Which Supplements are Worth Their Weight

Which Supplements are Worth Their Weight  

I know supplements are not for everybody. But I feel the importance to dedicate a mervmail to this subject, and get you familiar with some of them and its function.

This list below will be structured by level of importance and how much relevance it has to your goals for muscle mass growth. It is also considering that you have a sound diet consisting of plenty of whole proteins, complex carbs, and healthy fats eaten in small frequent meals (five to seven) spread throughout the day. Supplements are just that-they are for supplementing or adding to already good eating habits. If you are not practicing those habits then supplements will not come to your rescue. If so, then enjoy your forthcoming gains!

Number 1; Whey Protein

Whey protein is the granddaddy of supplements and is a must in your mass seeking arsenal. As a fast digesting protein, it is ideal for pre and post workout nutrition and extremely convenient. Rich in Branched-Chain Amino Acids (BCAAs) leucine, isoleucine, and valine, whey is invaluable as a fast-acting muscle booster to help you stay ahead of the curve when it comes to muscle repair and growth.

Try taking Whey protein with complex carbs about 30 to 60 minutes before training and with simple carbs immediately after training. Taking whey before training will set up an anabolic environment in the muscles and taking it after training will enable whey to be more readily absorbed by the muscle tissue. This will bookend your efforts in the gym so you will leave no stone unturned on your pursuit of the most effective recovery.

Also, when choosing a whey protein product make sure it is low in carbs and fat. Carbs and fat slow digestion down a bit. Post workout you want protein to rapidly enter the muscles, which can slow digestion down a bit when you need it most post workout. Some products include protein enzymes to help with digestion. If you have digestion problems with whey try a product with enzymes included, it may do just the trick and allow you to easily digest this “must have” supplement.

Number 2; Creatine

If you have never heard of creatine, then welcome to earth. Touted by athletes and researchers as one of the most effective supplements ever created, creatine has grown quite a powerful reputation. Heavily researched and widely used, athletes from all disciplines have sworn creatine’s effectiveness with readily apparent and fast-acting results. This supplement is another “must.”

As it gets converted to creatine phosphate in the muscles it creates a very anabolic environment in the tissue allowing more protein synthesis to occur. This “superhydration” of fluid in the muscle cells allows more nutrients to help repair and grow tissue. Try taking 3-5 grams pre and post workout with your whey shakes. Again, the pre workout dose will prime the muscles so they will be ready for the intense training to come and the post workout dose will enable the muscles to shuttle in creatine at a quick rate so the tissue will be topped off for the next session.

Some people claim creatine bloats their stomachs and/or intestinal area. If this is the case, it may not be digesting properly or completely. Creatine monohydrate may only be partially absorbing in the intestines but some may still be sitting outside of the intestinal walls. This causes that area to attract water and therefore a bloat in the lower G.I. tract. You are in luck. Creatine ethyl ester is a form of creatine that has been developed to be absorbed even more effectively. Creatine ethyl ester is broken down more readily for easier digestion. For you that means less bloat and more effective digestion of creatine to where it needs to go for growth and repair.

Number 3: ZMA and Antioxidants

“What?” You’re saying. Yes, zinc, magnesium, vitamin C and vitamin E are essential to the body when you are undergoing intense training. Sure, they don’t sound like the latest supplement breakthroughs, but the body produces free radicals which can circulate and cause damage. Antioxidant vitamins C and E can help combat these free radicals and strengthen the immune system, which means a healthier recovery ability and better gains. ZMA helps with increasing Insulin Growth factor-1 (IGF-1) and testosterone-potent hormones to help you along your quest for a more massive physique.

These two categories are what I call foundation supplements. You won’t instantly feel them working like creatine or caffeine, but they are of utmost importance regarding the body’s general health and wellbeing. If the body is not in a healthy state to begin with, how can it possibly build any muscle tissue? ZMA and antioxidants help maintain a healthy foundation so you are able to build upon it.

Take vitamin C and vitamin E with your first whole food post workout meal. Before bed take a ZMA supplement.

