Paleo Diet and Paleolithic Diet Questions & Answers

Question

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Earlier while shopping at Whole Foods I happened upon the creator of the Vega line of plant based nutritional products Brendan Brazier speaking to a small crowd.

I've actually never seen this at Whole Foods before so I stopped to take a listen and then since the shakes were dairy and gluten free tried a sample. I'm sensitive to Stevia so didn't love it, but I am intrigued by the protein shake which is low carb, doesn't have any of that damn dairy folks love so much (President of Lactards Unite), has a lot of protein and includes branch chain amino acids. Not sure if the branch chain aminos would benefit me at all since I don't work out.

I'm thinking of substituting this shake for my regular breakfast which I posted below. So hack Vega Performance Protein. Is it Paleo or just paleoish?

Vega Performance Protein - Recover shake
$3.18 per shake
Calories - 120
Calories from fat - 10
Total Fat - 1 g
Saturated fat - .5 g
Total Carbohydrate 6 g
Dietary Fiber 2 g
Sugars <1 g
Protein 26 g
Sodium 520 mg

ProVega complete broad spectrum plant-based protein blend 23,122 mg
-Yellow pea protein
-SaviSeed sacha inchi protein
-Sprouted whole grain brown rice protein
-Hemp Protein
-Alfalfa protein

Branched chain amino acid complex 5,543 mg
-L-Leucine
-L-Isoleucine
-L-Valine
-L-Glutamine

Digestive enzyme blend
-Protease (plant and bacterial)
-Aminopeptidase
-HemiSEB hemicellulase

Flavors and stevia, etc.
http://vegasport.com/recover/performance-protein

How it Compares to my current breakfast of 3 fried eggs and 3 Applegate breakfast sausages
$2.85 per meal
Calories - 520
Total Fat - 38.5
Sodium - 1305
Carbs - 2.5
Protein - 35.5

Thoughts? Comments? Go!

flag	asked Mar 31 2012 at 2:29 MeepsIsWellfed 1,831●3●11

Cost per calorie is obviously much higher with the shake. I doubt that 120 calories would be enough for breakfast, so you would have to supplement your supplement breakfast with some real food. – Ralph Furley Mar 31 2012 at 12:28

Cmcd · Accepted Answer · 2012-09-19 20:07:07Z UTC

I'm following the whole Paleo Lifestyle of eating and have been for over a year. Im 21 and train daily. I recently just started taking these VEGA shakes. They are refined foods but nothing compared to my old Optimum Nutrition Proteins. I couldnt pronounce some of the ingredients! I'm pretty strict with carbs and wouldnt even touch a sweet potato but I cannot train on a full stomach and have been having trouble with eating meals and training times too close. I purchased these shakes for recovery and for something quick. Also a marathon runner recommended them. They dont upset my stomach at all and taste great with water. If you just follow the Paleo diet for being healthy but will consider other stuff in moderation, I recommend the Vega shakes. I used to be against any shakes but am becoming more open to trying new things. They seem to be good! If your not strict Paleo, and are in it for weight loss and keeping lean, try them!

Chelsea · Answer 2 · 2012-03-31 02:40:04Z UTC

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Paleo is about whole foods. Meat, veggies, eggs, some fruit. Just enjoy food as nature intended.

answered Mar 31 2012 at 2:40

Chelsea
2,659●1●2●11

Alex · Answer 3 · 2012-03-31 03:02:03Z UTC

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Protein powder from peas and rice is not paleo. End of story.

Personally, I have never tried Vega, but I did try two different healthfood store brands of pea/rice protein powder, and both of them made me feel sick. The stuff sat in my stomach like a rock. I don't consume a lot of protein powder, but it is convenient, and my choice is pure whey protein isolate, which I mix with coconut milk, water, and flavorings (fruit juice concentrate, cocoa powder & instant coffee, maple syrup, etc.)

