{"id":8814,"date":"2010-04-28T12:54:56","date_gmt":"2010-04-28T16:54:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.nomeatathlete.com\/?p=8814"},"modified":"2020-02-27T16:28:26","modified_gmt":"2020-02-27T21:28:26","slug":"new-drinks-for-runners","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.nomeatathlete.com\/new-drinks-for-runners\/","title":{"rendered":"New Drinks for Runners"},"content":{"rendered":"

I am lucky to find increasingly cool stuff on my doorstep these days.\u00a0 Recently I got two new drinks, both of which are of interest to runners looking to improve their performance or recovery.<\/p>\n

As I learn more about blogging and the laws surrounding disclosure, I feel compelled to let you know that this stuff was sent to me for free.\u00a0 But nobody’s paying me to write these reviews, so hopefully you’ll find my opinions trustworthy.<\/p>\n

Vega Sport Performance Protein<\/h2>\n

For those who are late to the party, Vega is vegan pro-Ironman triathlete Brendan Brazier’s line of sports nutrition products.\u00a0 Brendan wrote Thrive<\/em><\/a>, which is considered by me and others to be the undisputed bible of vegan sports nutrition.<\/p>\n

I’ll go ahead and say it: Vega products are my absolute favorites.\u00a0 Every ingredient that goes into Vega products is there for a reason— usually high net-gain energy, alkalinity, digestion, inflammation reduction, muscle repair, or performance enhancement.<\/p>\n

While the original Vega Sport<\/a> is a high-carbohydrate drink for fueling workouts, Vega Sport Performance Protein<\/a> contains very few carbs and is most useful as vegan means of meeting protein needs.<\/p>\n

After reading Thrive<\/em> last summer and learning that whey and soy protein powders are highly processed and acid-forming, I switched to hemp protein powder.\u00a0 Hemp is minimally processed, so it’s green (not white), it’s alkaline forming, and it’s as close to a whole food as protein powders get.<\/p>\n

The problem: hemp protein powder contains only 13 grams of protein per 4 tablespoons.\u00a0 Now, I’m no protein-junkie, but that’s not a lot.\u00a0 Especially considering the cost.<\/p>\n

But in each 2-tablespoon packet of Vega Sport Performance Protein, Brendan has somehow packed in 20 grams of the big-P.\u00a0 It comes from a seemingly-alchemistic combination of sprouted brown rice protein, organic green pea protein, hemp protein, and organic alfalfa juice protein.\u00a0 And there’s a complete, balanced amino-acid profile, plus some greens, glutamine, and digestive enzymes.<\/p>\n

But how does it taste?<\/h3>\n

The drawback of such natural goodness is that it never tastes quite as good as a nice, terrible-for-you Gatorade.\u00a0 So how does Vega Sport Performance Protein do in the taste category?<\/p>\n

Mixed with just water, I found it a little hard to drink.\u00a0 My samples are berry-flavored, and it also comes in vanilla-flavor, but the sweetness (which comes from stevia leaf<\/a>) did little to mask a very raw flavor.\u00a0 It mixed well in a shaker cup, which was nice, but it tasted very—well, earthy.<\/p>\n

In a smoothie, it was great.\u00a0 It tasted like the normal hemp protein I use does, just a little sweeter.<\/p>\n

Vegan Smoothie Recipe<\/h3>\n

I’ll be sad when my Vega Sport Performance Protein samples are gone.\u00a0 If I could afford this stuff, I’d put it in my smoothie everyday.<\/p>\n

Here’s the recipe for my daily smoothie, with Vega substituted for the usual hemp protein.\u00a0 Just combine the ingredients in a blender.\u00a0 It makes two smoothies.<\/p>\n

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