An Introduction To Bodybuilding Supplements: What You Need To Know BEFORE You Spend Your Money!
As a self-admitted supplement junkie, I’ll be the first and pony up and say…
Shopping for and buying sports / fitness / body building supplements is fun. It’s right up there with shopping for motorcycles, sports cars, electric guitars and plasma televisions. And it’s because it’s fun that you need to read this article before you stroll into your nearest GNC or Popeye’s, or surf over to your favorite online resource.
After all, it’s easy to get wrapped up in the hype, the advertising and the fancy labeling and walk away with a couple of hundred dollars worth of really cool looking (and sounding) stuff that at the end of the day will do absolutely nothing for you. You’ll be no bigger, no stronger, no faster, and no closer to your goals.
That’s because building muscle is about a LOT more than simply taking the right supplement. There are several key elements, all of which contribute to muscle growth.
If you ignore one, you compromise all the others.
Think of the elements of successful muscle building as “links in a chain.”
If one of the links is weak, the integrity of the entire chain is compromised.
So what are these vital links? I’m glad you asked…
1. Training: I know this is obvious, but over the years I’ve heard from dozens of guys who couldn’t build muscle, despite the most rigorous training programs imaginable. But when I see these guys in the gym, their workouts consist of one “poorly-performed” set, followed by ten minutes of socializing, followed by one “poorly-performed” set, and so on.
Now there’s nothing wrong with socializing. But you need to revise your goals accordingly. Is your goal really to get fit, lose weight, or build muscle? Or is it to score a date with the cute girl (or guy) who works behind the front desk? If you want to build muscle, you’re going to need to focus. I use a stop watch to time my rest periods. If I’m training with a buddy and we get chatting, this keeps me right on track.
So the first step is to get your training program on the right track, if it isn’t already.
2. Diet: Next to training itself, this is the most important “link in the chain.” You can have the most vigorous and intense training schedule in the world and be 100% dedicated to it, but if your diet is lacking, you won’t see the gains you deserve. You need to be consuming adequate calories—the right kind of calories—and plenty of protein. And you need to do it each and every day. This sort of thing requires discipline and persistence. It’s something you have to do all the time, if you want to keep growing. If you don’t eat, you won’t gain. Period.
If you need some help getting your training and your nutrition in order, check out Will Brink’s Body Building Revealed. You can read my review here, or visit Will’s site directly here!
3. Rest: You’re probably well aware of the saying, “you don’t grow when you’re in the gym, you grow when you are resting.” Most people I know are. But still, I see lots of examples of severe over training each and every time I’m in the gym.
Frankly, after one hour of training, levels of testosterone and growth hormone (two critical elements of growth) begin to decline, while levels of cortisol (a powerful stress hormone with catabolic (i.e. muscle wasting) properties) begins to increase. Marathon training sessions are counter-productive for muscle growth. Training intensely for hours every single day is counter productive.
Train hard. Train efficiently. Get in and out of the gym in an hour or so. And get 7-8 hours of sleep a night.
When I was in my twenties, I used to train 6-7 days a week. Now that I’m older and wiser (with a heckuva lot more aches and pains) I train with weights only 3 times per week. I’m stronger than I’ve ever been. And I’m rested and focused for each and every workout.
4. Genetics: Sorry, but you can’t do anything about this one. While I believe that with the right diet and training everyone can build an awesome body, it simply may not be in your genetic makeup to be the next Jay Cutler or your favorite Oxygen cover model. Depending on your “somatype“, you may be the sort of person who is lean, muscular, and easily maintains low bodyfat levels, but finds it hard to build muscle. Recognize your genetic makeup, and adjust your goals accordingly.
5. Supplements: Yes, after all the other “links in the chain” have been addressed we’ve come full circle; back to supplements. If you’ve got all the bases above covered, then by all means… check out some supplements. The better ones can help you workout harder and more intensely and accelerate your results. The following are our recommendations for products worth investigating…
A Short (But Not Conclusive) List Of Body Building Supplements Worth Investigating:
