Gemma Pea Isolate vs. Whey Isolate [Amino Profiles]
I just did a little comparison of the amino acid profiles of 2 products out of curiousity. For the whey isolate I used MGN Pure Isolate Whey because it's the one I have. The pea protein I used was True Protein's Gemma Pea Isolate, because I just ordered this. Just wanted to see how it would compare. I bolded the winners for each amino. The results were somewhat surprising.
[b][u]True Protein Gemma Pea Protein Isolate[/b][/u]
(Per 100 grams)
[b]Alanine 4.4
Arginine 9.1
Aspartic Acid 12.5[/b]
Cystine 1.1
[b]Glutamic Acid 20.3
Glycine 4.1
*Histidine 2.7[/b]
*Isoleucine 4.7
*Leucine 8.7
[b]*Lysine 7.7[/b]
*Methionine 1.2
[b]*Phenylalanine 5.6[/b]
Proline 4.4
[b]Serine 5.6[/b]
*Threonine 3.9
*Tryptophan 1.0
[b]*Tyrosine 3.9
*Valine 5.2[/b]
[b][u]MGN Pure Isolate Whey[/b][/u]
(Per 100 grams)
Alanine 4.2
Arginine 1.7
Aspartic Acid 9.4
[b]Cystine 2.2[/b]
GlutamicAcid 14.9
Glycine 1.3
*Histidine 1.7
[b]*Isoleucine 5.7
*Leucine 8.8[/b]
*Lysine 6.9
[b]*Methionine 1.7[/b]
*Phenylalanine 2.5
[b]Proline 6.1[/b]
Serine 4.2
[b]*Threonine 6.3
*Tryptophan 1.5[/b]
*Tyrosine 2.4
*Valine 5.0
-Pea protein won for 11 aminos, and whey for 7
-Both won for 5 essential amino acids (If you consider Histidine and Tyrosine essential)
-Glutamine/arginine/glycine content in pea protein was much higher than whey
Considering the pea protein was cheaper than the whey (If you exclude shipping cost, which could be reduced by splitting it with someone or just placing bulk orders), the pea protein actually seems to be a better deal. I have yet to see how it tastes though, I ordered it with orange cream flavoring and sweetened with Stevia. If the taste is tolerable, I think I just found my new protein of choice.
I'm loving the taste of pea protein and rice protein
(I had all sorts of citations, but the site would not let me show the links. Sorry.)
Anyway, here’s my ‘protein shake’ recipe, ingredients placed in this order for best blending:
• Add a handful of ORGANIC spinach leaves to blender (available at Costco for ~$3.99/lb) You can’t taste the spinach--or at least it gives a clean taste to the shake--plus you’re getting vegetables!
• Add some walnuts (not too many, they’re packed in calories, but it’s good to eat seeds and nuts with other foods as the fats can increase absorption of good things in the other foods by up to 10x, per a PBS broadcast I just saw with Dr. Fuhrman. “The healthy fats in seeds and nuts also aid in the absorption of nutrients when eaten with vegetables.”
• Add some ORGANIC pumpkin seeds (I’m presently out. I get them at Ballard Market or PCC.)
• Add one ORGANIC Brazil nut (Brazil nuts are a great source of selenium, something depleted in much of the soil growing our food, hence people don’t get enough. For men, one Brazil nut a day is a healthful, harmless preventative against prostate issues.
• Add a cup of Costco’s frozen anti-oxidant ORGANIC fruit mix. It’s a new product selling at 3lbs for $10. That’s about the best price available for frozen (always the most nutritious way to get fruit and vegetables) strawberries, blueberries, pomegranate seeds, cherries.
• Add two teaspoons Trader Joe’s cocoa. Just discovered it. It sells for $2.49 or 2.99. Keep it in the fridge. It’s American Process, meaning they don’t add alkali. (It’s light colored, which is good.) This has great anti-oxidant, heart-healthy properties. (It’s the ‘good stuff’ in dark chocolate, without all the sugar.)
• Add one-half scoop of NOW Pea Protein powder. (Not really a noticeable taste, at least for me.) You determine how much in comparison to the rice protein powder. The idea is to balance the two out, each making up for the deficiencies of the other. It might be easy to overdue how much you add. Remember: 1 gram of protein equals four calories (pea and rice protein, some found in the other ingredients; 1 gram of carbs equals four calories (berries, oats, banana); 1 gram of fat equals 9 calories (nuts, seeds, cocoa).
• Add around one-half to two-thirds scoop (the rice protein doesn’t come with a scoop, so I used the NOW Pea Protein scooper) of NutriBiotic Rice Protein, Vanilla Flavor. (It tastes really good, to me!) The idea is to balance the two out, but not putting in too much protein! (All the ingredients are adding up, calorie-wise.)
• Add one-third to one-half cup ORGANIC oatmeal, uncooked (OPTIONAL). This adds fiber, clean carbs, cholesterol-reducing oats. It also thickens up the shake. Only downside are that the oatmeal adds a fair number of carbs. Oatmeal also inhibits spikes in blood sugar levels (I recall).
• Add part of an ORGANIC banana (OPTIONAL). After an upper or lower body workout, the banana may help raise blood sugar levels, which some suggest will help the protein get absorbed better. (While I recall reading this, this article suggests otherwise: {couldn't post link}. Regardless, bananas are pretty nutritional and taste good!
• Add one-half to full-cup of Whole Foods 365 Unsweetened almond milk (OPTIONAL). It hardly has any calories, tastes good, and fools me into thinking it’s milk! I use it instead of milk for cereal (I make a muesli of organic oats, organic spelt, organic rye (PCC, Whole Foods, or Ballard Market bulk section), organic raisins (Costco), walnuts, frozen organic blueberries and raspberries (Trader Joes, though now I’ll be getting the Costco organic frozen anti-oxidant mix), organic pumpkin seeds, pistachio nuts, etc.)
• Add one cup or more cold water.
• Pulse blend at first, then steady to mix ingredients.
All told, if you balance things out right, you can make a shake that has between 300 to 400 calories, depending on how much stuff you put in it. The nuts and seeds can make a big difference, since they have fat, but fat is important. Not a bad meal, especially right after a strength-training workout. To count calories in foods without a Nutrition Data facts label on the package, see this link: nutritiondata.self.com/ (This site has so much info on every food it’s amazing!)
Also, for weight control and better long-term health, read up about the glycemic index of foods. It’s one of the most important issues about good health, and most people are unaware of it. (A simple rule for me is: STOP EATING COOKIES, TWIZZLERS LICORICE, and PRETZELS!)
It’s a good tasting shake! I’m getting back into a Body-for-Life six days of training/six small meals a day regimen in hopes of getting back into shape and losing twenty pounds of recently added fat. I’m about three weeks in and now feel I’m getting ready to cruise into a steady routine. I’ve been working out hard, such that my muscles feel really sore one and two days after my workouts. Maybe the protein shakes will help in recovery. (More sleep would!)
