Protein From Food Versus Protein Shakes

I have having an awful time with these protein shakes. I've tried different brands and flavors and no matter what I do, I can't get past that awful whey protein taste. I am using a cup with a lid so as to distract from the smell, but that does not work, I can still taste it and it makes me GAG!

So, what I want to know is if I can figure this out to get my protein from food and such WITHOUT ever having to drink another disgusting shake, is that ok?

I mean, the protein in food and fat free milk is just as good for us as the whey isolate in those gross shakes right?

The reason I'm a little confused is that everyone says we need to drink the shakes with whey isolate, not the other types of protein, so I get that. But like if I wanted to drink the Sugar Free Instant Breakfast drinks most of the protein comes from the milk you put in it. (Frankly really getting sick of these as well, but they aren't as gross as the regular protein shakes.).

I haven't tried it yet, but what if I can make a peanut butter shake using PB2 and fat free milk, maybe a little ice and splenda, wouldn't that be better than nothing?

Another reason for my confusion is I have a NUT who is by the book. When I told her I could not stand those disgusting shakes and told her I was using the Sugar Free Instant Breakfast she said to stop drinking them and drink the protein shakes. Well, if I gag and can't get them down or throw them up because they are SO disgusting to me, then they aren't doing me any good anyway.

So, after writing this book, what I really want to know is:

Is it healthy if I can get all my protein from food and milk instead of those whey isolate shakes? Will it still help me with healing, etc. etc??

(EDITED TO ADD: Just re-read your post. Ok so your NUT does advocate shakes. Sorry! Read too fast.)

Well first I'd ask what does your surgeon's plan say?

Second (warning: tough love coming). If the doctor told you that you have cancer and that you needed chemo and you went and found it unpleasant, would you stop going? I ask because in the beginning, yes, you do have to do some unpleasant things to stay healthy. I hated my initial protein shakes until I found THE powder and THE shake recipe that got me through. But it was made abundantly clear to me (by my surgical staff and vets on this board in much the same way I am doing right now) that this is my "medicine." Like it or not, there was no way I could get the proper amount of protein from food IN THE BEGINNING. As time wore on I became able to. Nowadays I don't have to do a daily shake and many days I don't.

So what I'm saying is this. If your surgeon's office has recommended supplementing to meet your protein needs, you should consider it medicine and keep forging forward. It's hard, but we can do hard things. If your surgeon's office does not advocate that...I have to wonder why but still, it is the best way to get your body the protein it needs to heal and to move forward with weight loss.

Milk is an excellent source of protein but it is also 50% higher in carbs than protein. While it is true that lactose isn't treated the same as table sugar in the body, you WANT your body to go into ketosis so that it is forced to burn fat. If your carbs are too high, your body won't go into that mode. So you will need protein from a variety of sources and some of them will need to be lower carb so as not to upset the balance. If you've ever been on Atkins you know the theory behind this.

So after writing THIS book, I will ask a few questions:

Have you tried protein shake recipes? Sometimes the smallest thing can make a shake tolerable. For me it was simply decaf instant coffee in my shake. Made it sooooo much better.

How many samples have you tried?

Are you prohibited from doing whey concentrate? I find concentrate powders to be a bit more forgiving. I have seen no evidence that they are any less effective than isolate and there are ones with very low carbs in them.

I've tried several different brands and flavors. I also have tried the Unjury Chicken Soup, which upon the first few sips did not seem too bad but as I drank more of it, it just started tasting gross too.

I know that I need to do these things, but it is ridiculous that they can't make stuff that doesn't taste so gross! Why does every medicine, every drink for medical tests and all these shakes have to taste to disgusting? Ok, yes, I'm WHINING, but I hate not doing things the right way, they way they should be done, but I honestly HATE this stuff!

I'll try some more recipes, but honestly, this is harder than I thought it was going to be!

Thanks for your input. I don't have any decaf coffee, just regular (I don't drink coffee and my husband drinks regular instant coffee). I haven't been able to yet go to a store, so it will take a bit before I can get this as my husband already went grocery shopping.

Wynter

I completely sympathize because I could not find a protein for the first couple months that did not make me want to puke.  I usually did not but I sure felt like I was going to.  And yeah, you can try to look at it like it's medicine, but usually with medicine you just have a to take a spoonful a couple times a day, not drink a few whole glasses of it.  I did have a  number of problems due to not getting enough protein, so I hope you can find something you can tolerate soon than I did.

That said, they don't all taste gross.  They don't all taste the same.  Now, what I like you might not like.  Everyone has different tastes.

