4 Healthy Guidelines To Choose A High Quality Protein Powder

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How Do You Choose The Best Protein Powder?

On today’s episode of Live Lean TV, I’m sharing 4 healthy guidelines to choose a high quality protein powder.

Let’s be real.

There is no shortage of protein powder options.

So how do you select the best protein powder for you?

Table Of Contents: Jump To

4 Healthy Guidelines When Choosing A High Quality Protein Powder

To assess whether a protein powder is healthy, I like to follow 4 healthy guidelines and 1 bonus criteria.

After I share each guideline, I’ll analyze if the protein powder I use passes the test.

With that said, let’s jump into it.

Healthy Protein Powder Guideline #1: Type Of Protein

What is the highest quality type of protein powder?

The first way to assess whether a protein powder is healthy, look at the quality of the type of protein used.

I grade the protein type based on the following 2 criteria:

1. Does It Contain A Complete Amino Acid Profile?
2. Does It Have A High Protein Digestibility Score?

What Is The Difference Between Complete And Incomplete Proteins?

A complete protein contains all 9 essential amino acids that the body cannot product on its own, in the right amounts required for muscle growth.

An incomplete proteins lack one or more of these essential amino acids.

Complete protein powder sources include:

• Whey Isolate: contains a higher percentage of protein content and less lactose
• Whey concentrate: contains a slightly lower percentage of protein content, with more fats and carbohydrates
• Micellar casein: a slow-digesting protein derived from milk that provides a sustained release of amino acids
• Egg White: best option if you have issues with dairy
• Pea And Rice 70/30 Blend or Soy: for Vegans

Check out this post on the differences between whey vs plant based protein powder.

What Is The Best Amino Acid Profile For Protein Powder?

The best amino acid profile for protein powder includes a balance of all 9 essential amino acids, with an emphasis on a high concentration of the branched-chain amino acids, often referred to as BCAAs, leucine, isoleucine, and valine.

These BCAAs are crucial for muscle protein synthesis and recovery.

From a grams per serving perspective, the protein powder’s essential amino acid profile should contain approximately the following amounts as shown on screen:

• Leucine: 2-3 grams
• Isoleucine: 1-1.5 grams
• Valine: 1-1.5 grams
• Histidine: 0.5-1 gram
• Lysine: 1.5-2 grams
• Methionine: 0.5-1 gram
• Phenylalanine: 0.5-1 gram
• Threonine: 1-1.5 grams
• Tryptophan: 0.3-0.5 grams

What Is The Most Bioavailable Form Of Protein Powder?

The bioavailability of protein refers to the extent and rate at which the body can digest, absorb, and utilize the protein.

A high protein digestibility score is measured by the Protein Digestibility Corrected Amino Acid Score (PDCAAS).

On a scale of 0-1.0, with a maximum score of 1.0, this measures how well your body is able to digest and utilize the protein.

Here is a list of the protein digestibility scores for the most popular types of protein powder:

• Whey Protein Isolate 1.0
• Whey Protein Concentrate 1.0
• Milk Protein Concentrate 1.0
• Micellar Casein 1.0
• Egg White Protein 1.0
• Pea/Rice (70/30 blend) 1.0
• Soy Protein Concentrate 0.99
• Soy Protein Isolate 0.98
• Pea 0.89
• Hemp 0.63
• Rice 0.37

EarthNutri Protein Powder Review:

Now let’s see how EarthNutri protein powder holds up to these guidelines.

I use EarthNutri Whey Isolate And EarthNutri Egg White protein powder.

Use 25% off discount code: LiveLeanTV25

Both of these types of protein powder:

1. Are considered a complete protein
2. Contain sufficient essential amino acid amounts within the recommendations
3. Have a maximum digestibility score of 1.0.

Unlike a few supplement companies, I appreciate that EarthNutri is transparent in providing the actual amino acid breakdown per serving, so you can be sure you are getting sufficient amounts of each of the 9 essential amino acids.

EarthNutri Protein Quality Goal: Approved!

Healthy Protein Powder Guideline #2: Percentage Of Protein Based On Weight Per Serving

What percentage of protein should be in a serving of protein powder?

Another way to assess the quality of a protein powder is to calculate the percentage of protein based on weight per serving.

To calculate the percentage of protein based on weight per serving, simply look at the nutrition facts label for the serving size in grams and the amount of protein in grams.

Percentage Of Protein Based On Weight Per Serving = grams of protein per serving / grams of serving size

Healthy Goal: 70-90% of the serving size weight should come from the weight of the protein.

EarthNutri Protein Powder Review:

Let’s calculate the percentage of protein based on weight per serving for EarthNutri Whey Isolate and EarthNutri Egg White protein powder.

EarthNutri Whey Isolate Protein Powder: % Protein Based On Weight Per Serving:

• 25g of protein per serving / 29g scoop serving size = 86% protein based on weight

EarthNutri Egg White Protein Powder: % Protein Based On Weight Per Serving:

• 26g of protein per serving / 32g scoop serving size = 81% protein based on weight

EarthNutri Percentage Of Protein Based On Weight Per Serving Goal: Approved!

Healthy Protein Powder Guideline #3. Percentage Of Calories From Protein

What percentage of calories should come from protein in a protein powder?

Another way to assess whether a protein powder is healthy, is to calculate the percentage of calories from protein.

To calculate the percentage of calories from protein, simply look at the nutrition facts label for the amount of protein per serving in grams, then multiply it by 4, since there are 4 calories in every gram of protein.

