Supplement NOT Replacement

In order to find the right protein powder for the customers that come in to see me I tend to ask a lot of questions, as there are many types of protein powders to suit different individual goals and needs. One of the most common questions I ask is “What times of the day would you usually take your protein?”  .. The responses I get vary from just post workout, post workout and before bed… but the most common answer I get is “As a Meal replacement”. Now this isn’t so bad when its someone who is trying to gain weight and cant always find time or have the stomach to eat the immense amount of food they need for to reach their calorie intake quota (still not ideal better than not eating) as they would be taking a heavy weight gainer jam packed with high protein, mass amounts of carbs and high sugars at 600-1200—cals a serve!!! (whoa that at least 3 meals of mine in one lol ).

 But the majority of people I see want to either lean down or simply put on lean muscle whilst staying as lean as possible. This mean they will generally need a low carb protein powder at about 100-140cals per serve with only about 20-30g protein under 10g carbs (usually 5g or less). This is NOT sufficient enough to sustain you for a meal .. You wouldn’t go and eat just a piece of chicken for lunch would you? But there’s a bit more to it than that….

Now some of you might be thinking “but real meal replacements have all of my nutrients, carbs, vitamins, protein” etc etc to sustain me for a meal … But here is why (In my option) meal replacements simply do not work………

Now we have all been there done that and IV tried my fare share of “Very Low Calorie Diets” (VLCD’s) in the past with a mission to drop a few Kg’s! It’s the diets that emphasise that LIQUID nutrition and de-emphasise whole foods with the result of promoting weight loss FAST! While this seems like the ultimate healthy quick fix, in actual fact is one of the worst things you could ever do to your body and your metabolism in the long term and here’s why:

Firstly very low calorie diets whether you are using a diet formula or low calorie protein shake to replace your meals (or even simply not eating enough during the day) will trigger the body to respond as if the person is starving … which triggers the defense mechanism to conserve energy (store that unwanted fat) and preparing to gain weight at the first opportunity! Sound familiar? These liquid diets or replacing your meals with shakes can give you dramatic weight loss quickly but will give your even MORE dramatic weight REGAIN afterwards along with psychological damage that comes with it!

Sorry to burst your bubble but there is NO quick fix … At the end of the day if you want results they don’t come fast and they don’t come easy .. they take hard work with  good consistent nutrition and exercise!!

So now to get to my point of lean protein powders…

If your wondering why your working out like crazy and not seeing the results you want, then its likely that you aren’t getting enough protein in your diet … especially around training times.

Why?

Protein has the amino acids that are important for building and maintaining lean muscle. (Or girls that more toned look! You WONT get bulky)

So the main time to take your shakes is after your workout to allow your body to absorb the protein quickly in order to trigger repair and recovery. If your body cant recover it needs to pull energy from somewhere so it will burn away muscle for energy before it burns the fat.  In a nutshell a protein shake helps prevent muscle breakdown ….  fast recovery = lean muscle growth = more fat burn = sexy toned bikini body!!

But to get the results you want, protein is essential to your entire daily diet

But they do NOT work as Meal REPLACEMENTS like mentioned before.  Whole food meals instead of meal replacements boost your metabolism as your body burns a certain amount of calories just to break them down. So adding whole food protein to most meals not only helps continually recover and fuel your muscles but actual helps boost your metabolism as your body uses about 30% of the calories from your protein just to digest it and break it down!

But not every one has the time or  the desire eat meat or eggs in every meal (unless you’re a fitness competitor and then you just have no choice haha) so adding a protein powder to a meal is a great way (and yummy way!) to get your protein intake. But treat your lean protein powder at the “protein component” of your meal …. Firstly having it on its own will not sustain you for long enough as its JUST protein and secondly adding whole foods such as oats, fruit, nuts, veggies with your shake use more calories to break down and will keep you fuller for longer as you are getting a COMPLETE meal with all the nutrients your body needs.

So ditch those meal replacements and the idea of using liquids shakes (either protein shakes or just “meal” shakes) and adjust your lifestyle to eating wholesome unprocessed foods and use your supplements as just that … an addition to your healthy diet to help your body get everything it needs if you cant get it all from food.

Shakes = Meal additions and pre/post workout recovery!!

(Unless you use a casein based protein before bed but that’s a whole other story)

Hope to see some more of you in the Muscle Worx Stores!!

Train Hard

Nini xxxx