by
Chelle on Friday, March 11th, 2011 |
No Comments
People are all the time asking me about meal replacement shakes for weight loss in their new healthy routine. Everybody does need to have some sort of option for a quick meal on-the-go or as you’re running out the door in the morning. Obviously, there are a ridiculous number of products on the market. And thanks to some clever marketing by health and fitness companies, the information is chaotic and confusing at best. So what I am attempting to demystify this and make a solid recommendation (although completely biased 
) on what product you should purchase if you are serious about using a meal replacement shake to help you lose weight.
One of the most common misconceptions among people is that protein shakes and meal replacement shakes are the same thing. I can assure you that this is not the case…not even close really. Most protein shakes lack the essential nutrition that is necessary to be seriously considered as a meal replacement alternative. If you don’t believe me let’s compare ingredients of my favorite product
Shakeology and a basic off the shelf protein shake that you might by at ABC nutrition store in your local mall:
First let’s take a look at the standard Whey Protein Shake
Off the shelf Protein from ABC Nutrition Store
Now let’s take a look at a true meal replacement shake for weight loss!
- Shakeology Nutrition Facts
If you took a little bit of time to glance at those two labels, the difference becomes quite obvious doesn’t it? Not to say that a protein shake doesn’t have its place in your healthy lifestyle…it does for sure. But many people mistakenly compare an inexpensive protein shake to a full
meal replacement shake because they both come in powder form I guess.
Actually, I’m sure that you could lose a fair amount of weight if you used protein shakes as a meal replacement but the downside is that you would be starving all the time because of the low nutritional value. Also you would essentially be dieting or losing weight through malnutrition…which is generally not a good idea!
The goal in choosing a meal replacement shake for weight loss is to choose the product that allows you to have a balanced meal conveniently and that will keep you full until you have time for your next meal. Many people will ask me if Shakeology will actually satisfy them and keep them from being hungry because other things they’ve tried in the past didn’t work to keep them satisfied.
So my advice to folks is always the same. If you don’t think the shake will fill you up, take some other food with you to work or in the car just in case you become ravenously hungry and can’t contain yourself! More often than not, I get phone calls saying they were amazed at how satisfied and full they felt after a glass of Shakeology.
