The Best Whey Products

Whey protein powder is a fast-digesting protein supplement, perfect for pre- and post-workout nutrition. It is so versatile in fact that its hard to imagine any serious fitness enthusiast getting along without it. With so many products on the market, how do you know which is best? Flashy marketing and endless product claims make it hard for the average consumer to know what to buy.
The highest-quality whey protein powders are whey isolates, hydrolyzed whey, or some combination of the two. Products with whey concentrate listed as the first ingredient are typically inferior in quality to whey isolates. Other beneficial attributes are added amino acids, digestive enzyme, vitamins and minerals and/or fibers. Whey proteins can further be evaluated by the amount of protein, carbohydrates, sugar and fat per serving.

Hydrowhey

Optimum Nutrition's newest whey protein powder is hydrolyzed, with added digestive enzymes to maximize absorption of the amino acids. Hydrolyzed means that the proteins are essentially pre-digested or broken down into their smallest units, known as amino acids or peptides. Bodybuilding.com gives ON's Hydrowhey a score of 9.2 out of 10.

VP2

AST's VP2 product is another hydrolyzed whey protein isolate product. VP2 contains the digestive enzyme blend known as Aminogen, which drastically improves the absorption of whey protein. This whey powder scores a very high 9.3 out of 10 on the Bodybuilding.com scale.

100 Percent Whey Protein

Optimum Nutrition's Gold Standard 100% Whey Protein has won the Bodybuilding.com Protein of the Year Award 2005 through 2009, as well as the 2009 Overall Supplement of the Year Award. Scoring 9 out of 10, 100% Whey Protein contains whey protein isolates, ultra-filtered whey concentrates and hydrolyzed whey peptides. For the price, this is one of the best proteins on the market, according to Bodybuilding.com.

Proto Whey

BioNutritional's Proto Whey is 100 percent hydrolyzed whey protein. Its micro-peptide formulation requires little to no digestion in the body, as it is already broken down for you. Added L-glutamine further improves the amino acid profile and can help with muscle recovery and gastrointestinal health. Proto Whey scores 8.7 out of 10 on the Bodybuilding.com protein rating.

Isopure

Nature's Best Isopure is 100 percent whey protein isolate. Scoring 8.4 out of 10 on the Bodybuilding.com protein rating, Isopure contains added L-glutamine, a vitamin/mineral blend, zero carbohydrates, zero fat, and it is lactose free.

Elite Whey Protein Isolate

Dymatize offers Elite Whey Protein Isolate with only 1g of sugar per serving. It contain Zytrix an enzyme blend, similar to Aminogen, to help with digestion and absorption of the protein. Elite scores an 8.4 out of 10 on the rating scale, and it mixes instantly in milk or water. Along with ON's 100% Whey, this is truly one of the best values in the market.