I've written at length about creatine. I've written about collagen, electrolytes, the GLP-1 moment, even the science of sleep. But I've never written a personal email about protein.
That's a strange omission for someone who built a brand that makes some pretty ground-breaking protein powders. So let me explain why, and then actually say the thing I've been avoiding.
Protein is the most foundational supplement in the Innermost range. It's also the hardest subject for me to write about personally, because there's nothing surprising about it. Creatine had a story. Collagen had a story. Protein is well... protein. Everyone knows you should eat more of it.
The mechanism is not a secret. Muscle protein synthesis, leucine threshold, net nitrogen balance. If you've been in the fitness space for more than a couple of years, you've read this before.
And I think that's the problem. The familiarity makes people stop paying attention.
Here's what I actually think about protein, after a decade of working in this space.
Most people in their thirties and forties are under-consuming protein and don't know it. Not by a small amount. The gap between what most people eat and what the research supports for muscle maintenance and body composition outcomes is significant.
Studies looking at optimal intake for adults prioritising body composition consistently point to between 1.6 and 2.2 grams per kilogram of bodyweight per day. Most people are eating somewhere between 0.8 and 1.2.
The difference is not cosmetic. Adequate protein intake directly affects your ability to preserve muscle tissue during a caloric deficit. It supports recovery between sessions. It has a measurable effect on satiety, which means it influences total caloric intake downstream, not just at the point you consume it.
There's a subtler point too, and this is the one I've come to think matters most: protein is the nutrient where consistency compounds most directly. The benefits of creatine saturate over time in a relatively predictable way. Collagen has a timeline that research measures in months. But protein's effect on body composition is essentially continuous. Every day you hit your target, you preserve something. Every day you don't, you lose a small amount of ground.
Over a summer, that adds up.
This is what I've observed personally, and it's backed by the research on muscle protein turnover. The people who maintain their body composition through summer are not, in my experience, the people who train harder during that period. Most of them train less. Their routines are disrupted. They're travelling. Their eating is less structured. The people who come back in September looking broadly the same as they left in June are the ones who kept their protein intake consistent. That's it. That's the variable.
Why I take The Lean Protein
I’ve been taking The Lean Protein the past few months for a straightforward reason: the protein-to-calorie ratio.
Much like our other protein blends, each serving delivers over 30 grams of protein. The calorie count is low relative to that protein yield. When my training is consistent and my eating is structured, I don't think about this very much. But in the periods when those things are less reliable, that ratio becomes the thing that holds the rest together.
The formula also includes acetyl-L-carnitine, inulin, pomegranate extract, and yerba mate. These aren't afterthoughts. Acetyl-L-carnitine has a research base in fat metabolism. Inulin supports satiety and gut function. The pomegranate extract is included for its antioxidant contribution to recovery. This means that the formula does more work per serving than a standard whey and just what I need going into summer.
The thing the industry gets wrong about protein
Most protein marketing leads with taste and price per gram. Both matter. But neither tells you whether the formula will support body composition outcomes over time. The two questions I'd ask before buying any protein powder are: what is the actual protein-to-calorie ratio, and what is the leucine content per serving.
Leucine is the branched-chain amino acid most directly linked to triggering muscle protein synthesis, and there is a threshold dose, roughly 2.5 to 3 grams per serving, below which the anabolic response is blunted. Many protein powders do not disclose this. They just list total protein and move on.
The Lean Protein does not have this problem. The formula is transparent. The dose is evidence-based.
One thing I'd ask you to consider: if you've never actually checked whether you're hitting your protein targets, try tracking it for three days. Most people find the gap is larger than they expected. If you're not sure which Innermost product fits your specific goal, the quiz on our site is a good place to start.
Find the right protein for your goal
