I love the Almond Breeze unsweetend as well. I use it almost as much as the soy milk. It does have soy lethicin in it. Probably to give it body. Another friend who is a body builder told me that she uses the soy milk or almond milk to mix her protien shakes with (instead of water). The protien powder seems to get absorbed better that way and she doesn't have the gritty aftertaste problem. Of course, I don't drink those supplemental or meal replacement things. Not that I'm judging at all. I just like food too much and DH and I would fight over who had to clean out the blender all the time. One epsiode of rushing in for a shake and finding a crusted blender bowl in the sink would do me in.

TS

Maybe its the richness of the milk? Or vecause its winter and we're craving vitamin D? That's it for me, I think. I get vanilla flavoured soymilk- It's a real treat for me.

Yay! I'm not alone in my secret desire for soy milk. I was beginning to get scared and think I would have to hide it from my low carb friends. After being treated to the soy milk latte and the tofu in one week, my husband was beginning to get scared that I would stop shaving my legs and start running around in flowing gypsy skirts and Berkinstocks. We all can rest easy now.

SC

I do most of those things, with DH's blessing.

Then again, he's vegan too.

Oh Golly! I hope I didn't offend you. I was going for a health food stereotype rather than a vegan one. I would say, "some of my best friends are vegans" but that would sound canned. Now that I think of it I do know a goodly number of vegans but they aren't wearing Berks.

tee hee.

SC

No, no offense. I am a health-food-vegan, and it fits!

My daughter is the only one who is bothered that I don't shave, really.

Actually, I don't wear Birkenstocks, but do all the rest you said!

You know what health food makes me think of? Bear with me because I am 46 now so my teen years were in the 70s. I think of wonderful wood and cedar lined homes in the woods with dappled rays shining through the window and a woman (dressed as I described) humming to herself and cleaning vegtables picked from the garden in the sink. In my (albeit idealized) version, no one has to go to work (though how they afford that b*&ch&^ house I don't know) or maybe they are really artists and s their work is their joy. That's it. She is a potter and he makes natural wood scuptures. They have one of those burled wood tree trunk coffee tables. God I'm so jealous of them.

SC

I decided to try soy milk tonight as a part of a protein shake (I use Zero Carb Isopure in the "Cookies and Cream" variety). The protein powder never mixed quite right with water and it was hard to choke down. It mixed nicely into the soy milk (I used 1c. soy milk with an extra 4oz of water and 2 scoops of Protein powder for a whopping: 330 calories; 7g carbs; 1g fat; 57g protein. I'm not a strict adherant to Atkins these days, but I am keeping it very low-carb (usually between 20-30g net carbs/day). The diet advice I'm following to accompany a fat loss workout book suggest having 1g protein per pound of body weight--so I find having a shake a day really allows me to get some extra protein in I'm just glad it tastes delicious in the soy milk, instead of only bearable in water! It'll make a great post workout shake! Thanks for the Soy milk thread! All the benefits of milk without all the carbs--I like it!

Azure - I have a question for you...you seem to workout alot as I have seen you on other threads. So, sorry if this is unrelated but....
I'm looking for something to boost my energy while working out...have you tried any drinks/supplements that just help you "push it to the limit" a little better on the treadmill/bike/eliptical?

Bambifox--

I'm just tentatively returning to 3FC--I've been away for awhile! I try to workout a lot, but I have a problem with consistency! I'm trying to hit the gym 5 days a week and I've been only making it 3 as of late. We'll see how I do next week! That said, I try to lift weights on MWF, and hit a Cardio Kickboxing class on Tues/Thurs. I've decided to start adding some extra high-intensity cardio in on my weight lifting days, just for a little extra calorie burn.

As far as supplements, I haven't really felt like I needed to supplement with anything--especially for cardio. Low carb diets alone seem to keep my energy level up high enough! I feel like lifting weights is the most important part of exercise for weight loss, with high intensity cardio (in the form of intervals--sprint/walk/sprint/walk, etc.) as a second, followed by slower steady-state cardio in last place (walking, low-intensity work on elllipticals/bikes).

