What is better mass protein or mass gainer? Gainer or protein, which is better for muscles? Video: which is better for gaining weight – gainer or protein?

Someone at the gym told you about it, but over time, as you continued to exercise and read sports blogs, you began to think it was better. Everything you knew about protein wheys and gainers needs to be rethought. In this article you will learn the difference between protein and gainer.

In short, whey protein is obtained during milk processing and cheese production. In fact, WPC (whey protein concentrate) is the purest form of protein. It is easily absorbed and quickly enters the bloodstream.

Protein supplements usually contain small amounts of carbohydrates and fat. Whey protein varieties are divided into several categories (in reverse order by the amount of protein they contain): Whey Protein Isolate, Whey Protein Concentrate, and Whey Protein Blend.

Why should you consume whey protein?

Whey protein is a time-tested nutritional supplement that is beneficial not only for bodybuilders and athletes, but also for any average gym goer looking to stay healthy. It helps bodybuilders reach their true potential by fueling their muscles and increasing stamina and endurance.

Plus, it helps the average person lose weight and burn fat by keeping them feeling full. In addition, this supplement acts as an energy source and provides the daily protein requirement.

Gainer for weight gain

A mass gainer is a supplement that not only contains protein, but also a large amount of carbohydrates and fats, providing more calories. Typically, a gainer contains carbohydrates and proteins in a ratio of 2:1 or 3:1. That is, each serving of gainer provides 60 g of carbohydrates and 30 g of proteins. Most of a mass gainer's calories come from carbohydrates, which are usually a mixture of maltose and glucose.

Why should you take a gainer?

Simply put, a gainer is used primarily for one purpose - weight gain. The high content of carbohydrates and fats present in this dietary supplement helps in getting enough calories.

In fact, one of the main differences between a protein and a mass gainer is the amount of calories. Regular protein powder contains about 100-150 calories, while a mass gainer provides 1250-1500 calories.

What to choose: gainer or protein? Key differences

It's time to move on to the main idea of ​​this article. How does a gainer differ from protein, what should you choose, where to buy, can they be used at the same time, and what should you consider when choosing the right nutritional supplements?

• Target: Body-building
  The harsh truth is that most mass gainer brands contain carbohydrates, which cause a massive release of insulin, which leads to unwanted fat storage. As for whey protein, it provides the body with the fuel it needs - pure protein. Therefore, if your main goal is to build muscle mass and increase strength, it is recommended to give preference to protein rather than mass gainer.
• Target: Exercises for weight loss
  If you came to the gym with the goal of getting rid of extra pounds, then under no circumstances should you take a gainer. Otherwise, he will turn your classes into a complete nightmare. Choose Whey Protein Isolate. It contains no carbohydrates or fats. This supplement will help you lose weight and gain a slim figure.
• Target: Improving Sports Skills
  Athletes and athletes should exercise caution as changes in weight may affect their performance. Therefore, a gainer supplement is not the best choice in this case. Instead, athletes should opt for whey protein. It helps increase endurance, stamina and activity.
• Target: Weight gain, muscle mass
  Everyone knows that a gainer is a headache for those who strive to develop muscles, but are not genetically inclined to quickly build muscle mass. Gainer helps very well in cases where the main goal is rapid weight gain. However, like any other supplement, a gainer is not a magic pill. Taking this supplement for too long can add unwanted layers of fat that will be difficult to get rid of later.
• Target: good health
  Many people believe that whey protein should only be consumed when the main goal is to gain muscle mass. But this is a complete lie. Whey protein not only helps with muscle building, but also has many health benefits. Some studies have shown that this supplement normalizes blood pressure, prevents cancer, and helps maintain cardiovascular health.

The best protein and gainer

So, if you are still interested in this issue and want to know how to combine gainer and protein, or which product is better to prefer, there is one more thing that will help you decide. See for yourself:

Final Thought

Now you understand the difference between gainer and protein. Of course, a gainer will make weight gain easier to some extent.

