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Now Sports is a line of products that belongs to Now Foods, a pretty established brand in the supplements industry that manufactures a variety of supplements from regular whey protein powders and creatine supplements to multivitamins and isolated amino acids such as arginine and citrulline.
They also appear to take into consideration those who are vegan or who simply cannot consume dairy for health reasons and thus launched a vegan-friendly pea protein powder that happens to be one of their most popular products.
Main Takeaways
- Now Sports Pea Protein Powder packs 24 grams of protein with essential amino acids and notable iron content, ideal for muscle-building and beneficial for vegans.
- Costing less than a dollar per serving, it’s wallet-friendly and widely available in retail stores and online.
- The unflavored variety offers a clean ingredient profile with only pea protein, whereas flavored versions contain additives.
- Customer reviews suggest inconsistent product quality. Also, vegan buyers might be cautious as Now Sports also sells animal-derived products.
Overview Of Now Sports Pea Protein Powder
One scoop contains 120 calories, which includes: 24 grams of protein, 1 gram of carbohydrates (no fiber), and 2 grams of fat (none of which is saturated).
However, the macronutrients change based on whether you opt for the flavored or unflavored variety, so if you go for the chocolate flavor, you’ll find that it contains more carbohydrates (in the form of simple sugars) so it’s not as healthy as the unflavored variety.
Now Sports gets its 24 grams of protein solely from peas, which is one of the most solid plant-based proteins because of its rather complete amino acid profile, incorporating three of the most vital branched chained amino acids: L-leucine, L-isoleucine, and L-valine, which are vital for muscle growth and recovery.
Additionally, it contains three micronutrients (ones you tend to find in many protein powders) — 8mg of iron, 43 mg of calcium, and 83 mg of potassium. The most relevant one is iron as it represents 45% of the recommended daily allowance (RDA).
Although you can find iron abundantly in most diets, vegans have a harder time absorbing plant-based iron, also known as non-heme iron. So, if you’re vegan or vegetarian, getting this much iron is an advantage.
Protein Breakdown
If a product is marketed as a protein powder, you need to make sure it contains as much protein per scoop as possible, otherwise, there’s no point in purchasing a protein powder that has very little protein in it.
To determine whether a protein powder is actually good, one has to calculate how much protein it contains per scoop, and the criteria used to evaluate the quality of a protein powder fall under the following:
- 65-75% protein per scoop = reasonable
- 75-85% protein per scoop = good
- More than 85% protein per scoop = excellent
Now Sports pea protein powder contains 80% protein per scoop. It’s a good protein powder that could potentially be considered excellent if you account for the fact it’s a plant-based protein powder and there aren’t that many excellent options.
Still, if you want something with more protein, Future Kind’s protein powder contains 94% protein per scoop, which is super impressive.
What I Like About Now Sports Pea Protein Powder
Inexpensive
Now Sports Pea Protein is less than a dollar per serving (around 75 cents) making it one of the most cost-effective protein supplements on the market.
However, the price will vary depending on whether you choose to buy the supplement with or without flavor. Generally, if you pick the chocolate flavor, it’ll be more expensive because it contains more ingredients.
Even though it’s on the cheaper end, Now Sports has still managed to include 24g of protein per scoop, a remarkable amount taking into account how much it costs.
Plus, a large percentage of the calories in this supplement is comprised of protein (80% to be exact), which is a sign of a good protein powder.
Healthier Unflavored Variety
If you’re someone like me who doesn’t like protein powders saturated with sweeteners, then you’ll probably like the fact this protein powder has an unflavored variety.
The unflavored variety only contains one ingredient: pea protein, so it’s the cleanest form of protein you can get, which means it’s also better for your well-being as you won’t be consuming controversial sweeteners.
Availability
Since Now Sports is a huge household name in the fitness industry, you’ll find their products available in all sorts of places, including Amazon, Target, Walmart, and plenty of supplement shops across the country.
So, even if this protein powder goes out of stock (which is very unlikely) in one store, you’ll always be able to find it somewhere else.
What I Don’t Like About Now Sports Pea Protein Powder
Not an Ethical Brand
Although we might want to purchase this pea protein powder because we’re vegan or vegetarian, it’s important to keep in mind that Now Sports is not your “ethical” vegan brand.
They also sell a variety of other supplements, including whey protein powders, which means they’re profiting from the exploitation of animals.
Since I’m vegan and I generally review vegan-friendly products, I’m also looking for a brand that makes a positive contribution towards animal welfare, and Now Sports doesn’t do that, however, I’m still appreciative of the fact they are willing to consider those who can’t or don’t want to consume animal products.
Worrying User Reviews
Based on a few dozen of reviews I’ve read, some of them question Now Sports’ ability to quality control their supplements because apparently, you may either get a palatable, high-quality protein powder but other times you may come across a product that is barely edible.
For example, one user writes: “Major issue with the lastest order. After having purchased several tubs of this unflavored pea protein and being pleased, my latest order is a dramatically different powder. In the past, I found the powder to have a pleasant enough taste and experienced no issues. Unfortunately, the latest tub has a strong, unpleasant sour chemical-like taste. I immediately stopped drinking it after the first gulp. In addition to a horrid aftertaste, I developed a stomach ache 10-15 minutes later”.
Another user wrote: “Every time I order this stuff, there’s an element of suspense. Which batch am I going to get? The clean, light-colored, mildly flavored, palatable pea protein that mixes well and goes down easy? Or am I going to get its evil twin sister? The darkened, foul-tasting stuff that clots in your milk and needs to be masked with sugar? It seems to alternate. You never get lucky enough to get the good stuff twice in a row. And it makes you wonder what the hell is going on at the NOW factory.”
This is quite worrying considering that Now Sports is a very reputable brand.
Is Now Sports Pea Protein Powder Worth It?
Now Sports has created a simple, clean formula that justly focuses on what consumers look for in a protein powder — more protein than anything else. 80% of the calories in this formula come from pea protein, which is enough reason for me to consider it a high-quality protein powder.
Additionally, pea protein has a remarkable amino acid profile with some of the most important amino acids you’ll need for muscle growth and recovery. Also, if you have to choose one flavor, definitely go with the unflavored variety as you’ll be getting scoops of pure protein minus the shady sweeteners.
Frankly, you can’t really go wrong with this supplement as they set up the formula so that you can maximize protein intake and nothing else. You’ll have residual amounts of carbohydrates and fat, but they’re minimal.
However, at the time I’m writing this review, I’ve discovered that dozes of repeat buyers have been running into some issues with this protein powder because they’ve been getting different qualities each time they order, which suggests that Now Sports has been having some quality control problems.
If you still want to purchase Now Sports pea protein powder, you can do so via Amazon or the brand’s official website.
Editor’s note: The content on this website is meant to be informative, but it should not be taken as medical advice. The content of our articles is not intended for use in the diagnosis, prevention, and/or treatment of health problems. It’s always best to speak with your doctor or a certified medical professional before making any changes to your lifestyle, diet, exercise routine, or trying a new supplement.
