Bodybuilding Forums

Ok there is a catch to this thread... PROTEIN SHAKES DON'T COUNT!

I live in Argentina and while getting hold of shakes is possible, they are outrageously expensive and I don't trust the content claims one little bit, as there are SOOOO many fake meds here. Lucky for me it's also the best country in the world for beef, and I can get a 300g fillet steak for a couple of dollars. However, I don't want the health problems involved with eating so much red meat (I've eaten 3 steaks already this week and it's only Thursday!)

My top 5:

-Can of tuna (120g drained), 30g protein
-4 egg omelette with slice of ham, 29g protein (edited this from 22g to 29g... wolfram alpha isn't quite as accurate as it would make out!)
-300g Steak, ~75g protein
-Large chicken breast, ~50g protein
-Ham (100g) sandwiches, ~18g protein

What are your top 5 (not including protein shakes)?

Top five, excluding whey and talking about maintaining weight, not cutting:

* Around six to eight eggs for breakfast
* Chicken
* Various beef (frequently hamburger, or beef sausage, I'm not rich)
* Cans of tuna (two of those a day, pretty much)
* Soybeans

Yep, soybeans rank up there highly. I really dig edamame of the right variety: high in fiber, high in protein, low in fat, low in carbs. Really close to a low-carber's perfect food, great for refining fat intake while cutting, too. However, soybeans certainly account for less protein than any other source in my diet. Eggs & tuna are certainly the two most thematically-consistent sources of protein besides whey.

--Matt B.

My top 5:
Lean Red Meat
Chicken
Tuna
Salmon
Egg whites

I take 1/3(on training days) to 1/4 of my total daily protein intake from whey protein just to mention...

In order of volume that I usually consume during the week

1. Chicken (boneless/skinless breasts)
2. Turkey (deli sliced)
3. Cheese (marbled jack is my favorite)
4. Eggs
5. Beef (steaks)

Hmm cool so I can add turkey, cheese, salmon and soy beans to my shopping list. I'm due for a trip home to England in a few months so I might just stock up on protein powders there. It's a pain in the ass eating omelettes for breakfast as I'm never that hungry first thing, yet that's one of the best times of the day to eat protein. Keep em coming!

1. 200g Wild Pacific Pink Salmon can only afford the tinned stuff protein (40.2g) also has lots of omega 3
2. 198g or 7oz Chicken Breast Fillets protein (56g)
3. Quick Cook Turkey Steaks (2 typical turkey breasts steaks grilled 150g / 5.3 oz) protein (51.2g)
4. 2x chicken drumstick roasted then skin removed (225g) protein (56g)
5. Mackerel Fillets Sunflower Oil 125g (100g Serving) (19.7g) also has lots of omega 3

1) Ground beef and steak
2) Fish (kippers, salmon)
3) Chicken
4) IsoPure protein powder (usually only after a workout though, or before bed)
5) Cheese

Omelettes, or egg dishes are hard to beat. All other proteins are ranked according to how they stack up against eggs. Eggs are a whole food, loaded with all important B vitamins (the recovery vitamin... water soluble, needs regular replacing), and heaps of other nutrients. I think the awesome fats and cholesterol in eggs enhances protein's usability too, as was discovered about having cream with milk proteins. You can make them even more super digestable having some fresh papaya and pineapple straight after, which also takes care of Vitamin C and provides an antioxidant, flavonoid bomb, among other usefull nutrients. Putting Avocado in the omelette, or egg dishes, gives more good fats, and takes care of omega 3. That combo covers just about everything in a super digestable (which is so important when thinking about nutrients, including protein), high value for input against energy expenditure form.

I wouldn't be quick to dismiss protein powders... they seem expensive but if you do the math on a serving of meat and how much meat you have to eat a day, the price for powders (even ordered online) is not much worse and in some cases better than meat! I mean, I can eat a package of chicken in 2 meals and that costs me an average of $7.00 for the package. The most expensive protein powders I know of might be $3-4 dollars a serving. So, it averages about the same. There are exceptions as some meats are cheaper, but the point I'm making is that powders seem expensive up front but last typically 20-30 days!

Two favorites but they are expensive so I'm not going to include these:
AST-SS Muscle XGF - 7 different proteins, 18 g fat, 7 net carbs... good stuff! Expensive
AST-SS VP2 - Fast acting super great protein, 2 carbs, no fat, great preworkout... mixes with a spoon Expensive

My official sources:
American Whey - Probably the most economical 100% whey isolate ion filtered, blah blah, you can order from dpsnutrition.com a 10 pound bucket for $59 which is pretty darn good for the quality. It has 6 grams carbs per 20 grams protein, so it can crunch your carb numbers pretty quick

C.Worthy & Co. Atlantic Salmon - Wild Caught Sold at Sams club for $20 (3 lbs!!) - This is (in my opinion) the perfect meat. One fillet is 12g fat, 0 carb and 41g protein. Heats to perfection in the micro. Mix some sour cream mixed with green onions (chopped) and you have a perfect dip.

All Whites (Better N Eggs Company) - This is pasteurized 100% egg whites which means 100% bioavailable. You can drink it raw! Because of this, you can get big time protein. 8 ounces (24g protein) plus a TBSP safflower oil (14 grams fat) plus a scoop of american whey (20 protein, 6 carb) gives you 44g protein, 6 carb, and 14.5g clean mono and poly fats. This is a wonderful low carb meal replacement. Throw in some fish oil tabs for more fat. Safflower oil (to me) is the hidden gem. It's filled with mono fats and blends really well with liquids with no added weird flavor that you get from say olive oil. Shelled Walnuts - Diamond - 20g fat (mostly poly), 2 carbs, 5 protein, blended or in combination with a all whites is a bang.

Chicken Breast - Cold, cubed and in a salad. I COMPLETELY HATE reheated chicken breast. It smells weird to me. I don't mind freshly grilled but reheated is disgusting. For some reason cold is fine.

Flank Steak - I'm not a huge red meat eater (mostly because the price but also because sams club / walmart red meat is loaded with steroids/antibiotics and I honestly think the corn they feed these animals affects the meat and my body... I swear it makes me fatter.) Anyway, the taste of flank steak to me is unbelievable. Another one of those meats I don't prefer reheated, but off the grill it doesn't even reach my plate. If I eat flank steak all day for every meal, my ketones show up. It's pretty awesome.

Well, protein powders are out for the reasons I mentioned. But I'd definitely agree with you that flank steak is great and we overlook it too much. It's called "vacio" here and we eat it every sunday on the BBQ (alongside pretty much every part of the cow... beef ribs in particular) It's way cheaper to eat whole foods vs. powders where I live but too much of the same thing can get a bit boring!

Uplift - totally agree regarding the eggs. I eat 6 a day. Tuna, avocado and mayo is a great combo too. I can;t get enough of avocado in fact.

Not quite sure if this is the correct translation, but my girlfriend is veggie and cooks "milanesas de soya" which are breaded soy bean schnitzels, with melted cheese and tomato sauce (and a slice of ham, in my case). Really good, fast to cook and there's quite a bit of protein in soy. Plus you can make tons of them in advance and pull them out the fridge when you want one.