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If you walk into any sports supplements shop, you will no doubt come across many different brands of protein products. A well-stocked shop will have a variety of different protein blends at prices which differ considerably. On the face of it, some will look so much cheaper than others that you may instinctively just go for them.

Those who have time on their hands, will read the labels of each tub and make a decision as to which protein to go for. Make no mistake, to gain optimum muscle and weight, you need to take extra protein in the form of protein powders. The level of supplementation will very much depend on your daily intake of protein foods.

If you don't have time and you ask the sales assistant, you will encounter 3 possible scenarios:

1. A sales person who knows nothing about protein supplements and will give you their view based on a) your own lack of knowledge b) what product they have heard of, or quite frequently c) what they find pretty/appealing to them!
2. A manager/owner who knows which protein has the most profit and will recommend that, regardless of your goals or budget
3. A genuine athlete/body builder who has used most of the proteins in the shop and gives you a solid recommendation – something which is rare.

If you have time on your hands and you start reading the labels, then something amazing starts to happen.

Grouping proteins in order to make a better choice

Government regulations require all sports supplements companies to provide information on the ingredients and nutritional breakdown of their protein supplements.

If you are looking at say 10 different protein powders on a shelf, at first you may go on price. The tubs all more or less look the same and some look cheaper than the others. To have an accurate idea of exactly what you are purchasing, you really need to group the different protein supplements into groups. No point comparing a Ferrari to a Ford Focus just because they are both "cars".

If you break the proteins tubs into groups, you will soon realise that they get broken down into clear groups:

1. Protein + Carbohydrate blends
2. Protein blends

Obviously a protein+carb blend is not the same as a pure protein blend. This will invariably be cheaper to produce and of course cheaper to sell.

The pure protein blends can further be divided into smaller groups:

1. Pure whey protein and nothing else
2. Whey protein and casein
3. Whey protein and casein and other proteins added, such as milk, egg, oat, soy
4. Casein and other milk proteins
5. Other proteins such as soy

READ THE INGREDIENTS ON THE LABELS. You cannot group together and compare prices of these completely different proteins under one roof. To give you another car example (sorry) it will be like comparing a small A-Class Mercedes with a top of the range SL 55 AMG.

Since you have the relevant information you need on each label, group the proteins in the relevant categories and then (only then) start comparing prices.

When you do this, something strange happens. You will see that suddenly there is not such a huge price difference between products from the same "group".

Supplements companies that sell inferior or mixed (protein and carbs in one) products (putting them in the pure protein group) rely on your lack of time/knowledge and attention to give you a big-looking tub for a cheap price. If you were however to go home and do some research, you would be wise to go back to the shop and return the tub and pay more for something which is of more use. Why? Read on.

Do you drink watered down beer or Coke?

Don't you hate it when you get beer which is watered down or Coke which just doesn't taste like Coke? If so, then why do you put up with watered-down protein?

To build maximum muscle tissue you need lots of "pure" protein. By this, one refers to PURE protein and the very best protein at that and one that is not mixed with other things such as carbs just to make it look bigger/cheaper/more appealing.

The very best protein is WHEY PROTEIN. It may have been liver tablets or egg protein in the 1980s and 1990s but it is NOT the case now. It may even be casein or milk protein in the opinion of some supplements companies that wish to make a bigger profit at the consumer's ignorance.

If you want the very best protein for maximum muscle gains, then a pure whey protein blend is always best and will ALWAYS give you better results. The only times that it may not give you the best results is where:

1. You mix it with milk and you are intolerant to milk
2. The whey protein itself is high in lactose and gives you problems, passing through your intestinal tract at lightning speed, thus not absorbing

So what really is the best protein to buy for muscle growth?

There are several out there. If you want pure protein and you are paying for pure protein, then weed out the protein+carbohydrate products. They are good for weight gain but as an all-year-round protein product for muscle growth, you need a pure protein.

It is also highly recommended for you to weed out inferior proteins. The only proteins that this article recommends are whey protein and soy protein. "Soy protein" for those who are vegetarian/vegan/detoxing/want a change or particularly for women and "whey protein" for everyone else.

In terms of which whey, then go for any whey which is genuinely lactose-free. How will you know? Well, you can either trust the label or risk it and buy and test the product.

Because you will be taking protein every day for as long as you are training, you also want to make sure that the product in your house is as natural and free from artificial additives as possible.

This article recommends the following proteins for specific reasons given below:

1. V.I.P Protein - A double blend of whey protein isolate (quick absorbing) and whey protein concentrate (slower). Great taste, fast mixing, lactose-free and also free from artificial ingredients.

On the face of it, V.I.P Protein may look expensive. However if you do the "grouping" as advised above, you will find that this product is actually extremely good value for money, working out cheaper than most cheaper-looking proteins. Remember V.I.P Protein is a 11lb (5kg) tub of PURE protein, no carbohydrates added. This is PURE whey protein, made up of 2 unique whey blends.

2. LA Whey – One of the best-selling protein powders in the world as used by many top body building and athletics champions. Nothing comes close to LA Whey in terms of mixing, taste and results.

3. Mega Soy – Possibly the most potent soy protein powder available today. Mega Soy has a massive 40g of pure protein per serving and contains all amino acids needed to get you muscular. This protein is also great when you are trying to lose weight and highly rated by women athletes and body builders.

There you have it. If you group various proteins in shops/on web sites and "then" compare prices, you will find that many initial "bargain buys" work out to be a waste of your efforts and money and many "expensive" tubs actually work out better as they give you what you "really" need and help you achieve your goals so much quicker.