LifePro Instant Oats - High Fiber Instant Oat Flour

What is Life Pro Instant Oats?

It is an instant oat flour, milled very finely so that it dissolves in cold or hot liquid without lumps. It provides 377 kcal, 60 g of carbohydrates and 10 to 11 g of fibre per 100 g, with only 1.1 g of sugars.

It is oats, nothing more in the unflavoured version: oat flour, a single ingredient. The flavoured versions add cocoa, flavourings, biscuit pieces depending on the recipe, and sucralose as a sweetener. The composition therefore genuinely varies from one flavour to another, and the label on the pouch you receive is the authority.

The flavours listed here: Choco Monky, Cookies, Brownie, ChocOreo-Nut, Cookies-Choco Dips, Choco-Hazelnut, Vanilla, Croissant and Split. The manufacturer states a resealable 1.6 kg pouch; as this weight does not appear in our labelling data, check it on the pouch. The product joins our oat flour and LifePro Nutrition ranges.

What does a 100 g serving contain?

* Column calculated from the per 100 g values. The manufacturer specifies that these values are averages: they vary by flavour, since the flavoured versions contain cocoa or biscuit pieces. No per-serving column is published, and the table carries no % NRV — which is normal, as a flour provides no nutrient for which an NRV has been established.

Two nutrition claims are solidly supported here, so we are entitled to use them. “High in fibre” first: the regulatory threshold is 6 g per 100 g, and this product provides 10 to 11. “Low in sugars” next: the threshold is 5 g per 100 g for a solid food, and we are at 1.1 g. These are verifiable facts, not sales arguments.

A third one deserves a caveat. “Source of protein” requires protein to supply at least 12% of the energy value: 12 g at 4 kcal makes 48 kcal out of 377, i.e. 12.7%. The threshold is cleared, but only just. Put another way, oats provide protein, but they are not a protein source in the sense you have in mind: 6 g in a 50 g serving replaces no shake.

The figure that really defines this product is the ratio of 60 g of carbohydrates to 1.1 g of sugars. Almost all of the carbohydrate content is starch, accompanied by 10 to 11 g of fibre. That is what sets oat flour apart from maltodextrin: you get the energy with substance, not with sugar. Note in passing the 7 g of fat per 100 g, higher than a cream of rice — that is the cereal's natural fat, and it counts towards the calorie total.

How do you prepare Life Pro Instant Oats?

Dose: 100 g, or 8 to 9 level tablespoons, or 50 g for a more measured serving. Liquid: 250 to 350 ml of water, milk or plant-based drink. Timing: at breakfast, 60 to 90 minutes before your session, or as a snack. Frequency: 1 to 3 servings a day depending on your goal. Duration: none, this is a food.

A word about that 100 g serving, because it comes as a surprise: it represents 377 kcal, the equivalent of a proper meal. That makes sense for a mass-gaining breakfast, and is far too much for a snack. Most of our customers settle on 50 g, or 189 kcal, and that is a more realistic benchmark — adjust the liquid in the same proportions.

Fine-tuning the texture is the real pleasure of this product. At 250 ml per 100 g, you get a thick porridge to eat with a spoon. At 350 ml, a drink you can take from a shaker. The manufacturer suggests four preparations, all of which work: hot porridge (mix with hot milk, leave to swell for two to three minutes), overnight oats made the night before in the fridge, pancakes with an egg and a pinch of baking powder, or a smoothie in the blender with fruit.

On timing, the 60 to 90 minutes before your session benchmark is the only one that calls for discipline. With 10 to 11 g of fibre per 100 g, a large serving swallowed thirty minutes before training will not sit well. If you train early, cut the dose rather than bringing the timing forward.

Reseal the pouch carefully after each use and store it somewhere dry: a fine flour picks up moisture and clumps together.

Who is this oat flour for, and who is it not for?

It is aimed first at those who struggle to get their carbohydrates up: limited appetite, breakfasts eaten on the run, days with no time to cook. Drinking 377 kcal of complex carbohydrates is considerably easier than eating the equivalent in whole rolled oats. It also suits those who cook: the fineness of the milling makes it a flour you can use directly in pancakes or a cake.

