Supplements Series — Part 1: Protein

Protein is usually the first supplement people think about—and it’s also one of the most misunderstood. Walk into any supplement store and you’ll see shelves stacked with tubs promising muscle, fat loss, faster recovery, and “next-level results.” It’s easy to think protein powder is some kind of magic ingredient.

Here’s the truth: it’s not magic—and it’s not required to make progress.

The approach is simple: food first, supplements second. Protein powder is a convenience tool, not a requirement. Used correctly, it can make consistency easier. Used incorrectly, it’s just an expensive shake.

Let’s break down what protein actually does, who benefits from utilizing protein powders, and how to choose a quality option without falling for the marketing hype.

What Protein Actually Does in the Body

Protein isn’t just for bodybuilders. It’s one of the three main macronutrients (along with carbs and fats), and it plays a huge role in your results.

Protein helps with:

•  Muscle repair and growth – Training creates small amounts of muscle damage. Protein provides the amino acids your body uses to repair and rebuild that muscle stronger.

• Recovery – Getting enough protein helps you recover between workouts so you can train more consistently and perform better.

• Maintaining lean mass – When you’re dieting or losing weight, adequate protein helps preserve muscle so more of the weight you lose comes from fat.

• Feeling full (satiety) – Protein is more filling than carbs or fats, which can make it easier to manage calories and stick to your plan.

In simple terms: protein supports strength, recovery, body composition, and consistency. It’s essential for results—but how you get it is flexible.

Do You Need Protein Powder?

Short answer: No.

Longer answer: Sometimes it helps.

You can meet your protein needs entirely from whole foods like:

• Chicken, turkey, beef, fish.

• Eggs and egg whites.

• Greek yogurt and cottage cheese.

• Tofu and legumes.

If you’re consistently eating enough of these, you don’t need protein powder at all.

Where protein powder does help is when life gets in the way:

• Busy schedules.

• Missed meals.

• Low appetite.

• Inconsistent protein intake.

• Dieting while trying to keep protein high.

That’s where shakes come in. They’re quick, portable, easy to track, and convenient. Protein powder doesn’t do anything special that food can’t—it just makes hitting your protein target easier.

Who May Benefit From Using Protein Supplements?

Protein supplements can be especially useful if you:

• Have a busy or unpredictable schedule.

• Struggle to eat enough protein from Whole Foods.

• Are dieting and want a low-calorie, high-protein option.

• Train regularly and want an easy post-workout option.

• Travel often or need something quick and portable.

If you’re already hitting your protein goals comfortably with food, great—you may not need it. If you’re not, a protein shake can be a simple, effective tool.

What to Look for in a Quality Protein Powder

Not all protein powders are created equal. The supplement market is crowded, and a lot of products rely more on marketing than quality.

Here’s what actually matters:

1. Enough protein per serving

Aim for 20–30 grams of protein per serving. If a product is mostly sugar or fillers, it’s missing the point.

2. A simple ingredient list

Fewer ingredients is usually better. Look for:

• A clear protein source (whey isolate, whey protein concentrate, casein, or a quality plant blend).

• Minimal added sugar.

• No unnecessary fillers.

3. The right type of protein for you

• Whey Isolate: Fast-digesting, great post-workout or anytime.

• Whey Protein: Slower-digesting, great anytime.

• Casein: Slowest-digesting, helps keep you full longer.

• Plant-based blends: Great if you avoid dairy—just make sure it provides a complete amino acid profile.

4. Transparency and testing

Choose brands that are clear about what’s inside and how it’s tested. The label should match what’s actually in the tub.

Common Marketing Traps to Avoid

The supplement industry is over saturated and built on “hype”. Be cautious of:

• Mass gainers loaded with sugar and unnecessary calories.

• Proprietary blends that hide exact ingredient amounts.

• Overpriced hype brands that sell marketing more than quality.

• The “more is better” mindset—extra shakes won’t fix poor nutrition or inconsistent training.

Remember: supplements are meant to support a good plan, not replace one.

My Approach

Food first, supplements second…Always.

Protein powder is not required to lose fat, build muscle, get stronger, or to get healthier. But when used correctly, it can make consistency easier, save time, help you hit your daily protein targets, as well as support recovery and body composition.

Used incorrectly, it’s just an expensive habit.

Your real results will always come from consistent training, solid nutrition, enough TOTAL protein, good sleep and recovery, and sticking to any plan long enough to see progress!

My Current Top Choices

My current protein consists of two different brands, both being Whey Isolates.

