"But I Don’t Believe in Steroids!"
I am going to type this as slowly and as loudly as I can: SUPPLEMENTS ARE NOT STEROIDS!!! Steroids are illegal in the U.S., plus a bunch of other countries. If you can find it on a shelf in a store at the mall and plunk it down at the cash register and walk out with it in a bag, it is not steroids. Period.What Supplements Should I Take? Are Supplements Even Worth It?
I am going to give you my personal opinions here--I’m not a personal trainer or professional nutritionist--but I think they’re pretty sound. Here are the supplements I think will help you do better in the gym:- a multivitamin - Take your pick.
- vitamins and minerals - Vitamins C and D, magnesium, calcium, potassium, and zinc are all helpful in recovering from workouts or strengthening muscle and bone. If you’re not getting enough from food, take a supplement. Note that your multivitamin may not contain some of these, so read the label.
- caffeine - There is a decent amount of evidence that suggests caffeine does help you perform better in the gym. You could take an expensive pre-workout supplement; nearly all of the ones on the market have hefty doses of caffeine and in my opinion, that’s about all they have that’s going to do you any good. So my advice is, just drink some coffee.
- creatine monohydrate - Unlike most supplements you will find at the supplement store, creatine’s benefits have been well-documented for decades. It helps your muscles recover more quickly from high-intensity activities like lifting a heavy weight. This means that you may find your second and third sets of an exercise go just a bit better with the help of creatine. It also helps develop muscle size and strength over time. You don’t need a super fancy form of creatine, so shop around for a powder that is cheap.
- BCAA’s - Short for “branch-chained amino acids”, which are the building blocks of proteins, and from there, of muscles. I don’t currently take these, but I have. I changed my mind because I realized I was already getting complete proteins from my protein powder, and there’s a decent amount of disagreement among experts about whether BCAA’s are actually needed for folks who get plenty of protein intake.
That’s it. Based on my research, almost all of those shelves and shelves of bottles you see in the supplement store are either snake oil, or are marginally helpful but not worth the expense and side effects. And you shouldn’t feel like caffeine, creatine, or BCAA’s are going to make or break your workouts. If you don’t want to use them, don’t.
Are Supplements Safe?
If you live in the U.S. you need to know that supplements, from the chewable vitamin C tablet you gave your toddler this morning to the “testosterone booster” in the dodgy-looking packaging, are not regulated. There’s no government agency checking to see if those supplements are what they claim to be. Let the buyer beware. I go ahead and take the supplements I mentioned above, but if all this makes you nervous, skip them. If you’re eating a healthy diet, none of them is essential.Did I Hurt Your Feelings?
I wasn't trying to. If I didn't mention your favorite supplement, I'm not saying it's definitely worthless, only that I haven't found any evidence to support its value. Keep taking it if you want to.
Remember, supplements are there to help your workout, but you've still got to work out!
Best wishes,
The Friendly Lifter
