Getting enough protein after your surgery is essential. Your protein targets will differ from other people and you are best asking your surgeon or bariatric dietitian what you need to aim for. Sometimes it can be difficult meeting protein targets and you’re told to supplement with a protein powder to boost your intake. There can be a million protein supplements to choose from so we've put together a basic guide on protein.
There are many protein powders out there, some more palatable than others (it really comes down to personal taste) but ideally choose a protein powder that will give you a decent amount of protein per scoop especially if it’s making up part of your food / kilojoule intake. However there are categories of protein powders available, some include:
- Whey or casein protein isolate or concentrate (dairy based) e.g. Cyborg WPI Whey Protein Isolate or Boomers proteins
These usually come in multiple flavours e.g. chocolate, vanilla, caramel, strawberry or can also come unflavoured. These usually have somewhere between 15 and 40g protein per scoop depending on the brand. Some are also high in carbohydrates and sometimes fat, avoid these ones as you are trying to increase protein and carbohydrates are quite easily obtained from food
2. Pea, soy, rice protein powder e.g. Vital Protein pea protein or BioPro Choc / Hazelnut
These are often used by those who do not want to use a dairy based protein e.g. vegans. They usually come in multiple flavours e.g. chocolate, vanilla, caramel, strawberry and range between 15 and 30g protein per scoop
3. Fruit flavoured ‘water’ try of protein e.g. Cyborg Ultra Leaan Protein or Bodiez Protein Water
These are like having a fruit flavoured cordial as opposed to the traditional ‘milkshake’ style of protein. They come in a ready made package like Bodiez protein water of in a powder that you add to your water like Cyborg Ultra Leaan. They are a great way to boost your protein intake while getting hydrated.
- Clear dissolvable protein that you don’t even know is there e.g. Beneprotein
These are great because you can add them to almost anything but per scoop they don’t tend to have as much protein as the above protein options.
- Other protein products
When choosing a ‘milkshake’ style protein powder (the first 2 listed options) you should aim for one that is high in protein and low in carbohydrates and fat, the nutritional breakdown should look a bit like this:
Per scoop / serve it contains:
- Protein: at least 20-30g (higher the better)
- Carbohydrates: Under 3g (lower the better)
- Fat: Under 3g (lower the better)
If you are looking for some protein powders to supplement your intake, we sell the following protein powders:
- Milkshake flavoured protein powders:
- Unflavoured protein powders: We range 2 non-flavoured proteins including:
- Boomers Whey Protein Isolate which contains 26.6g protein per scoop and almost zero carbohydrates and fat.
- Boomers Calcium Caseinate protein which whiles provides protein, also provides calcium!
- Fruit flavoured protein water powder:
- Cyborg Zero Raspberry flavour which contains 25g protein per scoop and less than 1g of carbohydrates and fat.
- Cyborg Ultra Leaan that whilst only containing 5g protein, can be added to a few serves of water and it comes in several flavours
Check out our complete protein powder range here.
It should be noted that after bariatric surgery, flavour perception may be different and flavours or sweetness can appear much more intense than they used to, so you may find that protein powders a bit sweet or not as palatable as they should be. So remember you can always add more milk or water than directed as the directions are only a guide and we all have different taste preferences.
Need some ideas on how to use your protein powder? Read our article: