whey Protein Isolate”, it’s actually a mix of whey protein isolate and whey protein concentrate. Unfortunately it doesn’t list the exact quantities of each, but since whey protein isolate is listed first, I’m assuming that there’s a higher ratio of WPI to WPC.
There’s also a proprietary enzyme blend to help with digestion. I’m not sure if this really works, but I haven’t experienced any sort of bloat or gas from this product.
The sweetener used is acesulfame potassium. I don’t believe I have ever tried this sweetener before.
Mixability
I mix whey protein in my morning coffee.
I also mix 2 scoops of protein with water and drink that throughout my workout.
Dymatize Elite Whey Protein Isolate mixes great at first, but it leaves some residue at the bottom of my mug (shown below) and shaker cup. I’m not sure what this residue is, but I haven’t seen it with the other protein powders that I’ve tried.
Taste
From the moment this entered my mouth, all I could think of was, “DAMMIT I have 10lbs of this stuff to ingest!”
It tasted horrible. Probably the worst tasting powder that I have put in my mouth since the vanilla flavored “Mega Mass 2000” I took back when I was a bone rack in the 90’s.
This protein also leaves a bad aftertaste in my mouth. It might because of the acesulfame potassium. Apparently, this sweetener leaves a bitter aftertaste if your mouth. I’m not sure if I would describe it as bitter. It’s more like YUCK.
Value
I got this during a free shipping promotion from BodyBuilding.com, so all I had to pay was $86.99. Normally I would have to pay for shipping and additional charges, so this was a good deal.
It worked out to be $8.70 per pound of protein, which is a little bit more than the 25lbs bag I got from CanadaProtein.com earlier this year.
Overall
Pro’s
- Scoop has measurements
- Mixes well
- Smells delicious
- Cheaper than Optimum Nutrition
Con’s
- Leaves a yucky aftertaste in my mouth
- Leaves some residue at the bottom of my mug/shaker container
I’m going to have to ingest 10lbs of this stuff. Guess I’ll man up and down this protein 1 day at a time.
And here’s the thing about whey protein reviews. I can’t verify the contents of the package, so I can really judge on a matter of taste, mix ability and other things that I can observe.
Personally I don’t like the taste, but taste is really subjective. Read what other people have to say about Dymatize Elite Whey Protein Isolate.
It does have an overall rating of 8.7 on Bodybuilding.com, and I just noticed that most of the reviews are about the flavor Rich Chocolate.
Dammit I should have looked at this more closely before buying.
I've had pretty good experience ordering training gear and supplements from Bodybuilding.com. I live in Canada and shipping from the USA is fast and reasonably priced (and no brokerage fees or duty fees!)
I made an order on Monday April 2, 2012 and it shipped the same day. DHL delivered the package on Wednesday April 11, 2012. It probably would have arrived here sooner if it wasn’t for the Easter long weekend.
Here's what I got delivered to my door yesterday from BodyBuilding.com:
Optimum Nutrition Whey Protein 5lbs - Mocha Cappuccino
I add whey protein to my coffee. So far I’ve tried chocolate, vanilla, and unflavored whey protein. Vanilla tastes best for me, but I wanted to try out a different flavor. I went with mocha cappuccino simply because it had the highest taste rating on BodyBuilding.com’s website.
Price: $54.99
Optimum Nutrition Creatine Powder 2000g
I decided to try out creatine again (I took it a LONG time ago in the late 90’s while I was in high school). It’s well researched and one of the few supplements proven to work. We’ll see how it works for me this time around.
I decided on ON Micronized Creatine Powder because Optimum Nutrition is a reputable brand, has a lot of good reviews and they’re using something called “CreaPure”, which is supposedly the purest creatine monohyrdate available.
Price: $37.99
Now Ultra Omega-3 180 Softgels (2)
This is the fish oil that I take. Mainly for “general health” purposes. I don’t feel anything, but I take it anyways for “general health”, and just in case.
Price: $41.98 for 2.
Harbringer Neoprene Padded Ankle Cuffs (2)
I’m doing reverse hyperextensions by stacking one bench on top of another (pictured here). So far it’s been working fine, but I wanted a way to add some resistance to the movement. I figured I could add weights doing reverse hypers by using a pair of these ankle cuffs, weaving a chain into the plates, and connecting the chain to the ankle cuffs with a carabiner. I’ll write about how this works out in an upcoming post.
Price: $17.98 for 2.
Sequoia/Bodybuilding.com Defender Body Fat Caliper
Since my order was over $150, I got the option to choose a free gift (free gifts start at orders totaling $75 and up. Here’s what else is available as a free gift).
I decided on these body fat calipers because I did not have any tools to measure my body fat. I did a quick measurements, and according to these calipers, I’m about 16.5% body fat. Not bad!
Price: Free!
Lastly, I tried to order a couple of bottles of the SportPharma Multi-V multivitamins, but I got this error during the checkout process:
Strange, because I have ordered these multivitamins before. I'm not sure why it can't be shipped to Canada now.
Total damage:
Subtotal: $152.94
Shipping: $33.99
TOTAL: $186.93
Kicking myself in the butt because I just found out I could have used a coupon code (5off100) to get $5 off my order.
Bah, next time.
I experimented with power cleaning the bar for over head press and front squats this week.
I felt way more explosive doing the press & front squat AFTER I cleaned the bar as opposed to lifting it off the rack. It actually felt a lot easier. And for a couple of days, my traps were sore as hell.
I got this idea from Zach Even-Esh's blog. He wrote:
I remember when I trained at Diamond Gym & began power cleaning the bar from the ground before every set of military presses and my back, traps, shoulders and arms got seriously THICK in a very short time period.
That sound's like a pretty damn good idea! It also seems like a manlier way to lift weights.
Cleaning the Bar for the Front Squat
Elbows Pointed Forward
For the front squat, getting the bar in position is the same as a regular power clean. ie. the bar will be racked on your front deltoids with your elbows raised & pointed forward.
Cleaning the Bar for the Over Head Press
Elbows Pointed Down
Cleaning the bar for the over head press is different compared to cleaning the bar for the front squat (at least for me). My press my grip is wider than I normally use for power cleans, so I needed to clean the bar with a wider grip.
Also, because I'm pressing it up, I don't rack with my elbows up. I rack it with my elbows down, and I'm in a position where I'm ready to press the bar over my head.
It looks something like this (note this is not me; it's some strong dude from Singapore):
I won't be cleaning the bar for overhead presses during intensity days (where I try to hit a 1,2 or 3 rep max). But for volume (5x5) & recover days (3x5) I will.
Anyways, enough about cleaning and check out these links:
- Christine aka "thecookiemonster" gives her thoughts on powerlifting
- Charles Poliquin explains how to increase your squat, and gives me some more reasons to consider (finally) taking whey protein
- Brent Contreras shares 50 commandments that should be obeyed in the gym: http://bretcontreras.com/2011/08/50-commandments-commercial-gym-etiquette/
Keep lifting, keep progressing & have a great weekend!
-JP