If your problem with dairy is lactose, you might be able to handle whey protein isolate because the filtration used to make it removes virtually all lactose. Whey protein concentrate, OTOH, still has its lactose and will be problematic for the lactose intolerant.

answered Mar 31 2012 at 3:02

Alex
5,669●1●6●17

	I may be straight up allergic to the protein. Any kind of dairy puts me in a k-hole first and then starts a civil war in the guts. Even the littlest bit f's me up. Wish I could do the whey even though it too isn't 'paleo'. Used to do soy shakes years ago but that was almost as bad as taking a dairy shake tummy wise. – MeepsIsWellfed Mar 31 2012 at 3:11
	Does Paleo Hacks promote Vega? There is an advert for it on the side of the PaleoHacks page. Interesting. – MeepsIsWellfed Mar 31 2012 at 3:12
	Google Ads serves up ads based on keywords. The website owner (Patrik, in this case) has no control over what Google does. On a place like PH, ads will frequently be quite ironic. So this one got served up just based on the question about Vega; PH has nothing to do with promoting it. – January Mar 31 2012 at 4:08
	I saw an ad once about eating meatless by some animal welfare society and I thought to myself, "Hm, not sure that would work here." – Sunny Beaches Mar 31 2012 at 5:00
	That makes sense then. Tripped me up for a minute. – MeepsIsWellfed Mar 31 2012 at 15:54

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dugdeep · Answer 4 · 2012-03-31 03:40:42Z UTC

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Seeing as a significant part of the protein is coming from legumes and grains, I don't really see how this could be considered paleo, not to mention that this is about as processed a food as you can get. This isn't even "paleo-ish". It could be argued that it's low-carb, but low-carb does not equal paleo.

answered Mar 31 2012 at 3:40

dugdeep
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	"but low-carb does not equal paleo." +1 – Sunny Beaches Mar 31 2012 at 4:57
	Agreed. "low-carb does not equal paleo" +1 – MeepsIsWellfed Mar 31 2012 at 15:56

Sunny Beaches · Answer 5 · 2012-03-31 04:41:10Z UTC

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Your profile says you've been paleo for a year. If that was your typical breakfast, I am wondering what is leading to you wanting to change it. What's your motivation to change up your breakfast?

The fat and protein content is just too different to compare. We also don't know your goals, activity level etc. so any "comparison" of the fats, calories, and protein would be futile.

The ingredients aren't paleo either. But I actually have a very similar powder and I posted something about using up the rest of it because I just had some leftover in the cupboard from while back before I went paleo...I asked if the paleo police would ban me (okay, I didn't phrase it like that) if I just used it up so that it wouldn't be wasted. Most people told me to just toss it or give it to someone else.

answered Mar 31 2012 at 4:41

Sunny Beaches
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	I have about 15 lbs of fat to lose and the scale has stopped moving. Fat is calorically very dense and I think I'm just eating too much of it and everything. Since I don't work out I need to cut down somewhere without triggering hunger too soon. So the shake with some coconut butter and almond milk would actually get me to a place I feel comfortable with (on paper). How my tummy reacts (total dictator) and whether or not I stay full for long enough will be the deciding factor. The Paleo Police are too busy stroking their batons for me to worry about. – MeepsIsWellfed Mar 31 2012 at 16:03
	I'd say to go ahead and try it out. I realize that some foods don't necessary cause problems for others. I actually find that the powder I have dissolves very easily. It's pretty flavorless and easy to take down. However, liquid calories don't make me feel like I've eaten so I tend to reach for more. I think adding coconut butter and almond milk sounds like a great idea. What do you think of egg white protein? – Sunny Beaches Mar 31 2012 at 18:21
	Word. I would try it strictly as a meal replacement in the am and wouldn't eat till lunch. If it doesn't satisfy then it's not working. ~ I would love to try egg white protein but it's impossible to find in a physical store here without some nasty sweetener. If you have a brand you can recommend please do. It's always been in the back of my mind as a possibility. Recipes would also be appreciated as I have no clue what to mix it with that won't shoot the carbs up or taste like ash/ass. – MeepsIsWellfed Apr 1 2012 at 0:42
	The kind I had also used pea, rice and hemp protein. I drank it with some ice, a banana, and almond/coconut milk and I actually liked it. I've stopped drinking it though because (for me) I think I do better fasting through breakfast and it just didn't me feel like I was eating "clean" on paleo. But do what works for you:). A lot of people here aren't 100% paleo, so if this is your only non-paleo food of the day, I don't think it'll kill you Could you order egg white protein on amazon? This is unflavored: amazon.com/Eggwhite-Protein-100-Pure-Unflavored/… – Sunny Beaches Apr 1 2012 at 0:53
	Oh wait, I just read that you didn't want to have carbs in it...I'm sorry. I guess the banana suggestion is out. What if you put cinnamon and a touch of stevia (if you use it) in it along with the coconut milk? – Sunny Beaches Apr 1 2012 at 0:54

Hack Vega Nutritional Products. Paleo?

5 Answers