First is my favorite post workout protein: Unmatched Whey Isolate — Linked Here!

Grass-fed whey isolate, naturally sweetened and flavored without any fillers, antibiotics, or any artificial ingredients, this one packs a solid 24g protein, 1g fat, and 2g carbs per scoop for only 120 calories. Personally, I take two scoops post workout. The Strawberries and Cream flavor is fabulous as a post workout treat.

The second isolate I enjoy anytime is Raw-BUM ITHOLATE PROTEIN — Linked Here for a better price, and Here for their website with more flavors!

This one seems like it would fall into the “hype marketing” category due to it being co-owned by Chris Bumstead, but it has a solid ingredient profile and tastes amazing. With 25g protein, 3.5g fats, and 4g carbs rounding out at 140 calories per scoop, this has been a staple in traveling to be consistent on the road for work, or just as a snack in between meals. If you are not for artificial sweeteners, this one does use sucralose. However, I love that it is 3rd party tested, uses grass-fed whey isolate, and I just can’t get over the flavors. My top two have been the Rainbow Sherbet and Maple Waffle Eh?

Final Takeaway

Protein is essential.

Protein powder is optional.

Consistency is everything.

If you struggle to hit your protein intake, a supplement can be a smart tool. If you’re doing great with whole foods, you may not need it—and that’s perfectly fine. Be mindful of where it is sourced, what is in the product and on the nutrition label, and make sure you are choosing the specific type suited best for your needs and goals!

Feel free to leave a comment below with any comments, or if there is a specific brand in which you use daily and what you like about it!

Thanks for taking the time to read! Next up: Pre-Workout—what actually works, what’s hype, and what’s a waste of money.

Transforming Myself: New Beginnings

It’s been 12 days since my last post, and this wasn’t a mere oversight or laziness; it was a deliberate decision. I needed this time to prepare for the upcoming week and last. It was worth every moment.

As I had mentioned earlier, this year, I set out to elevate my fitness goals to new heights. I’ve always created my own fitness programs, encompassing lifting, dieting, and cardio—or lacking thereof. However, the challenge I faced was accountability. While I was aware of my actions, I struggled to maintain consistency across all fronts. Everything had fallen by the wayside a few years ago, so I decided to address my habits one by one.

Initially, I focused on lifting, as I believed it would be the easiest aspect of my plan. The past year has been dedicated to consistent progress in this area. I knew that if I could instill the motivation to hit the gym regardless of the day’s circumstances, I could break through the initial barrier. At first, it was challenging, but I started small, committing to two to three days a week. I gradually increased my frequency, starting with two to three days, then four, and eventually reaching five days a week. While it took time, the foundation of getting in the gym was key, and I successfully achieved my goal.

My diet has always been the most difficult aspect to manage. I would start strong, but my love for food would eventually overpower my desire for a healthy diet. I would manage well for a month or two, then relapse. When I first started lifting 15 years ago, I consumed as many calories as possible because I was only 110 pounds and needed to gain weight. However, despite not being that old, I now have to exercise caution in my food choices.

Twelve days ago, I embarked on a program with a coach—a first for me. Not only will I have someone create a customized nutrition, supplementation, and workout plan, but I’ll also have someone I’ve admired since high school, Kris Gethin, as my coach. He’s an expert in helping individuals transform physically, mentally, and their lifestyles.

I started with his book, “Body By Design,” and I was instantly hooked. I followed his video trainers on bodybuilding.com and gained valuable knowledge, as well as physical size and strength. I even met him in person at the Olympia last October—a truly memorable moment.

Shortly after, I had the opportunity to become a client, and I jumped at the chance. This is the accountability I needed, and I didn’t hesitate to commit to it. The best part is being part of a community of Kris’s clients, where I can see their progress firsthand. These people range in age from my age to 60, which is incredibly motivating. It gives me a sense of community and accountability that I’ve never experienced before.

Now, I’m starting week two of my program. I’m meal prepping, hitting the gym, and doing cardio. It’s been a great first week, and I’m excited to see where this year takes me.

Goals Using SMART

I am not an individual that believes in the “New Year’s Resolution” mentality. There is data out there that shows that an estimated 88% of people who set a resolution quit within the first two to four weeks. Personally, I would rather set short term and long term goals year round rather than give myself a New Year’s resolution. This way I have milestones. I have accountability. I can set attainable goals within reasonable timeframes.

