Review: Controlled Labs Golden Gains

Now that you've made fitness a part of your lifestyle, treat yourself to Golden GAINS after every workout. Formulated with precise amounts of protein, amino acids, healthy fats, and designer carbohydrates, we enhanced Golden GAINS further by adding exclusive “super-nutrients” to help support the athletic lifestyle.

Golden Gains is Controlled Labs' contribution to the post-workout recovery supp market. As with other products in the genre, it's composed of easily-digested carbohydrates and protein/amino acids—a "tried-and-true" combo that amplifies the anabolic stimulus produced by resistance training.

When it comes to carb/protein supps, however, there are a lot of different sources and ways to combine them. Are there reasons to prefer Golden Gains over the others? To answer this question, we need to take a closer look at the label...

As you can see, Golden Gains consists of five blends...the first four—protein, carb, fruit/veggie and fat—suggest a typical "complete meal" (which is not a coincidence, I'm sure). The fifth—the "GFH Complex"—contains some additional supporting nutrients.

Here's the rundown on each:

GoldPro Complex: Whey is the protein source of choice for most workout products, and it's easy to see why: it's a "fast" protein with a high insulin index. Following ingestion, the rapid appearance of amino acids in the bloodstream triggers muscle protein synthesis and the release of insulin, which—in turn—facilitates post-workout recovery and anabolism.

Calcium caseinate is a form of casein, the primary protein in milk. In contrast to whey protein, casein digests quite slowly, and is more anti-catabolic than anabolic.

In one study, for example, a 30 g "meal" of casein consumed after an overnight fast reduced whole body protein breakdown by 34% over a 7-hour measurement period.

It's a good complement to whey protein (which is why they're found together in nature as well).

Egg white protein is also freqently used by bodybuilders. Unlike whey or casein, it doesn't appear to have any unique physiological activities...but it's still a good, readily digestible source of essential amino acids.

GoldCarb Complex: This blend is pretty straightforward... Oats are a bodybuilding staple, so oat flour/fiber is a pretty safe choice for a carb source. Waxy maize starch is another popular carb. Inulin is a non-digestible carbohydrate that functions as a "prebiotic"—a soluble dietary fiber that can be utilized by probiotic, "good" bacteria in the gut. Inulin thus contributes to digestive health... although it makes no particular contribution to post-workout recovery that I'm aware of.

Fruit & Veggie Complex™: Thanks to the "superfruit" craze, high-ORAC powdered fruit and veg supps are popular... although their actual value remains to be seen. This one looks more impressive than it really is, unfortunately. It's the use of whole fruit and juice powders, rather than phytochemical-enriched extracts, that limits its utility...the primary ingredients are more likely to be fiber and simple sugars, vs. antioxidant phytonutrients and vitamins. 5g isn't a lot of "space" for superfluous materials.

The tell-tale clue is the lack of relevant nutritional information on the label. If this complex was truly capable of counteracting the "acidic environment of most bodybuilding diets"—as Controlled Labs claims—I'd expect to see a solid amount of potassium on the label (potassium intake from fruits/veg is alkalizing and is correlated with improved bone mineral density). Instead, only a small amount from (added) potassium gluconate is listed. There's no vitamin C listed on the label, either. Like potassium, Vitamin C is another fruit/veg-associated nutrient that would provide some indication of the blend's value (as well as some insight on the retention of labile nutrients during processing).

In the absence of any data to the contrary, it's tempting to view this blend as largely "label decoration".

HealthyFat Complex™: This is 5.5g worth of omega-3 (flaxseed), omega-6 (sunflower) and medium chain triglyceride oils. It's a nicely-balanced blend, I suppose, but the amount is pretty small. Compared to more potent essential fatty acid supps habitually taken by bodybuilders, it doesn't amount to much.

GFH Complex™: The ingredients in this complex consist of:

• taurine - a non-protein amino acid that—among other functions—has antioxidant and insulin-sensitizing effects.
• l-phenylalanine - an essential amino acid sometimes taken as a standalone supplement for alleviating mild depression.
• betaine anhydrous - a "methyl donor" that can help reduce plasma homocysteine—a risk factor for cardiovascular disease. It may also protect the liver against fatty liver disease.
• dicalcium phosphate/potassium gluconate/sodium chloride: sources of the essential minerals/electrolytes calcium, phosphorus, potassium, sodium and chloride.

Now that we've taken Golden Gains apart, let's put it back together... What do we have here?

Golden Gains appears to be a solid carb-pro blend, with a few extra calories from fat, plus insulin/glucose support (taurine). For all the extra "bells and whistles", it actually bears a strong resemblance to its predecessor, Golden Finish, with the exception of the 2:1 carb-pro ratio (Golden Fiinish was closer to 1:1).

It's an improvement, however: the extra carbs give Golden Gains an edge over Golden Finish with respect to glycogen replenishment and building muscle (thanks to the extra calories). To be honest, it could virtually pass for a meal replacement product (MRP) now, which makes it more versatile than your typical post-workout supp..

At this point, my only real gripes with this supp are availability and cost. Since Golden Finish is still being phased out, Golden Gains is available only through GNC and Controlled Labs itself—and the price is higher than what I'd care to pay for a product of this type.

But I expect the price will be more competitive when the transition is complete. Overall, I like the look of the primary ingredients. At the right price, Golden Gains could certainly be worth a look.

Update: Golden Gains is now available at BodyBuilding.com (our recommended online retailer), at a much more reasonable price ($20 cheaper!). Now that's better!

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