NOW Foods Sports Nutrition, Whey Protein Isolate, 25 g With BCAAs, Unflavored Powder, 5-Pound

I'm no expert but I feel like this is one of the better Whey proteins out there. No added junk, just pure whey. Others have reviewed the nutrition merits so I'll go into consumption.When taking this I recommend only 1 cup of water per scoop. If you add more water I think it tastes worse. When I first started taking this I didn't like the taste and needed to add a spoon of my hot chocolate mix to it for taste. Now I actually really like the taste of it with nothing added. If you didn't know Whey is actually the protein from milk. It doesn't taste like milk but you get maybe a hint of that taste. I can't really describe it.Another trick I use is if you mix 1 cup of fruit punch and 1 scoop of Whey you get something that tastes like a delicious berry smoothie. This will also give you a 1:1 carb / protein ratio in itself. If I'm not working out at home I take one of these drinks with me so I can take it immediately after my workout or hockey game.Now just some tips I've picked up since you're looking to get Whey - muscle bulked up. (keep in mind I'm on that route but I'm not all muscle yet)Carbs are you energy - I recommend getting your carbs in the morning, before your workout so you have enough energy to get through it, and post workout to help restore energy. Half of a PB&J sandwich is my go to energy carb right now. White bread gets absorbed and converted to energy very fast and it works well for me. Carbs are needed to get the protein where it needs to go so don't go cutting them out completely. Update - Sounds odd but don't neglect fat - you want about half as many grams of fat or less (preferably unsaturated) as you do protein. You will suffer if you don't have any fat in your diet. Sunflower seeds, nuts, peanut butter, avocados all have some fat you can use.I'm trying for somewhere around a 2:1:.5 to 1:1:.3 grams of carbs:protein:fat per pound daily.When to take your Whey? There's some debate on whether to take Whey pre-workout or post-workout. Some say both. I used to go post but I recently switched to taking it pre-workout when I take my carbs (simple carbs around 45 minutes before workout) - logic being the protein will already be in your system for muscle repair. I haven't practiced it enough to say which way is best though. I also take a scoop in the morning. If you go for the daily recommended 1 gram per pound you'll be taking it throughout the day.Burning Fat: I'm a fairly skinny guy - however I've always had fat over my lower abs. I want abs so that had to go. I've lost almost all of that fat and here's how I did it. To lose weight you simply need to burn more calories then you take in. First, small meals / I make half sandwiches instead of whole ones now - when you go out to eat take home some of your meal in a doggie bag rather than forcing it all down. I only eat when I'm hungry, wait for your hunger pangs and fight them a little. If you're preoccupied with other things you can ignore hunger pangs easier. If they get too bad go make make yourself a small meal. If you fight hunger pangs for too long your energy levels will drop so go eat some carbs and it will pick them right back up. I'd take a multivitamin to make sure you're getting everything you need. Do this and watch fat go away - it doesn't take long, I can see / feel a difference in my stomach every day. When I do have a cheat day - sometimes the stomach wins or peer pressure and you just want to eat - the extra fat added on my belly is noticeable - but don't fret, you can burn it off in a day or two.Doing the above routine I lost a lot of fat eating a small bowl of cereal in the morning and a homemade hamburger for dinner. So honestly I don't think what you eat matters so much as waiting for and resisting the hunger pangs a bit. The end goal is to just burn more calories then you take in - so simply taking in less is an easy way to do that.Eating healthy: Recently I started eating healthier. It's a lot easier then you think. Vegetables, low fat meats, egg whites. Spend some time in the produce section of the grocery store and you'll find a lot of good, quick finger food you may have not considered before. My lunches are mostly all vegetables now. Cherry tomato's, broccoli, mushrooms, baby carrots, lettuce. All things you can just grab out of your fridge and snack on. Hard boil some eggs, put them in a bag in your fridge and you'll have egg whites whenever you want. Tuna, mackerel, sardines, frozen tilapia fillets (microwave for 1:30 or so) for fish protein. Skinless chicken breasts or whatever - marinate them in Italian dressing - sprinkle some Weber Gourmet Burger seasoning on right before cooking - cover in tin foil and pop in the oven at 350 degrees for around 40 minutes - delicious. I cook extra to refrigerate and microwave later. Not as good as out of the oven but still good. I've never been much of a chef - just picking up stuff along the way. If you have other healthy foods you like please share. I'm always looking to add to my menu.Workouts: Why the heck is this last? Hah, I'll just say I've been doing the p90x routine, I'm on week 5 and loving it. I find it helps to have something guide you rather than just going to the gym and doing whatever you feel like. When you're working out you get exhausted and don't want to think so I would find a good complete routine that switches things up, allows rest days, keeps you motivated, and is easy to follow. Of course take that with a grain of salt, as I said I don't have huge muscles yet - this is just what I've learned so far.

