Protein Powder | The Ultimate Guide For Beginners • A Sweet Pea Chef

Looking to lose weight, gain muscle, or simply bump up your protein? This ultimate Protein Powder Guide For Beginners will give you the scoop on everything you need to know!

Y'all know by now how much I love my protein powder. With such a busy schedule, it can be difficult to find time to achieve my macros (with food that's both healthy and easy to whip up).

That's where protein powder comes in! Because I am a big advocate of CLEAN protein powder (especially in my protein pancakes recipe), I get asked a lot of questions...

What Is Protein Powder?

Protein powder is a condensed and powdered form of protein, made from either animal or plant sources. It can be created from eggs or milk (whey and casein). Or, if vegan, you can find protein powder made from peas, rice, soybeans, potatoes, and hemp.

Protein powder is commonly included in shakes and smoothies and enjoyed by people who are either trying to build muscle, lose weight, and/ or get more protein.

You must try my Peach Protein Shake and Blueberry Protein Shake if you get the chance. And here are 5 High Protein Fruit Smoothie Recipes.

Is Protein Powder Healthy?

Protein powder has been determined to be a good tool for weight loss an muscle growth. However, not all proteins are created equal, so it's important to find one that has simple, mostly clean ingredients.

As a general rule, I try to avoid added sugars and any kind of artificial flavoring. Check the label to avoid hidden sugars because I've seen powders that contain as much as 23 grams of sugar per scoop.

What Are The Different Types?

You can get protein powder from plant or animal sources.

Here are the 4 main types...

Whey protein: The most common protein powder in the market! Whey protein is a complete protein that originates from milk. It's actually a direct by-product of the cheese-making process (which I always found super interesting).
Casein protein: Casein is a slow-releasing protein so it's often taken to help with muscle recovery. It also releases amino acids, slowly but consistently, over time.
Egg Protein: Generally made from egg whites, nixing the yolks. It's popular because egg whites provide high amounts of protein and an amino acid called leucine.
Plant protein: You've got many options if you're following a vegan lifestyle. Plant derived protein powders include soy, hemp, pea, rice and pumpkin.

How Do You Use Protein Powder?

Protein powder is used as a protein supplement, meaning it helps to increase total protein intake.

Protein powder can be mixed with water or milk and added to a smoothie or other recipes. We're talking smoothies, pancakes, and baked goods...see how creative you can get. You can even use it as a substitute for flour (which I discuss more in this blog post btw).

I've made dozens of goodies like peanut butter protein cookies, no bake chocolate peanut butter protein bars, high protein lemon blueberry pancakes. And it doesn't stop there...

What Protein Powder Is Best For Beginners?

If you're a beginner who's aiming to increase muscle mass and get lean, I generally recommend trying out whey protein and plant-based protein to see what you prefer.

See my post comparing whey protein vs. pea protein.

I look for simple ingredients and a good texture. You'll quickly see not all proteins are created equal, and some taste much better than others.

Cleanish chocolate plus sea salt protein powder

Which Protein Powder Should I Use?

So you've finally decided that protein powder is something you'd like to try. Yay! But a single trip to the supplement aisle has you feeling completely overwhelmed. Yikes!

Any of the protein powders will work well for you (whey, casein, egg, plan-based) as long as you avoid the sugars and artificial ingredients! Delve deeper by reading this post; The 4 Best Protein Powders and How to Choose a Good One.

If dairy doesn't agree with you, or you prefer plant-based products, I recommend using a vegan protein, like soy, hemp, pea, rice, pumpkin powder, and more. Check my Ultimate Guide to The Best Vegan Protein Substitutes for more helpful info.

Just keep in mind that many plant-based proteins are incomplete proteins, which means they don't all provide all of the essential amino acids your body needs.

And FYI, cleanish Brand Plant-Based Protein Powders are made with pea protein. Easily mixed, you can enjoy the flavor and nutritional boost in a glass of water (1 scoop cleanish protein with 10-12 oz. cold water) or add to a smoothie.

Try It In These Smoothies

The easiest place to begin with protein powder is in a delicious smoothie. Try your hand at one of these recipes!

This post contains affiliate links for products I use regularly and highly recommend.