I’ve been looking for a modest protein drink that doesn’t taste like a protein drink. Something silky smooth, not grainy thick. Something with some legitimate flavor, not sorta flavor. Something all natural, not mostly natural.
I finally found one I like. It’s called Mix 1. All natural, 200 calories, 15 grams of protein, 2.5 grams of fat, 3 grams of fiber. 22 grams of sugar, but that’s not too bad.
I’d been buying them at a local market and at Whole Foods, but I just discovered that Amazon sells them by the case as well. With free shipping and no tax it’s an especially good deal.
So if you’re in the market to add some quick protein to your diet, check out Mix 1. It’s a nice product.
Justin
on 22 May 08Have you tried MuscleMilk?
BOOMER
on 22 May 08Make your own. Soy Protein, Frozen Fruit (costco frozen strawberries, freeze overripe bananas, etc), dash vanilla, honey to taste, raw egg if you want, blend.
Frozen fruit is the key for that cold cold cold burn.
Matthew Campbell
on 22 May 08Dude 22grams of sugar! Thats not a protein shake, thats candy. Try some optimum nutrion with 0 grams of sugar.
Chris
on 22 May 08I’m with Justin – Muscle Milk is the best stuff I’ve found. It’s the only protein drink I’ve ever had that I didn’t have to gag down.
I will give the Mix 1 a try though. But it only has half the protein (and granted, less fat) than Muscle Milk.
Tony
on 22 May 08For me the best way to get lots of protein without the calories is beef jerkey.
Mike Gowen
on 22 May 08I drink 2 Boosts (High Protein) a day and I truly love the taste. When they are slightly frozen they are as good as real milkshakes.
Benjy
on 22 May 08Protein drink? In a town known for its hot dogs and steak?
Chris
on 22 May 08It’s the 22 grams of sugar that gives it the nice flavor. Most protein powers have a much smaller amount. The higher percentage of protein gives it that unmixed texture.
I’ve been using Nutiva Hemp Protein Powder (can’t stand Soy or Whey), and it has the same characteristics. Very tasty and blends well. Aside from the sugar, the only downside to it is that it will turn your smoothie green if you don’t have a more dominantly colored fruit (like blueberries) in it.
Robert
on 22 May 08Amplify Protein is the best I’ve found. It tastes great and has 20 grams of protein per serving.
James
on 22 May 08That’s way too much sugar. You’re going to blunt the effect of the protein from the body’s insulin response.
Try IsoPure. I pay about $70 shipped on eBay for a 7lb container. You’ll spend twice that at GNC. No sugar, and it doesn’t taste bad. 50g per serving, 180 calories. Yours is 200 calories for 15 grams of protein?? So only ~60 calories of that 200 is from the protein. The rest is filler.
If you want candy, eat a snickers. If you want a protein shake, accept that it’s not going to taste that great.
What your drinking is the “shake” equivalent of a Clifbar.
Sean
on 22 May 08I recommend Full Strength shakes. They’re a little pricey, but worth it. The ingredients are high quality, and there are some actual scientific studies to back up their claims of effectiveness. I used these shakes, along with a serious exercise regimen, to help me loose 10 pounds over a few months and have continued to drink them.
I get two cases of the chocolate version delivered every month and usually drink one as an afternoon snack. So far they are the best quality and best tasting shakes I’ve had from a mix.
They’re only available over the web so far: http://www.fullstrength.com/
Erik Peterson
on 22 May 08Or you could just drink regular old milk. 16 oz of skim milk has 16 grams of protein, 24 grams of sugar, 180 calories and of course 0 grams of fat. And it is much, much cheaper.
I’d say some people need to do some “getting real” with their protein drinks. You don’t need some brand-name, flashy, expensive drink to get some protein. Just drink some milk.
Duff
on 22 May 08Full Strength is tasty, but expensive, and pretty natural but not all-natural.
I’m a fan of the Mix1 for convenience and price, although I could do with less sugar too.
jim Ray
on 22 May 08I like Almased, http://www.almased.com/, with V8 Fusion w/ Splenda. Tastes good and is relatively low on sugar. I think it may also be cheaper per serving if you buy the Almased in 3 packs.
It blends nice and smooth kind of like a smoothie.
Jason Sadler
on 22 May 08Most people have already mentioned that your choice of “protein shake” is not good due to the large amount of sugar, but more importantly a protein shake should include much more than 15 grams of protein. I am guessing you are using this as a meal replacement and not as a meal additive? This is a huge loss at any meal and of course is actually probably worse for you with all the pure sugar they are using. Also the carbs and fat from this shake are not the carbs and fats your body needs (good carbs from veggies and good fats from nuts, oils, dairy etc).
Obviously your dietary needs are different from those of athletes, bodybuilders etc etc. But what is important that most people don’t realize is that people who are in “perfect” shape adhere to a very very strict and simple diet. I don’t know anything about your diet, but I could almost guess that if you worked on what, when and how much of things you eat it would do 100% more than these crappy well-marketed (because you purchased) protein shakes.
