Whey + COFFEE: Adding Protein to your Morning

Two of our favorite things: Coffee and Whey! We truly get the best of both worlds when we combine the two. Adding a scoop of Ripped up nutrition  whey protein powder to your favorite coffee drinks is just as simple as it is nutritious. Whether you like your coffee iced or steaming, on those busy mornings, boosting your cup of joey with protein is the perfect way to kick off the day. Not sure where to start? Start simple with one of our classic coffee drink recipe.

Whey Protein in Coffee?  What About the Heat?

There is a rumor floating around that heat will destroy whey protein and suck all of the nutritional value out of it through the process of ‘denaturing’ and while there is some merit to this claim, there is definitely more to it.

Benefits of Protein Powder in Coffee

As a general rule, protein is good for health. It’s an essential component of many biological processes and structures, which includes playing a key role in muscle growth and maintenance.

Yet, despite this, protein often gets a bad rap. People often feel that too much protein will cause health issues, despite the lack of evidence that supports this claim.

Realistically, getting enough protein is critical and there is evidence that many people need more protein than they are currently consuming. This aspect alone is a key reason that you might include protein in your coffee. But, there are also other advantages to doing so.

Promote Muscle Building (Particularly in the morning)

For many people, drinking coffee first thing in the morning is normal. But, having protein powder as well may not be.

If that’s the case, adding the powder into your coffee would increase your potential to build muscle – especially if you tend to work out in the early morning.

You like working out, but honestly, your morning needs a pick-me-up before you even get started. So you want your cup of joey.

Still, you want to get that protein in, too, so you wonder if you can put whey protein in your coffee for the punch you need to excel at your workout. Will the heat affect the whey protein in coffee?

According to Ripped up nutrition, whey protein powder can be used as an effective coffee additive without destroying the nutrients.

Although heating can adversely affect other sources of protein, whey protein is soluble and can more easily withstand the heating process, and there is less coagulation compared to some other protein sources. (Coagulation has to do with the denaturation of proteins under stress, such as heat. An example is the egg whites turning from clear liquid to a white solid when we cook them.)

Typical home heating methods won’t harm the protein quality, but boiling them can cause a compromise in the flavor and odor, and that might be important to your enjoyment of the hot beverage. Other than the whey protein, calcium, potassium and sodium are usually also present in whey protein supplements, but they are quite stable in heat and are not affected.