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I am doing the insanity fitness and I am currently in the first month. It's going pretty great.

They keep pushing shakeology as a results and recovery drink pretty hard. But the thing is that it is $129 per month. Is that a worth-while investment or are there better alternatives with a greater bang for the buck?

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    Do they offer any evidence that their shakes are better than anybody else's? I'd think you can get a month's worth of protein / recovery shakes for a fraction of that price.
    – DavidR
    Commented May 28, 2013 at 2:41
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    Don't waste the money. You're getting results without it, it's overpriced, you don't really need a recovery drink, and if you do then you can get it cheaper elsewhere.
    – Dave Liepmann
    Commented May 28, 2013 at 2:48
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    cbsnews.com/2100-500368_162-1342839.html Very small sample size, but this isn't the only time experiments have produced results in favor of chocolate milk. Protein shakes really aren't any better than foods that naturally contain protein.
    – Evan
    Commented May 28, 2013 at 15:06
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    @Informaficker - I don't think this qualifies as a shopping question, asking if the nutrition that is being peddled is that much better than alternatives. FAQ is not a set in stone document, it lives and interprets.
    – JohnP ♦
    Commented May 29, 2013 at 21:29
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    I haven't read the FAQ recently, but it seems like this question gives us a chance to keep people from getting scammed, that seems like something good that we can be doing for the world of fitness. :)
    – DavidR
    Commented May 30, 2013 at 13:43

2 Answers 2

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Most likely, it isnt worth it.

129$ a month is a really BIG pile of money. While it is possbile that the recovery drink you are taking helps with recovery, it surely helps in a marginal way.

The three most important factors about recovery after a training are:

  • Protein intake
  • Sleep
  • Taking it easy (including active rest)

Any deficiency in any of those three has a great impact on your recovery. Your recovery drink cannot match any of those. Your drink may introduce some protein to your diet, but theres a lot of other, cheaper alternatives that do the same thing just as well or even better.

To make a long story short, the rule of 80/20 applies: 80% of the results can be acquired with 20% of the cost/investment. Eating enough proteing, sleeping and not overdoing it doesnt cost 129$ a month, but makes up over 80% of your recovery after training. Your drink can be easily replaced by a planned, pre-made meal you prepared before the training, and it will be a lot cheaper. You can check other question on the site about planning such meals. As a quick summary, try to include carbs and protein in a about 3:1 ratio (for this particular meal, eaten about half an hour after the training!) from valueable sources. The classic rice + chicken and some water to wash it down would do great.

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I'd like to add that I am not a beachbody coach (and hate that the web is spammed with biased reviews of Shakeology). That said, I do like shakeology a lot, but it is certainly not worth the price.

The energy it gives you and taste are really above any comparable products. That said, I've found that health stores offer a comparable list of ingredients for a fraction of the cost (50 dollarsish). Their tastes usually aren't as good, but if you mix it with some almond milk, banana and ice, it becomes tolerable and, ultimately, decent.

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  • This looks like an ad. Avoid refering to products, instead sogguest how one should decide what product to use.
    – K.L.
    Commented May 29, 2013 at 10:04
  • Lol. I dont see how Ryan could have answered the question without talking about products. Especially since I asked what the better alternatives are
    – Jay Jay Jay
    Commented May 30, 2013 at 13:37
  • I removed the part of what I recommended trying -- I have zero vested interest in any products whatsoever for what it's worth. It had zero appearance of an advertisement but rather an opinion. Downgrading my answer because I was trying to be helpful seems asinine.
    – Ryan Elberg
    Commented May 31, 2013 at 18:47
  • Its very good you want to be helpful and we apreciate it! Still, wanting and actually being are not always the same thing. A "buy X, it works for me" answer is not very helpful. Remember, that the answer is supposed to be helpful not only to the original asker, but also for everybody else who later visits the question. At that time, the product you recommended may already be gone from the market! In my opinion, your current answer is better than the earlier. I think you just need to get to know the stack exchange a bit and how it works. You could read the site authors blogs - theyre great!
    – K.L.
    Commented Jun 3, 2013 at 10:59
  • More than happy to read it, but the whole thing seems a bit counter-intuitive. People ask for non-biased advise, I give it, and then am slapped with a stick because it isn't deemed the way Stack wants it answered. I think my answer in it's present state provides a more than accurate and fair assessment based on the posed question for future readers.
    – Ryan Elberg
    Commented Apr 13, 2015 at 20:25

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