Whey Too Good To Be True

Whether your a trainer or an athlete you know the benefits of whey protein and how this powdery goodness can take your goals from good to great. First lets talk about what it actually is because most people only know it as generally protein. Some forms of protein, such as whey, are better than others and here is why. Whey is left over when milk is coagulated during the process of cheese production. The fat contained in the whey that is left over is removed. This protein is typically a mixture of beta-lactoglobulin (~65%), alpha-lactalbumin (~25%) and bovine serum albumin (~8%). With such tough stats no wonder this supplement has dominated the dietary supplimentation industry not just for performance and growth but overall health. So now we know what it is, lets get into the impact it has on us when we consume it. After our Workout our body in in a very anabolic state so protein is uptaken more readily. Since protein synthesis is highly active after and during workouts because of factors such as lactic acid, satellite cells, muscle breakdown etc, fast acting proteins such as whey are the perfect fit post workout and will be more beneficial than a piece of chicken because of the absorption speed. According to Helen Kollias, Ph.D., an expert in muscle development, whey protein navigates your gastrointestinal tract within a matter of 1.5 hours, where as a piece of chicken would take much longer. Absorption speed post workout is the most critical aspect to consider when choosing a post workout meal to avoid catabolism, this is why whey is the clear winner. The fact whey is a powder makes it an easy to consume favoured choice, with only 130 calories and 25 grams of protein. Now we have informed you of all the good in whey we have to end this on a bit of a reality check. whey before bed is not the most beneficial choice just because of its fast absorption properties. because when we sleep our body fasts for 7-9 hours we tend to need a slower digesting protein so we might be able to maintain amino acids in our blood throughout the night. Since Whey is not the most beneficial choice of protein when fasting we will address in our next blog the correct choice for fasting.