Number 4; Casein Protein

Another great protein product which, with the right timing, can be used to your advantage is casein. Casein is a slow digesting protein for those times when you need a longer lasting supply of amino acids in the bloodstream. It can be taken before bedtime with some healthy fats such as flax oil or natural peanut butter to have steady release of protein. Since it digests slower, casein is also ideal for when you need a convenient protein shake at any time during the day when you are unable to eat solid food. The steady flow of nutrients will allow your body to keep feeding, supplying those muscles with what they need. 20 grams of casein is great to add to your post workout shake of whey, creatine and simple carbs.

Number 5; Glutamine

Another unglamorous supplement is glutamine which is a very abundant amino acid in the muscle tissue. Although not “sexy,” glutamine has a host of unbeatable benefits such as helping muscles take up glycogen after a workout, maintaining immune function, and increasing growth hormone levels. It can also delay fatigue so you can workout harder longer and keep you out of that dreaded catabolic state. If your system is in short supply of glutamine it will actually steal it from muscle tissue, so can you think of any reason not to supplement with it?

Try Glutamine pre and post workout to help combat the fatigue factor and give the recovery process a head start. Again, glutamine may not be a jolt of energy or enable you to instantly have strength gains, but in the long run you won’t be sorry. As another “foundation” supplement glutamine works behind the scenes to help other processes happen.

Number 6; CLA (Conjugated Linolic Acid)

Conjugated linoleic acid, or CLA, is quickly gaining popularity as a type of natural “fat burner.” It is not a thermogenic supplement like many other fat burners on the market, it simply helps your body become more efficient at processing and storing dietary fat intake. In very simple terms, CLA helps prevent your body from storing extra fat by interfering with the chemical that adipose cells, or fat cells use to absorb and store excess fat. Studies show that CLA also helps the body use stored fat for energy while increasing lean body mass. It doesn’t directly burn fat cells on it’s own, but it encourages the body to burn fat with a proper caloric deficit and exercise, and prevents your body from absorbing fat and forming new fat cells. CLA seems like a healthy and extremely effective supplement for those looking to burn fat and increase lean body mass without using any harsh stimulants.

Until

Until you have learned to be tolerant with those who do not always agree with you; until you have cultivated the habit of saying some kind word of those whom you do not admire; until you have formed the habit of looking for the good instead of the bad there is in others, you will be neither successful nor happy.

Napoleon Hill (1883-1970)
Author and Lecturer: Author of the bestselling classic ‘Think And Grow Rich’

Trust

When you completely trust another person, you will end up with one of two outcomes a friend for life or a lesson for life. Both, regardless of the outcome, are VALUABLE.

Unknown

character

"Be more concerned with your character than your reputation, because your character is what you really are, while your reputation is merely what others think you are."

John Wooden

Money

"It is good to have money and the things that money can buy, but it's good too, to check up once in a while and make sure you haven't lost the things money can't buy."

George Lorimer - 1867-1937, Editor of Saturday Evening Post

Be simply yourself

"When you are content to be simply yourself and don’t compare or compete, everybody will respect you."
Lao Tzu (c 604 BCE),mystic philosopher of ancient China.

Kindness

"Kindness is more important than wisdom, and the recognition of this is the beginning of wisdom."

Theodore Isaac Rubin, Psychiatrist

11 Deadly Workout Sins

Not seeing results with your workout? Maybe you're committing one of these workout sins

Sin #1: Too much, too soon

If women want their arms smaller, their abs smaller, or their thighs smaller, they typically will work those muscles every time they work out. However, you need 72 hours to go through one metabolic cycle, which promotes healing of the tissue that was torn during your workouts. If you’re training the same muscle group every day, your body won’t have a chance to recover, slowing progress and leaving yourself open to injury.

Sin #2: Going cold

Going into your workout cold is a big no-no. Warming up lubricates the joints by thinning the synovial fluid that buffers them, which will give you a better range of motion and put you at a lower risk of injury. Warming up with 5 to 10 minutes of a cardiovascular exercise at 50 to 60 percent of your maximal heart rate. If you’re weight training, you can warm up by doing two lighter sets of each exercise before piling on the weights.

Sin #3: Not getting enough Z’s

When you sleep your body releases growth hormones and repairs the trauma done to the muscles during the day. If you don’t get enough sleep, you don’t go into the repair and renew cycle that your body hits at its third to fourth hour of slumber. Everyone’s a little different, but you should log in a minimum of six hours of snooze time per night. Try to go to bed and get up at the same time every day.

