In the world of fitness, there’s no shortage of supplements that claim to work miracles by boosting muscle gains, dropping kilos of body fat in record time, and just making out that by taking a quick drink, you will turn into a world-class athlete.
In all my years of working in and managing a supplement store, I’ve seen and heard it all. Apart from it being quite entertaining to listen to some of the claims people approach me with, it’s also disheartening to see how damaging the supplement industry can be in taking people’s hard-earned money with false and bogus claims.
It’s important to know that the results you seek in the gym and from training are a byproduct of a no-excuses mentality, hard training, and good nutrition first and foremost.
Supplements are just the icing on the cake that are meant to do just that – ‘supplement’ a healthy lifestyle.
But when your training and nutrition are locked in, these five science-backed supplements can definitely help you get your new physique a little faster, boost the quality of your workouts, help you reach new levels of performance, and help you recover.
1. CREATINE
Let’s start with one of the most well-researched supplements currently on the market for strength training – Creatine.
Creatine is an amino acid that your body can produce, by way of your kidneys and liver, after you eat protein. Animal proteins, particularly red meat and fish, contain Creatine naturally, but you’d need to eat almost inhuman amounts of each to hit the level available in most creatine supplements.
So without getting too technical, your muscles convert Creatine into creatine phosphate, which is then generated into adenosine triphosphate (ATP), which is your body’s energy system that is used for explosive exercise. This means that less Creatine in your body can mean less strength and a decrease in performance.
But you’d have to eat kilos and kilos of protein-rich foods in order to get the amount of Creatine you need to produce a benefit, so that’s where supplement manufacturers have made creatine intake more available and more efficient by manufacturing creatine powder by itself, to add to almost any drink you have during the day (most people will have it in their pre-workout).
Although there are many forms of Creatine and fancy names, I’d recommend just plain 100% Creatine Monohydrate. It’s the cheapest and still the most effective. You can find this in almost any sports store and even many supermarkets.
Also important: Creatine supplementation should be considered complementary to consuming protein, not a replacement for it. That’s because Creatine and protein work in different ways.
In short, Creatine leads to more strength during your workout, while protein leads to more muscle repair after your workout.
2. AMINO ACIDS
Amino Acids are often referred to as the building blocks of proteins and are compounds that play many critical roles in your body. You need them for vital processes such as building proteins, hormones, and neurotransmitters.
Your body needs 20 different amino acids to grow and function properly. While all 20 of these are important for your health, only nine are classified as essential, making them Essential Amino Acids (EAA’s).
Although your body can make nonessential amino acids, it cannot make essential amino acids, so you have to get them from your diet or supplements.
After you eat protein, your body breaks it down into amino acids and then uses them for various processes; the number one thing for us regularly training at the dojo and constantly breaking down muscle tissue is building NEW muscle tissue.
By supplementing with EAAs during your workout – or ‘intra’ workout as it’s often referred to – you can help reduce unnecessary muscle breakdown, which ultimately will help us reduce muscle soreness and kickstart the recovery process.
Another benefit that I personally love with EAA’s is that you can drink them any time during the day – even outside of training sessions – which is perfect for me if I want to break up the monotony of always having plain water (it makes me feel like I’m drinking cordial, which my inner child loves).one
3. BETA ALANINE
Beta-Alanine is one of the amino acids responsible for increasing intra-muscular Carnosine, the primary amino acid responsible for removing the toxic component of lactic acid that causes fatigue during high-intensity exercise.
In simple terms, Beta-Alanine helps buffer that burning sensation we feel in our muscles during our Strength and Conditioning metcons, or our pad work in our Martial Arts classes.
During exercise, the body relies on three energy systems that work sequentially through the varying stages of intensity:
Our first energy system is our strength energy system, also known as our ATP system, as explained above with Creatine. Once we have exhausted our ability to exert strength and power, our lactate system kicks in (also known as our anaerobic energy system).
During this high-intensity exercise phase, we can only maintain a certain intensity level for up to a few minutes before lactic acid raises too fast for how quickly we can remove it. This is now where we usually have to stop our workout for a brief moment while the lactic acid dissipates before we can begin again.