Divide this number by the total calories per serving to see what percentage of the calories comes from protein.

Healthy Goal: 80% or more of calories should come from protein.

EarthNutri Protein Powder Review:

Let’s calculate the percentage of calories from protein for EarthNutri Whey Isolate and EarthNutri Egg White protein powder.

EarthNutri Whey Isolate Protein Powder: % Calories From Protein:

• (25g of protein per serving x 4 calories per gram) / 110 calories per serving = 91% of calories from protein

EarthNutri Egg White Protein Powder: % Calories From Protein:

• (26g of protein per serving x 4 calories per gram) / 120 calories per serving = 87% of calories from protein

EarthNutri Percentage Of Calories From Protein Goal: Approved!

Healthy Protein Powder Guideline #4. Limited Ingredients And Healthy Sweeteners

What are the healthiest sweeteners to look for in protein powder?

Another way to assess whether a protein powder is healthy, is to look at the ingredients list to analyze the quality of the ingredients and see what sweeteners are used.

Healthy Goals: Minimal clean ingredients using natural zero calorie sweeteners such as stevia or monk fruit, rather than artificial sweeteners.

EarthNutri Protein Powder Review:

Let’s take a look at the ingredients list for EarthNutri Whey Isolate and EarthNutri Egg White protein powder and analyze each ingredient.

EarthNutri Vanilla Whey Isolate Protein Powder Ingredients:

1. Whey Protein Isolate (sunflower lecithin)
2. Organic Vanilla Flavor
3. Natural Cream Flavor
4. Organic Monk Fruit Extract

EarthNutri Vanilla Egg White Protein Powder Ingredients:

1. Egg White Protein (with sunflower lecithin)
2. Organic Vanilla Flavor
3. Organic Monk Fruit Extract

A protein powder that uses only 3-4 ingredients is very impressive.

Plus, all ingredients are clean and understandable.

The sunflower lecithin is a common ingredient used an emulsifier to improve mixability and texture, helping the powder dissolve more easily in liquids.

Organic monk fruit extract is a natural, low-calorie sweetener to enhance flavor without adding sugar.

EarthNutri Ingredients And Sweetener Goal: Approved!

Now that I’ve covered all 4 healthy guidelines to follow when choosing a high quality protein powder, let’s do a quick EarthNutri protein powder review on the taste and mixability, as well as the price per serving.

EarthNutri Protein Powder Review: Taste And Mixability

The EarthNutri vanilla whey isolate protein powder has a smooth and creamy vanilla flavor that is subtly sweet, so it easily blends into shakes and recipes.

The Earthnutri Egg White Protein Powder has a clean, mild flavor with a subtle egg white taste that also blends well in various shakes and recipes.

I don’t get an overly strong artificial taste like you get with a lot of the artificially sweetened protein powders.

Both protein powders also mix very easily and don’t leave residues at the bottom of your glass.

EarthNutri Protein Powder Review: Price

The average price per serving of whey isolate protein powder and egg white protein powder typically ranges from $1.50-$3.00.

Based on this let’s check where the price of EarthNutri protein powder fits into this scale.

By the way, since you can use discount code: LiveLeanTV25 to get 25% off EarthNutri protein powder, we’ll use those numbers in this pricing breakdown.

EarthNutri Whey Protein Isolate Cost Per Serving:

• 1.41 pound container provides 20 servings of 25 grams of protein at a cost $37.49 when you use our 25% off code: LiveLeanTV25
  • Cost per 25 gram serving of protein:
    • $37.49 / 20 servings = $1.87 per serving
  • Cost per gram of protein:
    • $37.49 / (20 servings x 25 grams per serving) = $0.07 per gram of protein

EarthNutri Egg White Protein Cost Per Serving:

• 1.41 pound container provides 20 servings of 26 grams of protein at a cost $44.98 when you use our 25% off code: LiveLeanTV25
  • Cost per 26 gram serving of protein:
    • $44.98 / 20 servings = $2.25 per serving
  • Cost per gram of protein:
    • $44.98 / (20 servings x 26 grams per serving) = $0.09 per gram of protein

Based on this, both the whey protein isolate and egg white protein powder still fall within the average price per serving, when you use our LiveLeanTV25 discount code at checkout.

Bonus Criteria: Third Party Testing

Should your supplements always be third-party tested?

A bonus criteria used to assess whether a protein powder is healthy, is to look for third-party testing logos on the packaging.

Third-party testing signifies the supplement has undergone independent testing for quality, purity, and accuracy of ingredients by an external organization.

In the U.S., the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) does not evaluate the effectiveness, safety, or purity of supplements.

A few of the major third party testing companies include:

• NSF Certified for Sport
• USP
• Informed-Sport or Informed-Choice

Since the testing process is quite expensive, third-party tested protein powders tend to be more expensive.

Due to the cost, not all companies can afford to pay for this testing, therefore if you these third-party tested logos on the packaging, think of it as an added bonus, but not a requirement.

EarthNutri has a “Banned Substance Free” logo and “HPLC Potency & Strength Tested And Approved” logo on their packaging.

This means the protein powder has been tested using High-Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC) to verify its potency and strength, ensuring that it contains the specified amounts of active ingredients as claimed on the label.

Question Of The Day

Let me know in the comment section below:

1. What brand and type of protein powder do you use?
2. Does it pass all 4 of these healthy guidelines?

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Check out this video post on the differences between Grass Fed vs Organic vs Regular Whey Protein Powder.

Keep Living Lean.