Protein Shakes, Do They Actually Work?
Category: Healthy Nutrition
You may have seen a lot of weight loss programs that promote the use of their protein shakes to help with the weight loss journey. And I know that when I started seeing this I thought, “here we go, the world has lost its mind.” Then in 2009, I partnered with Shaklee. Guess what they had? A weight management program that promoted the use of protein shake and bars.
For the first 3 years, I never did the program, even though I did have a few lbs I wanted to shed. I used some of the products that are in the weight management program but not for the intention of releasing weight.
Then 2012 came around and I had my 2nd child that September. I had found out that my cousin who also happens to be my best friend was engaged and was getting married in July of 2013, and asked me to be her maid of honor! I was so stinking excited. Of course, I said yes!
I had put on a few pounds during pregnancy, more than my first child. And with this coming up about 9 months away, it gave me some motivation to get into better shape. I decided to try the weight management program Shaklee had, but actually use it the way it was intended.
I didn’t start right away because I was still in recovery after giving birth and I had to make sure I wasn’t going to jeopardize my health and my daughters healthy. So I took my time to recover.
Once my daughter and I got past recovery, it was go-time. I started working out again and started following the 180 programs to the T. It was 2 of the meal products from the program, 2 snacks, one from the products and one that I make and then one healthy meal that I make.
Here’s what surprised me. The shakes and meal bars actually helped and not once did I feel hungry or deprived. My cravings for chocolate and chips were decreasing. I felt satisfied!
So here were my results! I decided to get a dress two sizes smaller than what I was currently at. I actually fit in the dress after two months!! That is a month sooner than my original plan!
But here’s the really cool part, I only lost 10 lbs. It was the inches that I lost that made all the difference. And that is what I love, now, about the 180 program, the focus is on losing the fat and keeping the muscle. And when you use it in conjunction with resistance exercise the results are incredible.
Now you’re probably wondering what happened after the wedding. Did I keep it off?? YES, I did! I kept it off till I got pregnant with my third child a year and a half later. the best part was, I didn’t have to work too hard at keeping it off. “How is that possible?” You may ask. Well because I gained lean muscle and lost the fat, my metabolism got turned on to high. That is really the key, making sure you are not losing muscle mass.
This is why most diets that focus on calorie restriction don’t’ work as well after the weight loss portion. There is too much muscle loss which slows your metabolism making is harder to keep the weight off.
So there you have it! That is my experience going from a Skeptical Sally to a Believing Beverly. I’m not saying that you can’t gain it back with a program like this, you can. It does come down to making good decisions food wise after the fact, but I tell you it was a lot easier than anything I have ever tried and I felt amazing.
I hope you found this information fascinating. Do keep in mind that this is one study. If you’d like to hear the full presentation of the study done by Quincy College that Dr. Wayne Westcott and I did you can watch it here.
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