Protein Roundup 2.0

I am back in the protein shake game for the first time since I was first banded 6 years ago.  Things have changed!  I'm happy to report that they are generally better than they used to be.  I got a lot of samples and tried some things out.  Here are some of my opinions about some shakes:

• Lean Dessert--way too thick and sweet.  Halfway between a shake and pudding, yuck.
• Syntrax Nectar--so far have only found one that was good and that was Nectar Sweet in Vanilla Whipped Cream.  The fruit flavored ones sound good, but I haven't found a good one yet.
• Unjury--a lot better now than it was 6 years ago.  I really liked Vanilla and Chocolate Splendor.  Excellent.  The Chocolate Splendor tastes exactly like hot cocoa, and when I heat it up I treat it like that.  It's a nice snack for evening.  Vanilla tastes just like vanilla ice cream, quite good.  Strawberry Sorbet is okay, would probably be good in the summer, especially added to lemonade.  Okay, that sounds really good. I was NOT a fan of Chicken Soup flavor.  Something about a warm, salty protein drink just messed with my head too much.  I couldn't get over expecting it to be sweet and instead tasting salt.  Especially since you can't get it hotter than 140 degrees or the protein clumps (this is true of all protein drinks)...no thank you.
• People rave about Premier RTD (that's ready to drink), sold at Costco and Sam's Club.  I bought chocolate and vanilla, and they are okay, but definitely not the best I have tried. They are better mixed with something else, even just some milk.
• Atkins RTD--do not like the Cafe Caramel, really like the Strawberry.  I have a couple more flavors I haven't tried yet.
• Trutein--this is very good.  The only downside is the texture; it is a little bit gritty, but not too thick.  I have learned that I like thin protein drinks, not the thicker "shake" ones.  Milk Chocolate and Vanilla are excellent, Banana Creme was pretty good.
• Oh Yeah! makes RTD drinks that are pretty good.  I think all the RTD drinks (all the brands I have tried anyway) have an extra chemical taste to them versus the powder versions, and they generally are better mixed into something else, but these are fairly good.
• I got SF Torani syrups to add some variety, and some PB2 powdered peanut butter.  I haven't gotten a lot of use out of the PB2 yet, but SF peppermint and almond are very good in lots of the shakes.

I got samples from Trunutrition (Trutein), Unjury, and VitaLady.com.  There are lots of other companies that offer samples...BJ's Bariatrics, for one, and I think Netrition might (I've ordered a bunch of stuff from them).  This was plenty for me to try and find some that I can use daily.  I'm drinking at least one shake a day, and treating solid food as "training" right now, since I'm still not great at figuring out how much to eat.  I usually drink two shakes, and sometimes another half in the evening, which is a very tempting time to snack or graze for me.  Protein shakes are filling for me and keep me from grazing, so I feel safe with them so far.  I know this is an evolving process, but it is working for now.

Disclosure: I have no affiliation with any of the above companies and have not been compensated for any of these opinions.  These are just my thoughts about the research I did.  I would have been happy to get free samples and review them, but you know those blogs that are kind of a big deal?  This isn't one of them.

I do still use Click, but its nutrition profile isn't that fantastic...not quite enough protein for my morning shake for the calories.  I do add it to other shakes though, and it's pretty good and I get my coffee fix.  I am out now, but might get some more.  My next experiment is adding Starbucks Via to morning shakes.  I'll let you know how that goes.