Optimum Nutrition Gold Standard Whey Protein Powder, Vanilla, 5 LB

This is my first time buying protein. I've been working out for about three weeks now, trying to lose fat and gain muscle. I did a lot of research before I decided on this product, because I saw how expensive protein powders were. There's so many claims that every manufacturer make about how their product is superior to their competitors. I decided that I wouldn't base my decision on the flashy claims written on bottles, bright colors, or even on customer reviews. I did my own research online about what a GOOD protein powder should have. Here's why I love my Optimum Nutrition 100% Whey Gold Standard Natural Whey, Vanilla, 5 Pound: 1.) LOW CALORIE and LOW FAT - For me, this was probably the most important factor being someone who is try to shed fat. There are only 130 calories, 1g of fat, and 0.5g of saturated fat per scoop ( 1 scoop = 32g). This is by far the leanest protein I found. 2.) HIGH PROTEIN per scoop - If I was going to shell out over 50 bucks on a supplement, it better be worth my money. This powder packs 24g of protein per scoop. Another plus as Optimum Nutrition has made a high protein, and low calorie/fat product. You can't beat a powder which is 75% of pure protein by weight. 3.) ALL NATURAL ingredients - According to my research, the biggest dangers of protein powders were that they were chock full of artificial flavors and sweeteners which can cause harm if taken over a long period of time. This is why I opted for Optimum Nutrition's natural form of protein. This product only has natural flavorings, and natural cane juice for sweetness. Some reviews say that this powder lists stevia or Rebaudiana-A in the ingredients. This is FALSE. At least for me it is. My bottle lists evaporated cane juice as the only sweetener. No stevia in mine. I'm glad Optimum Nutrition did this, because there is still a lot of research that should be done on stevia before we can truly call it safe. 4.) Simple and versatile vanilla flavor - I must say that this product tastes fine. Its not a dessert/milkshake, and its not a treat. Its a protein powder SUPPLEMENT, and I'm satisfied with the way it tastes. I was worried about buying this because a few reviews said how this was "undrinkable" or had a "artificial sweetener aftertaste". I honestly don't have any such problem with this protein. Its very much drinkable. Even if you do somehow hate the flavor, just dilute the powder in a greater amount of liquid before you drink it. I love how this vanilla flavor is very versatile in that I am able to add it to anything and it fits. So far, I've put it in berry smoothies, oatmeal, and my morning cereal. I'm sure I won't get bored trying to find the different ways I can add this protein into my meals. 5.) A,GOOD PROTEIN BLEND with all the AMINO ACIDS I need - Through research, I found that there are so many types of protein, and the best type of protein is whey isolate or whey peptides, but these types of powder can get very expensive. I wasn't ready to spend that much money on a powder. This product lists a protein blend of whey isolates, whey concentrate, and whey peptides in each serving. Many other manufacturers only use the cheap whey concentrate in the products. I like how this is a high quality blend which keeps the cost low. ON has also put in all the essential amino acids, and BCAA's I need to help my body's muscles recover quickly after a workout. Overall, I happy I made this choice. ON has made a product which is nutritious, low calorie, high quality, and all natural. What more can I ask for in a decently priced protein powder? Get this now, and I promise you won't regret it.

As I said elsewhere, I have been experimenting with nutrition add ons due to an upcoming post-surgical period where I will be on a 'liquid diet only' for a minute and clear liquids for a few days. And I complicate matters by being very sensitive to artificial flavors (all those years of baking and organic eating, I suppose). I also read that many protein drinks/mixes have tested high for lead (for some strange reason veg protein seems to be worst culprit) so that took me down yet another rabbit hole. Not what a cancer survivor wants to play with. I tried Quest salted caramel first. It tastes good, is very very sweet but naturally flavored (sweetened with stevia). When I first mixed it with another nutrition drink (11.5 oz carton), using a full scoop, I had to add another whole carton to temper it a bit. No aftertaste, just very sweet. Next time I used 1/2 scoop, added some cinnamon and/or pb to balance the sweetness hit. Much better. I also noticed it was very thickening when mixed with my Kate Farms drink (not a thick drink at all). That is not necessarily a bad thing and it may not be like that when mixed with water or other milks. This was just my experience. I can't have milkshake consistency post-surgery but I might want it after that. Optimum Nutrition Gold was on the list of options I read that said "safe for occasional use" as regards lead content. And whey products in general seemed to test cleaner. So a good start. I took the advice of a reviewer who said the classic vanilla is better than vanilla ice cream flavor so that is what I started with. It IS good. It isn't quite so sweet so I can put a full scoop in my nutrition shake which means more protein. It also doesn't seem to thicken my nutrition drink blend. I also noticed that a spoonful in my morning coffee dissolves better, rather than sinking to the bottom of my mug and, again, does not hit me in the face with sweetness. So I think this will be my long term choice beyond surgery while I am trying to gain weight unless I can find equivalent organic option. I look forward to trying their chocolate flavor. Very pleased with ON.

