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Cow’s milk, almond milk, soy milk: What are the differences?

Although there are many many other types of milk available in most grocery stores, we will focus on the 3 most popular options; cow’s, soy, and almond.

Cow’s or soy milk is a complete protein, meaning it contains all 9 essential amino acids (EAAs) that the body is unable to make. Without the 9 EAAs, protein is unable to carry out its specific function. Almond milk, on the other hand, is an incomplete protein, meaning that it’s missing more than one EAA.

Protein per 8 ounces:

  • Cow’s milk: 8 grams
  • Soy milk: 7 grams
  • Almond milk: 1 gram

Cow’s milk and soy milk are your best options for muscle building, weight loss and recovery, because they are complete proteins. If you tolerate and enjoy cow’s milk, this is your best option as one that is highest in the amino acid specifically responsible for “turning on” muscle building (Leucine). Almond milk is a fine addition throughout the day, but do not rely on it as protein source.

What are the options for vegans and vegetarians?

You can certainly consume non meat vegan friendly options as your protein source! Feel free to use any of the lean vegan and vegetarian protein options available.

You can use the “Vegan” or “Vegetarian” filters when building your meals, and if a food item is not available, you can add it using the custom foods feature.

For those that are both vegan and need to fuel athletic performance check out our RP Vegan Diet Templates.

Should I choose organic, grass fed, GMO free, or any other type of special protein to succeed?

Good news! You do not need to choose organic/GMO-free food, as there is no current research that proves its benefits.

Grass-fed protein, however, offers very small, yet distinct nutritional advantages. It contains more omega-3 fatty acids, CLA, and potentially less total fat than traditional grain fed animals. HOWEVER, whether or not you choose grass-fed or grain-fed protein will not be the reason you are, or are not, successful. In the grand scheme of dieting, it’s a TINY difference. Buy what works for YOU and what YOU prefer.

Will a high-protein diet make me bulky?

No. Regardless of the food source, unless you eat more food than you burn in energy per day, you cannot gain weight, which applies just as much to a high protein diet as any other. If you’re on a fat loss diet, you follow the plan and you lose weight: there’s no way you can get bulkier. In fact, a high protein diet has been shown to be superior for building muscle, gaining strength, and losing weight, compared to a low or moderate protein diet.

What’s considered “high protein?”

  • 200-pound male: greater than 140 grams of protein per day
  • 150-pound female: greater than 105 grams of protein per day

Muscle and Strength Benefits

  • Dietary protein stimulates the cellular processes that instigate muscle growth. Taking in adequate protein in a timely manner throughout the day maximizes the muscle building response.
  • Enhanced recovery after exercise, which allows you to train harder at subsequent sessions, ultimately driving more muscle growth and performance benefits over time.

Fat Loss Benefits

  • Protein digests slowly and stimulates the release of specific hormones that signal the brain to make you less hungry, and ultimately makes it easier to follow your app.
  • By saving more muscle tissue as you lose weight, a high protein diet helps prop up your metabolic rate (which typically decreases during a diet), making fat loss faster.
  • By maintaining more muscle mass while dieting, you end up look shapelier and better at the end: who wants to put in all that hard work just to retain their former shape, only smaller?

Summary

A high protein diet helps suppress appetite, maintains hard earned muscle, and increase the number of calories burned: a winning combination for fat loss.

Comparing whey and casein protein powders

What is the difference between whey and casein protein? Whey protein digests much faster than casein protein. Whey protein is best used as part of a meal, specifically a meal before or after training. Casein digests slowly, which will help keep you feeling full, and will continue to deliver a steady stream of protein to your muscles for a long period of time. Casein is best used prior to long periods of time without a meal, such as before bedtime, or on busy days when you might not be able to eat regularly.

Whey

What is whey protein?

Whey protein is a milk-based protein created from the cheese making process. It’s ultimately sold in powder form. Whey protein is known as the “fast digesting” protein, because it’s easily absorbed and digested, and enters the bloodstream quickly. Whey protein results in rapid delivery of amino acids (protein) to the muscles.

When is it best to consume whey?

Whey protein is an excellent option to consume before, during, and after workouts, due to the fast delivery of amino acids (protein) to the muscles. Plus, its easy digestibility reduces the chance of GI distress around training. Whey protein is also a high quality, versatile, and convenient protein source that can be incorporated at ANY meal or snack.

Can I use whey to replace a meal?

Yes, you can substitute a whey protein shake for lean protein at a meal, but it should NOT be your primary protein source throughout the day. Variety ensures that you consume sufficient vitamins and minerals. If you are in the habit of having shakes to replace meals, mixing Whey and Casein together is probably best to meet meal replacement protein needs: just mix 1/2 of one with 1/2 of the other.

Casein

What is casein protein?

