Soy protein: is it really that bad?

Author: Timko Ilya - master of the whole project and fitness trainer.
2016-08-02

Yes, soy protein is the cheapest. The raw material for soy isolate (90%) costs about 4-5 times cheaper than whey isolate with the same protein content. However, I personally don't consider soy protein to be all that bad. I will explain why.

From personal experience, I can say that when I was a student, I consumed a lot of soy protein and gained muscle mass on it. But these are my personal feelings. Let's approach this issue more scientifically and compare the amino acid composition of soy protein with others.

Conclusions from this table:

1. Soy protein has a fairly high amount of BCAAs (about 20%). That is, roughly the same as in casein.

2. In soy protein, approximately 45% consists of essential amino acids. This is on average about the same as in other proteins.

3. Soy protein is a record-holder for the content of such important amino acids as: arginine, glutamine, aspartic acid, and histidine.

4. However, this protein lacks 2 amino acids: serine and phenylalanine. But they are not very important for bodybuilding.

Soy Protein and Testosterone

There are studies suggesting that if soy protein is taken for an extended period (longer than 1 month), then the testosterone level may decrease by 10%. Personally, I haven't noticed this (10% is a bit, and one might not notice it). However, still, 10% wouldn’t be too much. Overall, I don't know how true this is. It seems to me that things aren’t that bad regarding testosterone levels.

Other Features of Soy Protein

1. It is excellent for vegetarians. In general, it is probably the best and most accessible plant protein.

2. It is suitable for those with lactose intolerance. Obviously, since soy protein is made from soy, there is no lactose in it.

3. It is well-suited for weight loss. There are two reasons for this. First, soy proteins are made from soy isolate, which is already devoid of fat and carbohydrates. However, because it is very inexpensive, manufacturers have no reason to dilute it with fat and carbohydrates. Therefore, finished proteins also contain minimal amounts of fats and carbs. Secondly, soy protein swells significantly when mixed, making protein shakes based on it quite low in calories.

Conclusion

I believe that if you don't have much money for sports nutrition, then soy protein is what you need. The drawbacks it has are relatively insignificant. Moreover, the price of the finished product is about twice lower than that of protein based on whey concentrate (not to mention isolates).

Why are sports nutrition manufacturers so reluctant to sell soy and actively try to blacken its reputation? The fact is that the more expensive the protein, the more profit can be made from it.

For example, if you produce 1 kg of whey isolate at a cost price of 2000 r per kg. You markup 50% and sell it for 3000 r per kg. Profit – 1000 r from 1 kg. But if you make 1 kg of soy isolate, which costs about 500 r. You also markup 50% and sell it for 750 r. Profit is already 250 r from 1 kg (4 times less). As they say, nothing personal – just business.

Therefore, you can confidently buy soy and build your muscles on it or lose weight. There will be no problems. Well, in addition, I would like to offer you domestic soy protein, which is almost completely devoid of fat and carbohydrates:

• RPS: Soy Protein