Whey v Plant
Protein supplements help you build muscle quickly, burn fat and keep your appetite in check, making them a popular choice for anyone who works out or is body conscious.
While plenty of food products are good sources of protein, to replenish your body when you’re working out and build up your muscles, protein supplements are a useful aid.
But if you’ve never used them before, knowing which variety to choose can be confusing. In this guide, we take a look at how whey and plant based proteins compare.
Whey to go
Whey based proteins are ever-popular, being an affordable and natural by-product of cheese making. Whey is the watery component of milk that separates during the process. It then undergoes heating, filtering and pasteurization and is dried to a powder, with sugar or artificial sweeteners added to enhance flavour.
Whey based protein powder contains branched-chain amino acids to help build up muscle. In fact, it’s a complete protein with all the nine amino acids you need to take through your diet as they can’t be made naturally by the body (the “essential” amino acids).
As long as your body can tolerate dairy products, whey protein is a great supplement as it’s quickly digested and wastes no time getting to work to repair and boost muscles. Unfortunately, whey proteins are not suitable for anyone with a dairy intolerance or allergy.
Plant based proteins
This is where plant based protein powders come in. They are derived from all kinds of plants, such as soy, pea, hemp and rice. The drawback with plant based proteins is that some do not contain all the amino acids that whey based proteins do. But if you combine a couple of different types, you should be able to get all the amino acids you need. Or you could opt for the following varieties, which are complete plant proteins: sunflower, chia, hemp, pea, soy and quinoa.
Plant proteins also contain other nutrients, including vitamins, fatty acids and antioxidants. This is in contrast to whey protein, which does not offer any other nutritional goodies.
It’s also worth knowing that plant based proteins don’t require the same amount of processing as whey proteins. It makes them kinder to the environment, especially if the plants they’re derived from are farmed organically.
If you’re conscious of environmental issues, you may also want to consider the effect animal farming has on the planet. With whey being made from by-products of the dairy industry, this is a factor to consider.
The verdict
But which is better at building mass and strength – whey or plant based protein? A study published in 2013 looked at this very question by recruiting young men who practised resistance training and dividing them randomly into two groups. One group took a rice protein supplement, the other a whey protein supplement on their training days, immediately after exercise.
Factors such as recovery rates, muscle soreness, muscle thickness, body composition and body strength were recorded over the eight-week study.
The study concluded that there was no difference in these categories between the two groups. What’s more, strength, power and body and muscle mass all increased, while fat decreased whichever supplement was used.
Over to you…
Choosing between whey and plant based protein is a personal choice, guided by your lifestyle. So if you are sensitive to dairy products, a combination of plant protein supplements or a complete plant protein supplement will be perfect for you. For those who are keeping a careful eye on their budget, whey based protein is considered the slightly more affordable option.
It’s clear that whichever form of protein supplement you choose, when combined with your workout regime and a healthy diet, you will have an excellent chance of burning fat and building muscle to achieve the body shape you desire.
