Protein Powder For Women 2024 – 10 Best Meal Replacements Shakes

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Protein powder is a great supplement to use if you want to lose weight, tone up, or gain some lean muscle mass. This is especially true if it is taken as a post-workout supplement.

When trying to achieve any of these goals, your hormonal and nutritional needs are an important factor. Because of this, the ideal protein powder is often different for men and women who have the same goals, which can make it hard for women to choose the right product for their needs.

Protein Powder For Women 2024

We have reviewed some of the top protein powders on the market that either claim to be designed for women or are simply great choices for the particular needs women have when using protein powders or post-workout supplements. This should help you to compare and contrast what is available and make a more educated decision when selecting which product you would like to use.

1. Six Star Whey Protein For Her

This protein powder from Six Star takes a fairly eclectic approach. It seems to be trying to be a superfood green juice, probiotic, and post-workout supplement all at the same time.

Six Star uses a combination of whey protein isolate and whey protein concentrate for their protein source, and then they add in bacillus coagulans as a probiotic along with blueberry powder, broccoli, and spinach. The actual amount of the probiotic that is included isn’t stated on the label, so there isn’t any way to be sure you’re getting enough for it to do its job.

2. Body Lab Tasty Shake

The Tasty Shake from Body Labs is a product that was designed by Jennifer Lopez, and she is an active participant in its marketing. Most people would expect a supplement like this to either contain a complicated formula of herbal extracts or be packed full of junk and fillers, but the reality isn’t so bad.

Body Lab’s Tasty Shake is actually a pretty straightforward protein powder without much flash to it. In fact, there isn’t much about it that would make it stand out from the competition at all. It’s composed mostly of whey protein isolate and whey protein concentrate with a few artificial sweeteners added for flavoring.

These flavorings are where the Tasty in Tasty Shake comes into play. It contains natural flavors, stevia, and sucralose, all of which are used to smooth out the gritty texture many protein shakes have and provide you with a sweet taste. This does add some sugar to the label, but at 1 gram per serving, it’s an insignificant amount.

3. NLA Her Whey

If you’re looking to minimize the different products you have to use and wish you could just throw them all into one big serving, NLA Her Whey was probably made for you. In addition to the whey protein in the formula, it’s also got a massive dose of fatty acids, MCT oil, sunflower oil, and enough vitamins and minerals to count as their own multivitamin.

All of this sounds too good to be true, and if you want your protein supplement to be healthy, it actually is. The second ingredient on the product label is corn syrup solids, which means NLA Her Whey contains a ridiculous amount of sugar. It also uses artificial flavoring agents, which many people dislike.

If you don’t care about artificial ingredients or sugar, everything else about this ingredient is outstanding.

4. Her Natural Whey

If you’re looking for simple and straightforward protein powder, then Her Natural Whey isn’t a bad choice. It has whey protein peptides, isolate, and concentrate to provide with a comprehensive blend of protein and basically nothing else. It has a small amount of a few minerals and vitamins and does a good job of keeping the sugar content low. It’s not going to win any awards for uniqueness or innovation, but if you want something that’s nice and simple it gets the job done.

5. FitMiss Delight

Fitmiss Delight is more of an all-around fitness drink than it is solely a protein supplement or a post-workout. It provides you with 16 grams of protein in each serving, some of which comes from potato protein but most of which is from whey protein concentrate.

They could have stopped there, but instead, they also added more than 2,000 percent of your recommended daily dose of vitamin B12 and about 500 milligrams of powders from other superfoods. The powders come from great natural antioxidants like cranberries, artichokes, tart cherries, and blackberries. This is more complex than more simple and straightforward options, but if you’re looking to get more out of your protein powder, you’re looking in the right place.

6. Smart Protein Grass Fed Whey Protein

If you prefer all of the products you use to be pure and organic whenever possible, Smart Protein provides a Grass Fed Whey Protein that may be right for you. This is the best product for those who really care how each ingredient is made and where it is sourced from.

The full ingredient list for this product is nice and short, containing only stevia extract, gum acacia, natural flavoring, and whey protein concentrate. The whey protein that is used is extracted using the lowest amount of processing possible, and the milk it is extracted from comes from non-GMO cows that have been grass-fed.

7. Nature’s Bounty Complete Protein & Vitamin

Nature’s Bounty is another company that believes in putting as many of your daily nutritional needs as possible into a single product. Their Complete Protein & Vitamins product contains plenty of vitamins and minerals and focuses primarily on those that would most benefit women. Women often have more nutrient deficiencies than men and need a different amount of each one, so this is an important detail.

Unfortunately, this product does a better job as a multivitamin than it does as a protein supplement, and it doesn’t actually contain a very high dose of protein at all. This is especially true when you balance its protein content with the 6 grams of sugar that’s in every serving. You can counteract the sugar’s effect on your metabolism with the 4 grams of fiber that it contains, but it’s always better to avoid including so much sugar in the first place.

