Your Morning Protein Shake: A Summer Essential

If you’re not yet in the habit of launching your day with a frosty, energizing, whey protein shake, summer is the perfect time to start. This is, without a doubt, your healthiest possible breakfast choice. Here are 5 impressive benefits that this refreshing, nourishing morning meal can offer you:

Upgrade Your Nutrition
While many health-conscious people make a daily effort to select clever nutritional choices, we all need anchors to rely on. Your morning shake is exactly that. Making this protein-rich, nutrient–packed breakfast a daily ritual sets you up well on many levels. For one, the high satiety value leaves you satisfied and well nourished without being overfed, enabling you to perform beautifully in work or play. And with your blood sugar stable for hours, you’re far less likely to be tempted by morning junk/snack foods. A healthy breakfast also sets you on the right course, increasing your tendency to make smart food choices throughout the day.

Maximize Your Energy
One reason your morning shake is so energizing is that it packs tremendous nourishment in an easily assimilated package. You’re not weighed down with heavy digestive requirements, as you would be after a high–fat meal, leaving you feeling light rather than sluggish. Additionally, you maximize your energy because your body isn’t struggling with the vitality draining blood sugar spike and crash that follows refined/processed/high-carbohydrate/high–sugar items. You’re also very likely to feel your cells respond to the powerful infusion of nutrients provided by your shake, especially if you incorporate the magic ingredient that equates to 5 servings of fresh greens in one small scoop.

Boost Lean Muscle
Your morning shake encourages lean muscle development in several ways. For one, protein is an essential building block for muscle tissue, so consuming high–quality protein–packed with every essential amino acid–clearly expedites the process. Since your system requires more energy to digest protein than other foods, you burn more calories. Additionally, whey protein isolate is rich in leucine, an amino acid that helps preserve lean muscle while promoting fat loss. And protein slows the absorption of glucose into the bloodstream, which means insulin levels go down, enabling your body to burn fat more effectively.

Promote Flat Abs
Whey protein shakes are the perfect flat-ab meal. Why? Rapid assimilation, for starters. Once you consume your shake, the highly digestable protein is quickly absorbed, infusing your body with every essential amino acid needed to build muscle and other body tissues. And by adding that invaluable scoop of Greenergy, you get the equivalent of 5 servings of power greens without the belly bloating sensation that might follow a platter of raw broccoli. David Zinczenko, author of the Abs Diet and editor of Men’s Health magazine, recommends whey protein to promote fat loss and muscle building and maintenance.

Improve Your Wellness
If there is ever a season to feel your best, it’s summer. Who wants to turn down a picnic, pool party or tennis game due to fatigue or illness of any kind? When it comes to protecting your wellness, your morning whey protein shake offers a strategic advantage. Whey protein has a range of immune–enhancing properties, acting as an antioxidant, antihypertensive, antitumor, antiviral, and antibacterial agent, primarily by converting the amino acid cysteine to glutathione.1 In fact, whey protein raises glutathione levels more effectively than any other protein source.2 Glutathione is a powerful, intracellular antioxidant that plays important roles in nutrient metabolism, protein synthesis and immune response.3

So, shake it up! It’s clearly the whey to go for summer health and fitness.

References
1 Altern Med Rev. 2004 Jun;9(2):136-56
2 Clin Invest Med. 1991 Aug;14(4):296-309
3 J Nutr. 2004 Mar;134(3):489-92