2 Delicious Homemade Protein Shakes for Weight Loss Recipes
Posted by Portions Master on 9th Mar 2022
Regularly drinking protein shakes reduces your appetite, boosts metabolism, and helps you lose excess body fat without losing muscle mass[1]. That's almost everything you need to shed off any extra pounds and keep them off. So, the big question is, what are the best homemade protein shakes for weight loss?
On this page, you'll find 2 of the greatest homemade protein smoothies for weight loss. But first, a few numbers to kick us off:
- According to the CDC, the percentage of American adults on a special type of weight loss diet increased from 14.3% in 2007/08 to 17.4% in 2017/18.
- Within the same time period, the number of adults on a low-calorie diet rose from 7.5% to 10%.
- Similarly, the portion of Americans on low-carb diets increased from 0.9% to 2.2%.
What the numbers show is that more and more people are trying to lose weight. That's great because we're all trying to stay fit and feel good about ourselves.
But if you're in this boat, you certainly understand that losing weight is not the easiest thing. It's a frustrating journey involving constantly counting calories, weighing yourself, eating less than you want to, and even avoiding some tasty treats because they're packed with carbs or calories.
Well, losing weight and staying fit doesn't have to be that hard. Some research suggests getting enough protein (particularly whey protein) may be enough to help you lose weight and keep it off.
Are Protein Shakes Good for Weight Loss?
Protein shakes are excellent for weight loss. Scientific studies have proven that consuming protein-rich foods can help you lose fat, especially belly fat. More specifically, if you get at least 25% of your calories from proteins, then you may lose up to 10% of your fat within a year.
And that's where homemade protein smoothies come in. You won't get nearly as much protein as you need from regular meals. Therefore, to up your protein intake, you may want to add homemade diet shakes to your dietary plan.
Alongside burning belly fat, here are other benefits of homemade protein shakes for weight loss:
Suppress appetite and decrease hunger
Protein shakes increase the levels of appetite-suppressing hormones like CCK, PYY, and GLP-1[2]. They also reduce the levels of ghrelin - a hormone that makes you feel hungry. To top it all off, homemade diet shakes make you feel full for longer.
In doing so, they reduce the amount of food you eat and thus your calorie intake. The fewer calories you consume, the more weight you lose.
Enhance metabolism
Proteins are the building blocks for muscles. When consumed in high amounts, proteins increase your muscle mass. The result is that your resting metabolism shoots up, and your body starts to burn more calories[3].
That, in turn, leads to weight loss. You'll burn even more calories if you combine homemade protein smoothies with regular exercises.
Prevent muscle loss
The problem with low-carb and low-calorie diets is that they make you lose muscle mass. Without muscles, your metabolism slows down, and your body fails to burn calories.
This often leads to regaining all the weight that you lost, even when you're still on the low-carb or low-calorie diet. But with a protein-rich diet, you prevent your body from losing muscles and going into a metabolic slowdown.
Keep excess weight off
For most people, the trickiest part of weight loss is not shedding a few extra pounds. It's keeping those extra pounds away. Since protein shakes can increase your body's metabolism, suppress appetite, and reduce caloric intake, they essentially ensure that you don't regain weight after losing it.
Therefore, to answer the question: can you use homemade protein shakes for weight loss? Absolutely. Two cups of your favorite homemade protein smoothies will help you lose body fat.
The best part is that you can indulge in a smoothie for breakfast, as a meal, a snack, pre-workout, post-workout, or pretty much any time of the day.
What Protein Shake Is Best for Weight Loss?
In 2020, 40 million Americans said that they'd give up social media if it meant losing 10 pounds of weight. Well, if you regularly drink protein shakes, you can enjoy social media and lose weight simultaneously. The trick lies in choosing the best protein shake for weight loss.
With that in mind, whey protein is the best for making homemade protein shakes for weight loss. As such, a whey protein shake is your go-to smoothie if you're looking to lose weight. For example, a single scoop of the Portions Master CFM Whey Isolate Protein contains:
- Fat: 0g
- Artificial sugars: 0g
- Carbs: 1g
- Calories: 100
- Protein: 24g
It doesn't have any artificial sugars or fats that can fill your body with excess calories. At the same time, you get 100 calories for energy. That should prevent the body from metabolizing protein and muscles for fuel during/after a workout or when you're hungry.
