American Fitness Professionals & Associates

By: Matt Samuels, RD

Meal Replacement Powders (MRP) are a hot topic in the supplement industry.  Just as the high calorie “weight gainers” were prevalent in the late 80’s to early 90’s, the lower calorie MRPs are probably one of the most popular supplements among top competitive athletes today. Go to most of the respected major supplement companies and you will see professional athletes promoting their
MRPs. For instance, Met-Rx has Troy Aikman of the Dallas Cowboys, Junior Seau of the San Diego Chargers, triathletes Spencer Smith and Michellie Jones, and professional and amateur bodybuilders Ronnie Coleman and Frank Sepé.
Experimental and Applied Sciences (EAS) has such athletes as Shannon Sharpe, Dan Romanowski, and John Elway of the Superbowl champions Denver Broncos, Brady Anderson of the Baltimore Orioles, and “adventure-racer” Cathy Sassin. TwinLab has probably the most controversial bodybuilder of all time Mike Mentzer. The list goes on and on. The point is MRPs are a hot item
and are being used by numerous professional, as well as amateur and recreational athletes.

The question most people have is “Should I use MRPs?” Unfortunately, there’s not a universal answer to this question. It depends on your goals. First I will discuss just what MRPs are and then we can determine if they are suitable for you. 

The “Guts” of the MRPs

MRPs are essentially moderate-calorie shakes that are high in protein, low in fat, and have a modest amount of carbohydrates. Per serving these powders usually contain 250-300 calories, 35-45 gm of protein, 20-25 gm of carbohydrates, and 2-4 gm of fat. They also have between 50-100% of the RDAs for most of the major vitamins and minerals. Protein sources typically consist of whey,
calcium caseinate, milk protein isolates, sodium caseinate, and egg albumin, which are all derived from milk and egg. Carbohydrate sources usually consist of  maltodextrin (short glucose chains), corn syrup solids, or sucrose (table sugar).

Fat comes in the form of partially hydrogenated oils such as canola or coconut oils. For those of you who are “fat-phobic”, don’t let the partially hydrogenated oils in these products alarm you. Hopefully you stay away from other sources of  this fat (commonly found in chips, cookies, crackers, cakes, and any other “Westernized” processed food products). Therefore, the amount of fat in the
MRPs is so insignificant it really shouldn’t make a difference in your diet or health. 

Should I use MRPs?

Determining if you should use MRPs depends on your goals. These powders tend to be good for people who are trying to lose weight in the form of body fat, don’t care to eat foods that are high in protein such as meat, or don’t have a “clean” whole food intake. For instance, for someone to lose weight in the form of body fat while retaining muscle, a high protein, calorie deficient diet must be
consumed (unless they’re using exogenous hormones). A MRP can be beneficial in helping get sufficient protein while taking in a small amount of calories. People who don’t eat nutritious whole foods could also benefit by substituting a MRP for a typical high-fat, high-calorie meal. This would decrease their daily fat and caloric intake and increase their intake of vitamins and minerals. Also, $2 for a MRP is a lot cheaper than going to the drive through at McDonalds, especially when considering the nutritional quality of the MRPs.

MRPs could also be a waste of money for some. This would include the person who eats very well and has no trouble consuming their requirements for protein, vitamins, minerals, and has access to “clean” food as needed (usually every 3-4 hr). Remember that when an athlete is consuming enough calories to maintain or gain weight, their protein requirement is not as high as when they are training the same but eating at a below-maintenance calorie level. (For a discussion on protein requirements go here). This means that if they were consuming more than one MRP a day they would probably be eating excess protein. The above situations would lead to more money spent on something unnecessary.

Now that you have been presented with the above situations, you have to decide for yourself if MRPs are right for you. If you are someone who makes enough money to buy all the supplements you want and enjoys drinking your meals than by all means use them. However, if you don’t have much money to spare you might want to forgo the MRPs, or use one or two servings only on the days you train. I personally use one a day, taken immediately after my workout, to help meet my protein requirement and obtain extra glutamine. Besides, the MRPs of today taste exceptional compared to the older protein powders and weight gainers.