What I Actually Eat in a Busy Week

When your office starts at 8 in the morning, and 2 eggs just don’t cut it for breakfast, you need to find something that’s wholesome and fulfilling. That being the case, I found my comfort zone in TheWholeTruth‘s protein shake. One scoop into a glass of milk, into the shaker, and you’re good to go.

That’s 30g of protein packed into a single shaker — roughly 24g from the powder and 6g from the milk itself — and it works wonderfully to keep me full for a good 3-4 hours. As for calories, you’re looking at around 100-120 kcal from the scoop alone, and another 100-150 depending on whether you go with full-cream, toned, or skimmed milk. So realistically, a full glass lands somewhere between 220-270 kcal — not bad for something that replaces an entire cooked breakfast.

Do I Crave Something Else?

Some days, yes! I mostly crave something salty, since the shake is sweet in nature (but without the sugar). So when the craving hits, I don’t resort to packaged snacks — I rely on roasted peanuts, roasted makhana, or even salted yogurt for a quick sodium fix. And no, these aren’t store-bought either. I make them at home, simply in my air fryer — hands down my best kitchen investment to date, trust me. If you are interested, you can check out my healthy air fryer recipes here.

Is It Better Than Other Protein Shakes I’ve Tried?

Before this one, I’d tried Herbalife, and I was hooked on the taste of their kulfi flavor. But after a year or so, I grew out of it. After that, I tried a plant protein from Green Protein — I’d ordered their assorted box of flavors, and I won’t lie, I hated the taste.

Then I tried TheWholeTruth’s protein powder, and I fell in love. It’s been more than two years now, and I still use this one — I just keep rotating the flavors. Started with coffee, moved on to pista badam, and now I’m settled on cocoa, which honestly tastes delicious.

Recipes

Here’s the thing about sticking with a protein powder for two years — you stop treating it as a “fitness supplement” and start treating it as an ingredient, the same way you’d treat milk or eggs. Somewhere between the coffee phase and the cocoa phase, I stopped just shaking it in a glass and started throwing it into whatever I was already making. A pudding I was prepping the night before. A kulfi I was missing from home. Even my regular hot chocolate. None of these started as “protein recipes” — they started as me trying to sneak more protein into things I was making anyway, and they just stuck. These are the five that made the cut and are still in weekly rotation.

1. High Protein Chia Seed Pudding

Serves 1 · Prep: 5 min (+ overnight rest)

Ingredients

• 1 scoop chocolate protein powder
• 200-250 ml milk (any variety)
• 1 tbsp chia seeds
• Fresh fruit and seeds of your choice, for topping

Method

1. In a jar or glass, whisk the protein powder into the milk until fully dissolved with no lumps.
2. Stir in the chia seeds and mix well so they don’t clump together.
3. Cover and refrigerate overnight, giving it a stir once if you remember before bed.
4. In the morning, the mixture should have thickened into a pudding consistency. Top with fruits and seeds of your choice and enjoy cold.

2. High Protein Rasmalai

Serves 2 · Prep: 20 min + 2 hrs chilling

Ingredients

• 200g fresh chenna (cottage cheese), homemade or store-bought
• 500 ml milk
• 1-2 scoops pista badam protein powder (adjust to taste)
• Water, for boiling

Method

1. Mash the chenna well with the heel of your palm until smooth and slightly sticky — this step matters for texture, so don’t rush it.
2. Shape the chenna into small, evenly-sized balls, gently flattening each between your palms.
3. Bring a pot of water to a boil and drop the balls in. Boil for 8-10 minutes, until they float to the surface and roughly double in size.
4. Meanwhile, warm the milk in a separate pan and whisk in the pista badam protein powder to your preferred consistency and sweetness.
5. Once the chenna balls are done, gently squeeze out the excess water from each one.
6. Add the squeezed balls into the milk mixture and let them soak.
7. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours so the balls absorb the flavored milk.
8. Serve chilled — homemade rasmalai, without the usual sugar load.

3. High Protein Kulfi

Serves 2-3 · Prep: 30 min + 4 hrs freezing

Ingredients

• 500 ml full cream milk
• 1 scoop pista badam protein powder (plus more to taste)
• Monk fruit sweetener or any non-caloric sweetener, to taste
• Chopped pistachios and almonds, for garnish (optional)

Method

1. Pour the milk into a heavy-bottomed pan and simmer on low-medium heat, stirring occasionally to prevent it from sticking or burning.
2. Let it reduce down to about three-quarters of its original volume — this will take a while, so be patient and keep stirring.
3. Once reduced, stir in one scoop of the pista badam protein powder.
4. Taste and adjust — add more protein powder gradually if you want a stronger flavor, and monk fruit sweetener if you’d like it sweeter, keeping the calorie count in check.
5. Let the mixture cool to room temperature, then pour into kulfi moulds or small cups.
6. Freeze for at least 4 hours, or until fully set.
7. Garnish with chopped pistachios and almonds before serving.

4. High Protein Hot Chocolate

Serves 1 · Prep: 5 min

Ingredients

• 200-250 ml milk
• 1 tsp cocoa powder
• ½-1 scoop cocoa protein powder (depending on how strong you like it)

Method

1. Heat the milk in a small saucepan over medium heat.
2. Whisk in the cocoa powder and protein powder, making sure there are no lumps.
3. Let it come to a gentle simmer, whisking occasionally, until it reaches your desired consistency.
4. Turn off the flame, pour into your favorite mug, and enjoy warm.

5. High Protein Iced Latte

Serves 1 · Prep: 5 min

Ingredients

• 1-2 shots espresso
• Ice cubes, as needed
• Skimmed milk (or milk of your choice)
• Optional: ½ scoop protein powder, for a shake-like version

Method

1. Pour the espresso shot(s) into a glass of your choice.
2. Fill the glass with ice cubes.
3. Top up with skimmed milk and give it a good stir.
4. For a thicker, milkshake-like consistency, skip the glass method — instead, blend the espresso, ice, milk, and protein powder together until smooth and frothy.

The Bottom Line

I didn’t set out to build my week around a tub of protein powder. It happened because the shake solved a real 8 AM problem, and then the flavors were good enough that I kept finding excuses to use them — in a mug, in a mould, in a jar left in the fridge overnight. Two years and three flavor rotations later, that’s really the test for me: not whether something is “healthy” on paper, but whether it’s still there on my counter when the busy weeks pile up, and the motivation to cook properly disappears. This one’s still there. If you try even one of these — start with the chia pudding, it’s the easiest — I’d love to know how it turns out for you.