As an informed bodybuilder, you likely know that just buying a jug of whey protein powder as your mainstay protein shake source doesn't cut it for making optimum bodybuilding gains. Other protein powders, such as casein, soy and egg, offer benefits that whey doesn't and work synergistically with whey to enhance its benefits.
This is due to different amino acid profiles of the various proteins and the peptides (small protein fragments) they contain, which provide functional benefits like enhanced blood flow and increased metabolic rate, to name a few. Now it's time to add yet another jug of protein powder to your cabinet — pea protein powder.
Sure, vegetable proteins are generally a lesser protein compared to animal and milk-based proteins. But peas are, for starters, a protein-packed vegetable (fruit, technically) and pea protein powder is concentrated from a starting protein content of about 6% in fresh peas to about 90% in pea protein powder. Peas tend to be low in the critical amino acid methionine, but in the form of protein powder, they have about as much methionine as soy protein powder, also effective at building muscle.
To create pea protein powder, manufacturers start with yellow peas (Pisum sativum), commonly known as split peas. The peas are ground down and then concentrated and the majority of the Garbs are removed through a special extraction and purification process that leaves an almost pure protein. Pea protein is higher in arginine than whey, casein, egg and soy proteins. It's also higher in glutamine content than whey and egg proteins, and higher in branched-chain amino acids than soy protein, with comparable BCAA values to whey, casein and egg proteins. (See the "Pea-Sized Aminos" chart.)
A high arginine content is important for enhancing nitric oxide, which dilates blood vessels, allowing them to deliver more blood, along with more nutrients, oxygen and anabolic hormones to muscles. This makes pea protein great for preworkout protein shakes. The fact that it's also rich in BCAAs and glutamine adds to its preworkout performance and also means it's a great protein powder to use in your postworkout shakes, as well as any time of day.
Pea protein powder, being a plant-based, hypoallergenic protein, is a great supplement for vegan bodybuilders who won't consume whey or casein proteins since they're derived from milk. It's also useful for those with severe food allergies to soy or milk products. Meat-eating bodybuilders will find it helpful, thanks to its excellent amino acid profile.
Of course, we're not suggesting you dump out your whey protein jugs, but try adding about 10 grams of pea protein powder to your current protein shakes for more arginine, glutamine and BCAAs
