Do you sometimes get confused between a meal replacement and a protein shake?  Are they not roughly the same thing you ask? Don’t worry, we’ve set out the key differences in this article and provided more information on our exciting new products!

Some assume protein shakes and meal replacement shakes are the same thing, probably because they are both high in protein. Being high in protein is the sole benefit of protein shakes, but with meal replacements like vybey, this is only one of the many advantages. Meal replacements and protein shakes are two completely different products, with completely different ingredients and used for completely different goals. You get the idea. It’s important to know that protein shakes are typically used as food supplements, whereas meal replacements are used to replace meals (surprisingly!) and each bring their own unique benefits.

Protein powders and shakes are extremely beneficial for gym goers, before or after a workout. In order to grow muscles and aid recovery, a high protein diet is essential¹.However, there are only so many eggs and chicken breasts you can eat in one day, so protein shakes are used by many to ensure they are hitting their daily protein target. Although, apart from being high in protein, they don’t contain the vitamins and minerals that a balanced meal would  and are low in complex carbohydrates as they are not intended to be complete meals. For this reason, it is important that you use protein shakes as a supplement to a balanced diet, as opposed to a meal replacement as it is essential to provide your body with the optimum amount of vitamins, minerals, carbohydrates and fats - not just protein.

On the other hand, having a vybey meal replacement shake provides your body with all the essential macro and micronutrients for a balanced diet. It is a convenient way to fuel your body with everything it requires to carry out all its important functions. The key difference between a protein shake and a meal replacement is that meal replacements offer a complete meal and therefore can be a substitute for one.

Even though our vybey meal replacement powder is mixed in the same way as protein powder (with water or milk), the range of benefits couldn’t be more different. As mentioned above, protein shakes are used for their high protein content, mainly by gym goers. However, one of the advantages of our vybey meal replacement shakes is that they can be used by anyone for numerous different reasons (check out our 'When To Have My Meal Replacement' article here for more info). The great news is that with the help of nutritionists and professional chefs, we have created a dairy based powder and a plant based powder, allowing a range of vybers with different nutritional needs to enjoy our tasty new vybey meal replacement powder.

Our plant-based meal derives its protein sources from oats, pea protein, and brown rice protein. Providing all vybers with a balanced amount of amino acids from the different plant sources. If you prefer dairy, then our dairy based complete meal option’s protein sources come from a blend of premium whey protein concentrate and milk protein isolate – ensuring optimum levels of both slow releasing protein (milk protein isolate) and fast digesting protein (whey protein concentrate).

A typical UK protein shake contains between 10g to 21g of protein per serving, whereas vybey contains 29g per serving. Not only is vybey providing more protein per serve, but the major difference with our meal replacement is that you are also getting a perfectly balanced amount of carbs, fats and vitamins & minerals, all in one drink!

Although protein powder is high in protein, it lacks other important nutrients that are essential to a balanced diet. Another key difference between a protein shake and a vybey meal replacement is that vybey contains 26 vitamins and minerals. Each one of the 26 vitamins and minerals in our vybey meal replacement drink have their own unique benefits. vybey is an easy way to aid towards getting all your vitamins and minerals in for the day without having to take 26 vitamin and mineral tablets!

As meal replacements are intended to replace meals, they are more filling than protein shakes and contain more calories. Our vybey meal replacement has ~400cals per bottle or 2 scoop powder serve, allowing greater satisfaction after consuming and allowing vybers to be kept fuller for longer. This means vybers will be less likely to snack during the day as they will have been fuelled with everything required for a balanced and healthy meal.

Typically, protein shakes’ carbohydrates are all derived from sugar – due to the high lactose content. However, with vybey meal replacement shakes, the aim is to have the same nutritional profile as a complete meal. For this reason, vybey’s meal replacement plant based powder has 40g of complex carbs with only 1.9g of this being sugar. Our dairy based meal replacement shake version has 44g of complex carbs with 3.6g of sugar. These complex carbs, take longer for the body to break down, resulting in a slow release of energy², leaving you feeling fuller for longer.

In terms of essential fats, protein shakes tend to have a low offering, with only 3g or less per serving. In our vybey meal replacement shakes, we have around 10g, containing a plentiful supply of Omega 3 and Omega 6, which can bring benefits like regulating blood pressure³ and are great for aiding heart and brain health.

It can be an easy mistake to get confused between meal replacement powder and protein powder, so hopefully this article has helped you to understand the differences between the two and why vybey provides a significant amount more health benefits to allow you to reach your goals.

Don’t think your vybey meal replacement drink is now a typical protein shake just because it comes as a powder. It is still your delicious, nutritionally complete vybey, bursting with the same macro and micronutrients and, of course, flavour. We have just come up with another great way for you to consume your vybey! What’s extra special is we wanted to stand out from the crowd even further by adding premium ingredients that help your gut health (Bacillus Coagulans) and brain health nootropics (Lion’s Mane Mushroom). Stay tuned for a separate article on these amazing compounds and the benefits they can bring to your health.

Our new vybey complete meal powder is full of goodness and nutritional benefits and we hope you  enjoy it as much as we do. Unlike our ready-to-drink meal in a bottle, our complete meal powder is required to be mixed with water. Although, if you’d prefer to mix with something else, a secret tip is to blend our vybey meal replacement powder with either oat, almond or coconut milk (thank us later!).

References

1. Publishing, H., 2018. When It Comes To Protein, How Much Is Too Much? - Harvard Health. [online] Harvard Health. Available at: <https://www.health.harvard.edu/nutrition/when-it-comes-to-protein-how-much-is-too-much> [Accessed 5 January 2021].
   
   
2. American Heart Association, 2018. Carbohydrates. [online] Available at: <https://www.heart.org/en/healthy-living/healthy-eating/eat-smart/nutrition-basics/carbohydrates> [Accessed 5 January 2021].
   
   
3. Gammone, M. A., Riccioni, G., Parrinello, G., & D'Orazio, N, 2018. Omega-3 Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids: Benefits and Endpoints in Sport. Nutrients, 11(1), 46.