Protein Myths Part II

The truth about supplements, plant proteins, powders, bars, and more

Post summary

• Last Wednesday, we ran Part I of a guide to protein and myths about protein (read it here). Today’s post is Part II.

• We’ll cover practical questions about protein, like the truth about protein bars and powders, whether plant proteins are inferior, whether you should supplement protein, and more.

Housekeeping

• This post is free to all subscribers. Enjoy. But only Members get full access to Wednesday and Friday posts and all Two Percent archives, podcasts, videos, challenges, and chats.

• Join us. Become a Member:

• Heads up: My two books, The Comfort Crisis and Scarcity Brain, are on sale for the cheapest I’ve seen (~$13 each). I’m not sure how long the deal will last. Get ‘em here.

• ICYMI:

  • On Wednesday, we covered Part I of our protein series. Read or listen to it here.

  • On Friday, we posted the February Burn the Ships workout. Warning: It’s hard! Have fun, don’t die.

Audio/Podcast version

• Listen on your preferred player here.

The post

Protein is having a moment. Sixty percent of people are trying to eat more protein, and food corporations are injecting protein into everything from water to cookies to chips.

Is this a smart step in the direction of health? Or is eating more protein just the diet fad of the moment?

In Protein Myths Part I, published Wednesday, we examined at how much protein is enough for goals like general health, fat loss, or building muscle; if protein elevates your metabolism; whether protein is more filling than other foods; and more.

I suggest you read that post so you have the necessary context and background information for today.

Today’s post, Part II, covers practical questions about protein, its sources, and how to get it. You’ll learn:

• Whether protein bars are good for you.

• Whether plant proteins are sub-optimal.

• The truth about protein powders.

• Whether nuts or (insert some other food you’ve heard is high in protein) are high in protein and a framework for determining whether a food is high in protein.

• Whether you should supplement protein.

Let’s roll …

Are protein bars good for you?

• Section summary: Bars are a convenient way to get more protein. But, ultimately, they’re more similar to candy bars than whole protein sources like meat or fish.

I recently visited Dr. Kashey in Austin, Texas. We were sitting at his kitchen counter, each eating a bowl of ice cream—side by side like Tweedledee and Tweedledum (in this situation, I was definitely the latter).

He told me, “Have you ever thought about how if you crumble up a chocolate chip cookie, it’s an ice cream topper and therefore perceived as unhealthy—but if you crumble up an oatmeal cookie, it’s ‘granola’ and perceived as healthy?”

I think the same phenomenon often occurs with protein bars.

Most candy bars are mixtures of sweeteners, fats, and various chemicals. No one thinks candy bars are a health food.

But our perception shifts if that exact same mix is injected with protein. We suddenly perceive the bar as “healthy.”

That extra protein could be beneficial if you aren’t getting enough, but there may be better ways to get your protein.

For example, if you’re trying to eat foods with fewer ingredients, protein bars typically have more added chemicals than candy bars because it takes a lot of science to make a protein bar taste decent. Some of those chemicals, like emulsifiers and sweeteners, can lead to an upset stomach. This is why some protein bar labels tell you to not eat more than two a day.

It’s also possible that proteins from whole foods have benefits we aren’t aware of compared to more processed protein sources.¹

How I think about protein bars

The benefit of protein bars is that they make getting enough protein more convenient.

If you aren’t getting enough protein, they can be helpful. But if you’re already getting enough, they become more like a candy bar.

For example, I recently spoke to the founder of a protein bar company. He told me that in a perfect world, everyone would get their protein from single-ingredient foods like lean meats, dairy, etc.

But we live in a fast-paced world where not everyone has time to cook or wants to transport food that requires refrigeration. That’s where protein bars fill gaps, he said. And I agree.

For example, I typically don’t eat protein bars at home; I tend to eat whole foods. But if I’m traveling, I’ll pack a protein bar or two for days with an unpredictable schedule. I also bring Maui Nui venison sticks because they’re a great source of protein much closer to a whole food.

