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Comment by reneherse | Hacker News Reader

Though it won't be shelf stable or non-perishable, it's easy to make a smoothie with far more nutritional value than Soylent. My go-to is a water-based combination of low-carb chocolate flavor protein powder, coconut oil, steamed lentils, and berries. It's the only combination I've found that gives me steady energy for hours on end. No idea why my girlfriend refuses to try it ;-)

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Unfortunately while googling your recipe. I found out that lentils,beans and peas cumber though their alkaloids the absorption of nutrients and shouldn't be used in Smoothies.

Thanks for the info, I'll have to look into it further. My blood sugar/insulin response is very sensitive to carbs, so the amount of lentils I use is very small. I add more if I'm going directly into a workout.

I ended up with this recipe after years of trial and error. It's designed to be high in protein, devoid of sugar, high in fat, and include a small amount of low-glycemic index carbohydrates. The high fat content seems to slow down the absorbtion of the other nutrients, moderating my insulin response.

Are you referring to their phytic acid content? If so, this concern is way overblown, unless you are eating eg a lot of brown rice.

OP, depending on how much protein you're adding, your smoothie is pretty great except it has the same problem of all liquid diets: very fast absorption, an insulin spike and all the problems that potentially come with it.

Thanks for the feedback. What proportion of protein would you say makes for a good balance in such a concoction? Also, please see my response to the GP regarding insulin spikes.

Got it, good that you are on top of it.

As for protein, it depends on your activity level and so forth. There is good evidence to suggest that everyone should strive for roughly 120 grams/day. If you are involved with eg a strength sport, say Olympic lifting, then at least 1 gram/lb of lean body mass is a good idea.

There are some great protein powders available these days that are sweetened with stevia too.

I read a scientific book on sports health a couple of years ago, but I can't remember the title. I've tried to remember the title before and have searched my library history, because it said that even if you do heavy strength training, the amount of protein you need is basically the same as any normal person. It said that 0.8 g/kg of body weight was enough for anyone, and that's only 0.36 g/lb of body weight. It's so much lower than what I typically see: your 1 g/lb is on the lower end, since people usually recommend 2-4 g/lb of protein for strength training or bodybuilding.

I've also read elsewhere that the average Western diet contains twice the amount of protein you need. Too much protein comes with its own problems, in addition to just being stored as fat if it's more than the body can utilize. Perhaps strength trainers and bodybuilders use the extra protein as energy to build muscle, so that you could get the same energy from fat or carbs instead?

The same book said that the caloric ratio of the recovery shake or meal following strength training should be 4:1 calories from carbs and protein. I use soy protein powder, Powder Dextropur Plus, and water for my recovery shake. The high amount of carbs is to kick the body back from stress mode to recovery, and is only advised post heavy training when your body can handle it.

I really should find the title of the book, as it goes against a lot of wisdom found on the net. I just looked up ExRx.net [1] which I find is based on referenced science and facts, and they say:

* Average consumption for U.S. is 100 grams/day * Protein requirements 40 grams/day for females 55-70 grams/day or 0.8 grams/kg body weight for males * Recommended protein intake for athletes or physically active people (Paul 1989) Protein and carbohydrate requirements increase somewhat more calories

They say that protein and carb requirements increase somewhat when you're active, but further down on the page they say that the protein requirements may increase quite a bit. But it seems like the main requirement is a higher calorie intake, and that the ratio of calories from protein is basically the same for high-activity individuals.

[1] http://www.exrx.net/Nutrition/Protein.html

Oh, messed up formatting and too late to edit. Here it is:

- Average consumption for U.S. is 100 grams/day

- Protein requirements:

-- 40 grams/day for females

-- 55-70 grams/day or 0.8 grams/kg body weight for males

- Recommended protein intake for athletes or physically active people (Paul 1989):

-- Protein and carbohydrate requirements increase somewhat

-- more calories

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