Gainer vs. Protein: Which is Better - Protein or Gainer, How Different (Difference Between Gainer and Protein)

Oddly enough, not only beginner athletes, but also many of those who have been in the gym for several years, vaguely understand the difference between sports nutrition such as protein and gainer. On the one hand, they can be understood, both of these products are created so that the athlete can compensate for the lack of nutrients that he does not receive from regular food. And for both of these products there is only one goal, to help the athlete build more muscle mass, but how is a gainer different from protein?

What's better - gainer or protein?

In order to understand the difference between a gainer and a protein, you must first of all talk about their component composition. First, let's give a broad understanding of each of these products:

• protein — protein concentrate, or, in other words, a powder, more than 90-95% composed of filtered, purified and ready-to-use protein. No chemistry, as is commonly believed among the common people, that could negatively affect the health of an athlete. However, do not forget that protein is only a dietary supplement, and if you use it too often and in large quantities, you run the risk of diarrhea, since our intestines are simply not physically able to absorb such a huge amount of nutrients;
• gainer — a specialized nutritional supplement designed to help an athlete build muscle mass. Often in its composition, the classic proportions are used: 60% carbohydrates, 40% protein. It is these proportions that make it possible to provide the body not only with building material for muscle development, but also with energy for hard work in the gym.

But, it should be noted that these descriptions are very superficial, and the purpose of this article is to teach even a beginner in iron sports to understand the types, varieties and types of protein or gainer, in order not only to get rid of prejudice towards them, but also to learn use them correctly in your workouts.

All About Protein

Since protein is part of the gainer, it is with the description of protein mixtures that this review will begin. Now that you understand the difference between these two products, you probably think that everything is simple. But it was not there! Read on ...

1. Whey Protein — Probably the most popular type of protein concentrate among amateurs, since it is made from whey by microfiltration, it is whey protein that has the highest rate and the best quality of assimilation. But not everything is so simple, because thanks to its rapid absorption, it is difficult to use it in the long term, when you need to give the body food for 3-4 hours. In this case, whey protein is inferior to other grades, but if you urgently need to give your muscles a building material before, during, or after training, this product will undoubtedly be the perfect solution to your problem;
2. Casein protein — a kind of antagonist in relation to whey protein. It is found in sports nutrition in the form of micellar casein and calcium caseinate, although in fact they have very similar properties. Casein protein is able to be absorbed by the body by about 60-80% within four or more hours, which makes it indispensable for the development of an athletic figure in athletes who train at high intensity. Fun Fact: Many have probably heard that exercising athletes always eat cottage cheese and dairy products at night. And the whole point is that it is they that contain protein, which is 80-90% casein;
3. Milk protein — a less common type of protein blend, which consists of 1/5 whey and 4/5 casein protein. We can say that milk protein is a natural multicomponent product;
4. Egg protein — the gold standard for the quality of protein assimilation, since this particular product is absorbed by almost 95%. Another distinctive feature of it is that the period of its assimilation is about six hours, which allows maintaining the amino acid balance at a high level for a long time;
5. Soy protein — the least popular type of protein among men, as it partially reduces testosterone levels in favor of estrogen. However, it is an ideal product for women, and besides, it also perfectly accelerates metabolic processes in the athlete's body.

Related article: Which Protein Is Better?

These are all the forms of protein you can find on the sports nutrition market. Each of them is good in its own way and will undoubtedly help you reach certain heights not only in bodybuilding, but in any other sport, even in chess! How? Imagine your opponent's reaction to your one-hundred-kilogram carcass! So with protein and with the right zeal, you will win.

Another thing is that protein does not contribute to intensive weight gain, due to the extremely low content of carbohydrates, which, as you already understood, are contained in gainers. But before we move on to the description of these, I would like to add a few more words about the fact that there are also multicomponent proteins - protein mixtures from various types of protein. Also, if you see the words "isolate" or "hydrolyzate" on the package, remember the following:

• isolate — means an extremely high degree of processing of a given protein mixture;
• hydrolyzate — in other words, a practically finished amino acid will be assimilated much faster and better.

Gainer time

However, little can be said about the gainer, since only complex carbohydrates and various types of protein, which were listed above, are used in its production. Of course, if you buy a cheap gainer, wanting to save money, then be prepared that the carbohydrates in it will be "simple", in other words, 50-60% of sugars, and you, instead of a high-quality mass, will only gain subcutaneous fat. Yes, here the brand matters, although not as much as it might seem at first glance.

The first and last thing to know about a gainer is that it comes in three types:

• low calorie — Less than 500 calories per serving
• average calorie — More than 500 but less than 800 calories per serving;
• high calorie content — about 1000 calories per serving.

An interesting fact: if we assume that the daily calorie intake of an ordinary active person is 2-2.5 thousand calories, then with the help of a gainer this rate can be “eaten” in 30-40 minutes. This partly justifies the very use of a gainer, because if an athlete needs more than 3 thousand calories per day when gaining body weight, then in order to qualitatively replenish this norm, you need to eat a huge amount of ordinary food. As a result, a huge belly is formed, which will not happen if you correctly use the supplement from the gainer in the diet.

And one more golden rule that applies to this product. A gainer should never be taken as a protein supplement. This contradicts its very composition, and, probably, only ectomorphs can afford to use it instead of protein. So, if you want to gain mass and grow, then a gainer will always help you with this, but in order to lose fat and maintain muscle, you will have to learn how to use protein. Good luck to you!

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