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| weight loss shakes |
I recently had a chat with a client about his breakfast habits. His food diary read "a shake" every morning of the week and despite repeated encouragement to have something a little more substantial it was the one thing we wasn't willing to budge on. I compromised and said I was willing to let the breakfast thing slide if he was willing to give up the fruit juice in the evening with his dinner. He agreed and we both went away feeling like we hadn't given up too much ground in the PT / Client battle for clean eating vs. habits and luxuries.
It was a couple of weeks later that we were having a chat in the studio with another trainer when the subject of the "the shake" came up again and the name of a popular weight loss brand was mentioned. Not being an aussie resident for very long and tending to ignore the typical weight loss sales and marketing it didn't ring any alarm bells but by the look on my colleague's face I knew some investigation was required. The client was asked to bring in the name brand weight loss supplement so we could have a look at it which he duly did. What immediately jumped out at me was the sugar content - in just one serving there was over 25g of sugar! That is the equivalent of a kitkat chocolate bar or 5 tea spoons of sugar!! I then looked at the ingredients and they started with milk solids, fructose, cocoa and vegetable fat but also included such gems as maltodextrin, thickeners, glucose syrup, flavour, emulsifiers, anticaking agents, antioxidant.
Not exactly the sort of things you find in healthy whole foods - anti caking agents in particular. They have been linked to stomach cancer and the typical products they are found in are polished rice, chocolate, confectionary, icing sugar, noodles and medicinal tablets!
These shakes have been heavily and very cleverly marketed and suck people in by using tactics like attaching themselves to high profile TV shows centred around weight loss for example. They are popular and have helped many people lose a lot of weight but is it the type of weight they really wanted to lose???
Our bodies are not just made up of a number of kilos, they consist of muscle, fat, bones, organs, weight loss by the near starvation methods these shakes promote wastes a lot of muscle along with a bit of fat. Muscle is what burns calories for us - the more muscle we have, the faster our metabolism and easier it is to stay in shape. Losing a lot of kilos through shakes will only double the speed we put it back on when we go back to a normal diet because of all the muscle we lost... then we would be a classic example of the "yoyo effect" and essentially be skinny and fat at the same time, great combo right!!!???
Speeding up your metabolism and turning your body into a fat burning machine is the healthiest and most sustainable way to lose weight. To do that you have to eat REAL food. Feeding your body the right things on a regular basis (every 3 hours or so) alongside strength training is the best way to get your metabolism firing.
My advice as a personal trainer and someone who cares about their body and what they put into it is to avoid meal replacement shakes and supplements and opt for one of the healthy alternatives below.
1) DIP INTO SOME HUMMUS
Cut up some carrots and cucumber and serve with hummus. This dip (made from pureed chickpeas with garlic, olive oil and lemon juice) is a great source of good fats, low energy carbs, protein and is also high in fibre, folate, magnesium, phosphorus, copper and a very good source of manganese.
2) GO NUTS!
Nuts and seeds in general provide lots of protein, those good Omega 3 fats, fibre and many essential vitamins and minerals like A, E, phosphorous and potassium. Careful on the dosage though, nuts especially can be very calorific and contain lots of carbs, a handful should be more than enough. Go for almonds, walnuts and pumpkin seeds for the best results.
3) SHAKE IT UP
There are whey (essentially a derivative of milk) protein shakes out there that deliver a huge hit of protein with minuscule amounts of fat and carbs. Go for a low carb/high protein option made by a name brand like Redback and have it with a nice fresh apple. Your body will love you for the hit of specifically designed combination of essential amino acids which make up the structure of our muscles. For the vegans and purists out there go to your local good organic store and ask for natural protein supplements made from soy. They aren't as effective but will at least leave you with a clear conscious.
4) THE PLAY TEAM SPECIAL
Walk into the kitchen of our studio and you will almost inevitably find one of the PLAY trainers tucking into a bowl of sweet potato, broccoli and tuna. It is a PLAY favourite for a number of reasons; the low energy, low GI carb source sweet potato gives us the energy to run session after session. Leafy veg broccoli provides minerals, vitamins and helps with the absorption and utilisation of protein and of course keeps our bowels clean and healthy. Then there is the tuna, one of the purest source of protein around and a superb source of Omega 3's. What could possibly go wrong... apart from the smell of fish but our clients get used to that pretty quickly!
5) HAVE YOUR CAKE AND EAT IT!
Oat cakes to be precise, oats are an awesome form of slow burning, low GI carbs and when they come in this little biscuit form it is perfect for an easily portable mid morning snack. Slap some low fat cottage cheese on top for a high dose of casein protein (slow release) and calcium and you will feel full and energised all the way till lunch time.
These nutritious and delicious options will keep your metabolism firing at a rapid rate and your hunger at bay. This will help you to gradually lose the kilos in the right way and keep them off for good.
Nick Randall is a Personal Trainer with PLAY - Fun, Fitness and Performance based on the Sunshine Coast in Australia. I am very passionate about healthy eating, exercise and overall well being and my life revolves around keeping the health of myself and others in the best condition possible. I love writing about these subjects and as a result my work comes straight from the heart and is normally just general thoughts and musings put down onto paper.
Other interests include golf, surfing, reading, chess and watching practically all forms of sport on TV!
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