Great Shakes (and not of the delicious McDonald's persuasion either....)

Right now, I'm drinking a couple different kind of shakes from Herbalife, their protein and healthy-meal in vanilla. Of all the flavors, vanilla is the most neutral in that it mixes well with other flavored products besides dairy.

They are delicious, but not quite as yummy as the nicely fat-infused shakes that McDonald's vanilla shake, a full 530 calories, according to the company's website. Fat is delicious.Although the body requires fat, certain types of fat are not good for our bodies.

Wouldn't that be something if fitness shakes were that good? On their own and not wrapped around a recipe? They're great, but in a healthy way. And I'm customizing them as I go along.

The trouble with the McDonald's shakes (or any of the fast-food restaurant shakes) is if there aren't as many essential vitamins and nutrients, in fact hardly any. So that if you're on, let's say, a 1,500-calorie "healthy" diet (for a female), and you eat three full meals or five small meals throughout the day, where does that leave you when consuming the remaining calories: Well, for starters, 1,000 calories spread throughout the rest of the meals that day.

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And you see when you're trying to eat better that that shake has to serve as one meal, albeit an unhealthy one as far as steady nutrients go. I'm assuming in this scenario that you're cheating and enjoying a guilty pleasure.

Regardless,  the rest of your meals have to be nutritious so that, again, you're getting your recommended allowance of essential vitamins and minerals, which differs among men, women and children.

Most good fitness shakes I've encountered (in addition to those from Herbalife) are not only lesser calories (about 200 when consumed with milk or natural juice), but they're strong on nutrients. Herbalife boasts about 22 essentials. So that you're not enjoying an empty meal. Depending on what fitness goal you're striving for, some fitness buffs I've run into look for shakes with more elevated levels of protein for muscle promotion, as well as in their daily meals. Right now, I opt for no more than about 125 grams a day. Man or woman, bodybuilding requires more protein than other fitness activities, such as when dieting.

Lately, I've grown tired of mixing my shakes with milk, so I've started mixing them with Naked juices. I can't speak for how they taste with shake flavors other than vanilla. Also, shaking the mixture or tossing it in a blender are much better than stirring, which no matter how vigorously you churn never gets all the powder lumps out.