• Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • Home
  • About
  • Contact
  • New? Start Here!

RunToTheFinish

Online Running Coach for All Paces, All Ages

  • Training
    • Beginner Half Marathon Training
    • Sub Two Half Marathon Training
    • Marathon Training
    • New Runner Tips
    • Low Heart Rate Training
    • Group Run Coaching
    • Nutrition for Runners
  • Running Injuries
  • Gear Reviews
  • Work Together
    • Virtual Run Club
    • 1-1 Coaching
    • Brand Partnerships
  • Courses
    • Book
    • IT Band Solution
    • LHR Training Plans
  • Blog

Choosing the Best Protein Powder for Your Goals

126shares

Wake up, pee, roll down to the kitchen and make my pre-workout shake of Glutamine, 1/2 scoop protein powder and a pinch of a pre-workout supplement, plus water.

Every day. Same thing. It works for me, after lots of experimentation.

Using protein powder to enhance distance training is entirely a personal choice! It’s not a must or a requirement, no matter what anyone tells you.

For me and many of my athletes it’s the most effective way to ensure we eat enough protein during high volume training months. Not only is this important for energy, but to prevent muscle loss which results in gaining fat and less powerful running.
Read more about maintaining muscle during marathon training >>

Leading to the obvious question…what is the best protein powder for women, for runners, for men?protein powder for women

How to Judge Protein Powder Quality?

Above and beyond the form of protein, the first focus has to be the quality of the supplement. A good protein for runners can come in plant based or not, start by looking at these things first.

Cheaper brands are filled with chemicals that will only slow your body down as it attempts to process these foreign substances. Leading to stomach pains, bloating and digestive issues.

Things to avoid:

  • MSG
  • Artificial Sweeteners like aspartame, saccharin, maltodextrin
  • GMOs
  • Toxic heavy metals are found in many of those cheap store brands
  • NSF certified which means athletes can happily use it in competition
What to look for when selecting a protein powder (and why price isn't the first thing!) #healthy Click To Tweet

The best protein powder for women is one that doesn’t contain things that are going to make you bloated, feel bad and actually contains enough protein to be of benefit.

**Important to note: your body can only absorb about 30 grams at a time, so if you’re sucking down 60grams in one drink then you’re just creating some very expensive urine. Yup, when you have too much, your kidneys just go to work clearing it out of your system.

This has lead some people to claim it’s bad for the kidneys. However, that seems to be quiet rare or in people who already have other kidney issues. The overall benefit of getting enough protein generally outweighs this for athletes. vega smoothie

Don’t want to slug down just the powder, then make your protein shake after running a green smoothie! Now you’ve taken your recovery to the next level by getting in great easy to absorb nutrients alongside the protein.

Best Protein Powder for Runners

Now on to the type of protein. Because I’m dairy free, I tend to use only plant based protein powders which include things like pea and brown rice protein.

However, many who are dairy-free have no problem with whey protein isolates as the lactose is usually removed. This is one to test for yourself and find out how you feel because studies are showing some added benefits when using whey.

Over the years I have tested out a whole slew of flavors and brands, much of that is going to come down to preference once you’ve found a quality powder. Protein powder for women is no different than for men, we need generally the same vitamins and minerals, what we might need less of are calories per pound of weight. That you can easily control with serving size.Benefits of Whey Protein powder vs other protein powdersA quick break down of the most popular protein types and benefits:

Whey Protein Powder

Unlike the other powders, whey protein contains components which are found to have additional benefits to performance and healthy. CLA (conjugated linoleic acid) helps prevent cancer and improve cardiovascular health.

It contains leucine which is critical for muscle building.
It is digested faster which allows for quicker muscle growth stimulation.
It has also been shown in studies to enhance recovery due to the complete amino acid profile.
It boosts glutathione which helps the body to remove free radicals that cause cell damage.

Whey hdryolysate, which means it’s a predigested form of whey that has dairy allergens removed and is more easily digested (huge for endurance athletes whose digestive systems are often working over time or shut down to blood being diverted to our limbs!).

