What to Mix Whey Protein With

Contents 6 sections

• Which liquid should you mix your whey with? The comparison
• Which liquid for your goal
• Which foods should you pair your whey with
• What about other supplements
• Our verdict: what should you mix your whey with
• Frequently asked questions

Interactive quizWhich whey is right for you?3 questions, 30 seconds, and we point you to the right guide.

Question 1 of 333%

What is your main goal?

💪 Build muscle (bulking)🔥 Lose fat while keeping my muscle🏃 Recover better, top up my diet🌱 I am a beginner, I just want to choose well

Water, milk, a plant drink, juice, coffee: you can put almost anything in a whey shaker. The right question is not “which is best?” but “which fits my goal?”, because from one liquid to the next, the same shake can double in calories.

This guide compares the liquids you can mix whey with, then the foods to pair it with, depending on whether you are cutting, bulking or maintaining. For how much liquid per serving, see our guide to the whey to water ratio (in short: about 250 ml for 30 g).

🥛 Which liquid should you mix your whey with? The comparison

Water is unbeatable on calories, milk and soya drink add 8 to 9 g of protein, and the other plant drinks and the juices mostly add calories. Here is what each liquid adds to a serving of whey, per 250 ml.

Liquid (250 ml)	Kcal added	Protein added	Sugars added	Shake total (30 g of whey)
Water	0	0 g	0 g	about 115 kcal, 22 g of protein
Coconut water	about 40	under 1 g	about 6 g	about 155 kcal
Skimmed milk	about 85	about 9 g	about 12 g (lactose)	about 200 kcal, 31 g of protein
Unsweetened almond drink	about 90	about 3 g	not stated	about 205 kcal, 25 g of protein
Plain soya drink	about 95	about 8 g	under 1 g	about 210 kcal, 30 g of protein
Orange juice (not from concentrate)	about 115	about 1.5 g	about 24 g	about 230 kcal
Semi-skimmed milk	about 120	about 8 g	about 12 g (lactose)	about 235 kcal, 30 g of protein
Plain rice drink	about 135	under 1 g	about 14 g	about 250 kcal
Whole milk	about 165	about 8 g	about 11 g (lactose)	about 280 kcal, 30 g of protein

Our ranking by use, drawn from the table above: the more stars, the better the liquid meets the criterion.

Liquid	Low in calories	Extra protein	Creaminess	Lactose-free	Best for
Water	★★★★★	☆☆☆☆☆	★★☆☆☆	★★★★★	Cutting, every day
Plain soya drink	★★★★☆	★★★★★	★★★☆☆	★★★★★	Lactose intolerance
Skimmed milk	★★★★☆	★★★★★	★★★☆☆	★☆☆☆☆	A tastier cut
Semi-skimmed milk	★★★☆☆	★★★★★	★★★★☆	★☆☆☆☆	Maintenance
Whole milk	★★☆☆☆	★★★★★	★★★★★	★☆☆☆☆	Bulking
Unsweetened almond drink	★★★★☆	★★☆☆☆	★★★☆☆	★★★★★	Taste, lactose-free
Orange juice	★★★☆☆	★☆☆☆☆	★★☆☆☆	★★★★★	Occasional, after a long session

Fruit juice is not off-limits, but it is the least interesting liquid of the lot: around 24 g of sugars per 250 ml of pure orange juice, almost no protein, and a taste that sits badly with a chocolate whey. The full calorie breakdown by type of whey and by liquid is in our article on whey protein calories.

🎯 Which liquid for your goal?

Cutting: water, or skimmed milk for the taste

When cutting, water keeps your shake around 115 kcal; skimmed milk adds roughly 85 kcal but also 9 g of protein, a fair compromise if you cannot stand it with water. Do not count on whey to “kill your hunger”: the EFSA rejected the satiety claim for whey, and a meta-analysis (Mollahosseini et al., 2017) finds only a modest drop in appetite over the long term. The full strategies are in whey protein and weight loss and, for women specifically, in whey protein for women and weight loss.

Bulking: whole milk

When bulking, whole milk adds about 165 kcal and 8 g of protein per shake, with no effort for anyone who struggles to eat much. You can push the shake further with oats, a banana or a spoonful of peanut butter. To pick your powder, see our ranking of the best whey protein for bulking.

Lactose intolerance: soya drink and an isolate

If milk bloats you, take a whey isolate with water or with a soya drink: plain soya brings about 8 g of protein per 250 ml, the same as milk, with no lactose. Almond and rice drinks work too, but bring little protein. The choice between concentrate and isolate is explained in which whey protein to choose. With a milk protein allergy (which is not the same as lactose intolerance), the whey itself is off the table.

🍌 Which foods should you pair your whey with?

Whey pairs best with what it lacks: carbohydrates and fibre. It brings protein and almost nothing else; pairing it with a piece of fruit or with cereals turns it into a real snack or a breakfast.

• Oats: as porridge or blended into the shake, 40 g adds about 145 kcal and 5 g of protein (Ciqual).
• Banana: a 120 g banana adds about 110 kcal, handy before or after a session.
• 0% fat fromage blanc: 150 g adds about 12 g of protein for 75 kcal, for a spoonable cream.
• Red berries: flavour and fibre for few calories, about 75 kcal for 150 g of raspberries.
• Cold coffee: virtually calorie-free, and it turns a chocolate whey into an iced mocha.

Six full recipes with their calories are in our guide to the whey protein shake, and for cooking with the powder (pancakes, crepes, bars), see our whey protein recipes and our whey protein pancakes. To mix it, a shaker with a ball is enough, or a blender as soon as you add oats or whole fruit: see our protein shaker guide.

💊 What about other supplements?

The only supplement that has proved itself alongside whey for weight training is creatine, which mixes into the same shaker without any trouble (doses and advice in whey protein and creatine). For the rest, the evidence is thin or the claims have been refused:

• BCAAs: pointless if you already take whey, which contains them; a 2017 review concludes that BCAAs alone are not enough to stimulate muscle protein synthesis (Wolfe, 2017).
• Glutamine: its effects on immunity and recovery have found little support in well-controlled studies of healthy, well-fed athletes (Gleeson, 2008).
• Carnitine: often sold as a “fat burner”, but the EFSA concluded that no cause and effect relationship with fat metabolism had been established (EFSA, 2018).
• Green tea extracts: no weight-loss claim is authorised in the EU, and the EFSA noted signs of liver injury from 800 mg of EGCG a day (EFSA, 2018).
• Caffeine: up to 400 mg a day (200 mg in a single dose) raises no concern in healthy adults according to the EFSA, and no more than 200 mg a day during pregnancy (EFSA).

✅ Our verdict: what should you mix your whey with?

For us, water stays the default choice, and milk a deliberate one when you want calories or creaminess. Soya drink is the best plant alternative because it keeps milk’s protein without the lactose. Fruit juice and rice drink are the least useful: plenty of sugar, almost no protein.

This guide will not help you if your whey gives you trouble whatever the liquid: persistent bloating comes more often from the lactose in the powder itself, and an isolate usually settles it. And if you are wondering how many shakes to take, the short answer is usually one a day: the calculation is in how much whey protein per day.