Category — Carbohydrates

Everybody has their own theories and methods when it comes to supplements. What they use, how much of it, and when is all based on personal experience and research. The key is to find out what works best for you. Because what might help me lose body fat, may not be what helps you.

Dr. Howard LeWine (M.D) from Harvard Medical School wrote an article a few weeks ago in which he outlines how vitamin and protein supplements are not necessarily beneficial and there is little evidence to support those claims. Now, I’m not a doctor and I’m not questioning Dr. LeWine’s credibility because I’m quite sure he can backup any of the arguments he has made. However, there’s something about being a highly conditioned athlete and knowing the limitations and needs of your own body.

For instance, a person looking to lose body fat and gain lean muscle mass needs high amounts of B-vitamins to sustain energy and convert food into energy. As Dr. LeWine says:

During exercise, more than the usual amounts of B vitamins are needed. These include thiamin, niacin, riboflavin, pyridoxine, and pantothenic acid. Enriched cereals and whole-grain carbohydrates combined with some lean meats will satisfy the needs of even the extreme athlete.

The only problem with that is when you’re trying to lose body fat and gain lean muscle you’re not going to rely on cereal and carbohydrates to sustain your energy. You’re going to limit the amount of carbohydrates (especially cereal because most of it is processed anyway) and concentrate on a high protein diet. That’s why supplementing with B-vitamins could be a good idea. The same is true for protein. You’re not going to comsume all of your protein by way of meat and nuts — if you do you’d be putting your health at risk. Instead, you supplement with protein powder and meal replacement shakes.

Don’t get me wrong, Dr. LeWine makes a lot of good points and even credits creatine as to having some value:

Creatine is the one amino acid that may have some athletic benefit. It contributes to rapid energy production and may enhance power or speed bursts that require short periods of anaerobic activity. It does not build muscle or increase endurance, and it can result in water retention. Long-term effects are unknown.

As I have discussed in previous posts, Kre-Alkalyn is the new generation of creatine. It’s a buffered type of creatine that is better absorbed in the body and doesn’t force you to retain water.

It’s true that many supplements are bogus because they don’t have to be approved by the FDA, but there are many good ones out there from reliable companies. So be sure to do your research before picking one. I agree with Dr. LeWine’s overall point that you should get the majority of your nutrition from food and not from supplements. However, there are cases when supplementing is beneficial. Especially cases where an individual is trying to lose weight and gain muscle.

Met-Rx has really cornered the market when it comes to meal replacement and protein bars. They ususally have the best tasting products and these bars are no exception. The Big 100 Colossal Meal Replacement Bars come in four flavors (Super Cookie Crunch, Crispy Apple Pie, Peanut Butter Caramel Crunch, and the brand new Peanut Butter Pretzel). You could probably pick anyone of them out of a hat because they all taste great.

Depending on the flavor each bar has 31 or 32 grams of protein via Met-Rx’s exclusive Metamyosn protein blend consisting of whey isolate, whey concentrate, milk protein, egg whites, and L-Glutamine. They also contain between 10 and 40 percent of the recommended daily value of selected vitamins and minerals.

Let it be known that this is a true “meal” bar packing 410 or 420 calories per serving. People looking to gain lean muscle mass can replace a meal with one of these bars. Those looking to bulk up and make serious gains may want to combine this bar with their meal or use it as a snack between meals.  The only drawback to this bar is that the four flavors average 14 grams of fat per bar and 25 grams of sugar. Now, if you’re consuming a well-balanced diet then it shouldn’t be a problem. However, if you’re already consuming enough fat then you may want to look elsewhere.

Overall you’re probably not going to find a better tasting bar on the market today that packs this much quality protein.

Rating: 4.5 / 5

Serving Size: (Super Cookie Crunch flavor) 1 bar, Calories: 410, Total Fat: 14 g, Saturated Fat: 8 g, Cholesterol: 5 mg, Total Carbohydrates: 43 g, Dietary Fiber: 3 g, Protein: 32 g

Leah Perrier at Healthcastle.com lists the Top 5 Super Foods for Athletes. Not surprisingly, oatmeal is listed is given the top spot. The combination of whole grains, cholesterol fighting soluble fiber, and slow burning [good] carbohydrates make this the ultimate breakfast food.

Oatmeal works to maintain increased energy levels by slowing glucose absorption in the body. Steel cut oatmeal is oatmeal in its purest form, with minimal processing and no sugar added unlike some instant oatmeals.

Try McCann’s Steel Cut Irish Oatmeal with some berries!

MHP’s Macrobolic Meal Replacement shakes are loaded with muscle building nutrients. They have an exclusive Low Glycemic Carbohydrate Blend consisting of barley, oats, and oat fiber. They also boast an Essential Fatty Acid Blend that contains 78% Conjugated Linoleic Acid (CLA). One shake also contains 32 grams of protein made up of soy isolate, calcium caseinate, and whey concentrate.

MHP prides itself on the 45-35-20 nutritional ratio and refects this in all of their products. This means a diet consisting of 45% calories from carbohydrates, 35 % of calories from protein, and 20% coming from fats.

The Meal Replacement Packets come in Vanilla Cream and Chocolate Fudge Brownie and it’s suggested that the packet be mixed with 10-12 ounces of cold water. Be sure to shake it up well or else you’ll be left with chunks of dried powder.

With the vast array of nutrients, vitamins, and muscle popping amino acids this shake has, the taste doesn’t quite match its contents. Chocolate is definitely the better tasting of two as the Vanilla leaves you with a bitter after taste. The saving grace of this MRP is definitely the high quality ingredients.

With less than 1 gram of sugar per packet this meal replacement will definitely provide you with everything you need for that post-workout replenishment or dinner on the run. However, the taste makes this one just average.

Rating : 3.0 / 5

Serving Size: 1 Packet, Calories: 350, Total Fat: 7 g, Saturated Fat: 1.5 g, Cholesterol: 5 mg, Total Carbohydrates: 39 g, Dietary Fiber: 6 g, Protein: 32 g