Like most people in today's world, we all live with the desire to become human 2.0. I feel like this is particularly true for me since I use supplements for a lot of things whether it's nootropic stacks, which have recently become stacks on stacks on stacks all the way to protein and other gym related power powders.

It wasn't always like this, I used to drink one protein shake after workout and that would be it, however slowly things have changed. I have grown to replace sugar cravings with protein powders. If you are at all familiar with the industry, you'll know that protein powders come in a variety of flavors, my recent one comes in at least 50 flavors, more than one for every letter of the alphabet. Therefore, who wouldn't like to have a drink that tastes like caramel or chocolate that is readily available in a couple of minutes? And if you feel more adventurous, how about working some of the more indulgent flavors into the mix like marzipan, salted caramel, matcha or speculoos. As a side note, if you never heard of speculoos before, let me describe this deliciousness to you: imagine a pack of rich, buttery digestive biscuits mashed up with more fat and sugar into a decadent spread that you eat from a jar with your favorite teaspoon. Or table spoon. Or finger because it's one of those addictive luscious goodies. Now imagine that flavor worked into a powder that has around 25 grams of protein and only 2 grams of sugar and less than 1 gram of fat which add up to 100 calories per serving. Pretty tempting, am I right?

Of course we could go into detail here and say that this can be replicated from whey protein to other powders with different protein concentration per serving which go from 80% to 97%ish or higher and then you have powders from different sources like milk and egg, beef, vegan, vegetarian which then you also break into plant source so the opportunities are endless and probably more suitable for another post.

The sugar in protein powders is replaced with sweeteners like aspartame and stevia for the more premium brands more recently, however it is here where you have to be careful for three reasons. Number one, sweeteners may be less healthy for you than sugar in some cases studies have been trying to prove with aspartame. Stevia might be a healthier choice at least for now, but it is still rarely used in the industry as of yet. Secondly, other studies show that the more diet drinks we have, the more the brain expects sugar and will eventually burst into a sugar refill. The principle behind this science is that the more we tease our brain with sweet flavored drinks or other desserts that in fact use sweeteners, the more of a craving build up happens in the brain because it can taste the sweetness, but the sugar never follows. What these studies have shown in most instances is that the more diet soda people drink, the more they will tend to overcompensate at a given point during the day with extra sugar to make up for that sweet tease. Third, if you do choose to replace sugar cravings with protein drinks and successfully ignore the first two principles, your gut will suffer. What I mean by this is that the extra sweeteners in your diet will make you bloated, will interfere with your gut microorganisms and the excess protein in your diet might cause mild to severe regularity issues, depending on your other macronutrient ratios.

Having said that, until I reach my goal weight and maintain it for long enough or the nootropic world will come up with something to cut sugar cravings that is not a sugar pill, I will most definitely get my shaker and my speculoos flavored whey powder and whip me a drink.