We have become smoothie addicts since starting our 30 Day Vegan quest. They are a great way to jam a lot of fruit and veg into one meal that goes down easy and tastes great. I can’t seem to shut up about my favorite Vegan Chad’s Eat Some Greens Smoothie. If you haven’t tried it do soon.
Protein is one of those things that vegans need to make sure they are getting enough of. The general consensus seems to be 0.75 grams of protein kilogram of body weight per day. I pulled a more specific chart off the USDA website and have included it below along with the calculations for determining your recommended daily allowance (RDA).
One thing that has worried me since going vegan has been my soy intake. There are many studies showing a potential link form high soy consumption in men to increased occurrences of prostate cancer and hormonal changes such as increased estrogen levels. You can read up here.
With whey protein powder completely off the table and my concerns with soy, I began researching for alternatives. The most widely available vegan protein powders are made from Rice, Hemp, Pea, Vegetables or a combination of those. I read reviews on Amazon and decided to start with Pea.
My first container of Now Foods Pea Protein arrived and it is fantastic. One scoop packs a whopping 28g of whole protein. And it dissolves very quickly. You need to understand that this is not a milkshake flavored protein powder. It is not sweet or flavored, it’s the real deal. Mix with fruits and vegetables in your favorite smoothie and you are set. Below are the nutritional facts, click to zoom.
I did pretty much immediately order 2 more containers, but I will move on and try Rice and Hemp powders. Look back for updates.
Calculate your Recommended Daily Allowance of Protein
Use these equations to calculate your general RDA of protein. This method does not take into account other factors such as health, height or physical activity.
- Weight in pounds divided by 2.2 = weight in kg
- Weight in kg x gm/kg/day (see below) = protein gm per day
- 210 / 2.2 = 95.45
- 95.45 x 0.66 = 63 gm of protein per day
| Children | Protein (g/kg/day) |
| 1-3 | 0.87 |
| 4-8 | 0.76 |
| Males | |
| 9-13 | 0.76 |
| 14-18 | 0.73 |
| 19-30 | 0.66 |
| 31-50 | 0.66 |
| 51-70 | 0.66 |
| >70 | 0.66 |
| Females | |
| 9-13 | 0.76 |
| 14-18 | 0.71 |
| 19-30 | 0.66 |
| 31-50 | 0.66 |
| 51-70 | 0.66 |
| >70 | 0.66 |
| Pregnancy | |
| 14-18 | 0.88 |
| 19-30 | 0.88 |
| 31-50 | 0.88 |
| Lactating | |
| 14-18 | 1.05 |
| 19-30 | 1.05 |
| 31-50 | 1.05 |
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