Thread: Revamping my PWO shake

Originally Posted by scbz01602

This is what I'm plotting for this summer
Protein: ~50 grams
-two scoops of whey
-skim milk

Firsly, just quickly, I see no reason to have two scoops of whey... not unless you are 250 pounds of pure muscle... Save some of those calories for more useful things.

Carbohydrate: ~100-150 grams
-12 grams from skim milk carbohydrates
-50 grams from oats
-25/30g(?) from one banana
-25g maltodextrin > of course approximations, malto half cup
-16g dextrose >and dextrose measured in tablespoons

Ok - I would drop the malto. In my opinion it adds nothing to the mix that you do not get from the other sources.
Skim milk is great. Leave it.

One banana is good. Do not add two, but a medium banana would be fine (although only a rough guide, a small 100g of banana has ~22.4g carbs in it, so a medium 4 oz has ~25-26g).

Dextrose is good. If you are fairly large I would add more than 16g. If your insulin sensitivity is good, up to 0.33-0.5% of the carbs in your shake could be from this.

Thin quick oats are fine too - starchy carb. They are, regardless of what people believe, a moderate GI carb and will offer you some slower release energy PWO... 1 cup (54g carbs) seems fine.

So if you do need that much carb (100-150g is a huge amount... I would aim for something between 0.33 and 0.5g per pound lean mass), then a mix of something such as the following may be an idea:
1 cup milk (12g)
1 med banana (26g)
~30-40g dextrose (depends on your size)
1 cup oats (54g)

TOTAL = 120-130g

If you do not need that much, then decrease quantities accordingly.

I think it's too complicated. I use 1.5 scoops whey protein and 1/4 cup of regular sugar. It fills me and gets the sugar and protein to my muscles quick when they need it most. I'm ready to eat an hour later for a good meal of complex carbs and other protein. Keep It Simple

Emma-Leigh, thanks for the input- valuable info and will be used. Never have tasted Dextrose (plain that is) but I have read of it's sweet taste effect. It will be an interesting tasting shake with 40g added; I'll be looking forward to it.
Also, I'm not that large. I'm around 195 right now, after losing around a dozen pounds of muscle in the past few months. Due to an incredibly improper diet in the dining halls here and after a flu that took me away from food for around a week, I've dropped around 25 pounds... I have no idea what my insulin sensitivity is as well.
I thought I'd throw that in case for a second opinion about the dextrose? I'm new to the carbohydrate but I want to reap all the benefits; but at the same time do not want to go overboard on the stuff.

Bulwark- Your right, it is rather complicated. No oats for you? I was under the assumption that oats were the staple of carbohydrates in one's PWO shake. Pure sugar... you must be riled up for another workout just after injesting all that in PWO, haha.

The reason for no oats is that they are complex carbs and digest too slowly. After your workout your muscles become sponges and want to soak up any nutrient they can...so if you get the quick digesting protein and carbs in your system, your muscles soak them up and will love you for it Keep workin hard!

Originally Posted by Bulwark

The reason for no oats is that they are complex carbs and digest too slowly. After your workout your muscles become sponges and want to soak up any nutrient they can...so if you get the quick digesting protein and carbs in your system, your muscles soak them up and will love you for it Keep workin hard!

Interesting bro... makes perfect sense too. I got some serious revampage goin on here in PWO! Thanks for the input bro

I keep mine simple (I am lazy).

40g whey
80g carbs in the form of rice cakes

2:1 carb to protein ratio

Originally Posted by P-funk

I keep mine simple (I am lazy).

40g whey
80g carbs in the form of rice cakes

2:1 carb to protein ratio

Rice cakes- I would not mind those at all PWO. Even unflavored, I've like them. They must be a slow digested carb though, right?
If they are, I might drop the oats completely- not a big fan of chugging down those. If they aren't, whatever. I'll eat em anyways!

Originally Posted by scbz01602

Rice cakes- I would not mind those at all PWO. Even unflavored, I've like them. They must be a slow digested carb though, right?
If they are, I might drop the oats completely- not a big fan of chugging down those. If they aren't, whatever. I'll eat em anyways!

Actually, no. Rice cakes are fast-digesting carbs and it's fine to eat them PWO.

Originally Posted by GoalGetter

Actually, no. Rice cakes are fast-digesting carbs and it's fine to eat them PWO.

Interesting. I have changed my shake to this..

Protein = ~50 grams
40g whey
8g milk proteins


Carbohydrate = ~122 grams
80g Rice cakes
30g Dextrose
12g Milk sugars

How's that looking for a guy who is looking only for strength gains.