Egg Protein Powder

Made from egg whites, it’s low in calories and carbohydrates, dairy free and can be a great source of vitamins depending upon the quality of the eggs. It has a slow release which can be beneficial to muscle growth.

If the powder is low quality, you could be exposed to antibiotics and salmonella among other things. A great option for making things like pancakes!

Decoding the benefits and drawbacks of different types of protein powder from whey to pea #sportsnutrition Click To Tweet

Soy Protein Powder

As always there are some amazing products out there, but I’m cautious about using a concentrated form of soy on a regular basis due to all the conflicting science. For Vegans, soy contains all amino acids, as well as the full B-vitamin complex, which are both things that many non-meat eaters find lacking in the diet.

Pea/Brown Rice Protein Powder

For those with food sensitives this is the best option and of course completely Vegan as well. It could be part of a protein rotation to get the benefits of whey and the switch up to prevent creating food sensitives.

It contains nearly as many BCAA’s as whey protein.
It’s easy to digest, putting the protein to work right away and preventing bloating.
It’s high in protein, low in carbohydrates and gluten free.
It can help to regulate your blood sugar levels.

90% of the time this is what you’ll see me using and often popping up in my Instagram Stories. I am a big fan of Vega and use all their options depending on the day:

  • Vega Sport Protein -highest protein content
  • Vega One Complete – great when I’m not having a smoothie
  • Vega Energy – good for pre-long run

Hemp Protein Powder

Did you know that pro-athletes can’t use hemp seeds or powder?! It’s not a drug, but apparently it’s too closely related for those regulators.

Another Vegan option, hemp provides omega-3 and omega-6 in the perfect ratio, which has a slew of benefits from reducing PMS issues to assisting with high blood pressure. However, hemp is higher in calories and slightly lower in total protein when compared to other sources and that could be a concern if the focus is weight loss.

Dr. Axe has created a great little graphic which breaks down the benefits. best protein powdersIt goes without saying that our goal should always be to focus on whole healthy foods as much as possible. But for athletes it’s often difficult to get in enough nutrients without the help of a quality supplement.

I simply can’t process larges amounts of protein either animal or plant based, so a powder has been hugely beneficial to my routine as I was often hitting less than 40 grams a day…a great way to be skinny fat. That being said, you’ll notice I usually only go for a 1/2 scoop at a time because I’m trying to force myself to work on those protein whole food sources!

Are there any issues with too much protein powder?
Beyond the reported kidney issue noted above the biggest things that I’ve noticed are the potential for skin breakouts. I’ve seen this is a lot of women who start using more than 1 scoop per day, which could be due to the ingredients or simply the overkill on protein, hard to say.

But if you’re doing a protein shake followed immediately by a steak and potato, it’s overkill!

So back to our original question, what is the best protein powder? Science would say if you don’t have any dairy allergies, whey is the top choice for men and women. After that it comes down to your body, your goals and taste buds!

How often do you use protein powder?

What do you look for in a powder?

Other ways to connect with Amanda
Instagram Daily Fun: RunToTheFinish

Facebook Community Chatter: RunToTheFinishRunning_motivation_thumb

Get more running tips: Pinterest

 

Read Next: Protein Timing for Body Fat Loss >>

126shares

Posted by amanda Categories: Guides and Tips, sports nutrition

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. TheDimpledRunner says

    September 18, 2016 at 11:03 am

    I have been on the lookout for a great protein powder that is plant-based. Only thing is I need one that I can take if I was pregnant as I don’t want to risk anything (I’m a planner and worrier;). So far the only one my doc agreed I could use when I was pregnant with my son was disgusting. haha I’ll ask my doc about the one you and your husband use!! Thank you!

    • amanda says

      September 18, 2016 at 3:18 pm

      This powder is not plant based as it uses Whey, which is why David can use it, but I can’t. Just to be clear!

