Have you ever browsed the VPA® online supplement shop and found yourself wondering, what exactly is VPA® Muscle Gainer, and how is it different to other products we sell? This blog will lay out the facts about this product and explain what it is, and who should use it.
What is mass gainer and should I use it?
April 07, 2020 3 min read
What is mass gainer?
VPA Muscle Gainer is a weight gainer supplement, which you may have also heard referred to as a mass gainer or bulking powder. Gainers are different to pure protein supplements like whey protein isolate (WPI), whey protein concentration (WPC) and casein, in that they combine protein with carbohydrate and fat to provide a high calorie and high protein supplement. They are often used by those on a bulk as an easy way of increasing calorie intake.
Who should use mass gainer?
Most people take protein supplements to build muscle or aid recovery. Under what circumstances would you choose a mass gainer over a pure protein supplement to achieve these goals? Have you heard the term “hard gainer” before? This term is used to describe people who find it difficult to add muscle mass or gain weight. To gain weight you need to be eating more calories than your body burns. Hard gainers often have a very high energy expenditure due to holding physically demanding jobs and putting many hours into training. In addition they find it difficult to eat enough food to provide the energy needed to promote muscle growth. This is where a gainer supplement can help; by providing a high number of drinkable calories and protein that can be added in addition someones usual diet.
Who shouldn’t use it?
It’s not for everyone. If you are trying to lose fat and gain muscle, then you shouldn’t use mass gainer. A better option in this case would be the pure whey powders WPI or WPC as these provide adequate protein without the added carbohydrate calories. This means you will access your fat stores for energy, helping you lose fat mass.
When should I use mass gainer?
You can take mass gainer before training, after training, or at any other time if you are needing to take in quick additional calories.
Taken before training the simple carbohydrates in mass gainers help fuel training and can help decrease the feeling of fatigue. This effect will be more pronounced if you have not eaten enough in the hours before training.
Taken after training, a mass gainer will rapidly start the muscle rebuilding process, and replenish glycogen energy stores within your muscle. Ingesting carbohydrate along with protein after you train actually accelerates the muscle repair and building process as the insulin spike helps shuttle amino acids into the muscles.
Taken as a snack or meal, mass gainers are a rapidly ingested and absorbed source of muscle building calories that can help you reach the daily calorie surplus required to build muscle mass.
What is the best mass gainer?
Ours is the best of course! The best muscle gainer should combine high quality Australian whey protein powder, easily digestible carbohydrate, and creatine for maximum muscle growth. Ours contains WPC, dextrose monohydrate, maltodextrin and creatine to maximise your muscle gain.
So there you have it, hopefully this helps you understand whether or not this product is for you. As always, please reach out to us if you have any questions about this or any of our other products.
Sally Mitchell
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