8. Jamie Eason Signature Series Lean Body For Her Whey Protein Isolate

Many people think that only serious gym rats and meatheads prefer whey protein isolate because it is the purest form of whey protein that is available. Jamie Eason’s Signature Series created Lean Body For Her Whey Protein Isolate to bust this myth, and it uses whey protein isolate as its main protein source. Many products that try this end up tasting bitter, chalky, and dry, but this company found a better way.

They were able to do this by ditching the artificial sweeteners most other brands use and instead using chicory root and cane sugar. Chicory root is an all-natural sweetener that does not contain any calories, and the cane sugar that was included is used in very small amounts. This adds up to only about 3 grams of sugar per serving, which is very good when compared to many other products.

9. Gym Vixen Sexy Whey

The name of this protein powder might through you off the trail, but in reality, it’s actually a great product. It offers 100 percent whey protein isolate as it’s only source of protein, which is the most you can ask for from any whey protein powder. Gym Vixen also took it a step further to ensure their product was great for women by making sure it had 0 grams of sugar. They are able to do this by using sucralose, cocoa powder, natural flavors, and artificial flavors all at once.

For some reason, they also throw in a massive amount of vitamin D, which is helpful considering the fact that women are at higher risk of nutrient deficiency than men and vitamin D is one of the most common vitamin deficiencies.

10. Aria Women’s Wellness Protein

Aria decided to offer a more diversified amino acid profile when they designed their Women’s Wellness Protein, so they included both whey protein and soy protein in the formula. The product is entirely naturally flavored using only stevia leaf extract and vanilla extract. They made sure to include at least a little bit of fiber at 3 grams per serving, which is provided by plant fiber derived from vegetables.

It’s one of the simple and straightforward products designed for minimalists, and it’s one of the best protein powders of this kind available.

Benefits And Side Effects of Protein Powder For Women

Despite what you might think, protein powder isn’t just for bodybuilders who want to increase their muscle mass to a massive degree. Protein powder is also great for gaining small amounts of muscle, toning the muscle that you have already, and even for losing weight.

Protein powder can help you lose weight by lowering your overall body fat and replacing that energy source with protein instead. It also helps to increase your bone mass and preserve muscle mass so that you don’t become frail as you get older.

Basically any adult can benefit from using a protein powder supplement, and there aren’t many health and fitness goals that it can’t contribute to. It’s effective and inexpensive, and since it usually contains only food as ingredients it is also very safe with little to no side effects.

Benefits

The benefits of having a healthy and steady protein source are almost too numerous to count, and this is especially true for women. The primary benefits of using a protein supplement are almost guaranteed to appeal to women in one aspect or another.

If you’re interested in toning up your muscles and staying lean, protein powder is a great choice to help you do that. The fear that many people have of protein powder causing them to bulk out too much is unfounded. The American Journal of Physiology performed a study in 1999 that was designed to test the results elderly men and women were able to get by using a protein supplement.

On average, the subjects that were followed did not gain muscle mass at all, but they did increase their muscle strength and their protein synthesis rates improved as well. This is a clear sign that gaining weight and getting huge, bulky muscles isn’t the only way to get stronger, and it certainly isn’t the only use for protein powder.

If you want to preserve or even increase your bone mass, protein can help you with that, too. Researchers in Japan performed a study over the course of 6 months that investigates the effect soy protein could have on bone mass in women. The study used only female subjects, who were divided into 2 groups. This first group was given whey protein powder and acted as a control group, while the second group was given a soy protein supplement that was packed with isoflavones.

The researchers tested the bone mass of each woman at the beginning of the study and then tested it again 6 months later to determine how much it had changed. The results concluded that the bone mass of the women who were given soy protein was preserved better than that of the women who were given whey protein.

This is most likely because of the isoflavones present in soy protein that are not available in whey protein, and the researchers hypothesized that these isoflavones have some role to play in bone metabolism.

A group of researchers at Oklahoma State University spent an entire year performing a study that was able to support these findings. They followed a group of female subjects for 12 months and instructed them to take a soy protein supplement throughout that time.

After the 12 years had passed, testing showed that there were markers present to indicate increase bone formation. The bone density of the subjects did not greatly increase, but this could have been due to a lack of proper exercise. No protein supplement alone can be massively beneficial to your health if you don’t work out in order to burn energy and put that protein to work.

What we can take away from both studies is that protein powder can help you to retain and even improve bone mass, and if this is your reason for taking protein powder you should select a product that contains soy protein isoflavones.

If your goal is weight loss, it doesn’t seem to make sense that eating more of anything would be able to help you reach that goal, but more protein can do exactly that. Giving your body enough protein can help it to burn fat and develop muscle mass, which helps to you lose weight and get fitter in the process.

The Journal of Nutrition published a research paper in 2003 that covered a study performed by researchers at the University of Illinois. This study discovered that women were able to lose weight more efficiently when the ratio of proteins to carbohydrates was increased. The new ratio was beneficial to both blood lipids and overall body composition.