Casein protein is also a milk-based protein, derived from the cheese making process. It’s touted as the “slow digesting” protein, because it takes 5 - 7 hours to digest. This is because casein protein literally “clumps” in your stomach.

If you’re concerned about the health and safety of Casein protein, please don’t be. Casein has NOT been shown as a carcinogen of note in humans and is highly unlikely to be unhealth in the context of a balanced diet.

When is it best to consume casein?

Casein protein is best consumed prior to a long period of time without food, such as right before bed, or a busy day of meetings. Its slow digesting nature will provide satiety and a steady supply of amino acids to your muscles for a prolonged period of time.

What are the best way to prepare and consume protein powders?

Although we are used to hearing about protein shakes being a simple mix of protein and water, there are certainly other great options:

  • Oats: mix with cooked oatmeal
  • Yogurt: mix with Greek yogurt
  • Smoothie: mix into a fruit and yogurt smoothie
  • Protein Pudding: mix with peanut butter (melt for 15 seconds first) and a drizzle of water
  • Creamy Shake: mix with milk
  • Workout Shake: mix with a sports drink (to be consumed during training only)
  • Bake With It: cakes, cookies, treats and more.

Make sure to check out the RP Feast E-Cookbook!

The container comes with a scoop, but how do I measure it?

The recommendation in your diet plan is for grams in WEIGHT of total powder. Just weigh out the amount your app tells you for your shake or meal and that’s what you’ll use. It’s helpful to put your shaker bottle or Tupperware on the scale and hit “tare” before pouring in protein powder so that you can measure the weight of powder without just spilling it on your scale and then having to scrape it off.

To make things much easier, you can just eyeball the protein servings and fill up whatever fraction of the scoop you need. So if your whey protein has 24g protein per scoop and you need 20g, just fill it “almost all the way up,” and that will work just fine!

How do I make and consume an optimal shake? (8% solution for powder)

Add up all of the grams (in weight) of the protein and carb powders you put into your shake. Multiply this amount by 12.5, and that’s the amount of water in milliliters that you need to pour into the shake to make it the fastest-absorbing and most-hydrating 8% solution. For ounces, take that milliliter number and divide it by 29.6.

For example, if your protein and carbs together weigh 90g, then you’ll multiply that by 12.5 to get 1125mL of water for your shake. Dividing that by 29.6 gives you 38 oz of water.

Can I buy frozen protein?

Yes, you can buy protein fresh, frozen, and even canned. Just make sure you read the nutrition facts and make sure the portion size you eat meets your diet’s requirements.

Doesn’t cooking protein “ruin” it?

No, cooking your protein doesn’t negatively impact protein quality or quantity. Find more information here.

How should I measure my protein: raw or cooked?

If you’re measuring meat, raw is best, because that’s how we programmed the app macro conversions. When you look up nutrition information online (such as at this excellent website), the information for meats not on the app list is almost always (or first) listed for the raw meat. This is because cooking meat gets rid of water, and the more you cook it, the more water the meat loses. This water loss leads to changes in how much protein and fat a certain size cut of meat has. Use raw weights and look up raw nutrition facts for best estimates.

Can I eat other sources of protein not on the RP verified foods list?

Yes, but, for optimal results, we encourage you to stick mostly to the options provided, which incorporate a vast variety of protein choices. When you do eat other sources, count all of their proteins, carbs, and fats to the meal.

Can I eat protein bars?

Yes, but we recommend you find a protein bar that contains whey protein, not soy protein, as the primary ingredient, or a combination of the two. Quest bars are an excellent, delicious option. Count ALL nutrients (protein, carbs, and fat) in your protein bar to your allotted amount.

Can I have whole eggs on this plan?

You can, but with two rules:

  1. You should limit yourself to only 1 meal per day of whole eggs, foregoing them as the protein source for all other meals that day.
  2. Unlike lean proteins like chicken breast and seafood that you don’t have to count towards fat (because the app does it for you), you need to count ALL of the fat from the eggs in this meal in your fat allotment for that meal. Each whole egg has about 5g of fat, so, if you run out of allowable fat at fewer eggs than you hoped for, supplement these with protein-rich but fat free eggs whites/egg beaters.

How do I measure protein from eggs?

Use the key below (with some basic math) to help you eat the proper amount of protein at your meal(s).

1 ounce = 6g protein

  • 1 egg white = 3g protein
  • 1/2 cup liquid egg whites/beaters = 13g protein
  • 1 (large) egg = 6g protein
  • 1 (large) egg = 5g fat

If you just consume egg whites, the app will do all of this measuring for you. But if you choose a combination of eggs and egg whites, this math will come in handy.

EXAMPLE

A “24g protein” requirement could be met with any of the following options:

  • 8 egg whites
  • 7/8 cup of liquid egg whites/beaters
  • 4 large eggs (if meal calls for fat)