Author Topic: Check This Out-Muscle Tech Marketing Scheme  (Read 1451 times)

NEED2PUMP

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Check This Out-Muscle Tech Marketing Scheme
« on: May 08, 2008, 08:46:52 PM »
In case any of you had any questions on just how overpriced and overrated Muscle Tech products are read this article.

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For this month’s supplement review, I’m going to do Muscle Tech’s flagship product, Nitro Tech.


First, let me tell you why I want to do this review.


A little while back, I was flipping through Muscle Mag and I came across a 5 page report called “Rating America’s Best Protein Supplements”.


In this report, Dr. Chris Lydon, rated the top protein supplements on the market.


Anyways, he looked at the different kinds protein powders on the market and gave them a rating based on it’s effectiveness. I’m sure most of you have seen these kinds of reports from Muscle Tech.

The rating system was based on 5 stars. One star being the least effective and 5 stars being the most effective. I’m not going to get into the whole report, but the one thing that really got my attention was the fact that Muscle Tech touted their protein supplement as being:

“Nitro Tech has been clinically proven to be 24 times more powerful than regular whey protein for mass gains”

Of course, in this report, Nitro Tech gained top honours and received 5 starts. However, Dr. Chris Lydon actually works for Muscle Tech so, what else is he going to do? Give them 2 stars? Tell the readers that Muscle Tech’s full of it?

Now, according to the Nitro Tech label:

“In a double-blind placebo-controlled study, subjects who combined Nitro-Tech with a weight-training program gained an average of 8.8 pounds of muscle in 6 weeks while also increasing their bench press by 34 pounds. In the same study, subjects who consumed regular whey protein instead of Nitro-Tech gained only an average of 5.1 pounds of muscle and 14 pounds on their bench press.”

Alright, this got me thinking because I’ve used Nitro Tech before and want to know something, it works - To an extent. Just like whey protein works, this stuff works. Now, to openly state that this protein supplement is 24 times more powerful than regular whey protein is very, very bold. What kind of protein powder is Muscle Tech using? Is it a special type of whey that only Muscle Tech knows about? Maybe it’s in the manufacturing process that makes this whey protein 24 times more effective than all the other whey protein powders?

This got me thinking. What exactly is in this protein supplement that Muscle Tech can make this type of claim? So, I looked a little further into the ingredients and manufacturing. According to the label, Muscle Tech uses fancy names like SynthePro, Nitroxen and Insulogen. According to the label, these three complexes are supposed to act synergistically together to amplify the anabolic properties of whey protein.

Well, SynthePro is just another name for whey protein isolate. Nothing more. It’s supposed to be 97% protein but you want to know something, it’s not. It’s the actual percentage that is in the isolates that were used and not what is actually sitting inside the Nitro Tech container. As for Nitroxen, it’s supposed to increase the amount of nitric oxide in your system. I have my doubts about nitric oxide and personally, I don’t think that stuff works. In fact, I know it doesn’t work.

As for insulogen, it’s just a fancy name for sugar. That’s it. Here, let’s take an actual look at the label:

“Ingredients: Synthepro (Whey Peptides [Modified Weight and Partially Pre-Digested {Hydrolyzed} Whey Protein Concentrate {Providing Di-, Tri-, Oligo-, and Polypeptides}{Shorter and Longer Chains of Amino Acids}], Whey Protein Concentrate, and New Ion-Exchanged Specially-Filtered (97%) Whey Protein Isolate, L-Leucine, L-Methionine, L-Phenylalanine, Lactoferrin {Synthepro Full Spectrum Whey Protein Fractions Include: Beta Lactoglobulin (55%), Alpha Lactalbumin (15%), Glycomacropeptides (21%), Immunoglobulins (3%), Bovine Serum Albumin (2%), Lactoferrin (-1%)}. Micronized Creatine Monohydrate, Cocoa Powder (Dutch Process); Insulogen: Guar Gum, D-Myo-Inositol, Glucomannan, Taurine, Pharmaceutical Grade Alpha Lipoic Acid, Inzitol {D-Pinitol}: Nitroxen (Glycosidal Saponins, Folic Acid), Natural & Artificial Flavors, Glutamine Blend (L-Glutamine Peptides, Calcium Alpha Ketogularates), Dipotassium Phosphate, Lecithin, Magnesium Oxide, N-Acetyl-Cysteine, Dl-Tocopherol Acesulfame Potassium, Aspartame, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride.”