  2. Julie @ Running in a Skirt says

    September 19, 2016 at 9:29 am

    Great tips! I knew about the different kinds but not all the differences. I feel even more educated looking for my next bottle.

  3. Laura says

    September 19, 2016 at 2:24 pm

    This is super helpful! I started adding protein powder to my smoothies after I had my 3rd baby! I never get enough protein and I was feeling so tired. I found a delicious dairy-free, soy-free plant-based powder that I’m in love with! YAY!

  4. Mick says

    September 19, 2016 at 6:29 pm

    Great post and great info.! I’ve always done whey but I’ll have to give the others a shot.

  5. Sandra Laflamme says

    September 19, 2016 at 7:11 pm

    I use protein powder in smoothies and often for recovery. I always try to go for the most pure. And of course organic if I can find it. I hadn’t heard of this brand before so will have to check it out!

  6. Alisa @ Go Dairy Free says

    September 19, 2016 at 10:18 pm

    I had no idea pro-athletes couldn’t use hemp protein – that’s insane! When I do use protein powder, I’m all about pea protein.

  7. Taylor Kiser says

    September 20, 2016 at 5:54 am

    So much great information and tips! Really a helpful post to wade through all the choices on the market so that the right protein powder can be found!

  8. Bodynsoil says

    September 20, 2016 at 7:07 am

    Great article on proteins. I’ve found that within the whey family there are timing advantages to the different types. Casein is slow digesting and good before bed, isolate is fast digesting and great for post workout. At times I like to mix casein pudding right before bed as it helps with sleep and I’ve read that it helps to release GH.

  9. Heather @ FITaspire says

    September 20, 2016 at 8:22 am

    What a great article – there are so many options available and everyone has a different opinion, so I love this guide to help choose the right oen for you. :) I use protein powder before or after my workouts and sometimes for a quick snack smoothie. Honestly, taste is SUPER important to me, although of course it has to be a high quality protein that won’t make my stomach upset (lactose-intolerant). :)

    • Kimberly Werner says

      January 3, 2017 at 10:39 am

      Have you found a lactose-free whey shake?

      • amanda says

        January 3, 2017 at 10:48 am

        Well a lot of them claim that, but I’ve found for myself and others that the whey often still bothers the stomach. I prefer to stick to pea, and brown rice protein, but egg white is a great option too.

  10. Sonali- The Foodie Physician says

    September 20, 2016 at 8:26 am

    I missed the days of sticking to my morning routine- now with a 3 year old in the mix, every morning is an adventure! Thanks for sharing your expertise and all of this top quality info. I thought it was really interesting to learn that pro-athletes can’t use hemp products!

  11. Sarah- A Whisk and Two Wands says

    September 21, 2016 at 10:10 am

    I got in spurts of using it daily and using it about every other day post strength training. I use Vega and have only tried a couple others in recent years. I recently found another I like that I’m rotating in but strictly for protein and nutrition not for post workout and to mix things up (no BCAA’s and other things I look for). I haven’t tried whey proteins in years… not being vegan anymore maybe I should try it again and see how my body does. I do also use more protein milks now since the girls are loving it and it’s there and try to rotate things more.

  12. Chrissa - Physical Kitchness says

    September 21, 2016 at 11:10 am

    Ok love this post! So many protein powders are full of JUNK! This is really helpful. I just tried Kashi’s plant based powder and it was really good!

  13. Emily Kyle says

    September 21, 2016 at 1:17 pm

    This is such a great resource! I am admittedly not up to date with protein powders, so this is a great article to keep on hand!

  14. Lindsay Cotter says

    September 21, 2016 at 3:22 pm

    Such a great post! Lots of helpful information!

  15. Wendy says

    September 22, 2016 at 6:01 am

    This is such great information! I’ve only found one vegan protein powder that I really liked and probably just need to try more variety. I’m pretty sure I’ve never tried pea protein.