Sin #4: Eating like a bird

Many women starve themselves and over exercise. But if you don’t eat enough during the day, your body goes into starvation mode and slows down its metabolism, making it even harder to lose weight.

When you exercise intensely, your metabolism revs up —and this is when the greatest fat-burning effect takes place. But if you don’t get enough calories for fuel, you can’t exercise intensely enough to make this happen.

Sin #5: Skipping the stretch

As we get older our muscles lose some of their elasticity, and as a result we lose flexibility. That can cause postural problems and cause us to be more prone to straining a muscle. Stretching following your workout, while the muscles are warm, you’ll improve your flexibility. For best results, hold each stretch for at least 10-20 seconds.

Sin #6: Ignoring the negative

If you focus on lifting a weight—the concentric or positive component—and then just let it fall back into place, your sin is in neglecting the negative. The process of letting the weight back down is called the eccentric component, and it’s at least as important as the concentric component for stimulating muscular development. Ignore it and you’ll only get half the results. In addition, there’s a much greater probability of injury when you let gravity pull the weight down—this places the joints at a high potential for pulls and tears. I recommend lowering the weight twice as slowly as you lift it.

Sin #7: Having an "all or nothing" mentality

Your New Year’s resolution is to start an exercise program, and you begin with a bang, working out like a demon every day. But then life happens—you catch a cold, or things get crazy at work, or you go on a vacation—and you miss a few days or weeks at the gym.

That’s not the sin. The sin is having the attitude that because you let your exercise regimen slide, you may as well give it up for good. After all, exercise is only good if you keep at it, and if you skip it you’ve lost everything you’ve worked for, right?

That’s really not the case. Something is better than nothing, and even if you only exercise once a week for a month because you’re on vacation, that’s still four days of exercising. Keep in mind that this is a long term goal.

Sin #8: Getting stuck in a rut

When it comes to exercise, variety is the spice of life. When you do you’re training many of the fibers of the shoulder muscles, but not all of them. To work out all of the fibers in a muscle, you need to use different movements—using different angles or even just changing your grip on the weights.

This goes for cardio as well as weight training. When you use the same exercise over and over, it’s a repetitive motion task, just like typing at your keyboard, which can produce carpal tunnel syndrome. So falling into a cardio rut ups your chances for injury.

Mixing up your workout also combats boredom! I like to change my routine from session to session. But I suggests giving your routine an overhaul at least once every six weeks.

Sin #9: Swinging weights

The ABCs of lifting weights are "Always Be in Control." When you use momentum to swing the weights around, you’re not targeting the muscle that the exercise is meant for. Worse, you’re increasing your chances of injury. To squash this sin, make sure your lower back/glutes and abs (core) are tight and the only thing that’s moving is the joint (or joints) related to the exercise you’re doing.

Sin #10: Being too lightweight

You may think that if you lift too much weight, you’ll bulk up to Schwarzeneggerian proportions. But it just isn’t so. Women don’t have anywhere near enough testosterone to produce significant muscle growth. If you want to get a good workout, you need to tax your muscles. You should not be at the end of a set able to do five more reps. If you’re using the right amount of weight, you should be able to perform at least eight reps, but not more than 15, before your muscles are fatigued. Don’t stay with the same dumbbells year after year – challenge yourself!

Sin #11: Nixing the H2O

When you exercise, you increase your metabolism and create heat. If you don’t consume sufficient amounts of fluids to maintain your hydration status, your body will conserve fluids, so you won’t sweat as soon or as much. As a result, you won’t dissipate adequate amounts of that heat.

You want to drink water before, during or after exercise. Down 16 ounces before working out, 4 to 6 ounces every 15 to 20 minutes during your workout, and then top it off with even more water after you’re done exercising

happiness

"Happiness is inner-directed. It's about being aware of your true nature and true needs, knowing what you want and creating that for yourself."

Fern Gorin

Be thankful

Take the time every day to be thankful for everything that you have. You can always have more, but you could also have less.

Mohd Uved

Affirmations

"Affirmations are like seed planted in soil. Poor soil, poor growth. Rich soil, abundant growth. The more you choose to think thoughts that make you feel good, the quicker the affirmations work.

