This won’t be your ordinary post.

And it won’t be your ordinary list of what protein powders are the worst (or best).

Rather, I’m going to teach you how to pick a good, quality whey protein powder by showing you what to and what not to look for. Then, I’ll give you some examples of terrible protein powders that I think would do you well if you simply never buy them.

Now before we move along, what do I mean by “worst”?

What Makes A Protein Powder Terrible

There are many things that make a protein powder terrible. But I’m not going to get into the nitty-gritty details you’re probably concerned with.

Some of those things being – digestion rate, type of whey, added amino acids, vitamins and minerals, whether it’s grass-fed or not, and especially, if it’ll help you build muscle/lose or gain weight.

Why?

First, because whey protein itself isn’t as important as you think for changing your physique. And second, none of the rest matters when you’re a beginner/intermediate to fitness. Which I’m  sure most of you reading this are.

So what should you be concerned with?

Ingredients, macros, and price.

Let’s take a deeper look on those things now…

Worst Protein Powders – Ingredient List

We all know protein powders are processed. But some are HEAVILY processed.

And you can tell just by reading the listed ingredients.

Here’s an example of a GOOD protein powder ingredient list…

Ingredients for Optimum Nutrition Double Rich Chocolate

This is from Optimum Nutrition. Now I’m not using them as an example because I personally love them. But because they’re simply a good protein powder.

Anyways, take a look at the ingredients.

You have what’s found in a good powder. Which is essentially, whey protein alone as the supplement, and artificial sweeteners. I’ll tell you why having whey as the only supplement (and not other things like amino acids and creatine) is important later.

But for now, in general, the shorter the list of ingredients, the better.

Now let’s compare this to a BAD protein powder…

Ingredient list for Muscle Milk’s Chocolate Protein Powder

This is an example of what I would consider one of the worst protein powders on the market. And unfortunately, it’s what most people tend to buy.

Just take a look at that gigantic list. You probably don’t have any idea what half of those things are. And I can tell you, most of it is garbage and unnecessary.

Now, you might think this isn’t really a fair comparison because Muscle Milk is technically casein and Optimum Nutrition is whey. But that’s besides the point. Any supplement (or food even) with a large list of ingredients is highly processed and should be avoided.

I’m just using Muscle Milk to exaggerate my point.

If you go shopping for other protein powders and find a large list of unrecognizable ingredients like the above, you might want to avoid it.

Worst Protein Powders – Macros

The next important thing is macros. The amount of fats, carbs, and protein specifically, in each serving.

What you’d typically want to go for is a protein powder that is low in fats, low in carbs, and high in protein. If it’s the reverse — high in fat and carbs and low in protein — most of the time, it’s because of additives.

What’s considered low in fat and carbs, and high in protein then?

A good rule of thumb to follow is this: per serving (1 scoop), you want to get under 5g of fats, under 10g of carbs, and over 20g of protein. Follow this, and you’ll eliminate almost all bad protein powders and be left with quality ones.

 

Optimum Nutrition is low in fat, low in carb, and high in protein

Now this isn’t exact. But an easy to remember and effective guideline.

Another thing you might want to avoid are brands that require 2 scoops per serving (or even have it listed). I can’t tell you why exactly. But from what I’ve come across, brands with this serving size are almost always terrible. Again, Muscle Milk being one of them, but not the only one.

Muscle Milk’s macros don’t meet the above mentioned rule of thumb nor serving size

One other little thing you want to keep an eye on is the advertised amount of protein on the container. If they advertise anything other than what’s in ONE SCOOP, avoid it.

Oftentimes, you’ll see a container with a whopping 30, sometimes even 60 grams of protein displayed on the front. Yet this isn’t for one serving, but for two. Not only is this misleading, but a marketing ploy to get you to buy.

Which leads me to my bonus point..

But before that, let’s complete what we have left…

Worst Protein Powders – Cost

This should be obvious.

You get what you for when it comes to supplements.

If you cheap out on whey, you’ll get a cheap quality product.

