This week's edit is protein. I don't get enough. I'd bet you don't either. We put in the work to get stronger, then skip the one thing that turns that work into strength. The good news: fixing it is easy.
Here are five ways to get more protein in your day, from the classic scoop to the one pouch that upgrades all of them. Plus, our top-10 shopping list is at the bottom.
1. SCOOP IT
The scoop and the shake. Still the most popular way to get your protein, and with this many options the only rule is pick a flavor you’ll look forward to. I’ve sorted them by most popular for you here.
Momentous has led in protein for years with its whey isolate (95 Feed Score). Isolate means the whey’s been filtered one step further, so the fat and most of the lactose are gone, nearly every gram in the scoop is protein, and it sits easy on your stomach.
If you want rich chocolate, Promix Dutch Chocolate (95 Feed Score, 30g a serving) has been trending for a few months. And if you’re bored of vanilla and chocolate, Ascent is where to go: Key Lime Pie, Lemon Sorbet, Blueberry Muffin, Fruity Cereal, and a 96 Feed Score to back them up.
2. GO CLEAR
Clear whey showed up a year or two ago. It’s the same whey isolate as above with one more step: it’s made acidic, closer to juice than milk, and filtered until it dissolves clear. You get 20g of protein that drinks like a sports drink instead of a milkshake.
Easier to digest? A little. It’s isolate, so it’s nearly lactose-free, and it sits lighter after a hot workout than anything milky.
The real reason to go clear is the fruit flavors, which frankly are delicious. Most people mix it with water and shake. I still think a splash of milk, ice, and a blender wins: my favorite is Ascent Pineapple Coconut done that way, a full piña colada vibe with 20g of protein.
One clear option really does work with water. Arrae Clear Protein+ mixes like a stick of hydration in a bottle, and it basically is one, with protein added: 15g from hydrolyzed whey and collagen (hydrolyzed means pre-digested, so it absorbs fast), plus 500mg of sodium. Lighter on the protein, somewhere between protein and hydration. Raspberry Yuzu is my favorite, and there’s a variety pack with all three flavors.
3. SHOOT IT
They had me at Orange Creamsicle. The only thing better than the flavor of the SUPA Power Protein Shot is the portability: 21g of protein, 90 calories, zero sugar, in a bottle you can palm. Turn the cap and shoot it.
It’s by far the easiest way to get your protein up. I keep mine in the fridge because they taste even better cold, but you can just throw a few in your bag. Walking out of the gym and shooting one before you reach the car is the habit that moves the needle.
4. BARS, BARS, BARS
Today’s main event. In one corner, the David Bar, which everyone loves. In the other, the Italian Stallion: Enervit PURE-PRO 50%.
The tale of the tape: both 28g of protein. David at 0 sugar, Enervit at 0-1. Calories decide it. David at 150, Enervit at a towering 208. The calorie fight goes to David. Taste goes to Enervit: rich, Italian, made in the hills above Lake Como.
I can’t leave bars without the best big-company mashup of the year. Remember Clif Bar? They got bought. The company that bought them owns Oreo. In the spirit of every good “synergy,” I present the Clif Builder’s Oreo. Yes. It’s as good as you would expect.
5. BOOST IT
Everything above is protein, and only protein. What about your creatine, your collagen, your glutamine, and PeptiStrong, the fava-bean peptide in Synthesis that flips the switch, telling your body to turn that protein into lean strength?
I used to keep a tub of each and scoop them all into my “shake.” Then it hit me: put it all in one pouch, pre-measured, ready to go. That’s Foundation. 5g of creatine, 5g of collagen, 4g of glutamine, the same PeptiStrong dose as four Synthesis capsules, in one single-serve pouch. It’s the #3 selling product on The Feed this year.
Get the Neutral version. It disappears into a whey shake or a clear whey just the same.
YOUR SHOPPING LIST: THE TOP 10 PROTEINS ON THE FEED, IN ORDER
Pulled from the most-popular sort this morning. Yes, three collagens made it. Collagen counts.
SwissRX Collagen [99 Feed Score]
The Feed Lab Whey Protein [99 Feed Score]
PILLAR Performance Collagen Repair [98 Feed Score]
Momentous Collagen Peptides [97 Feed Score]
Tailwind Recovery Mix [95 Feed Score]
Skratch Labs Recovery Sport Drink Mix [97 Feed Score]
Momentous Whey Protein Isolate [95 Feed Score]
Paleovalley Bone Broth Protein [88 Feed Score]
Transparent Labs Grass-Fed Whey Isolate [90 Feed Score]
Promix Whey Isolate [95 Feed Score]
That’s the Protein Edit. The first protein email that didn’t open with how many grams a day you need, in some formula of body weight in kilos times pi and the square root of Y. Just try to get more than you do today. My goal is an extra 60g a day to start. I probably need another 100g, but we have to start somewhere.
