Achieve weight loss with the Abs Diet and whey protein powder  

Superpowers: Builds muscle, burns fat

Secret Weapons:   Protein, cysteine, glutathione

Fights Against:   Obesity

Sidekick:   Ricotta cheese (part skim)

How to Use It

Mix it up:   Add some to your smoothies. Every day. No exceptions.

Stir it up: Blend a teaspoonful into a cup of pudding or yogurt--you'll jack up the protein content without sacrificing taste.

Dump it in: Hide some in your morning oatmeal--mix a spoonful with the dry ingredients, then cook according to directions.

The Benefits: It builds muscle, helps promote weight loss

5 Reasons to Pack in Whey

1. If You Pound Protein, Drink More

A high-protein diet may help you build muscle and burn fat, but it can also leave you dehydrated. Researchers at the University of Connecticut compared groups of athletes eating low-protein and high-protein diets and found that people on higher-protein diets store less water in their bodies. This is an important finding, because dehydration can significantly impair an athlete's performance and even do damage to his heart. But researchers say high-protein eaters can avoid problems by drinking more fluids, at least two to three glasses more than the recommended eight glasses a day.

2. Got Milk?

What's the best liquid to have in your shake? "Dairy products aid in fat loss," says Mary Ellen Camire, Ph.D., a professor of food science and human nutrition at the University of Maine and a member of the MH Advisory Board. If you're lactose intolerant, try Lactaid or Dairy Ease brands, which can be found in most grocery stores. Use your shakes as a vessel to carry aboard the much-needed food group--you'll get the muscle-building power of protein along with fat-fighting calcium, while improving bone and cardiovascular health to boot.

Go on to the next page to find out three more reasons to add more whey protein to your diet...

3. Whey to Lose Weight

Slurping down a whey-protein shake after your workout builds calorie-burning muscle. Now, new research reveals another way those shakes may help you build a better body: Whey protein can help prevent overeating. When University of Toronto scientists presented 22 men with an all-you-can-eat pizza buffet, the men who had consumed a whey-protein drink 2 hours earlier ate about 200 fewer calories than the men who had chugged soy- or egg-based protein shakes. "Ingestion of whey results in the release of several gut peptides involved in satiety," says study author Harvey Anderson, Ph.D. Still worried a shake won't satisfy? Keep adding ice to the blender; it makes the shake more filling without increasing its calorie count.

4. Protein for More Power

Don't skimp on the protein powder in your postworkout shake. A study in the Journal of Nutrition showed that people who ate 60 percent less protein than another group had 81 percent less "protein synthesis"--the production of protein that stimulates muscle growth.  Biochemical pathways in muscle cells stay quiet when protein intake is low, suggests lead author Irwin Brodsky, M.D.

5. Whey Better

Whey (animal protein) is superior to soy (plant protein) as a muscle builder. And Baylor University researchers found a way to make whey way better: Add casein, a protein found in cottage cheese and milk. When a group of 36 men with at least 6 weeks of weight-training experience were given a whey-casein mixture before their workouts, they built 50 percent more lean muscle mass over 10 weeks than men who took only whey. Casein slows down catabolism, a process in which your body breaks down muscle instead of fat for fuel. "When taken before a workout, casein may slow catabolism enough to help the body build more muscle," says study author Richard Kreider, Ph.D.

A month's supply of the supplement used in the study, GNC Pro Performance Elite Series Mega Whey, will cost you $60 (drugstore.com). Or make your own by adding 40 grams of whey protein to a glass of milk.

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