I feel a rush of good feeling in my blood and face roughly 40 minutes after having this post workout. Very good feeling. I'm not sure if it's this or the organic cacao that I add to it that intensifies the experience. The whey absorbs pretty well in my body and goes in my bloodstream. I'd say my results with this whey protein has been better than my previous whey which was NOW foods whey protein isolate. That one tasted a bit like garbage and made everything taste a little bad. Not very bad, but just enough to make it slightly gross. With this, there's no gross taste or aftertaste or anything that you can recognize as alien in a chocolate milk drink. It taste just like chocolate milk. I'd say a downside is that it is not very potent in taste. By that I mean you'd either have to pour less liquid or use two scoops. If you're using one of those typical 28 oz Blender bottles and you put one scoop of this in it and fill it to the top, it will taste very watery and bland, especially if you use water. After some experiments, I find the best taste is achieved when I use two scoops and fill the whole thing with milk. Like I said above, I also put a bit of organic raw cocoa in there that really highlights the chocolaty tastes and gives it more flavor and character. Pure cocoa is also apparently a super-food. Other than taste, it also seems to be more effective in building muscle than my previous whey product. I don't know if it's placebo or not, but I notice my muscles recover better and I make better strength gains as compared to NOW foods. It also goes without saying, if you plan on buying unflavored whey, you probably aren't fooling yourself. There is a good chance you'll add the additional sugar and carbs in one form or another to add flavor, unless you want to endure a torture post-workout experience. So I think it makes more sense to go with something that's already flavored. One thing I really like about this is the fact that there are no random weird chemicals. You're getting whey, cocoa, 3g sugar, stevia, flavor, emulsifier, and some thickeners. That's it. I really hate having to find any other chemical found in common protein products with flashy labels like potassium chloride, magnesium phosphate, potassium citrate, and especially happy that there are no synthetic, cancerous sugar-substitutes like maltodextrin and acesulfame potassium. All in all, I'm satisfied with my experience and I predict more likely than not, you will be too. Optimum Nutrition is a well trusted brand. This product in particular has been tested by labdoor.com and has a good rating in purity and projected efficacy. I recommend it to anyone who wants to use it as a post-weight-training boost.

Sorry for the awful title. Got into fitness earlier in the year. Both my wife (mid-20s) and I (in my late 20s) were unhappy with our bodies. Too little exercise, too much good (bad) food. Our goal was (and is) to increase lean muscle to help burn more fat. My additional goal is to get some sweet guns (almost there, pew pew). I think we're onto our 6th or 7th 5lb tub now. We use ON 100% Whey Gold Standard Natural (Vanilla) now but originally used the 100% Whey Gold Standard (Vanilla Ice Cream and sometimes Double Chocolate). We stopped using the Vanilla Ice Cream (and others from the non-Natural range) mainly due to the sweeteners and flavourings used. Yes, they do taste a little bit better but not by enough to assuage our misgivings about the ingredients. If you're even a little bit paranoid about artificial sweeteners and flavourings, Optimum Nutrition's Natural range is great. We've even started using pure Stevia (the same natural sweetener used in this powder) for our tea and coffee. We've yet to try the Chocolate or Strawberry flavours but find the Vanilla to be pleasant tasting (although not fantastic) with milk or juice, and tolerable when mixed with water. Regarding mixing, I gently tap in small amounts and stir briskly with chopstick, which usually mixes quite well and leaves few lumps. My wife is impatient and dumps it all in, making it impossible to mix smoothly and resulting in a super-lumpy drink. Haven't tried a shaker yet but when blended into smoothies it's completely lump free. Our main reason for sticking with Vanilla is its versatility; we use this whey protein in OJ, smoothies, with our oatmeal, occasionally even sprinkled on cereal (yes, a bit weird that one). A significant factor in sticking with this particular product is price. We're only paying around $33 per 5 pound tub using Subscribe & Save. Free shipping. That's pretty astonishing when you consider that ON's whey provides more protein per serving than other, more expensive, brands. Results? Well, I gained some muscle and definition, and I definitely lost some fat. I don't think I could eat enough meat or drink enough milk to get the amount of protein required to build and, crucially, maintain muscle. For me, this is an essential supplement.

I love the flavor and how well it mixes! I would love it if company were to sell a package with all of the different flavors they sell! I would purchase!

