Whey protein shakes are one of the most popular drinks for bodybuilders and athletes. These people need a good amount of protein due to their active lifestyle with training. High protein shakes are ideal for them since they are easy and quick to make homemade. Whey protein shakes provide an ideal solution for these athletes as they help supplement their nutrition. Protein shakes don't replace normal meals but can sometimes substitute a normal meal due to lack of time to prepare foods.

Also protein shakes like whey can be used as a post workout for bodybuilders and athletes. After training, muscle glycogen stores are depleted and whey protein is ideal to feed nutrients to the depleted muscle tissues for optimum repair and growth. If you want to learn how to make homemade high whey protein shakes recipes, read on. Here, you will find a few recipes which are easy and fast to create and which I've personally made. They are simply delicious. In these recipes, I am using the Ultra Whey Pro Protein Powder with the Vanilla Ice Cream flavour. This product is already sweetened with sucralose also known as splenda, this is why I haven't added any type of sweetening like brown sugar or stevia. Incase you are using a product with no sweetener at all, you might need to add for instance 1 tablespoon of brown sugar for taste.

Banana Whey Protein Shake

12 oz of cold water
4 ice cubes
2 tablespoons of powdered soya milk or low fat milk
1 average banana cut in slices
Ultra whey pro protein powder
Blender

Instructions

(1) Pour cold water in blender
(2) Add the ice cubes
(3) Add the powdered milk
(4) Add the slices of banana
(5) Add 1 scoop of ultra whey pro
(6) Blend all the ingredients till thoroughly mixed

Strawberry Whey Protein Shake

12 oz of cold water
4 ice cubes
2 tablespoons of powdered soya milk or low fat milk
4 frozen strawberries cut in half each
Ultra whey pro protein powder
Blender

Instructions

(1) Pour cold water in blender
(2) Add the ice cubes
(3) Add the powdered milk
(4) Add the slices of frozen strawberries
(5) Add 1 scoop of ultra whey pro
(6) Blend all the ingredients till thoroughly mixed

Banana Strawberry Whey Protein Shake

12 oz of cold water
4 ice cubes
2 tablespoons of powdered soya milk or low fat milk
1 average banana cut in slices
4 frozen strawberries cut in half each
Ultra whey pro protein powder
Blender

Instructions

(1) Pour cold water in blender
(2) Add the ice cubes
(3) Add the powdered milk
(4) Add the slices of banana
(5) Add the slices of frozen strawberries
(6) Add 1 scoop of ultra whey pro
(7) Blend all the ingredients till thoroughly mixed

Banana Peanut Butter Whey Protein Shake

12 oz of cold water
4 ice cubes
2 tablespoons of powdered soya milk or low fat milk
1 average banana cut in slices
1 tablespoon of creamy peanut butter
Ultra whey pro protein powder
Blender

Instructions

(1) Pour cold water in blender
(2) Add the ice cubes
(3) Add the powdered milk
(4) Add the slices of banana
(5) Add the peanut butter
(6) Add 1 scoop of ultra whey pro
(7) Blend all the ingredients till thoroughly mixed

Strawberry Peanut Butter Whey Protein Shake

12 oz of cold water
4 ice cubes
2 tablespoons of powdered soya milk or low fat milk
4 frozen strawberries cut in half each
1 tablespoon of creamy peanut butter
Ultra whey pro protein powder
Blender

Instructions

(1) Pour cold water in blender
(2) Add the ice cubes
(3) Add the powdered milk
(4) Add the slices of frozen strawberries
(5) Add the peanut butter
(6) Add 1 scoop of ultra whey pro
(7) Blend all the ingredients till thoroughly mixed

Banana Strawberry Peanut Butter Whey Protein Shake

12 oz of cold water
4 ice cubes
2 tablespoons of powdered soya milk or low fat milk
1 average banana cut in slices
4 frozen strawberries cut in half each
1 tablespoon of creamy peanut butter
Ultra whey pro protein powder
Blender

Instructions

(1) Pour cold water in blender
(2) Add the ice cubes
(3) Add the powdered milk
(4) Add the slices of banana
(5) Add the slices of frozen strawberries
(6) Add the peanut butter
(7) Add 1 scoop of ultra whey pro
(8) Blend all the ingredients till thoroughly mixed

So here you are with these tasty whey protein shakes recipes where you can get a whopping 22 grams of protein from just 1 scoop. You can drink protein shakes for your morning meals plus some foods with it if you like for instance oatmeal, use it for post workout whereby your muscles are much in need for fast protein absorbtion and a liquid meal is preferred over a solid meal or take it prior to bedtime to sustain muscle growth during sleep.

Tip 1: For skinny guys, adding peanut butter in their protein shakes can help them bulk up as peanut butter contains a good amount of calories, like 1 tablespoon contains nearly 100 calories. Also in general, peanut butter are good for health as they are loaded with mostly monounsaturated fats which are healthy fats.

Tip 2: A protein shake contains several vital nutrients which your body needs. What you get from these recipes above are protein and monounsaturated fats from peanut butter, quality protein from whey and soy/low fat milk(good carbs from these milk products, dietary fiber which is good for digestion(notably from soy) and calcium). Soy contains protective phytochemicals, like isoflavones which can reduce LDL(bad cholesterol) and even prevent certain types of cancer. Fruits like strawberry and banana contain good vitamins, minerals, potassium, magnesium, phosphorus and iron. To resume, a protein shake can be more or less a complete healthy meal as it contains quality protein, good carbs, healthy fats, some dietary fiber, calcium, vitamins, minerals and water. Of course, you shouldn't depend on protein shakes for your diet and solid meals should be the bulk of your nutrition.

In this article I'm using the Ultra Whey Pro protein powder but any whey protein powder will do. For a large variety of whey protein products, go to the whey protein store.

About the author

Jean Lam is the webmaster of Body Building Resource which provides articles on weight training, nutrition and fitness, body building book and DVDs.