Nowadays, you can’t go to any wellness store, supermarket, or pharmacy without finding protein powders. There’s whey protein to vegan-based protein powders and everything in between. The ingredients and choices may be pretty confusing for the uninitiated. You talk to 20 health experts about the best protein powder option, and you’ll get over twenty different answers. That’s where the idea for Gainful started. Gainful is a subscription-based plan that provides customers with a customized protein powder blend. COO Eric Wu and CTO Jahaan Ansari founded the company in 2017 after Eric experimented with a protein blend that worked for him. 

What further separates Gainful from the competition is that it connects you with one of their registered dieticians, so you are not going it alone. We like that a lot. So with that, we decided to give Gainful a try and share the experience of one of our staff members, Zena. 

Zena’s Biometrics

Gender: Cis-gender Woman 

Age: 29

Height: 5 feet, 6 inches 

Weight: 175 pounds 

BMI: 28.2 (Overweight) 

If you want to calculate your BMI, you can use this CDC link. 

How It Works

To find the right protein powder blend, visitors must take a personalized quiz based on their specific goal. The questions are what you’d expect and takes about five minutes. Gainful asks about your age, height, and weight. Expect to answer a few lifestyle questions such as eating habits, workout routine (if any), and sleep pattern. We recommend being very realistic with the fitness and weight goal questions, as this will determine your personalized protein mix formulation.

Once you’ve completed the questionnaire, Gainful will spit out a recommended list of products starting with their protein powder and other supplements based on your answers. You can delete items off the list or add other products. You also have the option to change your subscription delivery order. For instance, Zena changed her delivery frequency from three weeks and pushed it back because of travel plans.
Our protein mix contained 27 grams per scoop and about 14 servings. We also received Gainful’s personalized hydration formulated for running and moderate-intensity workouts.

What’s In It?

The term “proprietary blend” gets thrown around a lot, but in Gainful’s case, the company lists every ingredient in its protein powder formulas. Ingredients include organic pea, organic rice protein, and green tea extract, to name a few. For a list of the ingredients, click here. 

Remember those lifestyle questions? Gainful takes pains to ensure that its protein blends are devoid of allergens, which is good news for those allergic to soy. You won’t find any soy in Gainful’s products. Lactose intolerant? No problem, Gainful’s got you covered. In our survey, we selected lactose-free and were pleasantly pleased that this was even an option. The key ingredients in our blend contained magnesium glycinate, natural cane sugar, natural caffeine (from coffee beans), and L-theanine.

Our order took about two weeks to arrive, and everything came in the package. Our box came with a protein smoothie blender (free for students), protein powder, hydration, two flavors boost cartons, salted caramel, and cookies and cream. 

Flavor Boosts

Thank goodness there are flavor options. The protein powder on its own is bland, as much as you would expect. Gainful offers two flavor boosts, which come free with your subscription. For our blend, we chose salted caramel and cookies & cream. We were a bit nervous that the flavor packet would not be enough to enhance the taste of the protein powder, but to our surprise, it mixed well enough.
Each flavor packet has seven single servings and is about eight calories per serving. For now, we’re sticking to two flavors. Zena prefers salted caramel over cookies and cream. However, you can switch up flavors with your orders. You can order additional flavor boosts to your subscription at $3 per carton (seven individual flavor boosts).

Registered Dietician at Your Service

The added benefit of connecting with a registered dietician was the most significant selling point for us. Gainful assigned Zena to her registered dietician, Matt, upon signing up for a subscription. Two weeks into the program, Zena contacted Matt for nutritional advice via email because of her upcoming travel plans. Zena sent an email on May 27 and got a response back on May 29. Not bad, given that it was Memorial Day weekend. Tiffany, who subbed in for Matt, recommended sticking to salads and low-calorie freezer meals and offered snack tips to help with a low-calorie diet.

How Much Does It Cost?

If you aren’t used to spending money on health supplements, a Gainful subscription can seem quite expensive. We used different accounts to customize various subscription plans. Depending on how you answered your quiz, the monthly subscription can be over $100. The monthly expense may be a bit of a turn-off for some; however, if you are serious about your fitness goals, you may want to consider Gainful as an option.

Depending on your health goals, a trip to GNC or Vitamin Shoppe will probably cost just as much, if not more. With gas prices where they are, saving yourself a trip by having your supplements delivered to your door doesn’t sound so bad. Throw in access to a registered dietician, which the company values at $200 per month, and the cost of a Gainful subscription is well worth it.

Right now, Gainful offers a 30% discount on your first order with a promo code, so you should take advantage of it while it lasts.
For students on a budget, the good news is that Gainful offers a 20% student discount on the first six orders. Referring a friend to Gainful gets you 50% off, and two referrals get you a free month.

Customer Service Experience

Gainful is not just about selling personalized protein powder. The company strives to build a community through its social media channels and encourages customers to reach out. Send a DM to the company’s Instagram account, and you will get a response back. We tried it and received an answer right away, which didn’t seem automated. Gainful stands by its products. You can send back your formula if you are not satisfied with your protein blend and you can also cancel your subscription at any time. 

Gainful’s Facebook page shows 4.7 out of 5-star reviews from over 400 satisfied customers. As an e-commerce company, your interaction with Gainful limits you to text, chat, or email, but we feel that most consumers are familiar with these modes of communication anyway in today’s day and age. 

Zena’s First Three Weeks

I like that my protein formula considers that I do not incorporate enough exercise during the week. So Gainful provided me with about 14 servings of hydration. I use it whenever I exercise during the week, which helps me recover from my workouts faster.
In my first week, I wasn’t as active due to a hectic work schedule, so I wasn’t on Gainful, but I noticed an increase in my energy levels in weeks 2-3 as I got into my workout sessions, and spent about 50 minutes of low-to-moderate exercise and burned about 500 calories on average. I noticed that I’m not as tired during the day, and my muscles aren’t as sore as they usually would be after a run. I really like the hydration formula; it works well for me. Before Gainful, a 5-mile walk/run would leave my legs feeling sore if I went out for three days straight. By week 2, I didn’t feel any soreness or muscle cramping and carry-on with my busy work schedule day. I usually take the protein smoothie drink to replace my lunch meals since I find the smoothie very filling for me.

Bottom Line: Does it Work? 

Like many diets and programs, it takes time to see the results. One month of using Gainful may not be enough to draw a conclusion. However, in Zena’s experience, the protein shake served well as a meal replacement, and quite honestly, she could not down the shake in one sitting. In addition, committing to working out is critical to see results while using Gainful. Zena saw about half a pound of weight loss per week by doing low- to moderate-intensity exercises while taking the protein shake and hydration formula. Typically, healthy weight loss should be 1-2 pounds per week.

If you decide to get Gainful’s system, we suggest doing three months to get an accurate assessment of your results. We highly recommend taking advantage of the registered dietician service as a bonus.
Overall, Zena’s experience with Gainful was a positive one. There is no fat-shaming, the process is objective, and there’s ample support within the Gainful community.