Tips to Choose Supplements That Actually Works

Being deeply involved in the fitness world and regarded as a fitness expert, one of the questions I receive daily is “What supplements work?” And I think that is a good question, but you also need to ask another question as well, which is “Which supplement COMPANIES are the best?” That is why I decided to write this article, in hopes to answer all of your questions you may have about supplements, but especially those two very important questions. I will start it off with the companies as I feel this should be your primary concern and first step to getting actual results out of your supplements.

Which Supplement Companies Are The Best?

To me a good supplement company is a company who not only carries products with good basic ingredients that work, but also companies who go that extra mile for you. Does the company have a support line you can get your questions and concerns answered directly by them?  If it is a performance based nutrition company, is the company heavily involved with athletes that are in the trenches competing everyday? To me this is one of the things to look for in a company; it proves that the company not only supports their product by talking with you about it, but they also support athletes to make sure their product works well for everyone.

However, you may be thinking, “I am not an athlete why does that matter to me?” Well it is simple: it matters for you because athletes expect great results and be at the top of their game every day, they will only use supplements that help them build as much muscle and lose as much fat as possible. They will use supplements that give them energy to compete at a high level and they will not accept products that do not deliver.  Look at an athlete like Scot Mendelson, being the worlds best bench presser, he cannot use second-rate products, he has to use every advantage at his disposal to keep his world records intact.

Which Supplements Work and Why?

It is safe to say that if you are eating healthy, working out and looking for supplement advice you are trying to build muscle, lose fat or improve your general performance.  Therefore this is what will discuss with you below.

Anyone looking to lose a serious amount of weight has considered weight loss pills I am sure. However, what are these “Magical Pills” really doing for you? You see, most weight loss products on the market today are simply using extreme amounts of caffeine with some other filler ingredients to help you “lose weight”.

First of all, you need to know caffeine is a Diuretic, basically meaning it will make you urinate more, thus losing more water weight.  But if you have read my other articles, you know water weight is something that can easily return and is not true fat loss, it just makes people THINK they are losing weight fast thanks to the pill, but then they will gain it back. They will probably gain the water weight back right when they come off the pills and begin to urinate normally again, a good strategy for the company right?

Sadly, it does trick many people into jumping on caffeine-focused weight loss pills that really just hurts them in the end.  Prolonged unnecessary amounts of caffeine on a daily basis have actually been shown to increase stress levels, overall appetite and cravings for “junk food”. This is why if you notice a “fat loss” pill is mostly made up of caffeine, you should stay away.

Now I am not saying all weight loss pills are useless, but the ones with PRIMARILY caffeine in them are just a clever trick by companies to sell overpriced caffeine pills that will just hurt you in the end.

L Carnitine

L Carnitine is an example of a weight loss supplement that does not use any caffeine.  It is a natural compound found in a few different sources such as avocados and dairy products. I am not saying it will help you lose 30 pounds, but if you are relatively lean already, you can definitely see results from it. Studies have shown it can be beneficial to increased muscle mass, fat loss and increased energy.  A main factor L Carnitine has is a low price, and this is why I think it is at least worth a try.

Muscle and Performance Enhancing Supplements

The next group of supplements we will discuss are supplements that are used to enhance your bodies performance or ability to build muscle.

Pre Workout Supplements

A good example of a performance enhancing supplement is a pre-workout supplement, these types of supplements are designed for you to take sometime before your workout to improve your focus, performance and results in your workouts. What you are looking for in a good pre-workout supplement are solid basic ingredients proven to work through testing.

You are looking for is a good mix of energy boosting ingredients such as Vitamin B-12 , 1,3-dimethylamylamine  and even some caffeine (avoid all products who focus mainly on caffeine).

The best pre workout supplements also use muscle building or recovery ingredients to constantly feed your muscles with nutrients and help you receive better results during and after your training.  Good examples of these ingredients that are completely safe and proven to work are Beta Alanine, L- Arginine, and Creatine.

Protein

The next supplement I will talk to you about specifically is Protein. Protein can be found in many food sources we eat every day  ranging from meats, eggs, nuts, cheeses, and beans to seeds. Protein is what our body uses to actually build the muscle we work out so hard to gain. If you do not consume enough protein daily, you simply will not gain muscle as you expect. Most experts recommend AT LEAST 1 gram of protein per 1 pound of your bodyweight daily. Therefore, a 200-pound man should consume 200 grams of protein spread out through the day.  However, there are two main types of protein supplements on the market today, Whey and Casein.

Whey Protein is a quick absorbing type of protein not found in any specific food. Therefore, to consume a large amount of whey protein and get its benefit of being quickly absorbed into your body, you will need to buy whey protein powder. Whey protein powders come in many varieties and flavors, but always check the label and look for key words such as Whey Protein Isolates and Whey Protein Concentrates. This shows that the best quality protein is used in the product. Whey protein is appropriate for your post-workout source of protein and will quickly be absorbed by your body. Almost all professional athletes are using whey protein after a workout and some even use it pre-workout to fuel their muscles throughout their training.

Casein Protein, on the other hand, is a slow digesting protein, which can also be found in milk and other dairy products such as cottage cheese.  Casein protein being a slow digesting protein is best taken right before bedtime, this way it will continue supplying your body with protein throughout the night as you sleep and recover. Casein protein is not a type of protein you want to take near your workout though, as it cannot be absorbed fast enough. If a protein supplement mainly contains casein protein, do not buy it for pre or post workout uses.

Creatine

Creatine is supplement staple used by athletes and weekend warriors alike for around 100 years. Creatine was actually first discovered in 1832 and has been used for supplemental uses since 1912.

