Can I take whey protein 3 times a day? How often should I take it?

If you don't have time to prepare your meals or are struggling to meet your protein goals, you may be wondering if you can take whey protein 3 times a day.

In terms of safety, yes, if you're healthy, you can take whey three times a day. But in terms of sustainability, cost-effectiveness, and a nutritious diet, doing so may not be the best strategy.

Is there any harm in taking whey protein 3 times a day?

If you don't have chronic health problems that may require more rigorous control of your protein intake or food sensitivities, taking whey protein 3 times a day is unlikely to cause problems.

Whey is nothing more than whey; a natural food that has been processed to filter out the things we don't want and keep only the protein, but at the end of the day, it's still a food in powder form.

In this sense (in terms of safety), questioning whether you can take whey two, three or more times a day is similar to questioning whether you can eat eggs or meat multiple times a day.

This would only really matter if you were consuming too much protein through your diet and using multiple whey protein shakes.

And this is still debatable. There aren't many references in the literature showing any relevant link between high protein intake and health problems (1, 2).

Furthermore, in practice, protein is the most expensive macronutrient (in every sense) to ingest, and this ends up acting as a natural limiter.

You can easily find people eating too much carbs and fat, but protein? Hardly.

Not only is it a rarer situation, but getting enough is the problem to be solved.

In fact, most people use whey protein because they can't get enough protein from whole foods.

At the end of the day, as far as safety and health are concerned, the only real problem with taking too much whey protein and to the point where it becomes your main protein source is the lack of micronutrients and fiber.

When compared to whole protein foods such as meat, eggs and natural cow's milk, whey is nutritionally poor.

There are ways around this by supplementing vitamins, minerals, and fiber, but for the sake of practicality and sustainability of the eating plan, it's best to leave protein foods as the main source of protein and use whey for its original purpose: as a supplement.

So, how many times should we take whey per day?

Getting straight to the point: you can take whey protein as many times as necessary to meet your daily protein needs, as long as this doesn't make the supplement your main source of protein.

Under normal circumstances, for most people and in most cases, the goal should be to get the majority of your dietary protein from whole foods and use whey protein as a supplement at times when a shake would be convenient.

In practice and translating into the real world, in most cases taking whey once or twice is more than enough.

When is it worth taking whey 3 times a day (being specific)?

Imagine a scenario where you have the availability and means to use whey 3 or more times a day, below we will see in which situations this would make sense.

1 – Your protein needs are higher than normal

The more muscle mass (and body weight) you have, the higher your protein requirement.

For example, a 130-pound person can get away with eating only 100-120g of protein per day, while a 220-pound person with a lot of muscle mass may need 190-200g of protein or more every day.

Therefore, if you are an advanced bodybuilder with a high body weight, you may have a higher daily protein goal than usual.

This really makes it difficult to reach your protein goals with whole foods alone.

For people with high needs, even if they add three whey shakes a day, there will still be room to add whole foods and avoid deficiencies.

Reinforcing that this is obviously a specific case and the minority of people who train have this high need for protein.

2 – You are on a cutting

Taking whey protein three times a day during a cutting phase , that is, when the goal is to reduce body fat while maintaining muscle mass, can be advantageous, especially if you know what you are doing.

Whey protein is a high-quality protein source with all the essential amino acids needed for muscle maintenance and recovery.

During cutting, the body is lacking energy (calories), which can increase the risk of muscle loss.

Protein helps protect muscles against catabolism, especially important when calories are restricted and workouts remain intense.

Additionally, protein has a higher thermic effect than carbohydrates and fats, which means the body uses more energy to digest it.

This can help increase your total calorie expenditure, aiding in fat loss.

3 – For some reason, you can’t get all the protein you need

Taking whey protein three times a day can be an effective solution for people who have difficulty meeting their daily protein needs through solid foods.

We're talking about restrictive diets under medical supervision, people with appetite problems, or individuals going through times in their lives where the focus is far from being on their diet.

Basically, certain situations leave no other way out than to resort to shakes.

However, it's important to emphasize that this scenario should be seen as an exception to the rule. We're referring to people who truly have no other option.

Pros and cons of taking whey multiple times a dayProsEasier to reach your protein goal:portable, easy to digest, and no cooking required.High Protein, Low Carbs and Fat: An easy way to increase your protein macros without additional carbs or fat.Can be mixed with a variety of liquids:Water isn't the only option here. Milk, juice, coffee—there are tastier options available.Optimal amino acid profile: Protein powders are “complete,” meaning they contain all the essential amino acids that our bodies cannot produce internally.Most protein powders contain BCAAs:If you are consuming protein powder, especially around the time you exercise, you don't need to use additional BCAAs.ConsPoor value for money: In some situations, whey protein can be very expensive, and when compared to other protein sources, its use is a poor value for money. This is multiplied by three if you're going to drink three shakes a day.Poor micronutrient variety: Whey lacks several vitamins and minerals commonly found in whole-food protein sources such as meat, eggs, fish, and whole milk.It can cause bloating and digestive discomfort: Not everyone tolerates whey protein and in large quantities the problem can be amplified.