Louise Hay
Author and Publisher

Purpose

"Your real purpose in life is to develop yourself. To successfully do this you must always be working toward a goal."

BobProctor

Life doesn't end

Life doesn't end when we die. It ends when we stop living. It ends when we stop fighting for what we believe in and when we stop living our values. It ends when we give up in what we believe in and give up in those who believe in us. When dreams evaporate, hope evaporates. So get up, dust yourself off and fight. Refuse to settle. Don't allow yourself to merely be alive. Live. Live like its your last breath. Live like you never have before. Live as if your life depends on it. You haven't even begun, so saddle up, it's time to absolutely crush it.

Bad things

Sometimes it’s not the pain that makes you suffer, it’s your own negative thoughts that make things seem worse.

Unknown

post workout meal

Post Workout Meal Nutrition – What To Eat After A Workout

The post workout meal (the meal you eat after a workout) is probably the most important meal of the day for anyone who cares about nutrition or wants to build muscle, lose fat or improve their body.
Well, the truth is that once you understand what your body needs (and doesn’t need) after your workout, how much is needed, and what the best sources are to get this nutrition from, the post workout meal will probably become the simplest meal of your day.

What You Should & Should NOT Eat After a Workout

Simply put, aside from water (which you should already know you need), your post workout meal needs to contain 2 things, and it needs to not contain 1.
You should be eating protein and simple carbs. You should NOT be eating fat, (slows down digestion).

How Long After My Workout Should I Eat My Post Workout Meal?

Typically you’d want to try to get this meal into your body within 30 minutes after finishing your workout.
I personally have my post workout meal immediately after my workout.

Post Workout Protein

What Protein Source Is Best?

Ideal source of protein to eat after your workout is isolate whey protein powder. Just mix it with some type of liquid (most often water) and you got yourself a drinkable source of protein.
A whey protein shake will be digested by your body much quicker than a solid food for two reasons:

1. Liquid meals digest faster than solid food meals.
2. Whey protein is the fastest digesting form of protein there is.

This is what makes whey protein pretty much the official choice of most people as their post workout meal protein source.

How Much Protein Should I Eat After A Workout?

As for how much, try to consume between 0.15-0.25 grams of protein per pound of your body weight (so a 175lb person would shoot for between 26-43 grams at this time). People who are VERY overweight should use their target body weight instead of their current body weight when doing this calculation.

Post Workout Carbs

After protein, the next equally important part of your post workout meal is carbs, and they are an extremely essential part of your after-workout nutrition and play a key role in your post workout recovery.
Carbs will be used by your body to restore muscle glycogen that was depleted while you worked out. If your post workout meal doesn’t contain carbs, your body may actually instead break down muscle tissue for this same purpose (which would suck). Carbs also create an insulin spike which helps to move nutrients into your muscle tissue quicker.
simple/high glycemic carbs digest faster than complex/lower glycemic carbs. Which means foods like white potatoes or white rice are all good choices for a carb source after a workout. However, just like protein, solid foods in general may not really be the absolute BEST choice at this time. And that’s where a little something called dextrose (or fruit juice) comes in. Dextrose is not a supplement… it’s actually just a type of sugar often used in sports drinks.

How Many Carbs Should I Eat After A Workout?

Most people should look to consume somewhere between 0.25-0.4 grams of carbs per pound of their body weight from dextrose (a 175lb person would shoot for between 40-70 grams). And once again, people who are VERY overweight should use their target body weight instead of their current body weight when doing this calculation.

Post Workout Meal

Put whey protein powder and dextrose (or fruit juice) and you can add supplements such as 
L-Glutamine, BCAA and Creatine in a bottle of water and shake it up.

If that is too complicated, compared to plain milk, water, or most sports drinks, I recommend many clients to drink chocolate milk as a recovery drink; it has double the carbohydrate and protein content, perfect for replenishing tired muscles.

Its high water content replaces fluids lost as sweat, preventing dehydration. Plus it packs a nutritional bonus of calcium, and includes just a little sodium and sugar -- additives that help recovering athletes retain water and regain energy. 

Challenge your limits

·         "Don't limit your challenges - challenge your limits."
Author Unknown