Additional Protein Shakes Explained
If you're wanting to incorporate additional protein shakes into your personalised meal plan then this the article for you!
Generally speaking consuming a protein shake in addition to your meal plan will not pose too much of a problem, so long as you understand a few basic guidelines. We say "one or two scoops of whey protein in addition to your meal plan is no problem at all, anything more ideally needs to be substituted in." What that means is that one or two additional scoops of whey protein can be consumed in addition to your meal plan —not substituted in. A scoop of whey protein should be no more than 150 calories.
The exception to the rule is if you're trying to gain weight; if you're trying to gain weight, or struggle to put on weight, then the additional calories are not only not going to be a problem, they're actually going to be a great help. Consuming calories in liquid form can be much easier to stomach and digest, especially when you're the type of person who doesn't have an appetite to begin with.
The take home message is this; if you're cutting or trying to lose weight then consume no more than one to two scoops of whey protein in addition to your meal plan, as anything more than one to two scoops should ideally be substituted in. Also keep in mind the timing of these additional scoops does not matter, as "meal frequency and nutrient timing are irrelevant for improving your body composition." Now with that said there is still no reason to go fasted for long periods of time if you don't have to; meaning, a great time to have this additional shake is post-workout.