Are plant proteins suboptimal?

• Section summary: Probably not.

Scientists used to think plant proteins were suboptimal compared to animal proteins.

This was because some research suggests that plant proteins lead to less muscle protein synthesis due to their amino acid composition.

New research, however, shows that processing techniques like cooking, sprouting, and fermenting make plant proteins more bioavailable.

Stu Phillips, Ph.D., who is one of the world’s top protein researchers, wrote:

It is becoming very apparent that when sufficient (above the RDA) quantities of protein are consumed, plant-based diets do not result in sub-optimal protein synthesis or muscle mass. I will admit that this was not my message 20 or even 10 years ago, but data is now coming out to show that plant-derived proteins, especially complementary proteins, do the job—they support muscle protein synthesis and lean mass. This is even true for people lifting weights and trying to gain lean mass, where protein is such a small contributor to the response.

The takeaway: Aim to get enough protein and don’t worry too much if it comes from plants or animals. Follow this footnote for more research on the topic².

I think it’s also worth looking beyond the laboratory and into the real world: If plant proteins were significantly worse, we wouldn’t have successful vegan bodybuilders and Olympic weightlifters.

The truth about protein powders

• Section summary: Protein powders can help you get more protein conveniently but aren’t necessary for health or performance.

Let’s pretend, for a moment, that you had a goal of eating 200 grams of protein a day and wanted to get it all from whole foods.

It’s definitely doable. Consider Sahil Bloom, who we spoke to last week. He gets about 200 to 250 grams of protein a day. That’s about 1.1 to 1.4 grams per pound of his body weight. And he does that through whole foods. He eats:

• Breakfast: Six eggs and cottage cheese.

• Lunch: 8 to 16 ounces of chicken, steak, or ground turkey with a natural carb source and vegetables.

• Dinner: 16 ounces of meat with vegetables.

• Before bed: Greek yogurt with berries.

Sahil does what works for him—and it’s working well!

But some people may not want to or be able to get that much protein from whole foods. For example:

• Some dairy-based protein sources may not sit well on your stomach.

• You may not have the appetite to eat two pounds of meat daily.

• You may not have the resources to prepare, store, and eat that amount of meat, eggs, and dairy in a day.

• You may avoid meat and other animal products for ethical reasons.

Enter protein powders:

• They can be a cheap and convenient way to hit a protein target.

• They travel and store well.

• They’re typically less filling than a sit-down meal.

• They’re easier to prepare (just mix them with water).

• Depending on how they’re processed, some protein powders sit better on stomachs than dairy foods like yogurt (some whey proteins and all plant proteins don’t have lactose).

The takeaway: protein powders are a convenient source of protein, but they aren’t necessary for performance or muscle growth.

A quick word on plant-based protein powders

Vegans and vegetarians generally get less protein than omnivores. One study pointed out:

Individuals adhering to a vegan dietary pattern consumed less protein both as a percentage of energy and as grams normalized to body weight than either vegetarians or omnivores.

Plant-based protein powders can help people who eat plant-based diets get enough protein for minimal calories:

• Foods with a high amount of protein per calorie are rarer in plant-based whole foods. For example, you’d have to eat about 1.5 cups or 340 calories of black beans to get 20 grams of protein.

  • A scoop of plant protein can give you that same 20-gram dose of protein for about 140 calories and not many carbs.

A warning on plant protein powders: Some have high levels of heavy metals. Surprisingly, organic plant proteins tend to have higher levels of heavy metals than those made from conventional vegetables.

One analysis discovered that organic plant proteins averaged double the heavy metals of plant proteins made from conventional plants.

This is why I like Momentous’ Essential Plant Protein. I emailed my friend Jeff Byers, the CEO of Momentous. He wrote:

Our plant protein is NSF certified, and that has a rigorous testing process, which includes testing of heavy metals and requires amounts to be in what they determine safe. In addition, we don’t use organic pea protein, as the organic proteins carry more heavy metals.

