I’m a fan of meat for it’s fat and protein content. I’ve written about the importance of both over the years, one of my posts caught the eye of Naked Nutrition and they asked if I would try their “Naked Whey” protein powder… I immediately said, “YES!“.
As I told their representative, “I’ve admired your products from afar for years and would love to experiment with your Naked Whey protein powder!”
I decided to include my testing and review of the Naked Whey product with my current lowER fat experiment, starting officially today. Naked Whey is perfect for this lowER fat, highER protein experiment.
Before we get into the details of the weight loss experiment let’s talk about protein in general.
Importance of Protein
Studies have shown that we need MORE protein as we age… not less. Those that demonize animal proteins are causing a great deal of harm, especially to ‘seniors’. This ‘hating’ on protein is partially responsible for the increased incidence of sarcopenia (muscle wasting) and frailty… two conditions that are increasingly a plague upon our elders. Elders … like me. 😆
Ideally, people should get their protein from whole foods and due to the bioavailability, I prefer animal based protein over plant-based.
Having said that, consuming a quality animal-based protein powder is a healthy choice depending on your goals and circumstances.
Since 2009, I’ve kept a ‘tub’ of protein powder in the cupboard … for two main reasons.
1 – For convenience, when I need a ‘hit’ of protein either quickly (usually before or after a workout) or to take as an occasional ‘meal replacement’. Typically a 5 lb tub of protein powder will last for two to three months… or more.
2 – When performing a ‘leaning out’. Translation: When I want to maximize fat loss while maintaining muscle.
When ‘leaning out’ I utilize a highER protein and lowER fat meal plan for a few weeks or months, depending on how much body fat I want to lose. Here’s a link to previous lowER fat, highER protein, fat-loss experiment, “High Protein Experiment“.
Note: When I talk about protein powders, I’m talking about good, quality protein powders… I am NOT talking about ‘junk’ powders and shakes that include a lot of carbs, sugars, seed oils, etc.
Some of the worst examples of the junk products are Boost, Ensure, and Glucerna etc. Sadly these products are pushed to diabetics as being healthy and diabetic friendly they are not… avoid all of this ‘junk’. And I’d add, I’d ‘fire’ the medical industry professional who promotes such products.
My Current Fat Loss Experiment
In short I’ll be eating a lowER fat, highER protein meal plan … until I lose at least 5 lbs, I may go to 10 lbs depending on how I look and feel.
I’ll be following the same general guidelines as before… except I’m lowering my minimum protein target to 160 grams per day. I can still eat all I want, I’m just lowering the minimum to 160 grams, (1 g of protein per pound of body weight)
1) Fat – Less than 100 grams of fat per day. I’ll go as low as needed to lose the fat in the 30 days of the experiment.
2) Protein – More than 160 grams of protein per day. I’ve done a lot more than that in previous experiments, and I may do a lot more this time around, but I’m starting out with 160 grams per day, as the minium.
3) Carbs – as always these will be kept very low. I’m typically less than 10 grams most days, but almost always less than 20 grams. This won’t change. :)
To accomplish my weight (fat) loss I’ll adhere to the above amounts… on average. Meaning, I am sure I’ll be above some days and below others, the point I’m making is … if you are going to follow along with this experiment, don’t worry about reaching these targets every single day…some days you may be higher, some days lower.
Macronutrient Information (Approximate)
Fat: 100 grams = approximately 900 calories or less.
Protein: 160 grams of protein = approximately 640 calories or more.
Carbs: 20 grams = approximately 80 calories or less.
Approximately 1620 calories per day. I don’t really care about calories, I list it here just for information.
I can all but promise I’ll be lower than 100 grams of fat per day, and I’d bet I’d be a lot higher in protein. I’ll adjust as needed to achieve the desired results in 30 days… or less. :)
Foods
Please check out the previously listed post for full details but in short … I’ll be eating leanER meats and cutting out most dairy and cheese consumption.
A short list of meats I’ll eat (in addition to the Naked Whey protein powder) sirloin steaks, lean ground beef, round roasts, pork loin, and chicken breasts. Fattier cuts of meats are allowed, just cut off the ‘visible fat’. I add the fat to a plastic bag in the freezer, these will be excellent for rendering fat later.
If I do consume a nice fatty ribeye or chuck steak with the fat … no problem (for me), I’ll just eat much less fat for the next several days.
Starting Weight:
My weight this morning and starting weight for the experiment: 160.4 lbs or 72.9 kg. I’m going to round down to 160 lb for simplicity.
So my initial goal will be 155 lbs (70.45 kg), at that point I’ll re-evaluate, check body composition and decide what to do.
I use the term “weight loss’ but to be clear, I only want to lose body-fat… that’s why I eat the highER protein, to maintain muscle while losing weight.
Many do not eat enough protein and many of these people lose muscle and fat during weight loss. Losing muscle, especially as we age is *never* a good thing.
