How would I get the best results out of a protein powder supplement if I want to try and build lean muscle?

well I try as much as possible to eat foods full of miconutrients and protein but i wasn’t getting enough protein in my diet from that alone

The best way to see results would be from supplementing it into your existing diet. Contrary to popular belief, high protein diets do not cause kidney/liver problems. Sources to research at the end

On a micronutrient/calorie level, protein supplaments offer equal to or better quality nutrients in higher amounts. A few well-known brands compared the nutrients found in their whey to foods and results showed higher nutrient intake with lower toxicity (mercury in fish in this instance).

You won’t “build muscle” unless you’re in a calorie surplus, but you can preserve muscle while losing weight and higher protein has shown to be beneficial there. Don’t forget, higher intake of proteins has to balance out with higher fiber intake or else you may produce constipation/diarrhea/etc.

Sources: High protein and fat loss: http://funadvice.com/r/bpqj1e230bq High protein and liver/kidney/bone study: http://funadvice.com/r/bpqj1e23ea5 *Protein and fiber lower HT/BP: http://funadvice.com/r/15p1su6jigs

Why do you think that?

Thanks for the references, Aleks. Both the first and the third article you cite involve only dietary protein; that is, protein obtained by eating food, not supplements. Please note, too, that the third article finds benefit only from vegetable-source foods, and not from animal protein. Finally, I don’t give much credence to supplement manufacturers’ self-promotion of their products. They may have measured for a dozen or two of the micro-nutrients most familiar from food labels (vitamins and minerals), but unprocessed (or lightly processed) plant-based foods contain literally thousands of anti-oxidants and other phytochemicals - many of them unique to a particular food source, each with their own distinctive benefits for the regulation of appetite, metabolism, weight, and other critical aspects of health - that are not available from either animal-source foods or supplements.

That’s my question, too. For someone who’s eating a generally adequate diet of mostly healthy foods, as you seem to be now, it’s not so easy to get insufficient protein. You’d have to work at it.