But what are my goals? Are they only fitness based? While fitness is my biggest passion that has been reignited over the past year, there are a few other areas of my life I have found passion in and created goals for myself. With my new goals, which I will go over here soon as to document and hold myself accountable to them, I want to start utilizing SMART Goals;

Specific: Clearly states WHAT my goal is

Measurable: HOW it will be measured

Achievable: Realistic, ATTAINABLE goals set in a specific timeframe

Relevant: Fits the PURPOSE of the goal

Time-bound: Clearly defined DEADLINE

What are my goals?

First, the fitness goals. I have always set small goals. Usually, these are adjusted based on how I look and feel in and out of the gym. My current weight, my current macros, caloric intake, and lastly what progression I am making strength wise in the gym on lifts. My current self is sitting around 205lbs daily, with an approximate body fat of 15%-18%. Let’s use SMART to show what my goal is.

Specific: Hit and maintain weight of 200lbs with a body fat of 13%

Measurable: Tracking weight and body fat using various tools: scale, body fat caliper, DEXA scan

Achievable: This is definitely attainable, as it is not drastic weight gain/loss in a short period of time.

Relevant: Being a fitness related goal, it fits the purpose.

Time-bound: 12 Weeks, starting January 13th to April 7th.

Ideally, this puts me on track for my end of year goal of 190-195lbs at around 10% body fat. With this said, I have always taken it upon myself to make a workout and nutrition plan for myself. To try something new this year, I have hired a very reputable Coach in the fitness industry that will keep me accountable, and won’t allow me to make any excuses, which I am excited for. What a journey it will be.

A few other goals of mine are not based around fitness, but life itself. One that goes hand in hand with the fitness part is healthy living. Eating more healthy and getting rid of quick, unhealthy meals when out for work. Another goal will be to read more this year. This isn’t just fantasy books that I have typically been interested in, but more so books that will help me improve myself mentally. I can’t name them all at this moment, but the first two that I have started are The Book of Ichigo Ichie by Héctor García, Francesc Miralles and Goodbye, Things by Fumio Sasaki. Yes, these are books based on Japanese principals and learnings, and many of the other ones are as well. The interest in these teachings are ignited from my visits to Japan and my experiences with their culture, which can be a blog for another time.

The second book, Goodbye, Things, has sparked my third goal, which my wife and I have already started on our days off. The book focuses on new Japanese minimalism. Now, contrary to belief, minimalism isn’t getting rid of everything you own. I still have passions outside of fitness, gaming being a primary one as well as it helps with de-stressing as well as relaxation and recovery. However, minimalism is about de-cluttering all the things you don’t use, or that you just don’t need. “Does this bring me joy and happiness” is a phrase I will become one with when going through my personal things, as I seem to have accumulated a lot. So far, though, we have seen a lot of success, as we have gone through two closets and our living room and have started a “garage sell” corner of things that can be sold. Our next task, aside from finishing our kitchen, is to go through it and dispose/sell all the extras there. We have used the SMART goals without knowing it, as we set an area to be finished in day, and get it done. And so far, it is working well, except for when the wife decides to move a huge couch from upstairs to downstairs. That was rough.

There they are. My goals over the next few months, as well as my goal for the end of the year. Don’t get it confused, as these aren’t New Year’s resolutions. These are goals, short and long term, in which will be measured. They will evolve as I progress and as the weeks and months go by. I will re-evaluate and make new short term goals and continue moving forward, while using this blog to update you and myself on how they went and what my new goals are.

What are YOUR short and long term SMART goals? Comment them below if you would like and we can help each other stay accountable!

Who am I?

As I mentioned in my first blog, I want to introduce myself and share a brief background of how I got to this point.

My name is Vincent Bizzell. I was born in 1992 and grew up in a city called Hays, KS. Most of my childhood years were spent in and out of hospitals. It was very unfortunate, but I had an amazing mother who took care of me through it all, and I am very grateful for it.

This site I am creating uses the title, Bizzell Fitness. This is one of my biggest passions in life. Fitness. Now looking back on my life, I can say honestly it always has been a huge inspiring factor through it all. As a child, I heavily played youth soccer and baseball. I loved sports, or did I? In middle school, I participated in a few sports. Football was okay, maybe it was due to my petite stature and skinny nature I just couldn’t enjoy it like others did. Or maybe it was because I never had any experience pre middle school where others had. So I gave basketball a try next….with the same thought and outcome. Through all of those I found my first passion.

Long distance running.