  16. Brian says

    October 24, 2016 at 8:06 am

    Awesome information! I often just go with whey protein, but I’ll have to try out more pea and rice protein. Thanks for sharing!

  17. Jake Tyler says

    October 31, 2016 at 8:32 am

    Nice sharing with many helpful tips. I’m often confused with all these things, so this article is really a life-saver for me.

  18. Julia Walters says

    March 16, 2017 at 10:15 pm

    This article is so informative. I have never known those different protein powder. Thanks for sharing this blog post with us. I’m not familiar with hemp protein. and thanks to your article, now I know what type of protein powder I should be using. Which is your favorite protein powder from your list?

  19. Alexis says

    May 1, 2019 at 6:17 am

    In the past few months I switched over to Generation UCan’s Performance Energy + Protein for post-run recovery and I love it! It’s made a world of difference in helping my muscles recover quickly, especially after long or hard runs. This is a more in-depth look at what I’m doing for protein, hydration, and recovery: https://runningmybestlife.com/half-marathon-recovery/.

  20. Kristin Vincenzo says

    May 2, 2019 at 6:19 pm

    Great article! Thanks for sharing that information! I’m a runner and a kiteboarder. I need a good energy source to do my sports, but I also need something that helps with recovery post session. I’m going to share with this with my kiter friends!

  21. Greg says

    May 4, 2019 at 9:03 am

    Thanks for this! I’ve been looking for this exact resource!

Primary Sidebar

Filter by Category
  • Select a Category
  • 10 miler
  • 10K
  • 13.1 marathon series
  • 15K
  • 30 Day Challenge
  • 5k
  • About ME
  • Abs
  • Active Travel
  • alaska
  • Amanda Brooks
  • Arizona
  • Asics
  • Austin
  • Baltimore
  • barefoot running
  • beauty
  • Biking
  • birthday
  • bloggers
  • blogging tips
  • body fat
  • body image
  • body weight exercises
  • book reviews
  • Boston Marathon
  • breakfast
  • California
  • Camping
  • Canada
  • Caribbean
  • chicago
  • ChiRunning
  • Clean Eating
  • cold weather training
  • colorado
  • compression
  • Costa Rica
  • Crockpot
  • cross training
  • CrossFit
  • dairy free
  • dessert
  • egg free
  • electrolytes
  • emotional health
  • Europe
  • family
  • Fit Together
  • fitness gear
  • Fitness Tracker
  • fitness vacation
  • florida
  • foam roller
  • food sensitivity
  • Fort Lauderdale
  • France
  • Funny Running
  • Gift Guide
  • Gluten Free
  • GPS Watch
  • Green Smoothie
  • Guides and Tips
  • habits
  • Half Marathon
  • Hawaii
  • HBBC
  • health coach
  • healthy eating
  • Healthy Home
  • Healthy lifestyle
  • Heart Rate Training
  • HIIT workout
  • hiking
  • hiking
  • Hip Strength
  • Hoka One One
  • Holistic Health
  • Hormones
  • hydration
  • Iceland
  • injury
  • inspiration
  • instagram
  • Ireland
  • IT Band
  • IT Band Recovery
  • Jerusalem
  • key west
  • knee injury
  • Kona
  • Love
  • low heart rate training
  • Maffetone
  • main dish
  • Marathon
  • marathon training
  • marriage
  • meal planning
  • Meditation
  • Memphis
  • mental marathon training
  • Mexico
  • Miami
  • Motivation
  • New York City
  • New York City Marathon
  • New York City Marathon Training
  • NYC marathon
  • Oregon
  • Orlando
  • Palm Beach
  • Philadelphia Marathon
  • physical therapy
  • podcasts
  • Prague
  • Product Review
  • Race
  • race costume
  • race medal
  • race photo
  • race report
  • Ragnar
  • Recipe
  • recovery
  • recovery meal
  • relaxation
  • relay race
  • resolution run
  • review
  • Rock N Roll
  • run club
  • Runner's World
  • running accessories
  • running books
  • running coach
  • running form
  • running fuel
  • running gear
  • Running Group
  • running motivation
  • running music
  • Running Shoes
  • safety
  • salads
  • san diego
  • Saucony
  • Seattle
  • skin care
  • Soup
  • South Beach
  • South Carolina
  • South Florida
  • speed work
  • sports nutrition
  • Stand Up Paddle Boarding
  • Steamboat Springs
  • Strength Training
  • stretching
  • sugar reduction
  • Thanksgiving
  • trail running
  • Training Group
  • training plan
  • travel
  • travel running
  • treadmill
  • treadmill workout
  • triathlon
  • ultrarunning
  • vegan
  • Vegas
  • vegatarian
  • vegetable
  • virtual run
  • wedding
  • weight loss
  • winter
  • women's running
  • workout
  • workout motivation
  • workout schedule
  • Yoga

