protein supplements?

Hi everyone, I’m new here, have been lurking for awhile and have really found the resources here useful. I've been doing Atkins (for the most part, it's difficult to do it completely because I'm vegetarian) since July 2008 and have so far lost 25 pounds (15 till GW).

Just wanted to contribute my two cents about what’s been working for me in terms of getting as much protein as possible. I've been drinking a protein shake called Nutribody-- I happened upon its website (http://www.nutribodyprotein.com/) through a blog, iirc. I have much more energy—-my 3x/week workouts improved considerably when I started drinking it-- and a just generally more lucid. Yay protein! The best part is that it’s totally hypoallergenic and contains no dairy products for those lactose-intolerant among us (dairy tends to leave my stomach unsettled). As a vegetarian it's also really difficult for me to subsist on my LC diet, but this has made it much smoother. I’m definitely a believer and encourage you all to try it and see if you have similar results (am curious as to whether it works so well for other people too).

What works for you guys? Any recommendations on protein upkeep?

Well, Atkins is a controlled carb, high-fat (good fats), moderate protein diet. I don't have trouble eating enough protein because I'm not vegetarian, LOL, but I don't force the protein.

This is a great post about how to do Atkins as a vegetarian:

http://www.atkinsdietbulletinboard.com/forums/atkins-low-carb-dieting-faqs/6729-can-i-do-atkins-vegetarian.html

Thanks, sararay! This is useful.

I guess you are probably having a somewhat difficult time finding protein powders more so because of the lactose intolerance? I would think that most protein powders probably contain a good deal of it as they are mostly whey or casein... I know whey is derived from dairy... not completely certain about casein (but I think it's probably egg protein so you may want to avoid).

Not having experience with no-lactose protein powders, I can only recommend two different low carb protein powders containing whey that I have taken in the past.

Brand One is Optimum Nutrition Gold Standard Whey. Most of the protein shakes in this family are between 1 and 4 carbs per serving with water. I believe you get 24g per serving of protein (haven't used it in a while). Taste ranges with this company... I find that the chocolates are fairly solid... to me the delicious strawberry flavor tasted medicinal and far from delicious.

Weider also makes a protein powder called Weider Whey Protein. I believe it's 22g protein per serving and less than a carb. Down fall is that the smell is atrocious, needs lots of water to lessen taste and it may be hard to find.

I would suggest www.bodybuilding.com as a good site to source low carb protein powders. When on the main page select super store instead of supersite and just browse the products. If I recall correctly you can search by carb range as well. Then just find a local source to purchase.

Hope this helps.

I use "soy protein isolate. It sells in most health food stores for about $7-8.00 per pound it the bulk area. It has a "clean" taste. I'm guessing you all ready use soy being a vegitarian. Just a thought!

This is enormously helpful, thank you everyone!