Utilizing a Beta-Alanine supplement can increase intramuscular Carnosine levels and improve the speed efficiency of lactic acid removal, thus improving the intensity and muscular endurance.
This means getting more done in less time, faster metcons, better scores, less rest – everything we want to achieve in a workout.
Most pre-workouts will contain a dosage of Beta-Alanine; however, buying Beta Alanine as a separate product can help individuals get benefit from it without some of the other unnecessary ingredients some pre-workouts contain.
4. PROTEIN POWDER
Arguably the #1 supplement everyone talks about. From those wanting to bulk up in the gym to those wanting to slim down and drop weight – protein power has a number of uses across all lifestyles and training styles.
Let’s have a look at some of the key components that individuals will use protein powder for:
Muscle growth
Protein is essential for muscle growth. It is the only major nutrient that stimulates muscle protein synthesis (MPS), the process by which your body repairs and grows muscle.
Many athletes and gym-goers consume a protein shake after training to kickstart MPS and provide their bodies with much-needed calories to meet their daily macronutrient requirements.
Recovery after exercise
As well as contributing to muscle growth, protein helps repair damaged muscles and tissues. As a result, athletes may use protein powder to speed up recovery from muscle soreness after exercise and to aid recovery by reducing muscle damage and improving muscle performance and protein synthesis.
Added daily nutrition
Even for non-training individuals, daily protein intake (DPI) is still very important for energy levels, mood, hunger satiation and overall health. People who find it challenging to meet a minimum DPI may find that protein powder offers an easy solution to getting more protein in during the day
Everyone’s DPI is different and often comes down to an individual’s size, weight, daily energy expenditure, activity level, etc.
A rough guide for healthy individuals who regularly take part in intense exercise would be to take their body weight in kgs, and double that number, leading to how much protein in grams we want to be getting.
For instance, an 80kg individual would look at getting 160g of protein per day. A 100kg individual would look at getting 200g per day, and a 60kg individual would look at getting 120g per day etc.
Although we would need to be more specific for each individual, this is a rough guide that can be used as a good starting point.
Luckily enough in today’s day and age, there are many different types of protein powders for different demographics, too.
However, the most common types of protein powder are derived from dairy (Whey Protein Isolate (WPI), Whey Protein Concentrate (WPC), and Casein Protein).
There are also many different types that are dairy free – Collagen protein, Pea Protein, Rice Protein, and Soy Protein etc, making it easy for those with intolerances to still have options when it comes to choosing a protein powder that will benefit them.
5. MULTIVITAMIN
Multivitamins are often a forgotten part of the puzzle when talking about supplements. We all hope to get the nutrients we need from a healthy and balanced diet. However, stress and our busy lifestyles sometimes interfere with this aim, and to ensure our micronutrient bases are covered, an everyday nutritional multivitamin supplement may help.
Since athletes and active individuals have an increased need for nutrients compared to non-active individuals, a multivitamin is a great fail-safe that can improve essential vitamin and mineral support.
Multivitamins can benefit the cardiovascular system, mental performance, cellular energy production, healthy immune function and dietary nutrient intake, providing a solid foundation for athletic performance and optimal health.
Choosing the right multivitamin can be tough, as many store-bought supermarket ones are underdosed and can be quite ineffective.
For a good multivitamin, I would recommend going to a sports store which will cater more to active individuals.
So there you have it, five of the best supplements to add to your training routine to help push your workouts, results, and recovery to the next level.
Just remember, adding these supplements to your nutrition or diet plan doesn’t excuse a diet of excessive carbs, low protein, and tons of processed or fatty foods. Supplements are supposed to do just that — supplement or complement a healthy diet.
With this list in mind, you might wonder, “Do I need to take these five supplements every day? What if I miss a day?” If you miss a day, it’s not the end of the world.
The issue isn’t about forgetting a dose here or there, but more about taking them regularly based on your training goals and daily routine.
*Oceanic Martial Arts Academy members get 10% off everything in the store when shopping at Nutrition Warehouse.
