Is Halo Top the Best Protein Ice Cream?
One of the main awesome things about Halo Top ice cream, aside from the taste, is how HEALTHY it is. Or should I say how "healthy" it is…? Today we're going to investigate protein ice cream, how it's different, and whether it's actually any healthier.
As Brandon Hall, writer for fitness magazine Stack, said, "If it seems too good to be true, it probably is." Because after all, Halo Top does taste just like any regular ice cream. But in place of tons of table sugar, they use erythritol, organic cane sugar, and stevia. And they also opt for mostly all natural ingredients, that start off their nutrition facts: milk and cream, as well as milk protein, eggs, and prebiotic fiber. So protein and fiber are built right into this ice cream.
So honestly, I wouldn't say there aren't many downsides to eating protein ice cream, as long as you check the ingredients beforehand. With Halo Top, the CEO, Justin Woolverton, said that it took so, so many mistakes until they got to a version that worked, where the taste and texture was like most ice cream.
But what separates Halo Top from the competition is the fact that it was always designed to be a healthy ice cream, light and low-calorie too. The protein is supposed to help fill you up and compensate for the low calorie count.
But now (so I stop sounding so much like a commercial for Halo Top! 😉 ) let me talk a little more about other protein ice cream brands. The one disadvantage of Halo Top is that it's designed for the "average person." And maybe you want a protein ice cream brand that's designed to help you build muscle, or to replace your protein shake. Does such a magical ice cream exist??
There are actually TWO that I know of: Wheyhey and Ice-and-Lean. These have grass-fed whey protein in them, 20 grams per pint. And you know what, I'm surprised that ice cream manufacturers didn't think of this earlier, because it makes sense to use whey as the part of the milk to make ice cream with, due to the high protein content!!
But are the rest of the ingredients any good, and do they taste good?
Well, according to a review by Runner's World, WheyHey is actually really good: thick and creamy and sugary enough. The one problem is that it's manufactured in the UK and would probably be hard to get ahold of here!
As for Ice-and-Lean, that seems like an even better option! Not only is it filled with only pure organic ingredients, but in addition to the healthy whey protein and refusing it also has other health benefits according to the flavor. The salted caramel flavor, for example, isn't actually caramel, but instead it's a super fruit called lucuma that just happens to taste like caramels!
The problem, though…is that this brand is based out of Hong Kong, and I can't find what stores you could get it from!
It seems like these two companies, in addition to Halo Top, have hit a magical "sweet spot" where you can have your cake and eat it too.
Well, ice cream, I mean!
But like I said, the only problem with Halo Top is that it's not designed to be a muscle-building whey protein source. And the problem with these other two brands is that they're hard to get here in the States!
If you really want great-tasting protein ice cream that has enough whey protein isolate to help you build muscle, you may be out of luck unless you make your own.
But if your goal is to simply nourish your body with great-tasting nutrition, in dessert form, then I recommend Shakeology.
We've still got limited edition pumpkin spice left in stock, which is a surprise to me!
Shakeology is not only packed with whey protein to help build muscle, but also is packed with gut probiotics, plus superfoods like camu-camu and pomegranate.
You may say, "But Shakeology isn't ice cream!!"
Or IS it?