Originally Posted by Bulwark

I use 1.5 scoops whey protein and 1/4 cup of regular sugar.

are you serious?

Originally Posted by P-funk

I keep mine simple (I am lazy).

40g whey
80g carbs in the form of rice cakes

2:1 carb to protein ratio

I just recently purchased 4 packages of rice cakes, but I'm real suprised at how many I would need to eat to get to 80 carbs; 8 rice cakes. This equates out to around a dollar a day for just PWO carbs, which isn't a killer, but it is rather up there for pricey.
Are you eating some sort of specific rice cakes? I bought the generic grocery store brand. I enjoy them, but I wouldn't be able to keep up with such a high priced carb source....

Milk is not good in a post-workout shake as it is digested very slowly. I use 40 gms whey protein and 50 gms malto or cooked oats if I am cutting. 80 gms high gi carbs is more than you need pwo.

Skim milk has actually been proven to be highly anabolic, but the key is to make sure it is skim or low fat milk. Fats slow the digestive process, and without the fats it can be actually be very beneficial despite the common thought.
It does slow down digestion a bit, but it is so discreet that it is almost unnoticable.

Originally Posted by John Benz

Milk is not good in a post-workout shake as it is digested very slowly. I use 40 gms whey protein and 50 gms malto or cooked oats if I am cutting. 80 gms high gi carbs is more than you need pwo.

not so really, search around the site and you'll find lots of reasons why skim milk is good.

Milk Bad now
and
69g protein in pwo shake too much?

to get you started

Bulwark- Your right, it is rather complicated. No oats for you? I was under the assumption that oats were the staple of carbohydrates in one's PWO shake. Pure sugar... you must be riled up for another workout just after injesting all that in PWO, haha.

Oats are good....medium to med-high GI....better if you grind them to make them even faster digesting.

sugar(sucrose) is a lousy choice since it's 50/50 fructose:glucose.

fructose is really low GI and routes through the liver first and by itself has little to offer the body.

So, sucrose isn't your most efficient choice and really, offers little benefit other than extra cals that could have been put to better use. That and it goes through a big bleaching process so that it's acceptably white.

Originally Posted by scbz01602

I just recently purchased 4 packages of rice cakes, but I'm real suprised at how many I would need to eat to get to 80 carbs; 8 rice cakes. This equates out to around a dollar a day for just PWO carbs, which isn't a killer, but it is rather up there for pricey.
Are you eating some sort of specific rice cakes? I bought the generic grocery store brand. I enjoy them, but I wouldn't be able to keep up with such a high priced carb source....

the brand is lundberg brown rice rice cakes.

15g carbs per rice cake. I eat 5 (75g carbs) + 2 scoops of designer whey (36g protein).

I'm going to have to try the rice cakes!

Originally Posted by P-funk

the brand is lundberg brown rice rice cakes.

15g carbs per rice cake. I eat 5 (75g carbs) + 2 scoops of designer whey (36g protein).

Thanks for the info...
Where do you buy yours? I looked into their site where it mentioned that they are declared as "organic". Do they appear in health/organic food stores rather than supermarkets? Definetly would have picked it up if I saw it at the local supermarket over here...

Originally Posted by Rocco32

I'm going to have to try the rice cakes!

They really aren't bad, despite the common consensus (at least my initial reaction when I heard of it). Generally speaking, they have been regarded to be a dieters choice, when the days of weight loss diets only concerned the actual fats in the foods.

I grabbed the generic supermarket brand in caramel corn, and it's hard not to eat them too quickly- already went through a bag in a day! Definetly check it out man, I don't think you will be dissapointed.

I found it much more pleasing in the morning rather than chugging down whey protein laced oats in my shaker too... that has been an issue lately where my appetite is nearly non-existant in the morning.

Originally Posted by scbz01602

Thanks for the info...
Where do you buy yours? I looked into their site where it mentioned that they are declared as "organic". Do they appear in health/organic food stores rather than supermarkets? Definetly would have picked it up if I saw it at the local supermarket over here...

you can find them at any health food store. the local supermarket around here also carries them though.

I use 2 scoops of whey, 1/2 cups of oats, 1 1/2 cup skim milk put it in the blender. Maybe add a few strawberrys. But I will have to try the rice cakes.

2 scoops of whey, 8 oz. grape juice, 30 grams of dextrose. very simple, works for me.

Well I'll be looking into these Rice Cakes aswell. Thanks P.

I picked some rice cakes up today. Looking forward to trying it tomorrow.

Rice Cake Revolution

Too much work to eat the Rice Cakes LOL

I just mix my oats into my shake and chug