5 Secrets to Improve Your RUn

Start Making Quick Progress on Your Goals (I swear it's easy) no matter your current fitness level. The tips I share with the runners I coach.

Recent Posts

  • UCAN | How Can SuperStarch Fuel Your Run
  • Running at Night | Tips and Safety
  • Brooks vs Saucony Running Shoes
  • How to Truly Resolve Runners Knee by Fixing Knee Drift
  • Black Toenails and Lost Toenails from Running

Must Have Gear

Comparing GPS Watches

Best HR Monitor for Running

Best Foam Rollers

Best Running Books

Running Jackets for Every Condition

fitness partners

Please note that affiliate links {such as Amazon} may pop up on RTTF from time to time. They do not cost you anything to use, but are a huge help to support the ongoing content creation process. Click here to do your shopping!

Welcome!!

Hello runners! I’m Amanda Brooks, a certified personal trainer and running coach. I’ve been coaching over a decade and distance running since 2002. My philosophy is that running isn’t about your pace or the distance or your body. It’s about showing up for yourself, loving the process and doing it injury free!

 

online running coach

Footer

Get the Free 5 Day Better Runner Challenge

Start Making Quick Progress on Your Goals (I swear it's easy)

About Amanda Brooks

Amanda Brooks is a Certified Running Coach, Certified Personal Trainer and long time distance runner with a passion for every facet of running, which leads her to do more reading, research and running than necessary. Find all the tips, tricks and tools you need from this running coach for your best injury free running. Read More…

Popular Posts on RunToTheFinish

  • 17 Funniest Running Memes – Which One’s Do You Relate To?
  • Hoka Vs Brooks Running Shoes
  • Polar Vs Garmin | Comparing GPS Watches
  • Piriformis Syndrome Exercises: Alleviating a Pain in the Butt
  • Best Virtual Races and 11 Reasons You Need to Do One

runtothefinish

Amanda Brooks : Run Coach
EMBRACING A PAUSE🤢🤢 - It’s been a decade s EMBRACING A PAUSE🤢🤢 - It’s been a decade since I’ve been can’t move from the couch sick. I don’t recommend this stomach bug.
|||
In truth, I’ve been thinking I needed to hit pause for a few weeks.

💼 I’m so excited about what’s happening in my business, I’ve been hard charging for the last year.

🏃‍♀️I’m finally enjoying adding in hills and speed and strength, but could tell I needed a big down week... I just didn’t want to.

🥾On vacation or with fam, I’m always sneaking in work and again that’s not entirely bad because I love it.
|||
BUT LIKE AND INJURY, sickness is a reminder to appreciate our health.

🟧I’m not trying to make up the missed workouts.
🟩I’m not guilt tripping over eating Cinnamon Toast Crunch because it was all that would stay down after 30 hours.
🟦I’m not feeling bad for moving a lot of meetings and not responding to nearly any messages.

What reminds you to step back and press pause??

📸from our great trip a few years ago. Those long vacations are my best way of letting go.