Remember that proteins are building blocks for muscles and that muscles increase metabolism and thus weight loss. Thus, it would help if you had a protein shake that offers a decent value of proteins and calories to protect and build muscles. That's a whey protein.
But since the Portions Master CFM Whey Isolate Protein doesn't have fiber, you may choose to add some fruits and vegetables. They'll take up your caloric intake, but not by much. Instead, you'll get a complete shake that's filled with protein, vitamins, antioxidants, potassium, folic acid, dietary fiber, and everything good for weight loss.
So, what protein shake is best for weight loss? The one with whey protein powder.
Here's a look at the types of proteins, what they offer, and why whey is the best:
Whey protein: this milk protein provides essential and branched-chain amino acids (BCAAs), which help in muscle building. The biggest advantage of whey protein is that it's quickly absorbed in the body. Plus, it is a complete protein.
While whey concentrate packs 25 to 89% protein, whey isolate is at least 90% protein. The latter is the one you want. You can grab your bottle of whey isolate here.
Although it also comes from milk, casein protein is not absorbed as quickly as whey. This makes it a better option for pre, and post-workout smoothies than homemade protein shakes for weight loss.
Soy protein: Soy protein contains all the essential amino acids, including BCAAs. It, however, takes longer than whey to be absorbed. For that reason, it makes a great alternative for anyone who wants a vegan or lactose-free protein shake.
Pea protein: Like soy, pea protein is a complete protein with all the essential amino acids. It is also lactose-free, which makes it great for vegan and vegetarian shakes.
Hemp and rice proteins: these two are down here because they are low in essential amino acids. As such, they are not the best for muscle building. They, therefore, won't do an excellent job at enhancing your metabolism.
How Do I Make My Own Protein Shake?
Making a DIY protein shake for weight loss is actually straightforward. Just a few things to keep in mind:
- Do not add sugar or artificial sweeteners to your smoothie. They are high-calorie foods that offer nothing but a ton of weight and additional health risks. Instead, use almond milk, coconut water, soy milk, hemp milk, or plain water.
- If you need sweeteners in your homemade protein shakes for weight loss, use natural honey, pure maple syrup, or cinnamon.
- For a pre or post-workout shake, you may add healthy fats like avocado and Greek yogurt. In addition to offering extra protein, their fat will give you the fuel you need before or after a workout.
- Don't forget your fruits and veggies. These are great because they add some flavor to the smoothie while also bringing lots of nutrients to the table. Fruits and vegetables are low in calories and rich in antioxidants, vitamins, potassium, dietary fiber, folic acid, etc.
- It's not a protein shake without protein powder. Fruit smoothies are good, but they'll always leave you feeling hungry after 30 minutes or so. When you add a serving of protein powder into the mix, you turn the smoothie into a meal with 15 to 30 grams of protein. That makes it healthier, well-balanced, and more filling. More importantly, it ceases to be a mere smoothie and turns into a DIY protein shake for weight loss.
2 DIY Protein Shake Recipes for Weight Loss
Vanilla Strawberry Smoothie
Prep time: 2 to 4 minutes
Ingredients:
- 1 cup unsweetened almond milk
- 1 tablespoon peanut butter
- 1/2 cup frozen strawberries
- 1 scoop Vanilla Portions Master CFM Whey Isolate Protein
Directions:
- Pour unsweetened almond milk into a kitchen blender.
- Add peanut butter, frozen strawberries, and vanilla Portions Mater Whey isolate protein.
- Blend until it's nicely smooth.
Sweet Chocolate-Blueberry Smoothie
Prep time: 2 to 4 minutes
Ingredients:
- 1 cup unsweetened almond milk
- 1/2 cup frozen blueberries
- 1 scoop Chocolate Portions Master CFM Whey Isolate Protein
Directions:
- Pour unsweetened almond milk into a kitchen blender.
- Add frozen blueberries, and chocolate Portions Mater Whey isolate protein.
- Blend until it's nicely smooth.
Although homemade protein shakes for weight loss are best consumed fresh, you can store your smoothies in a fridge or freezer for preservation. They last up to 24 hours in the fridge but longer in the freezer.
