Training Review: CytoSport Monster Milk (Chocolate & Vanilla Creme)

When it comes to protein supplements, the leader of the pack has consistently been CytoSport, known largely for their Muscle Milk product line. Though Muscle Milk has a great following with consumers, its makers decided that a beefier version was in order to produce for those looking for more to gain from their supplementation, and hence there is Monster Milk, a premium-grade high-protein, low-carb powder made for anyone of any gender, body weight, activity level, and exercise/training regimen. Recovery and muscle development are the names of the game, and so being a fitness advisor and workout coordinator myself, I gave the Muscle Milk another look.

Composition & Product Purpose

The principle purpose of Monster Milk is that it "is designed to help you build bigger, stronger muscles while staying lean", and it does that through its high protein composition, which is rich with vitamins and amino acids that promote the growth of healthy muscle tissue. Within the Monster Milk is a blend of protein blends that are commonly found in meat, dairy, and other protein products, such as milk protein concentrate and milk protein isolate, casein, and whey protein isolate. For added fiber, there is water-soluble corn fiber, and stevia is added to give sweetness without there having to be a great sacrifice in sugar calories. Of course, Monster Milk uses its own blend of the protein compounds to make its formula, but its vitamin content helps to solidify the health benefits of using the product. Thiamin, riboflavin, niacin, vitamin B6 and B12, folate, and chromium all have 100% daily value servings in each serving of Monster Milk. With there being 50g of protein, 5g of fiber, 3g of creatine, and 24.5g of muscle-promoting amino acids (in only 310 calories in each serving), the Monster Milk is efficient at helping to stimulate the change that your body seeks to make-and it's done well with me in my personal usage.

Flavor/Taste

The chocolate Monster Milk has a truer cocoa flavor compared to many other products. It's impressive considering many chocolate products are flavored in the likeness of a sugary sort of cocoa, but this version actually has real cocoa powder in the mixture. Though truer in flavor, it's only tolerable with water, but a bit better with milk. It's much improved with peanut butter, and to make a mega Monster Milk shake, I added peanut butter, an egg, milk and water, ground flaxseed, raw Quaker Oats and several ice cubes, which transformed the Monster Milk chocolate shake completely.

The vanilla creme flavor of Monster Milk is rich and creamy to begin with. It's also true to the essence of vanilla creme. It's good in water, but also much improved (and great) in milk. The Monster Milk Vanilla Creme is easy to love and very hard to stop drinking, especially when I've craved a late night snack. Like the Monster Milk Chocolate, adding peanut butter and other food portions to the shake makes it taste great, but unlike the chocolate version, the vanilla creme Monster Milk is almost better left with just milk or water (or both) together with no other additives.

Personal Performance Benefits/Results & Overall Impression

When it comes to results yielded, Monster Milk is wholly empowering as a performance food product. It sustains me and my body well before workouts, it refreshes and replenishes energy during workouts, and aids me in recovery very well. There's not many, if any, other protein supplements that are so well-rounded and able to provide the needed things to help enhance fitness and health. Monster Milk is definitely capable of doing great things for athletes who require proper nourishment for intense, muscle-building workouts, and is a top-of-the-line product all around.

Sandy Dover is a published novelist, magazine columnist, and communications professional in the arts & publishing and media industries, while serving as a sports product tester and fitness advisor in the fitness world. For more about Sandy, go to About.Me/SandyDover/bio.