However, if you plan to take supplements for a long time, you should carefully consider your diet. It's quite simple. Eat 4-5 times a day. Eat enough food for breakfast and after exercise. In addition, try to eat before training.

Apart from everything else, you must be aware of the fact that no supplement, be it a gainer or a protein, can bring instant results. In any case, you will have to fight laziness, which prevents you from achieving your goals, and pay attention to training. Good luck!

Many beginners, after joining the gym, immediately become interested in sports supplements that can help them progress faster. The issue of gaining muscle mass is especially important; almost all beginners want to become big and strong as quickly as possible. From more experienced athletes they learn that protein shakes or are best suited for this purpose, but each of these products has its own characteristics and choosing which is best, without knowing the specifics of each of these products, is very difficult for novice athletes. In this article we will answer the question - what is better for mass, protein or gainer.

Protein and gainer are a mixture of proteins and carbohydrates, but in different proportions. Most gainers consist of 80-90% carbohydrates, and only the remaining 10% are fats and carbohydrates, but in the case of protein complexes the opposite is true - here 70-80% is protein, and the rest is fats and carbohydrates. Protein is the building block of muscles and is therefore more important for gaining lean muscle mass than carbohydrates. But even without a sufficient amount of carbohydrates, we will not be able to train effectively.

Most modern gainers consist of simple carbohydrates, which quickly convert into fat. You, of course, will gain weight from taking such products, but most likely it will not be muscle, but fat mass. We recommend taking gainers only for ectomorphs who cannot gain any weight at all. In this case, additional calories may provide an impetus for muscle growth. Athletes who have no problems with gaining mass and are prone to gaining excess weight should not take gainers. Such athletes do not need fast carbohydrates; they need complex carbohydrates, which are best taken from buckwheat, rice, pasta, various cereals, etc. There are also gainers that consist of only 50% carbohydrates, and the rest is protein and fats; such supplements can be used for gaining weight, but there are very few of them on the sports nutrition market.

Protein for mass gain

As we said, proteins consist of 70-85% proteins. Such supplements are ideal for gaining lean muscle mass; they provide athletes with all the necessary essential and non-essential amino acids. Today there are many different types of protein, the most popular in bodybuilding are whey and casein proteins. Whey protein complex has the fastest absorption and can be taken after training. Since after training we need not only protein, but also carbohydrates, it’s worth adding some fruit to your whey protein shake to help replenish energy losses.

Casein protein, on the contrary, has the longest absorption period. It is taken to gain weight and combat catabolism before bed. Also, this protein is excellent for use between meals when drying, as it suppresses appetite and prevents catabolic processes, feeding muscles with amino acids.

What is better for mass - protein or gainer? We definitely think it's a protein. Gainers can be very dangerous for your figure; most athletes do not need to gain excess fat. Proteins are great for building lean muscle mass and reducing the percentage of subcutaneous fat during cutting. Different types of protein allow proteins to be used for different purposes. The most popular in bodybuilding are whey and casein protein complexes, the combined use of which is the best option for gaining weight.

What is better for gaining weight - gainer or protein?

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Do you need a mass gainer at all?

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Gainer or protein, which is better for you to gain muscle mass? What's the difference between protein powder and muscle gainer? Which one should you use to achieve the desired muscle building effect? Today we will try to answer these questions as fully as possible.

What is better to choose for gaining muscle mass - gainer or protein?

On the Internet, you can find many users who want to verify the truthfulness of the advertising of various supplements and find out which one should be used, which one will be worth the money spent, and how these powders can increase muscle growth.

Here is the most frequently asked question:

"Hello! I am 24 years old, my height is 178 cm, my weight is 78.5 kg. My goal is to gain mass and gain as much muscle as possible. But at the same time, I don’t want to gain even the minimum amount of fat. What should I use, protein or gainer?

