Vegan Protein Powder

Part of strength training, no matter if its vegan or carnivorous, is getting enough protein so that the body has the building blocks to build muscle.

Normally, this is not that much of an issue. Studies are showing that most Americans are ingesting far more protein than needed to be healthy, even active. In fact, I'll try to find the link, but there's a study linking increased rates of kidney disease with high protein intake because so many Americans are making their kidneys work harder to pull all the loose protein out of the system.

Anyway...when you don't eat meat, eggs, milk, etc. protein is a bit harder to come by. Yes, foods like my beloved seitan is a good source of protein, but they are not a completely protein. I still need to eat legumes (i.e. beans) to get a full amount of protein. And frankly...if I eat too many beans I have unhappy coworkers. If you know what I mean.

Normally I take whey protein, being that it's complete and easier to digest than other animal-based proteins. Again, not really an option because of the whole milk thing.

So, I asked around at Whole Foods and the nice lady there said I should try Hemp Protein. I had never heard of it before, but the lady seemed to know what she was talking about. I asked specifically about soy protein, which is sold in stores next to the friendly whey in containers that looked very similiar.

I was told I could take it, but that it was harder to digest and might (can you guess what's coming...) make me gassy. Hemp Protein it is.