4 benefits of meal replacement shakes in weight loss

When it comes to dieting, there is a wide range of products that helps people keep control of their calorie intake and achieve their goals, including protein shakes and meal replacement drinks. But it is normal to often confuse these two.  In this article we will explain the benefits of meal replacements for weight-loss, how they differ from protein shakes and how to make sure you keep the intake of important nutrients for your body.

The basics of weight loss: Calorie deficit

The equation for weight-loss is simple, the number of calories consumed should be less than the number of calories burned, and this will create a calorie deficit in your body. For most people, a deficit of 500 calories would be enough to get into a weight-loss state, but it is important to know where the calories are coming from and where are they being spent.

For an appropriate calorie calculation, a starting point is to know your basal metabolic rate, which represents the amount of calories your body will burn when it is at a resting state. Then you can add the calories that your body consumes throughout the day and the physical activity you perform. That will give you the total amount of calories you must consume on a given day to maintain weight. But as your goal is you lose weight, this is the number from which you will deduct calories to create a deficit.

For example, if your total calorie expenditure were of 2000 calories, your goal would be to create a deficit of 500 and consume 1500 calories per day. It is important to highlight two things, first that no deficit should be introduced abruptly but slowly until reaching the desired about, and second that no decision like this should be made without consulting with a professional first, in order to ensure that the body is prepared to deal with the deficit. One extra caution is that you should never consume less than 1200 calories.

Meal replacement shake or protein shake?

These two are often confused with each other but, in simple words, the difference lies on their nutritional composition.

Protein shakes should NOT be consumed with the intention of replacing a meal, as their role is to support protein intake in a diet designed to gain muscle and improve sports performance; using a protein shake as a meal you’ll be missing other important nutrients that should be part of your diet. In comparison, meal replacement drinks are designed to help with weight control by reducing the amount of fat, carbs and sugar consumed, but still managing to provide other important nutrients such as vitamins and antioxidants.

As both have different purposes, you can include them in your daily routine. A protein shake is recommended after workout or in between meals to supplement the daily protein intake, while the meal replacement is used, as its name implies, at regular mealtime in order to replace it. Meal replacements are commonly taken in the evening to replace dinner, as it is a great way to reduce fats and carbs consumed during the night and the calorie intake before going to sleep.

Benefits of meal replacement shakes

Contains all the nutrients your body needs in diet

As meal replacement drinks are designed to work as a full meal, they are designed with the nutrients that would normally be present in your dinner. These supplements are usually fortified with protein, fiber and essential vitamins and minerals such as calcium, potassium, iron and vitamin D. This way you can manage to meet your nutritional needs while still keeping the amount of calories under control.

But don’t rely too much on this, meal replacements are an excellent solution during a specific period of time; for example, during the summer months to achieve that shredded look at the beach. But they must not be taken as a long-term strategy as a constant low-calorie state can be harmful for the body.

To ensure your meal replacement is supporting your diet and still be providing the nutrients you need, you must look for:

• 15 grams or more of protein per serving

• 3 grams or more of fiber per serving

• Less than 10 grams of sugar per serving

• No corn syrup

• No hydrogenated vegetable oils

• A contribution of at least 33% of the Daily Value for vitamins and minerals

Meal replacements are high in protein

There are plenty of reasons for why it is good to consume a lot of protein during a diet. In order to reduce calorie intake during a diet, you need to reduce the amount of carbohydrates and fats you consume. The good news is that this will get your body to consume your stored fat as energy, but the bad news is that our body will also target your muscles are a source of energy. By increasing your protein intake, you can protect your muscles from being eaten up.

In addition, processing protein is an energy-consuming task, which maintains the pace of your metabolism, and you won’t store reserves and fall into the trap of yo-yo dieting.  Consuming protein is an excellent way to continue burning fat and still get to keep your quality muscle tissue.

Can reduce sugar craving

Meal replacement shakes can keep blood sugar stable, making it a great option instead of your daily dessert. Also, as some people tend to simply skip a meal in an attempt to lose weight, it is normal for their blood sugar levels to increase as consequence, but changing this habit to the consumption of a meal replacement drink can help to balance out our blood sugars and keep your appetite under control.

The above mentioned benefit of protein also plays a role here, as protein will help you feel satiated for a longer time, reducing the need of unnecessary snacks and craving unhealthy foods that can affect the progress of your diet.

Can help you to lose weight faster

This is practically a consequence of all the previous benefits of consuming meal replacement shakes. As a result of cutting your carbs and fats, feeling satiated for a longer period of time, reducing the amount of sugars consumed, and protecting muscle tissue which also consumes calories, your weight-loss journey will be totally supported and you will be closer to your fitness goals.

Meal replacements will make you feel full and give you all the nutrients that you’d find a regular meal, but in a proportion that further supports your weight-loss. In addition, counting with a meal replacing meal can be easier than a strict and limited diet. This doesn’t go without saying that meal replacements should not be abused, should not replace a balanced diet and should not be used without a proper calorie calculation to make sure your body is receiving the amount of nutrients and calories needed.

Haven’t found a good meal replacement? Try Ultra Loss Diet Shake from BioTechUSA!

A supplement that could help the fitness minded women with their training and health journey would be BioTechUSA’s Ultra Loss supplement.

Ultra Loss is a fine tasting dietary replacement and meal shake that is packed with vitamins and minerals and will aid your overall healthy feeling with each time you take it. One serving of Ultra Loss only contains 106 calories making it an ideal replacement for one of your main meals in a day, meaning you’ll be keeping your target calorie intake as low as you can whilst aiding your entire digestive system.

Per serving (30 g):

• 106 kcal

• 17 g protein

• 4,5 g carbohydrate

• 4.8 g fiber

• 1.4 g fat

• 159 mg bromelain protein-digesting enzyme

• 11 vitamins

• Calcium and magnesium

• 105 mg green coffee extract

• 309 mg L-Carnitine L-tartrate

• Hyaluronic acid and coenzyme Q10