To support muscle maintenance while I'm losing weight, I try to keep my protein intake high, so I "supplement" with whey protein (100% Whey isolate--I use Zero Carb Isopure). I also take a multi-vitamin daily--but that's it! I hope that answered your question

Azure - Thanks for your reply. I was at GNC today looking for some kind of supplement to assist me with energy in the morning. I want to start working out in the morning instead of at night, but, I have absolutely no energy in the a.m. The guy was just trying to sell me anything so don't know if I bought the right thing, but, I did look at the Isopure. He said the Isopure would "bulk me up"...so, of course, I put it back on the shelf! How long have you been on Isopure...does it help with your muscle tone or give you any extra boost of energy before a workout?

Anyway, I ended up buying "Ripped System" for $70 bucks!!! I'm reading it now and it has 3 bottles (one named Lean that you take before bed...supposed to burn fat while you sleep; and one named Ripped that you take before your workout and six hours after your workout; and one named Dry that you take before a bodybuilding contest!...needless to say, I won't be taking that one)! The guy showed me hydroxycut, but I haven't heard good reviews on that...so I am lost....??? Thanks for any help you can give me. Joyce

Bambifox--

Firstly, I don't believe in "fat burning" supplements...places like GNC exist to largely sell body-building types things they don't need Or, in your case, sell people who don't know any better things they don't need. I'm not trying to tell you what to do, you can take what he suggested if you want to, but if you haven't opened the bottles, I'd return them.

Isopure will not "bulk you up"--it's whey protein. Does eating 50g of protein through chicken breast (if you could take the fat out of your chicken breast almost completely) "bulk you up"? I don't use the Isopure religiously--I'm using it maybe 4-5 times a week as a post-workout sort of meal replacement. I'm using it to promote muscle maintenance and the building of lean mass.

Here's the thing about women and "bulking up": unless you're trying very hard, plan on being around 14% body fat, work on your muscles for hours a day at the gym for years, and eat super cleanly for competition...you just can't! The reason men might "bulk up" while taking whey is because they have a lot of testosterone, which promotes muscle building. Women have low testosterone levels, so even natural body building women have a VERY hard time getting into competition-form.

Words like "bulk up" or "get big" scare women away from things like lifting weights, when in reality, having lean muscle instead of fatty tissue when you hit your goal will make you look smaller. I'm personally looking forward to building muscle and shedding the rest of this fat. For women "bulking up" equates to "getting lean"--since we can't really bulk like men can.

I know we're getting off-topic, but since becoming interested in lifting weights (heavy weights), I've become a little impassioned

Azure - Thanks for all of those tips. I was thinking the same thing...that he was just "trying to sell me something" and he really didn't even know what the **** he was talking about! Have you heard about this "thermogenic gat burners"? Just curious. Also, they had so many flavors of the Isopure...I was going to get the Strawberry or Chocolate and mix it with the unsweetened soy milk...have you tried any of those flavors? Thanks again. signed...starving for information

Ooops...typo..meant "thermogenic fat burners"...hee hee...sorry. Also, do you recommend taking the isopure before a workout for energy???

Bambifox--

I think that "thermogenic fat burner"= giving you lots of caffeine so that your heart is forced to beat faster all day, which burns a few more calories. I could be wrong about that--but if the ingredient list on the bottle includes caffeine, guarana or white willow bark (or all of them), it's all caffeine I'm not 100% on that being what "thermogenic fat burners" are all about...but that's what I think it probably is.

I've really only used the "cookies and cream" variety of Zero Carb Isopure (make sure the one you're getting does say "Zero Carb" on it, and that you double-check the label), and I think it's pretty tasty. You can probably Google "Zero Carb Isopure Reviews" to find reviews on the other flavors.

I use the Isopure as a meal replacement (if I'm going to be out and about), or after a workout for quick muscle-repair support. I don't think it really gives you "more energy"--but it's a quick way to get more protein into your body. 2 scoops of Isopure in water is 210 calories and 50g of protein; 2 scoops in 1 cup of soy milk is 310 calories, 57g protein and 7g carbs. So, it's just the right amount of calories to be a meal replacement or post-workout meal.

I'm trying to get 160g of protein in a day right now, which is why I'm using the Isopure--it's very hard to get that much protein in through solid food. Sometimes when I'm out and about or have classes all day, I might not have time for solid food. Having protein powder helps then, too--so I can get a "meal" in with enough calories on-the-go.

Hope this has helped! I'm going to be away from my PC for a couple days, so if you have any other questions, I'll check the thread then. Or, you can PM--whichever you'd prefer. Take care!