Soy vs. Whey Protein

Dear Body Buddies,

When it comes to protein powders, whey protein is the one that people often reach for after their training sessions. It has become popular due to its positive effects on muscle growth following a heavy lifting session. It has been proven that whey has a faster absorption rate than animal meats or other protein sources, making this a perfect and fast post-workout shake.

I want to commend you on making such a healthy post-workout choice, but I am also here to tell you that whey may not be the only way. Pun intended.

There are other forms of protein powder, and another popular and somewhat controversial one is on the rise. What is this mysterious protein powder, you say?

Soy protein powder.

You may have heard that too much soy consumption can raise your estrogen levels and lower your testosterone levels and that soy milk or other products should only be used by women and in moderation. So of course scientists have conducted studies to see what the true effects of soy are on our hormone levels and our lean body mass.

Shockingly enough, soy has been shown to be just as effective as whey, if not more so, for building lean body mass.

All About That Soy

Now you’re probably wondering if soy protein is harmful to use. There have been some studies that suggest that the phytoestrogens found in soy protein can increase estrogen levels and decrease testosterone, as mentioned above. You might even be curious as to why that even matters when it comes to building muscle.

Testosterone and estrogen are the sex hormones that take over for the human growth hormone once we hit puberty. Testosterone has many roles to play, but the one we are concerned about is muscle growth. Testosterone is found both in males and females, and of course males have 10x the amount females do.

Estrogen is responsible for womanly features and is also found in both females and males, but is more prevalent in women than men. Now you can see why people are wary to use soy protein since testosterone plays an important part in muscle growth.

So why even risk using soy protein powder?

Many scientists believe that soy protein is not harmful and shows little to no effects on testosterone and estrogen. Soy has a lot of amazing benefits and is the only plant-based protein considered to be a high-quality protein. It has all nine of the essential amino acids in the correct ratios to support muscle growth. Vegetarians and vegans should be ecstatic with this news!

Soy also contains amounts of potassium, zinc, iron, vitamin-E, phosphorus and the full vitamin B-complex, and has high amounts of the amino acids arginine and glutamine, which both play an important role in muscle growth and preservation.

Mix It Up

To get the most benefits, you can create your own protein stack by mixing both whey and soy protein powders together. Whey protein is important because it contains branched chain amino acids that play an important role in supplying energy to the body while training. And soy protein powder contains all nine essential amino acids and other vitamins that support and maintain lean body mass.

Like whey protein, soy protein powder comes in a concentrate or isolate form. And unique to soy protein, it can also come in a textured form. There are many ways to use protein concentrates, but the most popular are to substitute other sources of protein in a meal, baking, or can be used post-workout. Protein isolates are the most pure form and are mainly used post- workout because of its fast absorption rate. Textured soy protein is used to make things like imitation chicken, pork, or beef.

It has been shown that using both soy and whey protein powders together can create effects that you couldn’t get by using just one or the other. Together you get immediate protein absorption from the whey protein to support muscle growth and then you get a more gradual absorption from the soy protein to help with feelings of satiety and to support muscle maintenance.

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That’s A Wrap

It’s obvious that more studies need to be done on the effects of soy protein, but from what scientists have found, the outlooks of soy protein look promising!

I’m not here to tell you that one form of protein is better than the other, but to inform you on the different options so you can make that decision on your own! From what I’ve found, to reap the most benefits try mixing both whey and soy protein powders together. Or you can find a protein powder that contains the two.

I’d recommend the Green Life Labs protein powder because it is one of the few protein powders that contain both elements! Learn more about these products by clicking here.

Love your body by fueling your body!

Love your bud,

Coach Kyshel :)

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