What follows, as a rule, is a list of different brands of protein powders and gainers, which are asked to be ranked according to their best qualities. But before you answer that question, you should take a step back and just understand what protein powders and gainers actually are: These are sources of quick and convenient liquid nutrition. That's all!

Most Advanced Bodybuilders Don't Even Count Protein Powders or Gainers "additives" they rather view them as simply a convenient source of food. For example, you don’t think that when you drink a glass of milk, you’re taking supplements? No. Therefore, drinking a protein shake or gainer is the same, except that the powders are a more concentrated source of liquid nutrition.

So don't be fooled by flashy magazine ads that show great looking bodybuilders saying the key to their success is drinking "Super Duper Muscle Enhancer 4000."

To bust this myth and show you how supplement advertising is sometimes done, just look at the following example:

Ronnie Coleman drinks bottled water.

Ronnie Coleman won Mr. Olympia.

From this it turns out...

Bottled water is the key to winning Mr. Olympia.

Now we all know that drinking water is very important not only for building muscle mass, but also for life in general. However, this does not mean that drinking bottled water means consuming "magic drink", which will help you create the body of your dreams.

The same goes for protein powders and gainers. Yes, protein is an essential nutrient that we all need to consume in order to live. But protein powder doesn't have any special muscle-building properties, it just has a higher protein content than regular products. Regardless of what the advertisements say or who the paid spokesperson is, these products are nothing more than convenient meal replacements.

Now that we understand how smart marketing moves are made, it’s time to move on to the topic of the article and answer the question:

Gainer or Protein – Which One is Better?

1) – Protein Powders

These powders are almost always isolated or concentrated protein containing only trace amounts of fat and carbohydrates. A typical scoop of protein powder will have over 20 grams of protein and only a couple grams of carbohydrates and/or fat.

2) – Gainers

These powders contain – a 2 to 1 combination of carbohydrates and protein. A typical serving of mass gainer (which is usually a couple of large scoops of powder) contains over 60 grams of carbohydrates and over 30 grams of protein along with a small amount of fat.

3) – Meal replacements

These powders are also a combination of proteins and carbohydrates. But they typically have a 2 to 1 ratio of protein to carbohydrates. A typical serving of the powder (which is usually packaged in individual servings) contains more than 40 grams of protein and about 20 grams of carbohydrates.

The best muscle gain product that is most often recommended is...

Pure protein!

This supplement is one of those that must be on the food list. It is better to use either whey protein isolate or a mixture of protein isolates (for example, Iso-Smooth 4 Protein Blend). The average person should get more protein from their food, not more carbs, so this is the reason why protein powder is recommended as the best option.

Now let's look at gainers and meal replacements. They are optional and can only be used if you prefer.

Meal replacements in portioned packages are convenient when you are constantly on the go and cannot prepare normal food for yourself. All you have to do is pack a shaker and take a bunch of packets of substitute with you. And you will have instant food with high protein content. Now, due to the nature of production, they are expensive, about twice as much as protein powder. But there is a cheap one "home" meal replacement option using pure protein powder as the base ingredient. You can see all the details in the video below:

In most cases it is highly recommended not to use gainers. Most often, the extra weight you get from these drinks is simply excess fat. Carbohydrates, which are found in large quantities in gainers, cause a surge in insulin and thereby contribute to the accumulation of fat. The only time your insulin levels will peak is immediately after completing a hard strength training session. So if you want, you can use the gainer as a post-workout shake.

However, you can very easily make your own protein-carbohydrate shake using pure protein powder and a small amount of carbohydrates for post-workout consumption. This is usually cheaper than buying a mass gainer.

You need to buy maltodextrin (carbohydrates in powder form) wholesale store that sells ingredients for home brewing beer and wine. You can also buy there dextrose (simple sugar) and simply add it to your ready-made protein shake.

The recipe is simple: mix about 80 grams of carbohydrate powder (a 50/50 mix of maltodextrin and dextrose is ideal) and 40 grams of pure protein powder. This will give you the ideal 2 to 1 carbohydrate to protein ratio.