There are other NSF-certified plant proteins on the market, but I like Momentous (which is a partner of Two Percent).

Are nuts a good source of protein?

• Section summary: Nuts can be part of a healthy diet, but they’re not a great source of protein. They also teach us a valuable lesson about how we can determine if a food is high in protein.

Nuts are pitched as a good source of protein. Even some top nutrition researchers offer nuts as a high-protein snack.

When I think about what makes a good source of protein, I consider how many grams of protein the food has per calorie. The more of a food’s calories that come from protein, the higher in protein the food is.

Nuts are part of a healthy diet. They have many nutritional benefits. When you run the math, however, you’ll find that nuts aren’t a great protein source.

Let’s take almonds almonds as an example.

• One ounce of almonds contains six grams of protein and about 160 calories.

• That means about 15 percent of their calories come from protein.

• For comparison, a slice of whole wheat bread contains 5 grams of protein for a 110-calorie slice.

• That means about 18 percent of whole wheat bread’s calories come from protein—making the bread a higher protein food. Yet no one thinks a slice of bread is a high-protein food.

The greater takeaway: What makes a food “high protein” is how many of its calories come from protein. There isn’t an official cutoff for when a food becomes “high protein,” but it seems reasonable to say that at least 30 percent of a food’s calories should be from protein for it to be considered relatively high in protein.

Should you supplement protein?

• Section summary: If you don’t get “enough,” then supplements make it easier to get enough.

One of my favorite nutrition question stories comes from my friend Adam Campbell, a brilliant fitness and nutrition mind who was my boss at Men’s Health.

Adam was standing in his office working when one of the tech guys popped his head into the office and asked. “Can I ask you a question?”

Sure, Adam said.

“Should I drink a protein shake?” the guy asked.

Adam told me he had this moment. He told me, “I was busy. I could have just said ‘yes’ to this guy and saved myself time. But instead, I gave him my actual answer, which was basically a 45-minute conversation.”

He had to figure out this guy’s goals, determine how much protein he was eating and his food preferences, and so much more.

The point is, whether you should supplement protein comes down to your goals and whether you’re getting enough. Read Part I to learn an ideal amount of protein for your goals.

As you may have gathered from the points about protein bars and powders above, protein supplements are an easy way to get “enough” protein—but they aren’t magical or necessary.

Have fun, don’t die, eat enough,

Michael

Partnered with:

GOREWEAR

GOREWEAR designs endurance gear for Two Percenters. Their products are tailored for athletes and optimized to help you perform in any weather. GOREWEAR leverages the most cutting edge science and works. No matter how hard we train or what nature throws at us. Use code EASTER for 30% off your next order. Discover more at www.gorewear.com.

Eight Sleep

Humans evolved to sleep in cooler temperatures—but that’s not always easy to do in warm modern homes with hot modern mattresses. Eight Sleep goes on top of your normal mattress like a fitted sheet and allows you to dial in your mattress’ temperature to whatever is most ideal for your sleep. Data shows Eight Sleep can increase sleep quality and, in turn, your health. It also saves you from having to blast A.C. throughout your entire home at night. Use code EASTER at Eight Sleep for a discount.

1. Who knows whether that actually matters in the context of a diet filled mostly with whole foods.

2. Additionally, here are a few studies supporting this idea: Here, here, here, and here.
One that compared vegans and omnivores who ate .7 grams of protein per pound of their bodyweight and lifted weights concluded:

A high-protein (.7 grams per pound bodyweight per day), exclusively plant-based diet (plant-based whole foods + soy protein isolate supplementation) is not different than a protein-matched mixed diet (mixed whole foods + whey protein supplementation) in supporting muscle strength and mass accrual, suggesting that protein source does not affect resistance training-induced adaptations in untrained young men consuming adequate amounts of protein.