Instead of starving yourself and “just not eating”, meal replacement shakes let you restrict your caloric intake while still getting the daily nutrients you need.
When combined with a healthy diet and exercise routine (and a strong will), meal replacement shakes can be an extremely effective way to lose weight and become healthier.
When used incorrectly, however, meal replacement shakes can lead to binge eating, poor diet results, and other problems.
What Are Some Characteristics of a Meal Replacement Shake?
Meal replacement shakes come in all shapes, sizes, and varieties. Some people add a few pieces of frozen fruit to a glass of milk and call it a meal replacement shake. However, most meal replacement shakes share a few common characteristics, including:
— Made With Skim Milk Or Skim Milk Powder
— High In Protein And Fiber (to Keep You Satisfied And Full)
— Very Low In Fat
— High In Energy, With Around 200 To 300 Calories Per Serving
Are Meal Replacement Shakes Nutritionally Complete?
Typically, meal replacement shakes are not nutritionally complete. You cannot live solely off meal replacement shakes because they don’t provide all of the vitamins, minerals, and nutrients your body needs to function properly.
With that in mind, eating meal replacement shakes to complement an unhealthy diet can leave you with some serious vitamin and mineral deficiencies.
Like all diets, it’s best to consult a medical professional before you begin taking meal replacement shakes regularly.
Most dieticians or doctors will recommend replacing one or two meals per day with a meal replacement shake or other meal replacement food item.
Advantages of Meal Replacement Shakes
— Portion-Controlled. Limit the amount of energy you consume and avoid overeating or going back for a second helping.
— Designed to Be Filling. You’ll probably feel hungrier than if you had eaten a normal meal, but you’ll feel significantly less hungry than if you hadn’t eaten at all. Meal replacement shakes rich in protein and fiber help your body feel full.
— Fast and Convenient. Prepackage your meal replacement shakes throughout the day and drink them whenever is convenient for you. It’s a fast and (nearly) complete meal.
— Tasty and Varied. If you’re making your own meal replacement shakes, then you can mix things up easily using different fruits, vegetables, juices, and other flavors. Even if you’re purchasing pre-packaged meal replacement shakes, you can usually find a variety of flavors and ingredients.
— Avoid Planning your Meals. A hard part of any diet is constantly planning (and buying ingredients for) healthy meals. Meal replacement shakes make planning easy.
Disadvantages of Meal Replacement Shakes
— Not Nutritionally Complete. Typically, you can’t get all of your required vitamins and nutrients from a meal replacement shake.
— You Still Need Self-Control. Meal replacement shakes aren’t an instant weight loss tool. Just because you’re drinking meal replacement shakes for lunch doesn’t mean you can eat more during breakfast and dinner. You still need a healthy diet and exercise routine if you want results.
— Expensive. Depending from where you buy them, meal replacement shakes can be relatively expensive, costing between $3 and $7 per serving. Even making your own meal replacement shakes at home can be expensive depending on your ingredients.
— Lack of Variety on Certain Shake Programs. If you’re buying pre-packaged meal replacement shakes, then you may get bored by the lack of variety. There are only so many times you can switch between chocolate, vanilla, and strawberry meal replacement shakes before you start to get bored.
— Side Effects. Some meal replacement shakes can cause serious side effects for those with liver or kidney problems, or they may negatively interact with diabetes medication.
— Lack of Thermogenic Effect. One relatively unknown downside of meal replacement shakes is the thermogenic effect, which doesn’t kick into action with meal replacement shakes. The problem is that meal replacement shakes are easily absorbed by your body with minimal effort by your digestive system. That means your body spends less energy absorbing this food than it would if you were to eat, say, a whole meal.
Popular Types of Meal Replacement Shakes
You can make your own meal replacement shakes today, or you can buy meal replacement shakes from a wide variety of nutritional supplement manufacturers. Some of the popular nutritional supplement manufacturers available today include:
— Ultraslim
— The Biggest Loser Club
— Optifast
— Nature’s Way Slimright
— Optislim Life LCD
We will cover our best and most popular meal replacement drinks below in-depth.
How to Make Your Own Meal Replacement Shake
If you don’t want to purchase pre-packaged meal replacement shakes from these above vendors, then your next best option is to buy a good blender. If you’re going small, then the Magic Bullet is a great choice. If you’re going large, then the Vitamix blenders are more expensive, but will help you blend just about anything.
After that, run through the next few steps to make a healthy, balanced meal replacement shake:
Step 1) Choose a Liquid
Water, almond milk (unsweetened), dairy milk, soy milk (unsweetened), hemp milk (unsweetened), and iced green tea are all popular options when picking a liquid for your meal replacement shake.
The more liquid you use, the thinner your shake will be. 4 to 8 ounces of liquid is a good starting point.
Step 2) Pick a Protein Powder
Adding a scoop of protein powder to your meal replacement shake turns it from a fruity milk drink into a genuine meal replacement. Protein helps you feel full, and without protein, you’re going to be hungry 30 to 60 minutes after drinking your “meal replacement” shake.
Popular proteins include whey, casein, pea, rice, hemp, and other blends.
Some protein powders can also contain thickeners to help thicken your shake, which can make you feel fuller. 1 to 2 scoops (25 to 50 grams) of the protein powder of your choice should be perfect.
Step 3) Pick a Vegetable
Not everybody likes vegetables in their meal replacement shakes, but it’s a good way to boost the nutritional profile of your shake and put it one step closer to becoming a complete meal.
Some of the popular vegetables include spinach (which is pretty much flavorless when added to the other ingredients listed here), pumpkin, sweet potato, Swiss chard, kale, beets, beet greens, cucumber, celery, and powdered greens supplements.
If you add “watery” vegetables like celery or cucumber, then you’ll need to use less liquid in your shake (all of the water contained in these vegetables will be released when you mix it, which can cause your shake to become watered down).
Aim to add 1 or 2 handfuls of vegetable to the shake.
Step 4) Pick a Fruit
Bananas are probably the most popular fruit to add to a meal replacement shake. Other options include apples, berries, cherries, dates, pineapple, mangos, or powdered fruit supplements.
Just like with vegetables, aim to add 1 or 2 handfuls of fruit to your shake.
Step 5) Pick a Healthy Fat
Fat is good for you – especially if you have been working out lots lately. Popular healthy fats that can be added to your meal replacement shake include walnuts, cashews, and almonds. Some people will also add a scoop of peanut butter or nut butter, or add seeds like flax, hemp, and chia seeds.
In any case, these nuts will give you your valuable fatty acids – like omega 3 and 6 fatty acids. Plus, when blended properly, they’ll give your shake a rich consistency.
Step 6) Pick a Topping
Some people like to add a little extra flavor to their meal replacement shakes in the form of a topping.
Some popular toppings you can add to your shake include coconut, dark chocolate nibs, yogurt, oats, granola, cinnamon, or ice cubes.
If you need a little extra carbs added to your daily diet, then oats are a great option. If you’re trying to reduce calories, then ice cubes are perfect. And yogurt is a great way to add more consistency and protein content while still drinking a healthy meal replacement.
By following the tips listed above, you’ll be a meal replacement shake expert in no time. Now, lets end our meal replacement shakes guide with the best drinks for losing weight and feeling great!
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