I'll tell you a few of the things I like, though.

- Syntrax Nectar Roadside Lemonade, made with ice cold water in a shaker bottle (get sample from vitalady.com)
- BSN Lean Dessert protein banana flavor, made with ice cold water or skim milk in the blender  (vitalady has samples)
- Chike vanilla, strawberry and banana, made in the blender with skim milk and a handful of ice (get samples from chikenutrition.com)
- Celebrate ENS vanilla cake batter flavor (email celebrate vitamins to ask for sample)
- Oh Yeah! ready to drink shakes, banana and cookies and cream flavors (buy individual bottles from Vitamin Shoppe or GNS, or order samples from their website)
- almost any brand vanilla protein powder with skim milk and a spoonful of Maxwell house international French vanilla cafe mix (sugar free, decaf) in the blender with a handful of ice
- almost any brand vanilla protein powder with skim milk and a single serving packet of orange walmart brand crystal light and a handful of ice in the blender

What brands, specifically, have you tried?  What flavors?  How did you prepare them?  Seriously, it makes a difference what you do to them.  If you tell us exactly what you tried, and let us know if some of the things were less gross to you than the others, I bet we can help you find something like not only can tolerate, but actually like.  I know, I wouldn't have believe I would ever like any protein shakes either, but I actually do now.

Well at this point when you're new is when you have a unique advantage. You can't possibly eat too many calories (barring some very unique cir****tances). This is the ONLY stage where I'd say you could feel comfortable (if you are allowed) to blend in a tablespoon of peanut butter in that puppy. Put some unsweetened cocoa powder in there. Try some Torani syrups. You can order those online.

There are a million and two ways to dress up a protein shake to make it a bit more tolerable.

I just did a series of one ingredient fixes for shakes on Bariatric Foodie. Perhaps you can find some inspiration there?

Fixes for strawberry protein: http://bariatricfoodie.blogspot.com/2011/08/one-ingredient-f ixes-to-jazz-up-your_18.html

Fixes for chocolate protein: http://bariatricfoodie.blogspot.com/2011/08/one-ingredient-f ixes-to-jazz-up-your.html

Fixes for vanilla protein: http://bariatricfoodie.blogspot.com/2011/08/one-ingredient-f ixes-to-jazz-up-your_17.html

In the recipes section, you'll find protein shake recipes.

Other than that I'd say patience. You're probably hyper-sensitive to sweetness right now (everything tasted sickly sweet to me right after surgery) so just take it a step at a time. Set a goal foro yourself ot try one new thing. If it doesn't work out you can cross it off your list and try something else.

This whole thing is a learning process. You can do it!

 I have to say that I am right there with you.  My surgeon wants me to drink Isopure which has 40 grams a protein in one drink and it is horrible.  It makes me gag.  So I am eating more protein now in my diet and using new recipes for shakes.  I also bought unjury vanilla protein and you can mix it in anything and not taste  it.  I did 4ozs of milk, mandarin oranges, ice and unjury powder and it was great.  Go to friendlypouch.com for different recipes.  I also ordered some books which are great.  I don't know if you have WLS for Dummies but it has great recipes.  Hang in there!!

well, i am just three weeks today after having my surgery--and i am omitting the shakes,also as they make me sick and i want to throw up---can they be replace with just lots of protien meals or pills???---did you find anything out?

Yes, the shakes can be replaced with food high in protein (although at three weeks out you may not be able to eat enough food to get all your protein that way).  They can't really be replaced with pills.  There are protein pills but they are chewable tablets that only have about one gram of protein per pill.  So to get the equivalent of one shake, you'd have to chew  up 20 to 30 of those things.

If only we could take a pill...sigh....

Its going to be very hard to get all your protein in with the amount of food you can take in right now, not to mention the types of food you can and cannot eat. Peanut butter is ok but its really not THAT high in protein and you wouldn't be able to eat much of it because of the fat/carb content.

I found the shakes easier to drink early on if I made them with ice and they were very cold. Later, I was so impatient with the whole thing I'd just use four to six ounces of very cold water so I could just get it down.

You really really need to get the protein in this early. It makes for less muscle loss, which in turn makes for better metabolism when it counts. You have to have that - its so hard to rebuild. It isn't great to be all skinny if your body is still 50% fat and you have zero muscle.

At three months I started phasing out the shakes and relying more on food. I'm at six months now and I get my protein solely from food, and I get 100 grams a day. But I can eat sushi, shrimp, grilled chicken, egg whites, etc. You can't do that yet.