Now, I know, it sounds like something a psychopath would enjoy, running for miles. Something in the way you could just…be free with any thoughts or problems. I continued this through high school, running Cross Country and track. My weight, which throughout high school maybe maxed out at 115 lbs, really helped with this as I was lean and very fit.

Fast forward to after high school. I had no clue what I was doing with life, nothing really prepared me for it anyways. I remember I had picked up a book, called Body by Design, written by Kris Gethin. I thought, what could it hurt, I weigh 115 soaking wet, and was tired of being this small guy. Over the span of 5-6 years, thanks to the first time picking this book up, following various programs from Kris, I was able to get myself to place I loved. This book ignited this fitness journey and passion.

During that time from 2011 to 2016, life was perfect. I had a physique I loved-kind of, damn body dysmorphia-found my literal best friend and moved to a bigger city. Not huge, but bigger. Did some personal training, worked, and enjoyed life. Personal training was okay, but where I worked, the pay just wasn’t there. And being in a new city, trying to find our footing.

Then covid came around.

Since covid, work, and life, I had fallen off quite a bit. Physically, I had a dad bod without being a dad. Mentally, I was drained from work, the pandemic, and societal norms. I hadn’t been consistent in the gym. There was no motivation. This is where my last post comes in. I really had fallen out of love with fitness and thought I wouldn’t get it back ever again. But at the time, I wasn’t too mad or hurt. I missed everything about it, but I had married my best friend and loved spending the time with her when we weren’t at work.

So here I am now, I am almost a solid year consistent in the gym, and I feel better than ever. Physically, mentally, emotionally. Honestly, I couldn’t have done any of it with my best friend, my wife, Tamara. So thank you and I love you more than you could know.

Sappy, right? That is my TL:DR of from there to here. There are many more details, but I won’t bore anyone reading this today. If you want to hear more, I plan on making few of my posts about what I have had to overcome, health wise, to get to this point today.

I Fell Out of Love with Fitness…

Hello and welcome. My name is Vincent Bizzell, and I want to start the new year off with something a bit different. This may eventually become a fitness related site as I continue to grow and go on this journey, but these blogs will not be solely fitness related. I want to use this space, even if it doesn’t reach anyone, as a place to put my thoughts, goals, and passions down, as well as my experiences from every day life and travels.

I plan on, with my second post, going a bit more into detail of myself and who I am, my interests, hobby’s, and goals for this new year, but first I want to start with my mental space a year ago that lead me to where I am now, as I type this out.

As I go through my notes I have left myself, I found this one in particular that I felt would be a great “beginning” of this new journey I want to embark on. This was a note to myself, close to a year ago, when I found love for the gym again.

“All I wanted to do when I moved from my hometown was Personal Training…bring fitness to the lives of those who wanted the help with living a healthy lifestyle.  And I started doing just that.  But as the long days went on, I fell out of love with fitness myself.

I stopped training.  For one reason, I just moved with my then soon to be fiancé, and we needed to support ourselves more.  And the money just wasn’t cutting it.  I was a stranger in a vast city where I knew no one but her.  It just wasn’t a viable position to try to take on while wanting to propose to the love of my life, find an apartment that allowed a mammoth of a dog, who I could never abandon, on top of maintaining my own fitness and other priorities—payments for car, moving costs, etc.

Over the past 8 years, I have tried, really tried to get back into training, even just for myself.  I missed the way I had looked and felt, especially when I know I wasn’t blessed with the best genetics.  I had gained so much self confidence going from a weight out of highschool of 115 lbs soaking wet, to my best self while training 5 years later sitting at 215 lbs.  That may seem far fetched, but that’s where I was able to push myself.  Countless meals and hours spent at the gym.  And when I say these things, I mean it.  6-8 meals a day.  2-3 hours at the gym, sometimes twice a day.  I wanted it. Badly. It was my goal that I had accomplished.

Fast forward to a few weeks ago—February 2024, and I weighed in at 180, muscles had atrophied from what I used to be, 20 percent body fat.  All that was left the same was my personality, I think.  I happened across some pictures of myself. I immediately recollected the way I felt, not only day to day but how strong I had gotten in the 5 years of lifting.

Week 3 of being back at the gym.  Creatine, fish oils, protein, pre workout, and 6-7 meals a day deep.  Muscle memory is real and it’s insane.  Weighing in the morning around 193 currently, and body fat has dropped to 15%.

I have fallen back in love with fitness, and the gym.

But as I am starting to get my results and gains back, I still look at myself in the mirror, and see the tiny husk.  I’m sure it’s body dysmorphia.  But that won’t stop me.  Not this time.“