Happy to lend more advice if you are interested.
some guy
on 22 May 08MuscleMilk! HGH!! Proteeeein! Power baaaars!
Carl
on 22 May 08Honestly, APEX shakes are the best tasting ones I’ve found. I love them. It tastes like melted vanilla ice cream almost.
http://my.apexfitness.com/products/product_details.php?item=TWS-CV
J
on 22 May 08Muscle Milk is full of saturated fat and artificial ingredients. Read the label.
Wayne
on 22 May 08Agree with the make your own comments.
Get a protein - try to get a protein blend, and not just a whey isolate like the Isopure suggestion. For example, try Nitrean from At Large Nutrition, or Metabolic Drive from Biotest. Both contain a blend of whey (isolates, concentrate, and hydrolyzed), casein, and egg proteins that is better for a meal replacement. Add some fruit and/or vegetables, blend with ice - tasty and nutritious.
If you really want to take all the work out of it, you can get both of those in MRP form (Opticen and Metabolic Drive Complete, respectively). But by making your own, you can make it healthier, more varied, and far tastier.
Either way, you should be able to do much better than Mix1 (like others have said, 22 grams of sugar, seriously!) and products like MuscleMilk (almost half the calories are from fat).
JF
on 22 May 08I said “a modest protein drink”—I’m not looking to load up on protein. Just a little extra. I’ll take a little extra sugar for less saturated fat (many of the other drinks listed above have high sat fat).
I do make my own sometimes with protein powder and soy milk and frozen fruit, but it’s not as portable as grabbing a quick bottle of Mix 1 from the fridge.
I’m not looking for the absolute perfect solution here guys, just something with a nice bit of protein, flavor and texture I like, and no saturated fat.
Dominic
on 22 May 08No comparison to Standard Process Whey Protein.
It’s no doubt the highest quality protein on the market.
Mark Eagleton
on 22 May 08How about beer? Most are under 200 calories, and 2 per day can provide 11% of your daily dietary protein. 0 fat, all natural, good for your heart, and very delicious.
Tip: Darker beers like Guinness are lower in calories and alcohol.
GeeIWonder
on 22 May 08Nothing beats real food and a few better decisions. Beer counts.
Mr Oz
on 22 May 08What about really natural food?
Clark
on 22 May 08Forget the quick fixes promoted by magic elixirs. If you need more protein in your diet and you are unwilling to get it from more substantial foods than simply add more milk and nuts to your diet.
Don Schenck
on 23 May 08Deca! Worked for me!!!
Toby Hede
on 23 May 08Sugar is way worse for you than saturated fat.
22 grams of sugar makes this junk food. Also: where is the sugar from? That can make a massive difference to the way it hits your body.
You’d be better of eating some nuts. And you’d save a ton of money.
Anonymous Coward
on 23 May 08Sugar is way worse for you than saturated fat.
That’s a generalization if I’ve ever heard one before!!!
Brian Pattison
on 23 May 08You might as well drink soda! Way too much sugar.
Chris Samuel
on 23 May 08It looks like its all natural, but 22g is a lot of sugar. It’s not even a modest amount. If this isn’t important to you, then I guess you are okay. In my opinion, Muscle Milk is a better alternative. You can find them to order by the case online.
Justin Bell
on 23 May 08Some of the commenters here seem to forget (or just don’t know) that some people use protein shakes for health issues.
I use soy protein shakes. I’m allergic to whey protein, so that puts simply adding more milk to my diet off the list. Partly it’s because I just don’t get enough protein on my dairy-free diet and partly because sometimes I need something that’s easy to digest.
I’m sure there are all sorts of reasons why one might take a protein shake, so what’s with all the assumptions about their use or about how they aren’t a natural food?
Justin Bell
on 23 May 08Sugar is way worse for you than saturated fat.
From that first sentence alone, I know it would be safer to ignore all of your advice. People who say that X is worse than Y when it comes to food often don’t know what they are talking about. Your body needs both of those things and which one is “worse” depends on exactly how much of each you are getting in the first place.
thenonhacker
on 23 May 08Optimum Nutrition Whey (ON Whey) worked wonders on my muscles and my metabolism.
Marvin Miller
on 23 May 08From their web site on sugar, check it out:
Sugar confusion?
Are you wondering about sugar content in your mix1 lifestyle? Here are some things to consider. Our mix1 product is sweetened with all natural, fair-trade, organic cane sugar and is balanced by whey protein isolate. Whey protein isolate has been shown to help stabilize blood sugar by slowing the assimilation of carbohydrates/sugar into the bloodstream. Plus you get 3 grams of fiber to further slow the sugar influx. It may be helpful to know some of your other favorites and their sugar content. Mind you, there is no fiber or protein in these products to balance the sugar load:
Apple juice: 24 grams per 8 ounces
Cherry juice: 28 grams for 8 ounces
Blueberry-Pomegranate: 28 grams for 8 ounces
Apple cider: 30 grams per 8 ounces
Pineapple juice: 28 grams for 8 ounces.
