About Protein Shake

Protein shake is a dietary supplement usually available in the form of smoothies and milkshakes, where the main nutrition is protein and it is a beverage meant to supplement extra amounts of protein in the diet. Much often, protein shakes are sweetened as many do not like the taste of the protein ingredient used in these health drinks.

Protein shake comes in varied types each of which has its own unique benefits and includes a number of nutritional supplements like energy boosting carbohydrates and some amounts of healthy fats. Some protein shake recipes contain special vegetarian or vegan ingredients.

Protein shakes are generally made from one or more of the five major protein sources such as egg, milk, soy, whey and casein.

Protein shake recipes with soy are most suitable for vegans while the ones with whey are the most popular, especially amongst the dieters, athletes and health conscious persons and are generally available both in concentrated and powdered versions. Protein shake is also available in different flavors, best known among which are chocolate, coffee, strawberry and vanilla.

History of Protein shakes
Protein shake became popular since the last twenty years, when scientists were working on all kinds of proteins to find alternative protein sources for non-meat eaters. The first major breakthrough came with the whey protein, a residual product in cheese production, which began to be recognized for its intense bodybuilding properties which became a great nutrition source for bodybuilders and athletes and thus, was made into protein shake.

Drinking Protein Shakes
While many health experts warn against the excess consumption of protein shake, especially those with kidney and liver problems, there are other factors like age, body weight and acidity levels which determine how much should be the ideal protein shake consumption of an individual. Athletes are required to consult sports medicine practitioners before including protein shakes in their sports diet routine. According to the 2010 United States Department of Agriculture Dietary Guidelines, 0.8 grams of protein per kg of body weight is recommended, which also determines what should be the protein shake consumption accordingly.

Popular Protein Shake Recipes
The protein shake recipes come in different variations, the commonest amongst which are enlisted below –

Peanut Butter n’ Banana Protein – Skim milk, banana, whey protein powder and peanut butter are blended together for this recipe and served in drinking glasses.
Fruit n’ Yogurt Protein Shake – One of the most favored protein shake recipes, this recipe incorporates strawberries, orange juice, vanilla flavored low fat yogurt, skimmed milk, whey protein powder and honey, all of which are blended together and served in glasses.
Strawberry n’ Pineapple n’ Apricot Protein Shake – This is another fruity protein shake made by combining together crushed pineapples, diced fresh apricots, strawberry slices, skimmed milk powder, protein powder, flax seed oil and water.
Fruit n’ Bran Protein Shake – Counted amongst the healthiest protein shake recipes, this protein shake is made by blending together blueberries or peaches, fresh bananas, apple juice, bran, egg or milk based protein powder and ice cubes.
Tropical Protein Shake – An excellent protein shake for the summer months, this drink is created by mixing together frozen strawberries and bananas, fresh mangoes, frozen pina colada, protein powder, flax oil, water and ice cubes.
Chocolaty n’ Minty Protein Shake – This is one of the better liked protein shake recipes which includes chocolate flavored protein powder, sugar free vanilla ice cream, non-fat milk, oatmeal, water and peppermint extract.
Pineapple Blast – This simple and light protein shake is prepared by combining together vanilla protein powder, water, ice cubes and chunks of pineapple.

Protein Shake Recipes: Health and Nutrition
A protein shake diet refers to either augmenting a healthy diet with protein shakes or substituting a diet with only these nutritious, energy boosting beverages. In both cases, including protein shake in the diet is to bring about certain degree of weight loss by causing reduction in the calorie intake. However, excessive consumption can lead to damaging effects in bones or kidneys. Protein shake is most recommended to athletes to build up their muscles and boost up their energy. For effective weight loss, the protein content of the drink should ideally be more than 50 percent with fewer amounts of fats and carbohydrates. Whey protein shakes may contain 24 to 50 grams of protein for every scoop of serving. Their calorie content can range from 130 to 200 while the protein shake specifically meant for athletes and bodybuilders may contain even up to 900 calories. Soy protein shake on the other hand is not recommended for women taking menopause or cancer medications while egg protein is not applicable for people allergic to eggs.