#iamwellandgood #loveyourbody #solopreneurlife
GIVEAWAY- 3 WINNERS🥳🥳 Can we talk about runn GIVEAWAY- 3 WINNERS🥳🥳
Can we talk about runners and gut health for a second? And then you'll understand why I love @previnex so much.
//
DID YOU KNOW: There are 500 species and three pounds of bacteria in our gut! 😱😱It’s a living and breathing factory that:

🔵impacts your energy levels and can be reason for joint pain
🟣impacts your mood and focus
🟡can cause runners trots and nausea when micro biome is off
🔴can cause more food sensitivities and intolerances when not balanced with good bacteria
//
So yesssss your gut can make you a better runner when it’s working right and probiotics are a big helper.
//
PRIZES:
Each winner gets a 2 month supply of probiotics and fish oil, the two things I use DAILY and that you’ve emailed me saying “OMG this helped!!”
+
A copy of Run To The Finish on audiobook.
.
Your chance to try a SUPER HIGH QUALITY option and see the impacts. It’s beyond superior to what’s in most stores.
//
HOW TO ENTER:
1️⃣Like and save this photo
2️⃣Follow me and @previnex
3️⃣Tell me what you’re training for

Open to US only. Winners selected Apr 17.

#runningtips #runhappy #trailrunning #guthealthmatters #probiotic #runmehappy #runforlife
☀️MORNING OR ⭐️EVENING RUNNER? Which are y ☀️MORNING OR ⭐️EVENING RUNNER? Which are you?

🐦 early birds let’s hear, what time do you get up??? These times are often 🤯🤯
//
Most of the year I’m up by 5, which often leads to “when do you go to bed?!?!” 
Early 😂.
I’ve been prepping for AARP time since we moved to Miami and it was so dang hot. 

The habit stuck, so now I’m up early and lifting it not heading out immediately in the snow.
//
In my early 20s, I ran after work and then a lot over lunch...even in to marathon training.
👇
Now I have to psych myself up for evenings which is when most groups are!
WHAT ARE YOU AN EXPERT IN? Clearly I talk, read, w WHAT ARE YOU AN EXPERT IN? Clearly I talk, read, write and learn running non-stop. But I still have so many areas I’m working to improve, like trail running!
//
But today I wanna know about you??

🤓What could you easily give a 30 minute presentation on??

😱I’m prepared to be fascinated and learn once again I might need more hobbies.
//
An expert doesn’t mean you know it. ALL, but does mean you have significant experience and knowledge in a topic.
//
I could also talk about blogging 😂dealing with brands and pizza with confidence, but maybe not feel like an expert even with running this business for over a decade.
👇👇
All right, let’s hear it!! Don’t be shy, don’t play down your strengths, own it.
.
.
.
#strongwomenlifteachotherup #runtothefinish #communitylove #urbanrunner #runforgood #denver #streetart #runnerstyle #runnerlove #runnerlife
UPHILL RUNNING TIPS: One of the best ways to get s UPHILL RUNNING TIPS: One of the best ways to get stronger and faster with less injury risk is hill repeats.
.
BUT even picking routes with hills pays off. So a few tips to SAVE AND USE to get the most from them.
//
👁 Eyes: look ahead not down this will keep your chest up and you standing tall

💪Arm swing: swipe to see the upper cut motion that will propel you ⬆️

🦶Feet: take shorter faster steps and don’t run on the balls of your feet overtaxing the calves

🥵Effort: focus on maintaining the same effort not pace.

Mentally remind yourself of the great downhill coming for recovery! For every up there must be a down (lies I tell myself 😂while running).

👉👉How often do you incorporate hill repeats??
Follow on Instagram
Website written, managed and maintained by Amanda Brooks, a certified running coach and personal trainer. Any advice should be taken as general information and not a personalized plan. All opinions, tips and reviews are based upon her personal life experience and the experiences of those she has coached. View our full privacy and review policy.

Copyright © 2021 RunToTheFinish

Copyright © 2021 · RunToTheFinish V2 on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in