Fat Loss Plan of Attack
My plan is soooo simple…. when possible I like to “Keep It Simple Steve” … or KISS. :)
I’ll eat Naked Whey in the morning, then consume another shake afternoon (if hungry) and then consume a light dinner of meat and low-carb veggies.
My ‘diet’ will be very similar to my standard meal plan… except I’ll eat less fatty meats, and greatly reduce my dairy consumption.
Back to Naked Whey…
The Naked Truth About Naked Whey
As I mentioned earlier, I’ve been a fan of Naked Nutrition’s unflavored Naked Whey powders for years.
There are several reasons why I love the unflavored Naked Whey product…
Reason #1 – One Ingredient
Guess what the one ingredient is? … <drum roll> … Whey Protein Concentrate!!
That’s right, no fillers, no anti-caking additives, no flavorings… just pure protein!!
There are very few (if any) protein powders that are as high quality and as ‘clean’ as Naked Whey.
I love their marketing slogan too. “Naked Whey, nothing to hide!” and it’s reinforced with their clear container packaging.
Reason #2 – Hormone Free, Grass Fed Cows
Naked Whey is sourced from small California dairy farms. Their cows are grass-fed year-round, and raised without growth hormones like rBGH or rBST. Each serving includes 25 grams of protein and 5.9 grams of branched-chain amino acids (BCAAs).
Reason #3 – Certified by Informed-Source.org
You can check out this organization and the details of it’s testing and certification process here.
Reason #4 – Flavor
This is an unflavored whey, therefore this protein powder doesn’t have a lot of flavor… other than the clean taste of pure whey protein, and I like it! I’ve been having a shake mixed with water, and some with a water and cream 50/50 blend… and I really enjoy the ‘clean’ flavor.
I plan on testing the blending of low-carb berries, such as strawberries, blueberries, blackberries and raspberries.
Note: I didn’t have a shake yesterday, I wanted to make sure I have enough protein powder for 30 days… and I really missed not having the shake.
Reason #5 – Low Carb (3 grams)
Only 3 grams of carbs per serving, and all of the carbs come from the whey… no added sugar or carbohydrates.
Note: Naked nutrition does offer flavored wheys, (strawberry, chocolate and vanilla). These products have just three ingredients, whey concentrate, organic coconut sugar and either organic cacao, natural vanilla, or dried strawberries. I personally wouldn’t use these flavored products since these are 8 grams of carbs per serving.
When I consume protein with a meal or shake, I like to consume AT LEAST 40 grams of protein. Naked Whey’s serving size is 25 grams of protein so 1 1/2 servings is what I consume (to reach 40g of protein). One and a half servings of the flavored wheys would be about 12 g of carbs in a protein shake, and it’s more sugar and carbs than I want.
Naked Whey… the negatives
There are a couple of possible negatives depending on your perspective.
1) Mixability
Since there is ONLY one ingredient, whey protein concentrate … it does not mix as easily as other whey products that contain added ingredients.
This means that when I mix up a shake in a shaker, … instead of shaking vigorously 4-5 times, I may shake the mixture 15-20 times.
See how this is a benefit??? You burn up even MORE calories and get a nice bicep workout… at the same time!! 😁
Of course, you can mix with a stick blender, blender, or food processor… and I can confirm, a stick blender makes a delicious, frothy shake.
But I really do not see this as a negative. If you want a high quality, pure, ‘clean’, cold-pressed, denatured whey concentrate … from grass fed cows, hormone, antibiotic free… (like I do) then give this whey a try.
If you want a chocolate cookie dough-flavored shake, with soy, lecithin, artificial sweeteners, etc … then this product may not be for you.
2) Cost:
$95 (USD) for 5 lbs.
Naked Whey as you might expect is more expensive than the ‘junk’ protein shakes and powders I mentioned earlier, I’m talking about Boost, Ensure, and Glucerna.
And it is more expensive than other protein powders I’ve used in the past… but again, the other protein wheys have ingredients I’d prefer not to consume. Also, the typical whey is not from hormone-free, grass fed cows.
At least here in Canada, meat prices have really skyrocketed making Naked Whey more economical compared to animal protein sources.
For example, 40 grams of protein and the approximate costs:
(not grass fed beef)
Ground beef per 40 grams of protein = $1.60
Bottom Round per 40 grams of protein = $2.87
Chuck Steak per 40 grams of protein = $3.42
Ribeye per 40 grams of protein = $6.11
Compare that to Naked Whey at $2.00 (USD) per 40 grams of protein.
(I use 40 grams as my ‘serving size’ because studies show we need more protein as we age… not less. A study showed seniors achieved more muscle protein synthesis from 40g of protein than 20g. What you do … is up to you.)
Let 2022’s version of the Fat Loss Experiment … BEGIN!
I don’t know about you … but I’m getting lean and MEAN!!! I’m already mean, so the rest is easy. :)
WIshing you all truly normal weight … and truly normal blood sugars. ❤
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