Wow, all this jibberish looks crazy!. Muscle Tech even makes their labels more complicated than it needs to be. Let me sum all this stuff up. Here’s what your actually looking at:

Ingredients: Whey protein, creatine monohydrate, cocoa powder, sugar, guar gum, inositol, glucomannan, taurine, alpha lipoic acid, flavours.

Now, isn’t that better? This is what your getting with Muscle Tech Nitro Tech. Now, going back to the basics of reading food labels, we know that the most prominent ingredients are listed first and the least prominent are listed last. Knowing this, we know that whey protein is the most abundant ingredient in the container followed by, guess what? Creatine monohydrate! Followed by, guess what? Sugar! Yep, you can sum up the whole Muscle Tech machine with three key ingredients:

• Protein;
• Creatine;
• Sugar.

There you have it.

Hard science has proven that all three of these ingredients actually work at helping growing and repairing muscle tissue - Not Muscle Tech.

Alright, getting back to the report by Dr. Chris Lydon that stated:

“Nitro Tech has been clinically proven to be 24 times more powerful than regular whey protein for mass gains”

Well, of course it does! It’s got creatine as a main ingredient. No other protein powder contains creatine, so Muscle Tech is comparing apples to oranges. Of course it’s going to be better than any other pure protein powders on the market because no other “pure” protein powder has creatine or sugar in it. I think this is what pissed me off about the report because Muscle Tech is comparing itself to 1) Pure soy protein; 2) Whey concentrate; 3) Casein; And 4) Egg protein. Well, I got news for you, if you take out the creatine and sugar out of Nitro Tech, you get a regular protein powder. Yep, that’s it. And a poor one at that.

Want to know what the dodgy part about Muscle Tech’s ingredient listing is? They don’t state how much creatine they have in it’s Nitro Tech product. However, you do have to assume that it’s substantial because it’s listed as the second most prominent ingredient behind the protein, which is a mere 20 grams per serving. In my opinion, if you take out the creatine and sugar, your left with 20 grams of protein per serving. Folks, that’s simply not enough for the average hard working weight trainer. If you take out the creatine and sugar, your left with an overpriced, whey protein powder, that is very skimpy in terms of protein per serving.

Now, if you take Nitro Tech and compared it so similar products such as CytoSports CytoGainer, well your going to get some different results. Let’s take a look at Cytogainer’s serving size:

• 54 grams of whey protein powder;
• 3 grams of creatine;
• 2 grams of glutamine;
• 84 grams of carbs;
• 3.5 grams of fat;
• 610 calories;

Now let’s take a look at Nitro Tech’s serving size:

• 20 grams of whey protein powder;
????? grams of creatine;
• 3 grams of carbs;
• 1.5 grams of fat;
• 110 calories.

If you were looking to build muscle, which one would you go for?

Personally, if I was looking for a muscle builder, I wouldn’t be going with Nitro Tech because there is just not enough of it to be very effective. 20 grams of protein is simply not enough. I need at least 40 grams per serving and at least 60 grams of carbs with that same serving. C’mon, 110 calories? That is simply not enough for muscle building. I need at least 500 calories per serving on a muscle building cycle.

Want to know something, I use a blend that costs me about 25 bucks for a true one month supply. Here’s what I do. I head over to my bulk food store and buy 2 pounds of whey protein, 2 pounds of maltodextrin, 1 pound of dextrose, 1 pound of creatine and ½ pound of cherry flavour crystals. Costs me about 25 bucks and I get everything I need.

Best of all, this mix will outperform Nitro Tech every time. I simply measure out what I need and put them in small plastic bags. I mix one with water 20 minutes before my workout, and one immediately after. Works like a charm.

Here’s another example of a post workout drink that I’m going to be putting together for myself in the near future.

Mass Formula I

• 40 to 50 grams protein (preferably BCAA’s - Leucine 2:1);
• 50 grams fast acting carbs (dextrose);
• 50 grams medium acting carbs (maltodextrin);
• 5 to 10 grams creating ethyl ester or tricreatine malate;
• 5 to 10 grams glutamine;
• 300 mg alpha lipoic acid;
• 2 gram of glycocyamine

For a supplement company to produce this type of formula, it would cost over a $100 retail at the local GNC. I can overcome this problem by ordering all the ingredients in bulk and producing this formula for under 50 per month. To get what I’m looking for, I would need to customize my whole supplement schedule.

Here’s my suggestion for all of you reading. If you are interested in trying to make your own proprietary blend supplements, go over to Jeff Anderson’s site called “Home Made Supplement Secrets” and buy yourself a copy of the e-book. It will be the best $27 you’ve spent in a long time. Click here to find out how to make your own proprietary supplements.