Another good rule of thumb to follow is this: if the protein powder is dirt cheap, but contains a lot of protein per serving, stay away from it.

Why? That sounds like a heck of a deal!

No.

If you see this, it should ring an alarm in your head that something’s wrong.

And there is.

It’s been shown brands manipulate their nutrition label. And what you’re really getting is a bunch of extra filler that contains no nutritional value. At least, what you’re looking for — protein.

Here’s what this Forbes article titled, Lawsuits Say Protein Powders Lack Protein, Ripping Off Athletes, says…

“But third-party tests, attached to some of the lawsuits, show some companies also fill the tubs with far cheaper free form amino acids like glycine, taurine or leucine as well as other substances like creatine monohydrate, and then portray them as grams of protein on the products’ labels. Certain amino acids are considered the building blocks to protein but they are not protein by themselves, nor do they have the same benefits as complete proteins.”

What does this mean to you?

If you see a label with a whopping 30g of protein per serving, as well as amino acids like the ones mentioned above in the ingredient list, you’re not getting all the grams of protein it says you will.

And in that article, you’ll see which companies were investigated for misleading their customers.

But here’s a quick brand I don’t recommend for the same reason here, and all the above – Body Fortress. See if you can catch everything mentioned…

Body Fortresses’ Super Advanced Whey Protein Nutrition facts

Did you get it?

It’s hidden in their “Super Recovery Blend” (which is BS and I’ll tell you why in a second). The amino acids glycine, creatine, taurine, and leucine, as well as others are listed on their ingredient list.

The same ingredients the companies investigated in that article used to increase the grams of protein on their label.

But not only that. This is also a relatively dirt cheap brand which contains a large amount of protein per serving.

Can you tell why and how now? (see above)

Bonus For Avoiding The Worst Protein Powders

Lastly, the easiest way to determine whether your protein powder is a good or bad one is marketing.

How do they market their products?

Does the company use loud, flashy, and colorful pictures and language in regard to their protein powder? If so, that’s all it is – loud and flashy. No substance.

Just take our previous example of Body Fortress – who has repeatedly changed their labeling to appeal to customers.

Current label of Body Fortress Super Advanced Whey Protein

If you remember from before, I said companies will post the amount of protein of TWO SERVINGS on their packaging, instead of one. Here’s that example. The 60 grams of protein listed above isn’t for one scoop, but for two. This is obviously to attract customers, but is highly misleading.

Why not just display one serving?

The other thing to take note of is the benefits listed on the front — “Build lean muscle and strength.” “Boost post-workout recovery.”

Can protein powder help with that? Of course.

But again, it’s to attract customers to believe consuming their product alone will produce these effects.

Good, quality brands will not list these things on their label.

Lastly, in regards to Body Fortress, their ingredients are called “Super Whey Protein Blend” and “Super Recovery Blend”. What’s so super about it? Nothing really.

It’s only to make it sound more attractive.

And if you find any other brand which uses similar wording, avoid them.

Here’s another example.

Almost all GNC branded products are ridiculously overpriced and are piss-poor in quality

Notice the wording – AMPLIFIED, EXTREME, RIPPED, and WHEYBOLIC (whatever that is).

It’s all marketing.

And again, what you see here is a listing of a gigantic 60g of protein. But is this for one serving? No. In fact, it’s not even for two, but for THREE SERVINGS.

What’s worse, everything else on the front of the container is for THREE SERVINGS.

Final Words

Choosing your protein powder can be rough. But after reading this post, I’m sure you know what to look out for now.

To recap, here’s what the worst protein powders generally consist of:

• A long list of ingredients
• Over 5g of fats, Over 10g of carbs, and Under 20g of protein per serving.
• Cheap with a lot of grams per serving
• Loud, flashy presentation and wording

If you want a good protein powder then, as always, Optimum Nutrition Gold Standard is my recommendation.

You can take a look at their label and container. They don’t have any of the above tells for a bad protein powder.

P.S. If you want to avoid the worst protein powders and get a good one, grab a tub of Optimum Nutrition Gold Standard here (Amazon).