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Cellucor Cor-Performance Whey 25 g of protein, 4 g of carbohydrates, 1.5 g of fat, and 120 calories per serving. Designed around their COR-Performance Whey Protein Matrix (Whey Protein Isolate and Whey Protein Concentrate), this also includes digestive enzymes to encourage protein synthesis.
However, this is very much a pure whey protein supplement, and doesn’t include any creatine, glutamine, pre-workout energy boost, or BCAAs. So how does it compare to an ‘all-in-one’ muscle builder, like Six Star 100% Whey?
In this review, we’ll compare Cor-Performance Whey to two top-rated whey protein powders; Six Star 100% Whey, and MusclePharm Combat. This includes the ingredients, dosages, price, cost per serving, and customer feedback, to help you decide if Cor-Performance is the best protein powder for your fitness goals and diet.
We’ve also added recommendations for the best BCAA, pre-workout, creatine, weight loss, and nitric oxide supplements to combine with Cor-Performance, as part of a complete strength, muscle-building, and recovery stack.
Cellucor Cor-Performance Ingredients
Cor-Performance Whey has a similar macronutrient profile to MusclePharm Combat protein powder, but with 1 g less carbs per scoop. The big difference is in the protein blend, where Cellucor opts for a fast-digesting whey concentrate and whey isolate combination, and Combat uses a time-release blend of 5 protein sources.
However, MusclePharm Combat is typically the cheaper protein powder, with a 52-serving (4 pound) tub costing just over $31 at time of review. That’s compared to nearly $55 for 52 servings of Cor-Performance Whey.
So, what else does the Cellucor protein have to offer?
Looking at the micronutrient profile, Cor-Performance Whey has 190 mg of sodium (8% DV), with 35 mg of cholesterol (12% DV) per scoop. That’s not wildly different from MusclePharm Combat (150 mg and 46 mg respectively), and is about average for the protein powders that we review. You also get an extra 3% of your daily value for calcium from a scoop of Cor-Performance (15% vs. 12%).
Both powders are labelled as gluten-free, but contain milk and soy lecithin. So, there’s not that much of a difference when you compare the two protein powders, aside from price.
Other ingredients listed on the Cor-Performance Whey label include cocoa powder, artificial flavors, acesulfame potassium, and three digestive enzymes; protease, protease A-S, and lactase. The protease helps to breakdown the protein, while lactase does the same for milk sugar lactose, which is useful as this protein powder contains milk.
COR-Performance Whey Protein Matrix
- Whey Protein Isolate
- Whey Protein Concentrate
Cellucor Cor-Performance – Product Summary
- 52 servings per container, 35g per 2 scoops
- 25g of 100% Whey Protein, 130 calories, 1.5g fat and 3g carbs per serving
- 5.5g BCAAs and naturally occurring digestive enzymes per serving
- Protein blend contains whey protein isolate and whey protein concentrate
- Acesulfame potassium and sucralose used as artificial sweeteners
Weight loss or weight gain?
The low carbs, fat, and calories make COR-Performance Whey an excellent choice for anyone looking to build and retain lean muscle. With just 120 calories per serving, it might not be enough to help you gain weight on its own, but can certainly help boost your daily protein intake.
If you’re looking to gain size and lean muscle, we recommend mixing the powder with milk or even oatmeal to increase the number of carbs and calories.
When is the best time to take it?
Recommended use
Take one or two scoops of Cellucor COR-Performance Whey Protein with 6 – 12 oz. of cold water or any beverage of your choice. Use approximately 5 – 6 oz. of liquid per one scoop of powder.
Cor-Performance vs. Six Star 100% Whey
Cor-Performance vs. MusclePharm Combat
What flavors and sizes are available?
On the official Cellucor website, we found COR-Performance Whey was available in three sizes: 14, 28, and 70-serving tubs. A quick search on Amazon also found a 54-serving tub, but this was replaced by the 70-serving option, so might not be available for long.
Flavors
- Cinnamon Swirl
- Cookies N’ Cream
- Cookies n Cream
- Molten Chocolate
- Peanut Butter Marshmallow
- Strawberry Milkshake
- Whipped Vanilla
Who are Cellucor?
Cellucor has been producing sports nutrition supplements since 2002, with two main product lines; Chrome Series, and COR-Performance™ Series.
One of their most popular supplements (2,600+ reviews on Amazon) is the C4 pre-workout energy booster, which is now available as both a powder and an ‘on-the-go’ energy and performance booster. But they also offer a wide range of products to suit specific training goals, such as muscle growth, weight loss, athletics, and endurance.
Many of their supplements contain unique combinations of ingredients, called ‘blends’. This includes their Explosive Energy Blend (energy and performance), Creacarb™ Blend (mass gainer), and Gainer Proprietary Blend (COR-Performance Gainer protein, for bulking and recovery).
But knowing what’s contained in each of these blends and how they’re combined with other key ingredients like protein and carbs isn’t always easy. That’s why we recommend looking at our Cellucor supplement guide. This includes a summary of the health benefits, which sizes and flavors are available, and dosages for the main ingredients.
We’ve also added in-depth reviews and comparisons with other top rated nutrition companies, to guarantee you only buy the best supplement for your fitness goals.
Review Overview
Overall Review Rating
4.5 / 5
At the time of writing this review, each serving of Cellucor COR-Performance Whey was priced at $0.74, based on buying the 5 pound tub of Cookies ’N’ Cream flavor. Other flavors were more expensive, priced closer to $60 per tub ($0.86 per serving).
In our opinion you really need to buy the larger tub to make it worthwhile, preferably at a price closer to $50, which puts the cost per serving closer to Optimum Nutrition Gold Standard Whey.
Price is important, because the macronutrient profile of the two powders is so similar (COR-Performance has 1 g more protein and 1 g less carbs). They also share the same protein blend of whey isolate and whey concentrate, but Gold Standard Whey has added whey peptides.
In fact, it’s only the first generation tubs of COR-Performance Whey that have 25 g of protein. When Cellucor released the second generation formula, protein content dropped to 24 g, the same as Gold Standard Whey.
Overall, Cellucor have done an excellent job of creating a high quality protein shake with a wide range of flavors and tub sizes. At the right price (close to $50 for 70 servings), it’s a serious competitor for the bestselling Gold Standard whey protein from Optimum Nutrition.
Customer feedback has been excellent, with hundreds of highly rated reviews praising the high protein content, great taste, how easily the powder mixes with milk and water, and how versatile it is (used in cooking or as a standalone protein shake).
Some customers left lower ratings due to difficulty blending particular flavors. Cookies and Creme seems to mix better than Molten Chocolate, but none of the labels list soy lecithin as an ingredient, which is standard among most protein powders for improving mixability.
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