Shop Smart and Save Money on Supplements...

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Based on materials from: http://leehayward.com/blog/protein-powders-vs-weight-gainers/

​How to gain weight

Before moving on to discussing when it is better to take protein and when to take gainer, it is necessary to understand how muscle mass is gained. The first step is to consume more calories than you burn. Only when you are in a calorie surplus will you have the energy you need to gain weight. When you consume more than you burn, your body takes the extra calories and either stores them as fat or uses them for muscle growth. Be that as it may, excess calories will lead to weight gain. If your goal is to build muscle rather than fat, it's important to do strength training at the same time. Without any exercise, you will simply convert excess calories in your body into fat rather than the desired muscle mass.

You can get extra calories for weight gain from two sources - protein or gainer. The choice in favor of one of them is purely individual and dictated by your personal goals, body characteristics and the properties of the protein and gainer itself.

It's all about calories

The main criterion that you should pay attention to when selecting one of them is calorie content. With each of them you will get extra calories. But their quantitative and qualitative composition is not the same.

Proteins As a rule, they consist of one or more types of protein with a small proportion of simple sugars. Each serving typically contains 20-30 grams of protein and about 100-150 calories. The protein component is the familiar casein, whey, egg, soy, and milk proteins, either individually or in combination with each other. Everything so that you can supply your muscles with valuable protein at any given time. Protein is a good way to replenish your body's amino acid stores without adding extra calories. This attracts many adherents of a healthy lifestyle and athletes. If you're in doubt about what to choose, bet on protein.

You can never go wrong because protein in terms of building muscle mass, especially during weight loss, is needed constantly. Protein is also needed to increase the body’s performance and endurance. during drying or dieting. And that's what he's good at. A question appears. Why then are gainers needed? The answer lies in their composition.

Gainers also contain protein. That's a plus. They also contain carbohydrates. Some will think that this is a minus. Maybe, but not for everyone. Yes, and gainers vary in the amount of carbohydrates. Of course, gainers are superior to proteins in calorie content, but for some, this is an opportunity to simply gain weight. Yes. There are categories of people who have extremely high calorie needs. These are ectomorphs, or hardgainers. For them, gaining weight is a big problem. They can eat carbohydrate and protein-containing foods without respite, without feeling the effect. And all because of too fast a metabolism and a thin physique.

Possibility of gaining weight for them - high carbohydrate gainers. They contain more than 1000 calories per serving, usually more than 100 g of carbohydrates, and about 30 g of protein. Such an impressive portion of calories. helps hardgainers Easily and quickly replenish glycogen stores and energy boost after training and replace wasted calories.

It's not just hardgainers who need huge amounts of calories. There is a category of athletes, or rather weightlifters, whose caloric needs, due to their impressive weight, are several times higher than those of an ordinary person. It follows that weightlifters To gain weight, you can also consume high-calorie gainers.

Now some may think that gainers are not needed at all if you do not belong to one of the above categories. But no! After all, there is still balanced gainers with a carbohydrate to protein ratio of 2:1. With each serving of these gainers you can get up to 650 calories, about 60 g of carbohydrates and 30 g of protein. A fairly balanced composition for those who easily gain weight, but want to get a 2 in 1 complex, with carbohydrates necessary for energy supply and protein that promotes muscle growth and recovery. In addition, you can use this type of gainer as one meal replacement or simply to maintain health. After all, it contains the proteins, fats and carbohydrates necessary for the body in good proportion, as well as vitamins and minerals. They are often included in gainers. Extra bonus.

Success from regular exercise in the gym or fitness is measured by the loss of excess fat and the formation of a sculpted and beautiful figure. To achieve a similar result, you cannot do without the use of sports nutrition. The debate about which is better - protein or gainer - has not faded away for many decades. Each person has the right to choose which sports supplements to take to achieve an ideal body.

What is protein?

A protein shake is a pure protein product. It may consist of the following components:

There are two types of protein - slow and fast. The former are absorbed by the body at a slow pace. There is a slight increase in muscle mass, while the functioning of the muscle growth mechanism is prolonged. Slow proteins are the best option for the drying process. The second type, on the contrary, is rapidly absorbed, allows you to build muscle fibers as much as possible, but the effect of such a protein ends very quickly. Experts recommend starting to gain weight with fast proteins, gradually moving to slow ones.

Benefits of Protein Shakes

• High degree of digestibility.
• Stabilizes nitrogen balance.
• Increases the natural protective functions of the body.
• Saturates the body with essential amino acids.

Moreover, protein is the fundamental building material for gaining muscle mass.

What is a gainer?

If protein is just a protein in its composition, then a gainer is a more complex product that can provide nutrition to muscles and compensate for energy costs immediately after or during exercise in the gym.

The gainer consists of a protein-carbohydrate mixture. The percentage is as follows: protein content no more than 20%, carbohydrate content no more than 80%.

The goal of a gainer is to restore strength and energy after working out in the gym and stimulate muscle growth. Today, manufacturers are constantly experimenting, and gainers with protein percentages from 10% to 40% and carbohydrates from 50% to 80% have begun to appear on the sports nutrition market. In addition to the composition, another difference between a gainer and a protein is its constant digestibility.

Benefits of gainers

• Restores glycogen reserves.
• Restores spent energy resources.
• Increases endurance and performance.
• Restores the general condition of the body and muscle mass over a long period of time, even during sleep.

Before choosing a gainer, you need to consider the quality of your diet and the amount of food you eat. Only those people who train in the gym systematically and intensively (more than 2 hours a day) need a large amount of carbohydrates, namely a gainer. Otherwise, the gainer can be easily replaced with high-carbohydrate foods. Moreover, a protein-carbohydrate cocktail is not recommended for people who are naturally predisposed to excess weight.

Protein or gainer: what to choose?

In order to ensure full growth of muscle mass to the same extent, the human body needs proteins and carbohydrates. Unrecovered muscles between workouts in the gym will not increase with the help of carbohydrates. In this regard, it is better to combine protein and gainer, or to gain muscle mass, give preference to a gainer with a high protein content (at least 35%).

Unfortunately, similar compositions are found on sale only rarely, and the discrepancy in price is quite significant. Therefore, the ideal option is to mix gainer and protein yourself or, better yet, seek advice from a professional instructor. The specialist will give you a hint in what ratio you need to create personal protein-carbohydrate mixtures. In most cases, these proportions are 1:2 or 1:3.

1. Before training - a gainer.
2. Protein - either immediately after completing classes, or half an hour later.
3. If you are underweight, start taking gainers, gradually moving to a mixture of combined mixtures.
4. If the situation is the opposite and there is excess weight, then the intake begins immediately with protein, excluding the gainer.

Gainers should be consumed not only on training days, but also preferably on rest days before meals.

If it is impossible to decide for sure which protein or gainer is better, it is advisable to understand how these two products are similar:

• The mechanism of each supplement is to build muscle mass and increase endurance.
• Good and easy absorption of both products without additional stress on the gastrointestinal tract.
• High-quality sports supplements are made from natural raw materials, where the harmfulness and side effects are kept to a minimum.
• They drink both protein and gainer, dissolving them in liquid: water, juice or milk.

When choosing what to drink - protein or gainer, it is important to pay attention to the fact that such sports supplements cannot replace a good diet.

What results can you expect?

Fiction about sports nutrition abounds. However, you should not expect miracles from taking powders. So, protein, gainer, or better, a combined regimen is a purely individual situation. But the maximum result from drinking cocktails per month is no more than 2 or 3 kilograms. It is not recommended to increase the permissible dosage, since unspent energy will be deposited in the wrong places.