How to: Making Low-Sugar Protein Shakes

Protein shakes are intended to be a quick, healthy way to refuel after a workout, or to give you some energy if you’re in a hurry. But once you start piling in fruit, yogurt, honey and other sweet eats, the sugar level in your protein shake surges fast. Keep your beverage low in sugar -yet high in protein- by using naturally low-sugar foods instead. * Be wary of your protein powder -some of them are full of sugar. You can get anywhere from 0.5 to 11 grams of sugar, or more, just from a 50-gram scoop of protein powder. Read the back label carefully, and products with ingredients like dextrose, glucose, sugar, maltose or fructose. * Blend in nonfat Greek yogurt to get the creamy goodness you want out of your protein shake. A 6-ounce portion packs about 18 grams of protein into your protein shake. Plus, you’ll only get around 7 grams of sugar from that heaping scoop of plain Greek yogurt. It’s primarily from the natural sugar called lactose that’s found in almost all dairy products. * Use a blended no-sugar-added frozen fruit medley containing pineapple, strawberries, mangos and peaches, or whatever you prefer for a fruity shake. Frozen fruits help give that milkshake-type texture to your drink. Each 5-ounce serving has approximately 12 grams of sugar. * Use nut butters to keep your sugar intake low. Two tablespoons of smooth peanut butter add in roughly 2 grams of sugar; the same amount of almond butter has 1.5 grams; and 2 tablespoons of cashew butter have around 0.5 gram of sugar. The downfall with cashew butter is it is slightly lower in protein. Each 2-tablespoon portion has about 5.5 grams, versus the same amount of almond or peanut butter, which each gives you closer to 7 grams of protein. * Use wheat germ.  To add protein without upping the sugar content any further, pour in a one-quarter cup portion of wheat germ. It’ll give you close to 7 grams of protein. Add a little sugar-free flavor by shaking in a few sprinkles of cinnamon, ground cloves or nutmeg. Finish off that protein smoothie by pouring in unsweetened almond milk. Put the lid on your blender, crank it up to high and voila! Enjoy your low-sugar protein shake. If you need a thicker texture, simply pop in a few ice cubes or freeze almond milk in your ice trays for your next round.   References & Resources USDA National Nutrient Database for Standard Reference: Beverages, Whey Protein Powder Isolate USDA National Nutrient Database for Standard Reference: Beverages, Protein Powder Soy Based USDA National Nutrient Database for Standard Reference: Beverages, ABBOTT, EAS Whey Protein Powder USDA National Nutrient Database for Standard Reference: Wheat Germ, Crude Fage USA: Fage Total 0% Almond Breeze: Refrigerated Almond Breeze Walmart: Great Value Mixed Fruit, 16 oz. USDA National Nutrient Database for Standard Reference: Nuts, Cashew Butter, Plain, Without Salt Added USDA National Nutrient Database for Standard Reference: Commodity, Peanut Butter, Smooth USDA National Nutrient Database for Standard Reference: Nuts, Almond Butter, Plain, Without Salt Added About the Author   // <![CDATA[ var url = ‘/get_cme_cached/www.demandstudios.com/contributor/eedcc2f4-8f1b-415a-a088-7c841ef75d7a’; $.ajax({ url: url, success: function(data, textStatus, jqXHR) { var writer = $.parseJSON(data); $(‘#byline’).text(‘by ‘ + writer.display_name + ‘, Demand Media’); $(‘#author’).text(writer.display_name); if (writer.about){ $(‘#authorAbout p’).text(writer.about); $(‘#authorAbout’).show(); } }}); // ]]>
Source: Complete Nutrition