I buy the 5 lb tub of this on auto ship. I hate most protein powders bc they taste unnatural, too sweet, chalky. This has none of that. Most of the time I can’t even taste it. I put it in smoothies and sometimes yogurt. The unflavored powder blends right in

I ONLY buy all-natural protein (NO Aspartame/Acesulfame-k/Sucralose, NO chemicals or artificial colors/flavors/colors)! And anyone consuming protein is presumed to be inherently health-conscience, so why would anyone consider ANY protein powder with this crap in it? That is beyond me. There are 1,000 flavors (double-chocolate chip cookie dough, triple espresso fudge cake, cake batter, blue lemon truffle punch, etc...) I mean seriously? Are there millions of morbidly obese body builders out there who need their protein shake to taste like their favorite candy-bars and screw their health in the process?? Anyway, I'll get off my soapbox, but for the rest of you who don't want cancer or brain-tumors and actually care about what they shove into their bodies, then look no further than this protein powder! Ok, I've spent many days doing the research to see if I can de-throne my current protein king powder ("Optimum Nutrition Gold Standard 100% Natural Whey Protein Powder") which I absolutely love! But wanted to see if there was something better or just as good for cheaper. Enter this product. Now, this review is to compare these two highly rated kings! These 2 powders are the best of the best when it comes to All Natural. To help with the analysis, please refer to the attached diagram. So, the bottom line is that for $1.00... NOW=39g protein, ON=30.9g protein. So, with NOW, you get 26% more protein for the same buck! Hows that for a "dollar menu" analysis. They are both highly rated and are both EXCELLENT choices... however, the difference is the ON has sugar (yes, natural sugar!) and has natural flavoring, so of course humans like sweet things so it gets the edge on taste (10/10 in my book... I literally love it just as much as a milkshake and it isn't that sweet, just enough to be lightly evident but not unhealthy). Now, the reviews for this NOW said it tasted horrible and bitter and I was really afraid to buy it but due to the $ per gram of protein and appearing an even healthier choice compared to the ON, I thought I'd try it. Let me tell you, it is totally awesome! Now, not as awesome as the sugar sweetened ON, but for having nothing in it but 100% protein (no sweetner/flavors) it is totally OK!!! Now... let me preface these "taste" statements with one thing... I ALWAYS use milk in my protein shakes (16 oz milk - fat-free / 1% / 2% / whole) with 2 scoops protein, blend 20-seconds, drink. I thought I'd have to mix half/half of NOW/ON but I really don't. The NOW tastes just neutral, like I'm just drinking milk (which I love) but the same or even a little better than just plain milk. Now, given that NOW has no sugar/flavoring, it is a "more" natural choice compared to the ON.. and on top of that, has 26% more protein per $1.00 spent... I'm totally sold! If I'm in the mood I can flavor it with vanilla, honey, chocolate, peanut butter, bananna. Or, it tastes neutral enough to where I don't feel I have to drown the flavor out with any of those things... because at least with milk, it tastes great just by itself!! Plus, the NOW has the added benefit of being flavor-neutral for usage in recipes (w/o inadvertantly adding sweet/flavored(vanilla/chocolate) flavor to your favorite recipes. Another fringe benefit worth noting is that the NOW is still a 5.0 lb jug. It is not trying to sneakily down-size to 4.8lb (like the ON)... this is how manufacturers do it slowly so you're still paying the same $50/tub but the tub is now a wee-bit smaller... evil, evil, I say. Anyway, both of these are my absolute favorite proteins, but taking a deep-dive into the nitty gritty details... there has emerged one-clear winner to rule all of the natural proteins out there (IMHO). Thanks for reading and I hope this helps you (I took out 3 hours on my day off to put this review together for you!). Let me know if this was helpful to you or if you have any questions. thanks!