Shake Shake Rattle n Roll

In an ideal world, one where one has all the time to plan and prepare the food you need to provide a balanced diet, one where you a re sure you are getting enough of everything there would be no need for protein shakes of any type.

Yeah, I don't live in that world. Keeping a full schedule of work, exercise and the like means there is the opportunity to cut corners. I might as well be straight up, I can be pretty lazy about my meal preparation. I know what I should be doing, but sometimes I sleep in that extra 15-20 minutes or lose myself in email or Facebook or blog chasing. All of a sudden I need to do something about putting some nutrients into my body.

Protein shake to the rescue! I know protein shakes are not a meal replacement. They are a supplement that will get me on my way to my proper meal. If I were a prime time athlete, they would be a supplement that would give me that extra muscle building edge. Just look at Brendan Brazier or Robert Cheeke, two of the more high profile vegan athletes. I'm not an athlete by any means, but I flatter myself in saying that as a residential renovator and carpenter, I am close.

In the beginning I simply added hemp or pumpkin seed protein powder to juice and blended. This upped my protein intake, but didn't necessarily up my mineral and amino acid intake. Hence the dive into composite protein shakes. In the past year, there has been a growth in the number of plant-based protein shakes on the market. Finding one that works for me has been an on-going process for me.

First up was the Vega One shakes. Formulated by Brendan Brazier, these were the first 100% plant-based protein shakes I tried with all the added mineral and amino acids included. These were later advanced into the Vega Sport line as part of a more specialized series of Vegan supplements designed for athletes. As much as these contain all the goodness I'm looking for, the big detraction was the sweetness. I'm not a big fan of the super sweet, so I struggled with this one.

Next on my tryout list was the Natural Factor's Vanilla Bean flavoured Vegan Protein Factors. I liked this one for a number of reasons. First, the price; it is less costly by far than the Vega lines. Second, the flavour; the vanila, though present is not overpowering and overall is not overly sweet.

When Brad King's Ultimate Vegan Energy Protein was introduced to me, I gave it a whirl. Taste, flavour and blendability all work for me. The price is in line as well. It became my go-to shake mix.

Recently, (3 months ago) I found Enerex Raw Phyto Proteins. Hands down this has turned out to be the best for me in terms of overall digestability. I can honestly say I actually feel better, refreshed even, after having had a shake made with the Raw Phyto Protein mix.

The Enerex Raw Phyto Proteins is currently my number one choice for a vegan protein mix.That said, I believe the body thrives on variety, so will continue to mix things up a bit, keeping two on the shelf and rotating through.

I should point out that I do not have a vested interest in any of these products. Nor will I receive any remuneration should you buy one through the links. plain and simple, this is my opinion and feedback on the protein shakes I've tried. Yours may differ. Feel free to let me know how.

Is the plant-based footprint actually smaller?

I really didn't know what to expect when I started out on the vegan diet plan, that is a diet 100% plant based. I knew why, in theory, it was the right one for me, but proving is to be true would involve paying attention to a lot of things I hadn't really paid attention to before.

One aspect that I didn't see coming was the reduced garbage output. Rarely does my trek to the city garbage container involve more than a small bag - a very small bag. My two cats actually contribute more to the garbage system than I do.

When I stop top think about it, it makes sense. Most of my veg are fresh and unwrapped. My grains - quinoa,  rice, oats, flax seed etc - are bought in thin poly-bag packaging from Whole Foods on Kingsway. For convenience, much of the beans and chick peas I buy comes in tins. Berries often come in the infernal plastic clam-shell packaging. Both the tins and the plastic berry containers go into the recycling box, as do the fruit juice, soy and almond milk cartons. Being as all my foods are plant-based, anything not consumed by me can and is composted.

What doesn't go into my garbage bag are styrofoam meat trays with their ubiquitous absorbent pads and plastic and wax paper wrap from cheese, deli meats, bacon and the like. OK that may not sound like a lot, but taken meal by meal it adds up to more frequent trips to the city garbage container because that stuff won't sit in a bag in your kitchen for a week. Well if it did, you would know about it soon enough. Your nostrils would tell you.

So what does go into my garbage bag? Well a quick list of this week's bag shows numerous twist ties from bundles of spinach, kale, broccoli and the like, plastic wrap that some mushrooms (and for some reason celery) are marketed in, plastic security/sealing strips from vegan protein shake containers, some emptied bulk poly bags and...... yeah that's about it.

Is that normal for a vegan? I don't know. Seems to me it is a small difference. One I did not expect to make.