Most of the fruit juice/smoothie blends that are on the shelves today range between 25 grams to over 50 grams of sugar per serving. mix1 contains 22 grams of sugar per 11 ounces of beverage (the equivalent of 16 grams per 8 ounces).
CamemBert
on 23 May 08Mix1 must be talking to the wrong people, because I don’t think anyone here or anyone familiar with the horrible health consequences of sugar has suggested fruit juices aren’t incredibly sugar-laden nor good for your health in large quantities.
The fact they Mix1 seems to know full well the effects of sugar and can only make consolations that its other ingredients (possibly) make up for the toxic quantity of sugar they include. (Hey also it’s organic, guys! And there’s other stuff out there that’s totally worse… We swear!!)
Hey, at least they didn’t use nutrasweet.
Vivek
on 23 May 08Muscle Milk has a lot of fat in it and I think thats why it tastes so damn good! 16g of fat? Its good after a workout but not anytime else.
22g’s of sugar means that Mix1 probably has a high glycemic index value and thus should be avoided unless you want to get fat.
I’ve heard Syntrax Nectar is the best whey powder out there. It tastes like Tang I’ve heard. Its a slightly more expensive powder than the rest.
I like and drink Designer Whey … Strawberry. Very smooth when mixed even in a bottle (ie without a blender). No extra fat and minimum carbs.
GeeIWonder
on 23 May 08Some of the commenters here seem to forget (or just don’t know) that some people use protein shakes for health issues.
If you can run an Ironman on real food [as I and so may others have], you can do anything on real food.
Sure, one of us may be talking out of our bums, but it isn’t the ones advocating common sense.
Matt Radel
on 23 May 08Hrm – looks more like a protein / energy drink (29g carbs). Nice fat to protein ration though. It’d be a swell post morning workout drink – I may have to give it a whirl.
Aaron Quinn
on 23 May 08My son is almost two and he doesn’t like to eat much (to busy). He loves Mix 1 and his weight has gone up since we have been giving it to him. It helps us feel a little better since he was at the 95 percentile in weight. The founders are good people. We had a chance to work with a few of them on another project for kids a few years back.
Jim Jeffers
on 23 May 08I recommend just adopting a high protein diet. It’s really easy to do so these days. If you eat meat than you need not any additional protein to your diet whatsoever. Meat eaters are already on a protein overdose.
However, I stopped eating meat for the most part though, only serving a week or less. So protein is a bit more important. But even so, it’s very easy to get the protein you need by paying attention to what you eat. A bowl of oatmeal in the morning made with soy milk will give you a solid 15 grams in one serving. Or a stir fry of spinach black beans, and tofu will give you an adequate amount in one serving too. It will taste better and be better for you. Oh it also is a lot more cost effective.
I used to drink protein shakes all the time. I haven’t had one in a year now. I still workout at the gym daily. I haven’t been hindered without them. This is a big business, they want you to think you need supplements. I tend not to buy into that notion these days.
Rob
on 23 May 08@JF What flavor do you drink or think is the best? R
Justin
on 23 May 08FAT is NOT bad for you!! Anyway, I drink MuscleMilk because I’m trying to build…..muscle. Yes, natural food like meat, eggs, spinach is JUST AS GOOD as MuscleMilk but the reason I still take is this:
You have about a 30 min window to get protein into your system after a workout. MuscleMilk takes no prep time AND it will get into your system much faster than a piece of chicken.
Turbo
on 23 May 08MuscleMilk fans should do a little home work on their product. The low quality combination of protein, fat and artificial sweetener is a bad option. mix 1 actually gives you an easily absorbed form of protein and is naturally sweetened. If you think that a low or zero calorie option is better, please note that your muscles need sugar to repair themselves, glycogen replacement is important. Also, even at 22 grams of sugar, the amount of protein and fiber in mix 1 is high enough to keep the glycemic impact of the product pretty low.
Justin Bell
on 24 May 08If you can run an Ironman on real food [as I and so may others have], you can do anything on real food.
That’s completely dependent on the health and situation of the individual. And this is coming from someone who just read Micheal Pollen’s Unhappy Meals article and thought it was one of the most intelligent things on the subject he’s read in long time. Do you really want me to post all my personal health details up on the internet to prove you wrong?
Alexis Perrier
on 27 May 08Frozen fish on a stick and sometimes a slice of human works wonder for me :-)
Alex M
on 28 May 08Protein drink? What a sham! Who convinced you that you need more protein, and furthermore, that you need to get it from sugar whey water?
This discussion is closed.