Customer Reviews

NOW Foods Whey Protein Isolate Natural Vanilla, 5 Pounds

5 star:		(38)
4 star:		(18)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

I use this protein as a part of a strict weight lifting regimen but it is great for any user. This is a true whey isolate, the main benifits are that it is has a higher bioavailability and very low in cholesterol. Whey comes from dairy which is "bad" cholesterol. Most proteins are blends and contain a very high amount of cholesterol, and if you are like me and use multiple servings per day, that is certainly something to keep in mind. You wont find an isolate any cheaper than this. Period! Beware! Many proteins say isolate but they are actually blends...look at the cholesterol on the back and make sure there is no concentrate in it! It has no artificial sweeteners, hence it is probably the most healthy of many proteins. The only thing to consider is that the taste is rather bland because of this. But hey it's not all about the taste. Besides it doesnt taste bad, it just isn't as strong taste like most whey proteins.

NOW foods offers great natural products with minimal proccessing. I have used several other products of theirs all with good results. I find there prices to be very fair and all their products a high quality.

I have used many different proteins, with AST VP2 being my top choice along wth the NOW foods Whey. The AST is considerably more expensive, making the NOW whey a great bargain. I seem to notice maybe a very small change in results, but I was able to hit a lean and muscular 5.0% body fat using the NOW whey isolate with the same routines. So as far as effectiveness goes, this stuff works as hard as you, just like the AST.

Like most high-quality Whey isolate powders, this mixes very good. It needs a good shaking, and you may on occasion get a small clump. I find the colder the liquid the more likely clumping is. It mixes very well with milk.

The real nice thing about unflavored is that you can add any liquid or flavors to it you want. I have been using Simply Orange's orange mango with some vanilla hemp milk mixed in and the flavor is incredible!

I have used Hazelnut agave coffee sweetner/flavoring with cow's milk and water,chocolate cow's milk and even just plain old filtered water. The door is open for whatever you want, and it can be mixed with your favorite fruit juice adding a slight creaminess to it. So don't hesitate to get the unflavored!

Now Foods is a brand carried in many health stores with a good reputation. This protein is unbeatable for a whey in my opinion. The chocholate which is the only one I have tried tastes like hot cocoa I think, but mix it with half or less of the reccomended amount of water for best taste. The only thing I can even say is that the flavoring is not strong so if you mix it with rolled oats or something else for extra nutrition it is somewhat bland. But that's an easy fix, add some cocoa powder and more Stevia or coconut or natural penaut butter or get creative. That can also be a good thing, it blends well with other flavors. I'm using coconut, cinnamon (improves blood sugar regulation), natural peanut butter, and a touch of sugar, plus oats. Going to try throwing in a bit of hemp protein for extra benefit and flax.
I would suggest cutting the serving in half, take a scoop from your current protein or 1/3cup. I do 3/4 of a serving and should be fine. Some people say 50g is great after a workout but any other time you can only absorb 30g give or take at a time. So cutting it in half gives you 25g per serving so just split it up. I'm mostly vegan (have the occasional fish or pizza,) with the exception of whey to get enough protein. I shoot for 100g a day so 2 servings of this give a bit over a month's supply but I break it up into 4 shakes. Also, if you get unflavored you get more protein so try that if you want. I almost did but was curious of the flavor and love it. Back before I was healthy I tried many whey's and most were nasty artificial concoctions with bad aftertaste. I did find one that was good but it was full of artificials.
Anyway, this cross flow microfiltered whey isolate is the best from what I've read. Lower cholesterol, flavor, and fat too. They just say it's not worth the extra price but with Now the extra price is miniscule. Just calculate the amount of protein in a bag compared to their whey blend and it's really close to the same price per gram. So both would be great but go for the best.
If you get the flavored it has Stevia which is an all natural zero calorie sweetener made like tea from a plant in the Amazon. It has about a teaspoon of fruit sugar too but that's only 4 or 5g. The only other ingredient is the flavoring. No artificial anything which in my opinion is best. I couldn't belive how hard it was to find a protein without crap in it. And price this per gram of protein compared to anything else, I don't think you'll find it much cheaper, no fillers here like miniscule doses of glutamine.
It my not mix as easliy as some but maybe that's because of being a pure isolate. I use a shaker bottle and don't notice any clumps, just see a few grains stuck to the side. Use a blender if your worried about it, I do so I can mix the other stuff in, then tranfer to a blender bottle to drink (has the whisk ball in it.) Getting a Blendtec Blender soon so my recipes will get interesting :p

I have shopped around a lot for whey protein isolate. This NOW Whey Protein Isolate not only seems to be the BEST I have found (highest protein to choleserol and fat ratios), but also at the BEST price! I hope NOW Foods does not let it go to their heads and pump up their prices, as GNC has done over the last few years, because I otherwise plan to stay with the NOW brand FOREVER.