The next time your in GNC, take a look at Muscle Tech’s labels and your going to discover that almost all of their products, from Anator P-70 to Nitro Tech, base their formula’s on 1) Protein; 2) Creatine ; And 3) Sugar. Nothing more than overpriced protein and creatine if you ask me.

Now, I'm not out to bash Muscle Tech because some of their products are pretty good. What I don't like is Muscle Tech's marketing tactics. To say that your protein powder is 24 times more powerful than any other protein powder is sneaky considering one of your main ingredients is creatine. This is what I think of Muscle Tech’s Nitro Tech.


   


WhiteHulk4

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Re: Check This Out-Muscle Tech Marketing Scheme
« Reply #1 on: May 09, 2008, 06:31:05 AM »
I'm actually surprised that they list Creatine Monohydrate on the label now.  When they first introduced Nitro-Tech back in 1999-2000, they actually listed it by Creatine's chemical name, not exactly sure what that was.  But it was unrecognizable to anybody.  They wanted you to believe it was just the superior protein that caused the strength gains!

DK II

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Re: Check This Out-Muscle Tech Marketing Scheme
« Reply #2 on: May 09, 2008, 06:39:32 AM »
I'm actually surprised that they list Creatine Monohydrate on the label now.  When they first introduced Nitro-Tech back in 1999-2000, they actually listed it by Creatine's chemical name, not exactly sure what that was.  But it was unrecognizable to anybody.  They wanted you to believe it was just the superior protein that caused the strength gains!

 ::) ::) ::)

It's almost the same nowadays with all the arginine products.

I have seen an "IGF-1"-supplement that turned out to be whey isolate in caps (!!!), a hgh-supplement that contained glutamine and magnesium and so on...

There will always be people that fall for the fancy ads and the funny math they do.
I LOVE the scales they have in the supplement ads where you can see how much it raises test/hgh/strength/muscle mass/whatever compared to some other supplement and the axis doesn't even have a proper scale to it.

So it raises strength by 300% compared to B, but 300% of WHAT? It's total Bullshit.

WhiteHulk4

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Re: Check This Out-Muscle Tech Marketing Scheme
« Reply #3 on: May 09, 2008, 08:14:44 AM »
That's one of the main reasons I like to collect muscle magazines - I've got every issue of Muscular Development, Muscle Media & Muscle & Fitness, from the last 10 years or so.  You can look back and see some of the old supplements that were the LATEST & GREATEST - bound to be the most powerful substances ever created!  And they all failed miserably.

That's why anytime there's a new supplement that hits the market, DO NOT, rush to buy it and try it.  Give it a year, if it's still around, then give a whirl...

Kviahellan

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Re: Check This Out-Muscle Tech Marketing Scheme
« Reply #4 on: May 12, 2008, 07:06:58 PM »
I could really use 36700% more muscle and strength gains. :o
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JasonH

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Re: Check This Out-Muscle Tech Marketing Scheme
« Reply #5 on: May 13, 2008, 01:09:16 AM »
That's one of the main reasons I like to collect muscle magazines - I've got every issue of Muscular Development, Muscle Media & Muscle & Fitness, from the last 10 years or so.  You can look back and see some of the old supplements that were the LATEST & GREATEST - bound to be the most powerful substances ever created!  And they all failed miserably.

That's why anytime there's a new supplement that hits the market, DO NOT, rush to buy it and try it.  Give it a year, if it's still around, then give a whirl...

Haha - very true. I remember back in the day when Joe Weider's Crash Weight Gain and Muscle Builder were supposedly the staple of a bodybuilder's diet.

MCWAY

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Re: Check This Out-Muscle Tech Marketing Scheme
« Reply #6 on: May 13, 2008, 04:23:25 AM »
Haha - very true. I remember back in the day when Joe Weider's Crash Weight Gain and Muscle Builder were supposedly the staple of a bodybuilder's diet.

Not to mention that, 80 years from now, bodybuilders will be training in space pods, lifting electromagnetic rings, instead of weights, yet STILL be consuming Joe Weider's Sugar-Free BIG weight gainer.

Kviahellan

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Re: Check This Out-Muscle Tech Marketing Scheme
« Reply #7 on: May 13, 2008, 12:17:33 PM »
Not to mention that, 80 years from now, bodybuilders will be training in space pods, lifting electromagnetic rings, instead of weights, yet STILL be consuming Joe Weider's Sugar-Free BIG weight gainer.

A solid prediction.
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