Don't take this protein powder! And a few good substitutes...

Many of you have asked for our advice in choosing a protein powder supplement. We usually recommend Garden of Life's Raw Protein, because of its great protein composition and high nutritional count. However, in our research, a very recent study has revealed that there may be a high level of heavy metals in their supplement. While this is very common in many powders,(here's an article from Consumer Reports) we were concerned about this one because we often recommend it and we also consume it ourselves. Because of the recent controversy (GOL is still asserting it's safety), we would like to recommend a few others for you to try, just to be on the safe side. If you are trying to bulk, we may recommend the Whey Protein, rather than the vegan options, however vegan protein will also help increase/maintain muscle. You can always skip the powders and choose to get your added protein from whole foods like lean meats, eggs, seeds and nuts.  A rule of thumb for determining protein consumption is between 1.0 and 1.7 times (the higher number for more bulk) your body weight in kg.

Regular and Diet Soda Contribute to Weight Gain

It’s no surprise to hear that sugar is addictive and can lead to a host of health problems such as obesity, Type 2 Diabetes, mood swings, malnutrition and inflammatory disease. Sugar is in almost every processed food, and abounds in soft drinks. On average, each can of soda contains 40 grams, or 10 teaspoons of genetically modified sugar, most in the form of high fructose corn syrup, an artificially produced, super sweet sugar derived from corn.  But what about the sugar substitutes? Are they just as unhealthy?