Athletes are notorious for their recovery shakes. There are so many out there that it's hard to discern which one is "best". A lot of it comes down to sponsorships, personal taste, personal food allergies, and taste and viscosity each of us perfer.
Unfortunately, too many powders out there are artificially sweetened, or at the very least, sweetened with stevia. The only vegan option that I've found to be great post workout is Vega as it has plenty of glutamine, and tastes fantastic. But it also has stevia. I use Vega after a workout when I've had enough carbs such as in a long ride where I'm constantly fueling, or after a short run or gym session where protein is my only concern to replenish.
For everything else, if I need something simple, nutritious, easy to digest, and that will keep me full and restore my body properly, I use RAW Meal.
Typically, I use one heaping scoop, or almost 1.5sc if say I just finished a hard/long morning swim and want to be refueled and satiated through lunch or later.
For days when I do a swim/bike/run brick I'll use Raw Meal as my post-shake. It's just too hard to beat the nutrients, protein content, and quality carbs! It'll hold me off until a proper dinner on a long IM training day while speeding up the recovery.
I also looove it when I'm traveling. I'll either have a whole jar in my backpack or for a quick trip, I buy the single serving packs.
So what should you mix it with? Well, thankfully it's not overly sweet as it has no sweeteners. So you can use your favorite juice, and throw in some frozen fruit. I like the commodity of plain coconut water- especially when I'm mixing in my car or at the airport. I use about 10-12oz for every 1scoop.
The caloric breakdown and nutrient profile also make it a great snack that beats any bar out there, just look for yourself:
