I've just recently started working out and I've been told that it would be a good idea to replace one or two meals a day with meal replacement bars or shakes. Like maybe have a protien bar for breakfast. I know they are terrible as a snack but if I use them as reccomened and replace and entire meal with this will it help me? Has anyone used them before?
Personally I'd stick to whole foods like vegetables, lean protein and whole grains and avoid refined carbohydrates because they are empty calories. If you are going to use a supplement, make sure it's not a candy bar in disguise, which many of them are. If you are lifting, whey protein is a good, easy and economical way to supplement your protein intake. What are your goals? Are you trying to gain weight or lose weight?
Yea I'm trying to gain muscle and lose weight, the people at the gym suggested the protien bars because it would be less carlories then my normal lunch and give me the protien for my muscles. ---------- Post added 3rd Jul 2012 at 06:46 PM ---------- Gotta get in good enough shape to drive all the boys crazy =P
No, it is an awful idea. Who is telling you this? The same people who would be selling them to you? You shouldn't replace an entire meal with some protein supplement. The hint is in their name - they should supplement your diet (and even then you almost certainly don't need them anyway, you should be getting adequate amounts of protein from your normal food). Three things will happen if you do this: You will lose out on all of the nutritional value that you get from eating a normal meal. Protein supplements do not provide any of this for you. You need a proper diet that provides you with a well-rounded nutritional intake for general health. You will end up consuming more energy due to snacking, because replacing an entire meal with a small protein bar will just leave you hungry. About an hour afterwards, you'll start grazing on food because you are still hungry and overall will probably end up consuming more energy than you would have if you just ate a proper meal in the first place. When you stop this meal replacement, you'll have trouble readjusting to eating properly again. This would probably lead to gaining the weight back again as you return to the food that you'd been unhealthily restricting yourself from. Any change to your diet should be something that you can sustain for the rest of your life that will be healthier for you. This is neither.
My goals are to gain weight (hopefully muscle), so what I do is lift, eat, rest and eat. So I can't really relate what I do to what you are trying to accomplish. My advice still stands, though, check what's in that supplement. Also, lift and lift with correct form. You may want to check the Starting Strength wiki, it has some info on nutrition tailored to different goals. I believe it also has links to other resources.
^^Pretty much this. The best source of nutrition for someone who is active is a balanced diet. Protein bars are fine for between-meal snacks like if you have a class and just need a quick boost until you have lunch or dinner. It should never replace a meal. Pay attention to the calorie content of bars and shakes, though. Most of the time unless you're a very serious bodybuilder or athlete, you don't need the extra calories.
I agree with you. Just stick to whole, natural foods. Replacing meals with shakes and protien bars is an OK decision for people on a budget. Organic, healthy foods are really expensive.
