Protein Drinks: Mikey Likes It!

Well, Day 5 of my 20-day pre-op diet is winding down and so far I’ve learned the following things about protein drinks:

• I prefer that they be ice cold.  This makes them tolerable.  Of course I haven’t tried mixing plain protein powder into a savory broth yet.  That’s an experiment for next week.
• I really, really don’t like them to leave a filmy residue in or on my mouth.  This makes me less likely to drink them.  Or anything really.
• I also don’t like them if they smell in the least bit chemical.  No off-putting smell and delicious taste are two important criteria any drink I consume must meet.  This is why I don’t drink beer, eggnog or buttermilk–all of them have a horrible stank, in my opinion.  But hey, to each his own.
• Fruity flavored drinks are okay so long as they are clear and not cloudy.  For some reason I have an issue with drinking a cloudy looking fruit flavored drink.  Perhaps it is because the first fruity flavored drink I tried was Isopure Zero Carb, and it is completely translucent, so I expected the next fruity flavored drink, Syntrax Nectar, to mix into water with no problem.  I was wrong.
• I have found a couple of sources of protein that I really like and find delicious (thus they are tolerable).  They are:

Isopure Zero Carb:  Icy Orange flavor

This one tastes like either orange Kool-Aid or Gatorade, both of which I like.  I drink this one over ice so that it stays super cold.  The nutritional info on this one is super attractive too:  40 grams of protein, no carbs (duh, check the name) and 160 calories for a 20-ounce bottle.  I’m planning on hitting this one hard immediately post-op, provided that my tastes do not change.  And even if they do, I’ll choke this down anyway.

Tonight I poured the rest of a bottle I had in the fridge over rocks in an old-fashioned glass.  Very “Mad Men,” no?

Unjury Chocolate Splendor

My dietician gave me a sample of this at our last visit and I finally got around to trying it.  It is pretty good once you get past the odd odor, so I pinched my nose to down the first couple of swallows.  Then I got over it because it tasted really chocolatey–like Nestle Quik–and drank it.  Sweet Baboo went ahead and ordered a couple of canisters, so when they arrive, I want to make a smoothie out of some and add a little of the sugar free Almond Roca syrup I bought a couple of weeks ago to see if I can make it taste like the candy, which is one of my all-time favorite candies.  EVER.

The nutritional information on this is good too:  1 scoop has 21 grams of protein, 4 grams of carbs (1 fiber, 3 sugar) and 100 calories.  I drink it in 8 ounces of 2% milk (yeah, I know it’s carby, but I’m taking baby steps toward skim).  So when I drink it mixed with milk, that adds another 10 grams of protein.

I have also run into a couple of protein sources that I flat out did NOT like.  They are:

Premier Protein

My dietician told me that this was a really good tasting source of protein and was a pretty good bang for the buck, with 130 calories, 30 grams of protein and 1 gram of carbohydrate.  So I bought a case at Costco last month because they were on sale.  SB has been drinking them, and I hadn’t yet tried them, so one morning when he was cracking one open I decided to take a sip of his drink.   I smelled it first, and then tasted and was revolted.  It was very filmy, didn’t taste chocolatey, and tasted too chemical to me.  Thankfully, he likes them so buying the case was not a waste of money!

Syntrax Nectar:  Twisted Cherry

I had been told that this would taste like cherry Kool-Aid.  If cherry Kool-Aid were milky, maybe.  This left a ton of residue in the bottom of the blender bottle I made it in.  And perhaps that was my problem–I made it in a blender bottle instead of stirring it into a glass of water.  I also mixed it with more than the recommended amount of water because I knew it would be overly sweet, which it was, even mixed with 24 ounces of water.  I won’t be trying this flavor of Nectar again, even with its good nutritionals (100 calories, 23g of protein, 0 carbs).  I’ve got some other flavors of Nectar left to try out, as I bought a sampler pack from BJ’s Bariatrics, so I’m hoping that the other flavors are better than this one.

I’ve also tried the Celebrate Vitamins ENS Chocolate Milk flavor.  The ENS is a mixture of vitamins, fiber and protein in an all-in-one drink mix that you can mix with water.  I tried it today mixed into milk, and had the same issue with it that I had with the Premier Protein–it tasted chemical to me.  This could have also been because I’d just eaten a chewable vitamin that was orange flavored.  I might give it another try.

Next to try is Big Train Fit Frappe.  I’d heard about this one from the Bariatric Foodie blog, where the author sang its praises.  I ordered a variety pack, but will be giving the chocolate flavor a try tomorrow morning.  As I am a huge fan of Starbucks Frappucinos, I’m hopeful that this will taste like one but with more protein (20 grams per serving).

It’s been interesting trying all the different protein powders and drinks.  I’m just grateful that the manufacturers make small servings available for purchase so that you don’t get stuck with a huge tub of some protein powder that you might not like!