By Anthony Jordan, Invito Personal Chef

Protein powders are boring when you just add milk or water, stir and drink. God gives us many incredible foods to make mealtime filled with flavorful variety and balanced nutrition. Adding whey protein to recipes is a simple way to boost protein levels and add a higher nutritional value to your meals.

As a Christian health advocate and personal chef, I am consistently being asked about protein sources and variations. What’s best, supplements or natural food sources? I suggest a combination of both. In this article I’ll answer those questions from my personal and professional experience. I have personally used different sources of protein to increase muscle mass, decrease hunger, improve my body composition and get essential amino acids.

Below I’ll focus on my top 3 sources of protein, include a recipe with each and share a link to a Bible passage that adds some ‘spiritual protein’ to your day:

WHEY PROTEIN

PLANT-BASED PROTEIN

WHEY AND CASEIN BLEND PROTEIN

WHEY PROTEIN

Whey Protein has always been a favorite among the fitness industry, because its fast- digesting, rich in (BCAA’s), especially (Leucine), which is the key player in promoting muscle growth and recovery after weight or resistance training. Its suggested that the Whey rotein is consumed within 1 hour post workout for maximum results. Whey is price-friendly. Consuming whey protein has been shown to decrease body mass and increase lean mass. I was introduced to whey protein very early in my fitness and business journey. Whey protein has an abundance of flavors and uses. The first food item that I sold from Invito Personal Chef, was a Protein Parfait. The muffin contained Whey Protein and low-fat cream cheese topping was filled with Vanilla Whey Protein, Raspberry Preserves and Walnuts.15 Grams of Protein Per Serving. Vanilla Whey Protein is used primarily in baking because of its neutral flavor. “Whey to Go”.

Taste and experience God’s goodness.

RASPBERRY PROTEIN PARFAIT

15 Grams of Protein Per Parfait

PLANT-BASED PROTEIN

Do you ever have persistent bloating and gas? Through research, I realized that I’m lactose intolerant. I fortunately stumbled upon plant based protein powders.

These plant-based protein powders can be made from pea, hemp, brown rice or legumes. Whey protein contains all nine essential amino acids and therefore is considered a complete protein. In the plant-based protein group, hemp protein is the only plant-based protein that is considered a complete protein. It is a slow-digesting protein. The other plant-based proteins are each missing one or two essential amino acids.

My favorite plant-based protein is one called Purely Inspired Brand. ,It’s 100% plant-based, USDA organic, contains fruits and vegetables, is gluten free, has no GMO’s, or soy, has twenty grams of protein per serving, has only two grams of sugar, comes in at one-hundred thirty calories and has no artificial sweeteners, colors or flavors.

First thing in the morning, I Iove to mix boiled egg whites (the egg white, a complete amino acid, replaces the missing amino acids), bananas and a shot of Kofina’s Pomegranate Balsamic Vinegar along with the Purely Inspired brand plant-based vanilla protein, for a healthy start to my day. Try it! Immediately below the Bible passage link, I provide you with the recipe for it.

Your body is a sanctuary. Use it for God’s good purpose.

POMEGRANATE PLANT PROTEIN BREAKFAST SMOOTHIE

40 Grams of Protein Per Serving

WHEY AND CASEIN BLEND PROTEIN

As I researched proteins, I came across a whey and casein blend. Casein is the main protein present in milk. Whey is fast digesting, meaning it gets to the muscles faster. Casein on the other hand is slow digesting, meaning the protein is being fed to muscles over a longer sustained period of time. The blend contains the best of both worlds. So, for me this was like finding a million dollars.

Protein blends are ideal for someone who is super busy and doesn’t have time to follow a regimented schedule of when to take protein. Once it’s in your system, it’s there for the day. The blend helped me with building mass and fat loss. I would consume the blend twice a day. I drank it once right after a full-body workout and then again right before bedtime. When I drink this I maintain a more even ready-all-the-time balance. My friends noticed the change before I did. I was pleased that all my hard work paid off.

I call it my Bedtime Blend Shake and the recipe (which includes one of my favorite protein’s — peanut butter) is below right after a link to a great Bible passage that talks about how we can be spiritually ready-all-the-time.

Have strength and passion to get up at the crack of dawn and follow Jesus late into the evening.

BEDTIME BLEND SHAKE

35 Grams of Protein Per Serving

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Let us hear from you. Post your comments below and tell us how these recipes work for you. Please also share other ideas you have for incorporating whey, plant-based and whey/casein blend protein into your recipes.