As I'm sure you are aware, protein is currently having its moment. By now you are likely aware of how much protein you need to be consuming per day but if you are still questioning, click here to calculate your daily protein number.
Though you should strive to get your protein from whole foods first, leaning into a high quality protein supplement can be a great way to help you hit your daily goals. Some of the more popular whey protein products on the market include Optimum Nutrition, Transparent Labs, and BioSteel but we recommend sticking to a cleaner label like Gruppo RAW.
A protein shake by definition is a scoop of protein powder shaken in water. Though this can be a great way to help you hit your daily protein goals, you don't want the majority of your daily protein intake coming from a supplement. You also want to avoid using a protein shake to replace meals as it lacks in the other important macronutrients (carbs and fats) and several micronutrients that you would get by consuming whole foods.
By combining things like fruits, vegetables, nut butters and seeds with your protein supplement, you can drastically improve the nutrient density of your protein smoothie. There are several great protein rich smoothie recipes out there and they are quite simple to add to your daily routine. As you can see, the combination of whole foods with your protein supplement would be classified as a smoothie and not a protein shake.
So where can a protein shake can be useful in someone's diet? Consuming protein powder shaken with water post exercise allows the body to more readily absorb the protein it needs in comparison to how it would be digested and absorbed if it was consumed from whole foods. As a result, post exercise would likely be the most useful way to incorporate a protein shake into someone's diet.