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Weight gain: shifting up a gear with a monster shake

February 17th, 2010 by Chris

As you know, I’m looking to put on a few pounds of lean mass this winter.  I got down to 72.5kg (160lbs) in the summer and I’d like to be around 77.5kg (170lbs) next summer at about the same level of body fat.  I’ve talked about what I’m eating to gain lean mass before, so this is an update.

Update: my weight gains have slowed

My weight gain has slowed recently, so I’ve been looking for clean ways to put in more quality calories.  I’m already finding it fairly hard to eat the amount of food that I need to so I decided it would have to be liquid calories in some form.

Why I’m not going to drink milk

The last time I tried to put on serious muscle, I used a 5 x 5 programme and drank plenty of milk.  But that didn’t really work for me.  I got fat quite quickly and the lean mass gains just didn’t materialise at the rate I was expecting.

Recently, I’ve seen quite a few posts about why milk isn’t so good for your health, so I’ve now got another reason to avoid using moo juice.  If you’re interested, check out these links:

Milk

Milk: it doesn’t work for me.

What I am going to drink: a monster shake

Anna found this great-tasting shake at Mark’s Daily Apple and it looks fantastic to boot.  I just love the fact that it’s bright green.  It makes you look like you’re a real hardcore dieter but it contains about a gazillion calories.  I think one pint of it has more calories than Anna is allowed in a day…

Monster shake

A monster shake.  For monsters only.  Don’t drink it unless you really want to put on weight.

How do I make it?

It’s really easy.  All you need is some coconut milk, half an avocado and some whey protein powder (mainly to taste, so I used vanilla).

Coconut and avocado

You blend the ingredients together in the following quantities:

  • 3 cups of coconut milk (800g)
  • 1 avocado
  • One scoop (30g) of whey protein powder (I use vanilla)

According to Fitday, that gives you in round numbers:

  • Fat = 87g
  • Protein = 29g
  • Carbohydrate = 35g
  • Calories = 1,004

But be warned!  This will add weight faster than stuffing your pockets with small and medium-sized rocks.  Don’t try this unless you mean it!

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7 responses so far ↓

  • This is SO timely for me! Thank you again for an excellent post.

  • ps: Can I repost this on my site?

  • “How do I make it?” – *ahem*…

    To amend slightly, 3 cups of coconut milk is 800g (800ml) of coconut milk (2 cans).

    For a smaller version then 1.5 cups (1 can or 400g) of coconut milk with half a large avocado and 30g of whey protein makes a good mix too.

  • [...] the spirit of carrying out a controlled scientific study I included 2 raw eggs in Chris’s daily shake for four weeks.  As good science and a blind study, I didn’t tell him (I was in trouble once I [...]

  • [...] to a maintenance diet.  To put on muscle, I ate a high calorie diet and even supplemented with a monster shake, which had nearly 1,000kcals of avocado and coconut milk.  And it’s bright green, which is [...]