You hear about so many, from the basic protein supplements to the highly complex, take at night standing on your head, half an hour before bed, repair your body and feel better post work out supplements.
But what supplement do you really need?
Well what do you want to do?
Do you want to get bigger or leaner?
Do you want to have more energy through the day?
Do you want to just increase your regular health and diet?
Once you have figured out what you want to do, then you can start planning as to what supplements you may need.
Here is the basic breakdown of supplements on the market.
Protein supplements – these normally come in a powder form, but you can buy ready to go shakes and bars and cookies and even pancake mixes. Depending on the composition of the product some of these are better for those wanting to pack on mass. Mass will come from a higher carb to protein ratio. Others will give you lean muscle. Lean-ness will come from a low carb (potentially none) and high protein content. Contrary to most people belief, protein alone does not build muscle, there are many other factors that need to be considered. And for all the ladies out there protein supplements are not going to make you the incredible hulk, unless…you start taking testosterone supplements as well, in fact you can lose more weight by supplementing a good quality protein snack for a meal, giving your body, good fuel to burn.
Pre/post workout supplement – these are the supplements that are required to break the threshold of being a fitness fanatic to becoming a fitness freak. Most pre workout supplements are s nasty tasting concoction of Caffeine, guarana, Beta-alanine, L-Arginine, and Creatine and even laboratory made “anates” with separate letters like “L” and “Y” as prefixes. But what are they supposed to do? Well some are designed to give you the energy boost to help you push further in your physical feats. More energy means more running time, more stamina to do more reps. Some will also increase the Nitric Oxide in the body, causing blood to flow better through your body and muscles. This helps in getting that one last Rep, getting a better muscle “pump”, which all in turn equates to bigger muscle growth. Some will also contain ingredients designed to help with the absorption of nutrients consumed after a workout and aid in repair after a workout.
Carb Cutting/weight loss supplements – these types of supplements are normally found in a pill form. Intense amounts of metabolism firing ingredients designed to keep your body burning away the fat during the day and night. However, since one of the main ingredients for these are caffeine some sleep problems might arise. You can also get supplements that change the way your body deals with carbs. These can be found in some protein powders and other supplements such as bars and snacks. There are many of these out on the market, as they are normally seen as a quick fix for fatness. But the truth is it is not a quick fix, merely a tool in helping you burn some extra calories through the day.
Vitamin/mineral supplements – ok now these supplements are designed to fill gaps in your diet, increase certain levels of dietary needs for specifics. Such specifics could be, deficiencies in perhaps testosterone, amino acids and other vitamins. Some of these have rare plant extracts others will contain laboratory concocted ingredients. You can obviously get multivitamins, specific vitamins, oils and capsules.
Straight up, the supplement game will cost you money. And in some cases lots of it.
So what do you do?
It has been suggested that you try and order in bulk. Most websites provide free shipping over a certain dollar value. So if you can get another gym goer involved you can save that way. You could also search for alternatives in your regular diet. Protein can be sourced from meats and eggs, but you may end up spending more on rump steaks just to get your protein fill.
Another option is to consider the end goal and whether you will actually need the supplement. Maybe you will only need it a couple of times a week or once a month. Maybe as a reserve for when you know that you need that extra boost or recovery.
Either way if you get into it, expect to pay, but if you use them right, you will also gain.
I used to be that guy who said, “nope all natural, all the way”. But you get to a point where you plateau and you need to make the choice, stay this level or go higher…
I will continue to try other supplements throughout the course of my life no doubt. However I am keen to hear what the rest of you out there use and the results they give. And if anyone is chasing something new or want some advice, feel free to ask.
No comments:
Post a Comment