Top Proteins 2020

How do you choose a whey protein powder? Do you go on the recommendation of your buddy at the gym and take what he takes? Do you pick the bottle with the shiniest, most cutting-edge label?

The truth is, these are serious questions. You know that taking whey protein at the right times of day can make all the difference in between building an extra half-inch on your arms or adding 20 pounds to your personal best on the bench press. But not just any whey will do. There are great whey protein products and there are not-so-good whey protein products. And being able to tell the difference between them can be critical to your gains.

The first step in determining whether your protein is worthy is to give yourself a pat on the back. You’ve recognized whey’s benefits and have included it in your daily regimen. Just to review, whey is enormously beneficial for several reasons, including amino acid and micro fraction content (more on that in a minute) and digestion rate.

Whey is one of the richest sources of BCAAs, which include the three amino acids leucine, isoleucine and valine. These bad boys have been shown to be absolutely critical for muscle growth, and even for energy during workouts. Whey protein also contains biologically active protein microfractions such as alpha-lactalbumin, beta-lactoglobulin, glycomacropeptides, immunoglobulins, lactoferrin, lactoperoxidase and various growth factors. These provide antioxidant benefits, boost immune function and enhance muscle recovery and growth.

But probably the most critical factor that puts whey protein miles ahead of other forms of protein is digestion rate. Whey digests very rapidly. In fewer than 30 minutes it can fast-track a good portion of its aminos to your muscles, and that rapid delivery of amino acids to muscle cells has been shown to be important for pushing muscle growth.

If you know that whey is one of the proteins found in milk, then it should be obvious that whey protein production starts with dairy cows. Cows are milked on the farm, and this milk is the starting source for most protein powders. But if you think that supplement companies like Optimum, Cytosport or Nature’s Best are out in the back milking cows to make their protein powders, you’ve got another think coming.

Way back when, whey was actually considered a waste byproduct of cheese production and was routinely dumped. These days, dairy companies recognize the value of whey and have set up factories to concentrate and purify it. Every supplement company that sells products that contain whey buys raw protein from a dairy manufacturer, and there are only so many of those.

That means that multiple supplement companies acquire raw whey protein powder from the same handful of manufacturers. Two of the major protein manufacturers are Glanbia, with main headquarters in Ireland, and Hilmar Ingredients, in California. These are the places where milk actually undergoes rigorous processing that involves various forms of filtering and purification to produce specific protein powders.

Supplement companies like Optimum or Dymatize order raw protein powders, such as whey protein isolate, whey protein concentrate, whey protein hydrolysate and, yes, calcium caseinate or micellar casein, from companies such as Glanbia or Hilmar. These raw, unflavored protein powders are shipped to the supplement companies in massive containers. Each company then adds its own often proprietary blend of ingredients, including flavorings, colorings and other ingredients (extra aminos, say, or enzymes to help digest the protein) to produce their final blend, which ends up in the jug on your kitchen counter.

Whey protein powder is far more effective than any other protein form out there, but its effectiveness can vary widely. Often the limiting factor of a whey protein product is the other ingredients companies add to it. But the type of whey — and the amount of each type present in a product — can also affect effectiveness.

Top Protein Brands Comparison 2018