As far as I can tell, it's a terrible value for the money. I've also tried it, and my experiences weren't positive. I'll also tell you what you should try instead.
Before I begin, these are my experiences with "Serious Mass." I'm not sure if "Mass Gainer" is a different brand but I suspect all of these weight gain powders are equally awful. They do have some upsides, but there's better places to get those advantages.
At Wal-Mart, they want $20 for a 2.96 lb can. They claim 4 servings, and they call 2 scoops to be a serving, which means there's only 8 scoops worth. I really doubt you'll find a lower price elsewhere. Larger package sizes exist, but the discount isn't very substantial.
They claim a "serving" contains 1,250 calories, so each scoop should be about 625. In terms of calories per dollar, it ranks poorly at only 2,500 calories per $10. A large #3 combo from Whataburger, a fast food joint offers a similar ratio, and it's prepared takeout food.
You will have to mix in over a cup of water for each scoop, which makes it a bit filling. In fact, the directions even suggest 1.5 cups of water for each scoop. The powder will fluff that up a bit more, so that's 625 calories in nearly 16 fl. oz.
That's not an impressive calories per fluid oz. ratio either.
But wait, can't you mix that with milk, half & half, or even cream? Eh.. no, you can't. I tried it with half & half, and the mixture was SO thick there was no way I was sucking it through a straw. The amount of suction you have to generate to get it through the straw was just too much. I don't even want to think about what would have happened if I tried that with cream. So no, you have to use water.
An ideal shake is one that you can suck on and drink, almost mindlessly while you do other things.
Given the calories it provides, a fast food milkshake is likely to be a better value, and that's even with the premium expense because of it being takeout food.
There is one positive to it; the vitamins. The thought of being able to just drink your vitamins is appealing. But there's cheaper and better ways to get that.
Ever heard of Ensure Plus? It's 350 calories per 8 fl. oz. bottle, and the chocolate flavor tastes like chocolate milk. Even with it's expense, it's still going to be a far better value than Serious Mass. These "nutritional shakes" are delicious and they have many vitamins, which you end up drinking down like they are nothing. And you know what, it gets even better! Both Wal-Mart and Kroger have their store-brand knock-offs, which are just as good but a good bit cheaper; they are called Equate Plus and Fortify Plus, respectively.
In fact, a 24 pack of Equate Plus, they want $25 for it, far cheaper than Ensure Plus ($25 for 16).
But you know what, it gets even better! You can mix the contents of one bottle (8 fl. oz.) with a cup of heavy cream and it's still pretty easy to drink. In 16 fl. oz., that's 1,150 calories, primarily from dairy fat.
Another thing these gainer powders often have is maltodextrin, a complex carbohydrate with a high glycemic index. Currently I'm not using it, but there's a theory where you may have a reason to try it.
The glycemic index means it should help the various cells of your body open up and absorb more nutrients. Not only might this help for muscle building, but it also helps open up your fat cells to absorb more fat.
And guess what? You can get raw, pure maltodextrin for cheap, if you wanted to try this route.
5 years