This was my first time trying protein powder, and it's amazing! I've only been using it for about three weeks, and I feel like I've seen an improvement in my body already (from getting my full protein in for the day, along with meeting my macros). I would not be able to meet my protein goals without it, so I'm very thankful that it tastes good. I like to have it in a shake with milk and/or yogurt, banana, peanut butter, oats, and a bit of maple syrup. It's already sweetened with stevia, but I have a sweet tooth so I like to add a bit more sweet to my shake. Also, I love that it's naturally sweetened and flavored... It doesn't have all the chemicals and fake sweeteners that the brand's other flavors do. I will say that the flavor is pretty strong if you don't add enough ingredients to your shake, but I don't really taste it too much the way I make the shake....maybe a slight vanilla flavor which I love. I did try it with just peaches, milk and honey once, and the flavor was too strong for me...not a bad flavor, but just very strong. I've also tried it in protein pancakes, and they were actually really good! I was skeptical that they would taste too strong like the powder, but they were delicious. So, all that to say, I highly recommend this if you are looking to maximize your muscle gains and improve your nutrition!

I've been using this protein powder for about 3-4 years now. I've only used two other protein powders. Body Fortresses chocolate and peanut butter. (Tastes like Resses Cup.) They sell them for cheap at my local Walmart. $18 for a 2lb. As opposed to this one which has a 2lb for $31 right now. The other one was an ON protein powder as well. I used to buy the double rich chocolate flavor for that one. And it would come in the red and black case. They also had some flavors that this one doesn't have. That I've never got to try. Like the coffee and mocha cappuccino. The reason why I stopped using those other protein was because I was starting to get tired of the taste. And I started to dread taking protein shakes because of it. I used the black and red ON for about 3 years. And the Body Fortress for maybe a year and a half around the same time. The taste was just way too over powering. Especially the B.F. Which doesn't surprise me since it's so cheap. B.F has other flavors too, and 30g of protein per serving instead of ON's 24g. But their scoop is considerably bigger. And I'm honestly fine with paying almost double the price for this products quality. This one was definitely my favorite of the 3. And I plan to continue drinking it for the years to come. I believe I've only ever gotten the vanilla flavor for this one. But am so satisfied with the taste. That I don't really feel the need to switch. I'll only ever mix it with water as a last result. Like when I'm out of whole milk, or almond milk. I like how it tastes with whole milk the most. Plus, whole milk adds more protein. In my opinion, I think it tastes the worst with water. Whenever I drink it, I'll just mix it in one of my coffee mugs. And it dissolves real easily. Which is another thing I like about this powder. The taste isn't strong, but you can still taste the vanilla quite well. But sometimes, I put just a little bit of my vanilla coffee creamer to give it a boost of taste. Overall, I'm very satisfied with this protein. And never got sick of the taste so far. When I was working 11-13 hour shifts at my last job. Which was at a warehouse. I would drink 2 a day, 5 times a week. Along with some coffee during break or on my lunch. Literally, whenever I didn't the coffee and protein. I'd feel so tired and sluggish at work. As if I only had an hours sleep. I highly recommend this product and brand. I use to, and still have my other supplements. All of which, are from this Brand, ON. My creatine, BCAA, HMB, and ZMAs. I use to take all that when I worked out like every day a few years ago.j But I don't anymore. Now I'll just stick to trying to get most of my protein from real food. Like eggs, tuna, peanut butter, chicken, tilapia, ham, almonds, and cottage cheese. I've always heard it's better to get most of your protein from actual food. Even so, I'm still taking 1-2 of these protein shakes before and after I workout. :) And I suppose this is a good alternative if you don't have immediate access to a protein based food. Or you're a vegan.

I have been using this protein powder for a while and I like it a lot. It is naturally flavored with vanilla, which gives it a mild and pleasant taste. It does not have any artificial sweeteners, colors, or flavors, which is important for me as I try to avoid them. It also has no gluten, which is good for people who are sensitive to it. The protein powder is made of whey protein isolate, whey protein concentrate, and whey peptides, which are high-quality sources of protein that support muscle growth and recovery. Each serving has 24 grams of protein, 5.5 grams of BCAAs, and 3-4 grams of carbs. The powder is easy to mix with water, milk, or other beverages, and it does not form any lumps or clumps. It dissolves well and has a smooth texture. I usually take this protein powder after my workouts or as a snack between meals. It helps me feel full and satisfied, and it also helps me recover faster from my exercise. I notice that my muscles are stronger and more defined since I started using this product. I also like that it is affordable and comes in a convenient package that lasts for a long time. I would recommend this protein powder to anyone who is looking for a natural, gluten-free, and effective whey protein supplement. It is one of the best protein powders I have ever tried and I will continue to use it.

It doesn’t taste as good as I expected and it froths up a lot if you put it in blender.

Llego en buenas condiciones y el día que dijeron

It's nice tasting and mixes smoothly with minimal effort.

Very good whey. Tastes great.