Meal Replacements for Muscle Building

What are Meal Replacements?
Meal replacements provide a high quality alternative to whole food and provide precise amounts of protein, carbohydrate, vitamins and minerals for optimum nutrition. Available in powders you mix into shakes, bars, and pre-mixed ready to drink formulas for convenience. Meal replacements are handy nutritious meal fillers, snacks or post workout meals and supply the best nutrients.

Benefits of meal replacement over whole food

• Takes the guess work out of eating right
• Convenient
• Can use 'on the go'
• Provides optimal amounts of nutrients
• Stops you reaching for high sugar/fat snacks
• Easy to use
• Perfect when you don't have time to prepare, cook and eat a meal
• Know exactly what you eating

Studies have shown that 5-6 smaller meals throughout the day are better than traditional 3 square meals. Smaller meals:

• Increase metabolic rate
• Stabilize blood sugar levels
• Enhance nutrient absorption

Effects of Meal Replacements on performance

Meal replacements used with training are a convenient, effective way to help you build your best body. Meal replacements alone will not result in achieving this but can assist in reaching different goals, from weight loss to muscle building. There are several varieties of MRPs that can assist with your different goals, such as:

• Long term weight loss
• Improved resting metabolic rate
• Preserving lean body mass on resistance weight loss programs
• Boost energy levels
• Support muscle growth
• Improve recovery after exercise
• Meal replacements should help you reach your goals if you are:
• Physically active
• Eating 5-6 meals a day
• On a weight loss program
• Resistance training
• Looking for a post workout recovery drink
• Strength and power training

How Meal Replacements improve performance
Meal replacements contain a blend of protein, carbohydrate, vitamins and minerals and are usually low in fat. The nutrients in meal replacements aid performance in the following way:

Protein repairs the muscles after exercise to improve recovery and provides an anabolic environment for muscle growth when consumed in the correct amounts. Carbohydrates supply energy during exercise and refuels your muscles after exercise. Vitamins and minerals support optimal health and wellbeing.Some meal replacements contain added ingredients, such as creatine. These provide a further stimulus that improves performance by their individual mechanisms.

How to use Meal Replacements

Meal replacements are designed to replace a meal, provide a snack 'on the go', or post workout recovery. MRP's should be used with whole food meals to provide a balanced nutritional diet. The amount you have depends on your training goals, what you eat during the day etc.

Meal replacements can be used alone, after training, or more frequently if you are trying to build muscle mass. We recommend no more than 2-3 a day in between 3 whole food meals.

Types of Meal Replacements
Meal replacements come in 3 main forms:

• Powders
• Nutrition bars
• Ready-to-drink

They follow the same principle but simply offer alternate ways to use them, each with small advantages and disadvantages.

Meal Replacement Bars

Meal replacement bars were designed for convenience. They can be used 'on the go', taken to the gym or kept in your drawer. Bars are ideal when you need a nutritious, tasty snack that stops you reaching for high sugar, high fat foods. MRP bars are higher in fat and have added ingredients over the powders and ready-to-drinks, such as glycerine.

Meal Replacement Ready to Drinks

Meal replacement ready to drinks are pre mixed nutrition shakes. They come in handy throw away cartons, perfect when you're out and about. They are similar to the MRP powders but tend to be less filling due to smaller volumes and less protein. Ready-to-drinks are a low fat alternative to meal replacement bars.     

Meal Replacement Powders

MRP powders mix with milk or water in a shaker or blender to produce a shake. Meal replacement powders are generally cheaper, have the best nutritional profile and are lower in fat than bars and RTD's. The downside is you do have to mix the shake up.

Meal Replacement by goal

Meal replacements cater for a variety of goals from weight loss to muscle building. Meal replacement powders, bars and ready-to-drinks can be divided into 3 categories:

• Weight loss
• Optimum nutrition
• Muscle building

Meal Replacements for Weight Loss

Meal replacements designed for weight loss contain fewer calories and carbohydrates per serving, compared to the rest. Recommended daily protein intake increases on a fat loss diet. The protein aids to satisfy hunger and prevent lean muscle loss.

Meal Replacements for optimum nutrition

MRP's for optimum nutrition are based on high protein content with equal to slightly less carbohydrate content. Typically they contain between 230-360 kcal, 30-45g protein, 11-35g carbohydrates. Vitamins, minerals and glutamine are generally added for wellbeing and muscle recovery.

Meal Replacements for muscle building

MRP's for muscle building are similar to those for optimum nutrition but contain added ingredients to promote muscle growth. Typically they contain between 290-348kcal, 32-53g protein, 11-28g carbohydrates. Added ingredients include:

• Creatine
• Branched chain amino acids (BCAA's)
• Colostrum
• Glutamine
• Medium chain triglycerides (MCT)
• Conjugated linoleic acid (CLA)
• Essential fatty acids (EFA's)