I was driving to work this morning when I saw a big Muscle Milk truck backed up to a gas station.   I’ve seen it in its liquid form in many places a lot more lately, so that got me wondering.

Does Muscle Milk really work, or is it a product of good marketing and a bunch of B.S. like 95% of the supplements on the market?

I knew you, the reader, would be intrigued to find out.

It’s important to note that this will be a Report and not a Review since I haven’t actually tried the stuff, but keep reading.  I’m sure to enlighten you.

Well the answer to the above question my friend depends on who’s telling the story.

If I were to write a review, I’d probably give you some pros and cons then try to recommend it to you  and have a link for you to buy it on my website.

Think about that last sentence whenever you read a “product review”.

If I were a marketer trying to separate myself and sell you a different product, I’d probably bash it, then recommend you buy something else I was selling.

Again, it all points back to the Dollar.

So who’s telling the truth and who’s just out to get your money?

My aim is that you’ll be able to make a more informed decision to answer that question by the end of this post.

Muscle Milk Facts

1. Muscle Milk is formulated to simulate a mother’s breast milk

This is pretty obvious when you read the label.  This is also a clever marketing trick to separate themselves from other products and make themselves look better/unique.  Who wouldn’t want “natural human milk” over “cow’s milk”?  It MUST  be better for you than the other stuff right?  They have plenty of facts to back up why it’s better (of course they would) but I stopped breast feeding a LONG time ago…don’t know about you.  I’m sure nature intended this for a reason.

2. Muscle Milk is high in fat

Now before you turn away, it’s high in a fat called Medium Chain Triglycerides or MCT’s.  Read the wikipedia article about MCTs.  They are a type of fat found in human milk and don’t require energy for absorption.  Translation, they provide quick energy.  Two scoops of Muscle Milk contains about 165 gr of fat which mainly consist of MCT’s.  My daily account for fat on my current mass gaining plan is 115 gr.  Hmmm…you do the math.  BTW, you don’t get fat from ingesting more fat so that bursts the “I’ll get fat” myth.  You get fat from eating excess carbs.

3. Muscle Milk is a protein blend

It’s a blend of all the forms of whey, casein, and some fancy ones called Alpha-lactalbumin, and bovine colostrum.  That was a mouth full.  The first two, you’ve heard of, if not, check out my post on which proteins build muscle.  Alpha-lactal is a denser protein than whey and casein.  B. Colostrum is another ingredient  found in mom’s breast milk and contains a lot of great stuff for you.  But it’s only in her milk for two days after birth, which means even babies don’t get this stuff.  Again, hmmm…

The protein blend is good for you in supplementation and weight gain.  The blend’s different absorption rate make it ideal for early morning and before bed intake (so say many).  I would avoid this blend post workout, however.  You want something a bit more pure that digests quickly like a whey isolate.

Those are the main facts.  I would include more, but I don’t want to make you read forever.

What People Have To Say

One of the best sites I’ve found for reviews is TheSupplementRating.com .  You can find the Muscle Milk Review here.  I read what most people had to say and I saw a few general themes that kept coming up.

1. It tastes great

People like the variety and quality of flavors.  Banana Cream seems to be the most popular.

2. It helped them gain some weight

Most people saw marginal gains over a period of time.   I’d like to attribute this to training and proper nutrition, but I know most people don’t train or eat properly.  So it may have some benefits.  I’ve gained 4 lbs in the past week.  I wouldn’t say it’s my protein supplement, but my training and diet (3 to 4 proper meals a day and 2 protein shakes).

3. Value for price seems to vary widely

You can find it pretty cheap some places while other places are pretty expensive.  Obviously, the benefits you get for what you pay will determine your opinion.

I generally find that it’s not hard to be smarter than the masses if you dig a little deeper.  So take their advice with a grain of salt.  My goal is that you will be smarter than the average lifter.

So there you have it.  The facts and the opinions.  Do I believe Muscle Milk works to build muscle?  Possibly, but I’m not going to run to the shelf to grab a tub anytime soon. People said they gained weight, but no one really said if it was muscle weight.

Have you taken Muscle Milk? Has it worked for you?  Leave your comments below.

Until next time, Happy Lifting!

Mitch