It contains GLUTEN — oats, and wheat in the flavours containing biscuit. Traces of MILK, EGG, SOYA and PEANUTS are possible. The manufacturer notes that the sucralose present in the flavoured versions may have a laxative effect if consumed in excess. Keep out of reach of young children.

It is not suitable for people with coeliac disease: even in the unflavoured version, oats are a gluten-containing ingredient under this labelling, and this is not a mere trace. Nor is it suitable immediately before a session, or for a gut that is very sensitive to fibre: 10 g per 100 g is a lot if you are not used to it. Build up gradually.

What you should not expect from it. This is not a protein source: 6 g in a 50 g serving does not count towards a protein total, and you need to pair it with a protein if that is your goal. Nor is it a weight-loss product — 377 kcal per 100 g is dense energy that goes down easily, which is exactly the opposite of what you want in a strict deficit. And there is nothing magical about oats: this is finely milled oats. Its value lies in convenience and texture, not in any superiority over a bowl of rolled oats.

Oat flour or sweet potato flour?

Both are powdered carbohydrate sources you prepare yourself, and the question comes up often at the counter. It is settled on taste and on sugars, not on any nutritional superiority.

Sweet potato flour provides considerably more naturally occurring sugars — often around 12 g per 100 g against 1.1 g here — and a sweetness that all but removes the need to sweeten it. It is the better choice if you cook, in cakes and pancakes, or if you want a carbohydrate source with some taste to it without adding flavouring. It does, however, provide less fibre and less protein.

Oats win on three points: fibre, at 10-11 g per 100 g, the discretion of the sugars, at 1.1 g, and the satiety that comes with it. It is the better option for a breakfast that lasts until midday and for a pre-workout meal taken an hour and a half in advance. If, on the other hand, you are after a very easily digested carbohydrate source to take just before or during exercise, neither one fits: cream of rice or fast carbohydrates are where you should be looking. For mass gain, the two combine very well within the same day.

Frequently asked questions

Hot water or cold water?

Both work, unlike with a cream of rice. In hot liquid, the flour swells in two to three minutes and gives a thick porridge. In cold liquid, the very fine milling allows a lump-free shake, or overnight oats made the night before in the fridge. That is the real advantage of an instant oat flour over whole rolled oats.

Isn't 100 g an enormous serving?

It is the manufacturer's reference serving, and it represents 377 kcal, in other words a proper meal. For a snack or a light breakfast, 50 g is more than enough — 189 kcal, 30 g of carbohydrates and 5 g of fibre. Adjust the liquid in the same proportions, around 150 ml for 50 g.

How many servings are there in a pouch?

The net weight does not appear in the labelling data supplied to us; the manufacturer states a 1.6 kg format, which would represent 16 servings of 100 g or 32 servings of 50 g. Check the weight printed on the pouch and do the division — that is the only reliable figure.

Does the product contain gluten?

Yes. Oats are labelled here as containing gluten, and the flavours that include biscuit pieces add wheat flour and wheat starch. In cases of coeliac disease, this product is not suitable, even in the unflavoured version.

Is the composition the same for every flavour?

No, and this matters. The unflavoured version contains nothing but oat flour. The others add cocoa, flavourings, sweetener and sometimes biscuit pieces, which shifts the nutritional values and the allergen list. The figures on this page are averages: refer to the label of the flavour you receive.

Can it be mixed with protein?

Yes, and it is in fact the most common use, and the most sensible one: the oats provide the carbohydrates, the protein provides what they lack. Prepare the flour first if you are using hot liquid, let it cool for a minute, then add the powder — poured into a scalding liquid, a whey can curdle.

How long before training?

Sixty to ninety minutes, going by the manufacturer's guidance, and that interval is not negotiable upwards in volume. The 10 to 11 g of fibre per 100 g make a large serving hard to digest during exercise. If you train early in the morning, reduce the dose to 30 or 40 g instead.

Where can you buy Life Pro Instant Oats?

The flavours can be ordered from this page, and we ship throughout France and Europe. In a pouch this size, the choice of flavour matters more than you might think: you will be eating it for several weeks.

At the Vendargues shop, about ten minutes from Montpellier, this is typically the product where we advise starting with the most neutral version. A Brownie or ChocOreo-Nut flavour is enjoyable in the first bowl and tiresome by the twentieth, whereas a discreet base can be cooked in any direction you like and never goes stale in the cupboard.