Creatine is naturally produced in the human body in the Kidney and Liver. Most of our Creatine however (around 95% of it) is stored in skeletal muscle, and considering it is created daily in the human body, it is a non-essential nutrient. 50% of all Creatine stored, comes from the food we eat, mostly being meat as many studies have shown vegetarians have significantly lower amounts of Creatine in their bodies. This is why supplementing Creatine may be more important for some than others.

Studies have shown Creatine to increase performance in short bouts of exercise by as much as 15% and is used by bodybuilders, Olympic lifters and other athletes around the world.  One of the main benefits of creatine is that it increases your muscles water retention, in some individuals  adding around 4 Lbs of retained water around muscles in as little as 1 week. This has been proven to allow for the muscle itself to grow faster overtime. However, more importantly, Creatine is also used by the body to create ATP, which is necessary for the body to produce energy in day-to-day life.

Although we naturally consume Creatine through food sources daily, you simply cannot consume enough Creatine without supplementation to gain its real benefits.

Beta Alanine

Beta Alanine is yet another great supplement I recommend and is beginning to pop up in all the best products. Beta Alanine is not as popular as creatine or protein yet, but it is on the rise and I am sure soon it will be. The easiest way for me to explain how Beta Alanine works is that it increases your bodies’ carnosine levels, which acts as a ph buffer in your muscles, allowing them to retain their strength and endurance longer throughout the workout.  Prolonged studies of Beta Alanine supplementation have shown increased aerobic and anaerobic endurance, which allows you to work harder and longer to build more muscle.

L- Arginine

L Arginine will be the last specific supplement I will discuss with you.  L – Arginine is another naturally occurring substance. It is actually necessary for your body to aid in protein production.  For fitness related goals, L – Arginine has been proven to increase blood flow to muscles, increase your tolerance to exercise and even boost your immune system.  L Arginine has been linked with a lot of great benefits for your general health as well, such as faster surgery recovery, lowering blood pressure, helping dementia and much more. It is just a great general “catch all” of the supplement world.

General Health Boosters 

The main reason we try to lose weight, eat healthy and workout is to become more healthy individual’s right?  That is why I think you should at least take a daily vitamin product. Our bodies are very complex organisms and require many different variables to stay healthy and strong. This is where general daily vitamin products shine , they are packed full of different ingredients found naturally in your body that will help you feel better by improving your immune system , mental focus, liver and kidney function ect.  There are too many potential ingredients found in these products to discuss with you now, but that is where picking a good company will come into play

How to choose supplements that work – Summary and recommendations

That is probably a lot of information for you to process at once, but my goal was to give you at least a general idea on how to pick out a supplement and which ones are proven to work.  I just get so many questions about this subject daily and it can be a great asset to your training if used correctly. As I mentioned before, many supplement companies out on the market today falsely represent their product and take advantage of consumers like us.  Which means you should not only be picky about the actual supplement you use, but which company made it. Below I have included recommendations of my personal favorite supplement brands.

Protein Recommendations 

Protein is something I am relatively picky about using, a lot of companies these days use filler in there proteins and not actual Whey or Casein. Always look at the label of the protein to confirm if its main ingredient is actually whey or casein like your paying for. Or you could just use what I consider the best protein company on the market right now.

Optimum Nutrition: They have been around a long time and have a great track record with veteran athletes as being a go to source of protein.  Plus their products taste great and easily mix into shakes or food recipes.

Creatine Recommendations

Creatine is another product you do not want to risk buying a low quality version of and if you do, you will possibly just get bloating and no real gains. For a solid Creatine brand you cannot go wrong with Universal Nutrition’s, they use creapure, which is one the best versions of Creatine on the market. Creatine is something companies are all making “new and improved” versions, but do not believe the hype, just stick to a good old creapure Creatine.

Beta Alanine Recommendations

This is a pretty long list of supplements to take, don’t you agree?  That is why I always try to group them and make sure my pre workout supplement has Beta Alanine in it, which most good companies do, as Beta Alanine is great to take pre workout.  This will save you money and time. A good pre workout supplement with Beta Alanine in it is NLA Performance’s Supp-D.

L- Arginine Recommendations

L Arginine is another supplement I like to group in my pre workout supplement as that is a great time to take it anyway.  Again, you can use NLA’s Performance’s Supp-D to get your daily source of L Arginine.  Although, some people like to take L Arginine post workout as well, there are many good brands that offer L – Arginine only based supplements. Just look for a fair price and check the label and you cannot really go wrong.

Pre Workout Recommendations

A good pre workout supplement is going to get you pumped up, focused and ready to hit the gym.  There are countless companies that produce pre workout supplements, but in my opinion none make as good of a product as NLA Performance’s Supp D.  The factor that makes their product so successful to me, is they use proven ingredients in just the right balance to give you a great boost of energy and keep you focused.

L Carnitine Recommendations

As I said earlier, L Carnitines main thing it has it the fact that it is very affordable. It may not give you big benefits like a pre workout or protein supplement , but studies have shown it is a very effective supplement at what it does, which is promote fat loss , lean mass gains and provide you energy during exercise.  For the price, most companies sell it for I do not think you can go wrong.  A good company I personally use for my L Carnatine is NOW.

General Health Boosters Recommendations

The reason you are taking a “general health boosting” supplement is just to cover all the bases in a sense. Your body needs a large variety vitamins and nutrients daily to keep functioning at 100% efficiency and these are a great way to ensure you get all of them.  A great supplement to perform this task would be NLA Performance’s Frat Pack. It is a great general performance orientated supplement containing over 50 different natural ingredients.  It will help you with everything from enhancing your immune system to building muscle.  And trust me, it has every ingredient needed to achieve this, the company really knows that they are doing and just produces products proven to work, no gimmicks or strings attached.

Thanks for taking the time to read my article; I hope it answered many of your supplement questions and I wish you good luck in your fitness goals.