In laymen’s terms, this means that eating more protein and fewer carbohydrates can help you to burn fat, increase your muscle mass, and lower your risk of developing cardiovascular disease.

In addition to all of this, increasing protein intake for women also improves the overall benefits of working out and helps you to lose more weight with the same amount of exercise.

After the original study was conducted, these researchers published a new study that concluded that women who both exercised more and ate more protein were able to see benefits over and above what either could do on their own. In fact, the results were so much better that the total benefits were higher than the benefits one could get from exercise alone or diet alone combined.

This means that the right balance of proteins to carbohydrates can have a multiplying effect on weight loss through exercise, and this simple fact is one of the most potent truths on all of health and fitness. Whenever 2 factors can combine to provide more benefits than the sum of each factor alone, this synergy can help you to get amazing results.

Side Effects

The primary ingredient in most protein powders is just protein, which is a macronutrient and a major part of anyone’s diet. Because of this, these products don’t usually come with much in the way of side effects.

The protein itself has almost entirely positive benefits, and many keto or paleo diet followers get 50 percent or more of all of their calories from protein alone. This proves pretty firmly that protein is very safe as a source of dietary nutrition.

That being said, every protein supplement is made differently and includes different ingredients. The longer your chosen product’s ingredients list is, the more likely you are to find a substance that does have some possible side effects.

If you have a milk allergy then you should avoid any dairy-based protein sources like whey protein and opt instead for a vegan protein powder that is plant-based and won’t trigger your allergy.

For those who are lactose-intolerant, you may or may not be able to stomach a whey protein supplement and should use your best judgment based on your individual experiences. Milk allergies are much more severe than lactose-intolerance and you are most likely safe from experiencing the same side effects.

If you have any other severe food allergy, it is very important that you check the label of any protein powder supplement before you make your selection. Even supplements that don’t contain allergens themselves might be made in a factory where other supplements that contain soy, whey, peanuts, or other allergens are produced.

In order to be completely safe from a possible allergic reaction, you’ll need to look for products that have carefully designed their production methods to ensure that this sort of cross-contamination doesn’t occur, and these are usually marked on the label somewhere. If you’ve made it this far in life with a severe food allergy, you probably know exactly what to look for.

If the protein powder that you choose to use is flavored to taste better, then you will want to limit how much of it you use to ensure that you aren’t getting way too much sugar or artificial sweeteners to be healthy. If you consume too much sugar alcohol, such as sorbitol, you could experience stomach pains and other gastrointestinal issues.

If you’re using a ton of protein powder and you like the flavored varieties, this is something to watch out for. Luckily, anyone marketing to women knows that lowering the amount of sugar and sweeteners in their products will be an important selling point, so there are plenty of options available that don’t carry this particular side effect.

Recommended Dosage

Protein is a massive a vital part of any person’s diet, so it’s no surprise that the research on protein is extensive. This is very helpful because it provides us with very clear dosages and instructions.

If you are using protein powder to help you build muscle, increase your strength, and have better athletic performance, then as a woman you should try to get 0.7 grams to 0.8 grams of protein for every pound of your body weight. For example, this means that a woman who weighs 130 pounds should be consuming between 91 grams and 104 grams of protein per day to support her workouts and improve her ability in sports.

If you are trying to lose weight, your protein needs are less precise. The studies mentioned above used a flat dose of 125 grams of protein a day for each woman regardless of her weight. Depending on what you personally weight, this may turn out to be higher, lower, and very close to the same amount you would be taking for athletic performance.

It’s important to note that these serving sizes are the recommended servings for actual protein, not for any particular protein powder. There are no protein powders that are purely 100 percent protein, so you’ll need to use the label on your specific product to calculate how much you need to take to get your daily serving of pure protein.

Final Words on Protein Powder For Women 2024

Protein powder is a supplement that is designed to deliver a pure and simple dose of protein directly to your cells, and it is most beneficial when taken right after a workout. It is true that it is possible for your diet to provide you with all of the protein you need each day, but it’s also true that life can get busy and you don’t always have time to carefully plan your meals around their protein content.

Having protein powder on hand can be a lifesaver in these situations when you would otherwise end up skipping your workout or exercising without the proper nutrients to support your fitness progress.

Protein has an array of benefits for anyone, but for women, the list just goes on and on. Proper protein intake can help you to lose weight, build muscle, or improve your bone density, along with many other benefits.

It’s important to make sure that you get enough protein every day if you want to be healthy. If you find that you’re not able to consistently reach your recommended dose, you should consider using protein powder to push you the rest of the way.

As always, you should consult your doctor before making any major changes to your diet or supplement routine. Your doctor knows your medical history, choric illnesses, and current medications, and should also know how all of these factors will interact with a given protein powder. They are the best person to help you determine which product are safe for your use and which ones will work best to meet your individual needs.

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