After trying several whey mixes, I rate NOW Whey Protein Isolate powder #1. Each serving has 25 grams of protein with very few additions. It is low in calories. And where most whey proteins have 70 or more milligrams of cholesterol per serving, NOW Whey Isolate only has 4 mg! It's a Great Product!

Great product, great price. Was skeptical at first, being an ON Gold Standard fan, but I can't tell the difference. I'm sold. I'll be buying again.

NOW foods offers great natural products with minimal proccessing. I have used several other products all with good results. I find there prices to be very fair and all their products a high quality.

I have used many different proteins, with AST VP2 being my top choice along wth the NOW foods Whey. The AST is considerably more expensive, making the NOW whey a great bargain. I seem to notice maybe a very small change in results, but I was able to hit a lean and muscular 5.0% body fat using the NOW whey isolate with the same routines. So as far as effectiveness goes, this stuff works as hard as you, just like the AST.

When it comes to chocolate, NOW Foods has nailed it here. The chocolate flavor is rich and creamy, and even holds up with just water as the liquid. I beleive this is in part due to the utulization of Stevia as the sweetener in stead of sucralose as many other low-sugar protein poders use. Stevia is a naturally occuring non-caloric sweetener, so no fears of brain tumors (asartame=phenylalanine=Phenylketoneurics) or a rumbly belly (splenda=sucralose).

Chocolate can get tired after some time, so I prefer to use vanilla or unflavored as well in this brand for more flavor options from juices and such. Needless to say, Chocolate does not offer the mutability of the other flavors.Not to belittle chocolate though - It is great! If you want chocolate for your shake, this is the best choice to be made.

This protein powder mixes well and is not at all gritty. Every morning I drink a yogurt smoothie, which consists of a small container of yogurt, a scoop of protein powder and a pack of splenda, add ice and a little water or skim milk to thin it out. Its a great breakfast, and the protein contained in one scoop is enough to keep me going for hours.

I was a bit suprised at the size of the container so if your a person who has little kitchen cabinet space you may want to stick with the 1lb container which lasts about 2 weeks at 1 serving per day.

I was very hopeful that I had found the ultimate whey powder for myself. I wanted something that was 1) High quality, 2) All natural, 3) Free of unnecessary additives, 4) affordable, and 5) tasted good. Well, 4 out of 5 isn't bad. This is definitely a high quality powder, it has 80% less cholesterol than the GNC Pro Performance I was using, has ZERO artificial additives, and is very reasonably priced. The only complaint I have, and this isn't a huge one, is the Stevia.

Now as far as alternate sweeteners go, Stevia is one of the best all-natural alternatives you can find. Unfortunately it has an aftertaste that can linger just as strong as an artificial sweetener, and the usage in this powder seems just a bit heavy-handed, especially since it does use some fructose as well. Personally I could taste the Stevia more than the vanilla.

If you know you like Stevia as a sweetener, then this gets a 100% recommendation. If you are unsure, try out a stevia-sweetened drink from a health foods section and see what you think first. If you dislike the aftertaste, then do what I am going to do next time, and just pick up the Unflavored NOW Whey Protein Isolate and adjust to your own tastes. Unflavored whey powder is almost tasteless, and works great as a base for shakes of any flavor.

I have tried whey protein isolates from several manufacturers. Some of them are quite expensive. Some are cheap, but in fact they are not isolates. For example, Optimum Nutrition (ON) Gold Standard 100% Natural Whey mentions "whey protein isolate" on its label, but in fact it is not isolate and you can feel it right away (the taste and smell are just awful). For some time I believed that if a whey protein is too cheap, than it cannot be tasty. Now I see that it was a false impression. NOW Foods Whey Protein Isolate Natural Vanilla tastes just as good as a vanilla ice cream, although in terms of its price it is on the cheap end of the spectrum. The good taste is not the only advantage of this product. If you check the protein, cholesterol, fat and carbohydrate content and compare it to that of other whey protein brands, then you will find that this is just about as good at it gets. I have not found a source of whey protein with significantly greater protein content or significantly lower cholesterol, fat, or carbohydrate content even among more expensive whey proteins. I will stick with NOW Foods Whey Protein Isolate for a long time, because I like it.