There are plenty of supplements out there on the market designed to help swimmers, from improving muscle strength to burning fat and even increasing lung capacity.
But if you’re just getting started with swimming, it can be tough to figure out which products are worth your time and money — which is why we’ve compiled this list of the 10 best supplements for swimmers to help you pick the right ones for your needs.
So put away your sports drinks, we’re about to dive into the best supplements for both competitive swimmers and recreational.
Benefits Of Supplements For Swimmers
Getting a head start on your day is so important when it comes to maintaining a balanced lifestyle, as well as getting in tip-top shape for race day.
There are plenty of great benefits of taking a few supplements before and after practice.
No matter what level you are at, having access to quality workout gear and some healthy nutritional options can mean everything to your performance.
If you’re looking to take your training and performances up a notch or two, try adding some of these helpful vitamins and minerals into your diet!
They provide great natural energy, boost your metabolism, strengthen your immune system, give you better performance and even encourage joint health.
We’re going way deeper than just pre-workouts today, but while we’re on that subject. Have you ever wondered if you can use coffee as a pre-workout?
Improves Recovery
Recovery is paramount to long-term success.
Without proper recovery, your body won’t be able to adapt to stressors, and you’ll end up over-training.
This is why a good strength training session includes a day of rest between workouts (or an active recovery session), as well as a weekly day of complete rest.
Dietary protein also plays an important role in recovery, and there are some great supplements on today’s market designed specifically with athletes in mind.
Improves Performance
The single most important factor in increasing your swim performance is to make sure you’re eating a balanced diet.
If you do not consume enough calories and protein, it will be very difficult to increase endurance.
Consuming additional calories can help build muscle mass, which is important because it will decrease drag while swimming.
After you’ve filled up on calories from foods, protein shakes can also be an effective way to ensure you’re getting enough calories and protein during workouts and throughout your day.
Taking BCAAs (branched-chain amino acids) before or after a workout can also boost endurance by decreasing muscle breakdown during training sessions and preventing fatigue.
With all these options available, there’s no excuse not to improve swim performance with a supplement!
Muscle Development
Building muscle is an important goal for most athletes, but it’s also one of the most common reasons that aspiring bodybuilders fail to achieve their goals.
The good news is, however, that it’s not necessary to know every detail about how muscles grow in order to achieve your own gains.
As long as you know what really works and what doesn’t, you can gain strength, build endurance and see marked improvements on a regular basis.
So here are our ten favorite tips and tricks that will help you make serious gains without sacrificing your time or your safety.
What Is Endurance?
Endurance refers to a swimmer’s ability to perform at a high level over an extended period of time.
Endurance isn’t just about swimming in and of itself, but being able to do other things throughout your day (studying, working, etc.) while maintaining your fitness level.
Different endurance athletes have different requirements when it comes to endurance.
An Olympic-level swimmer will need more stamina than someone who only competes locally.
In order to determine what kind of endurance you need, you need to first know what your long-term goals are as a swimmer.
Are you trying to compete nationally?
Internationally?
Do you want to become part of a college team?
All these factors play into how much endurance you should develop.
Regardless of how long you plan to swim competitively, it’s important to focus on endurance.
The first step is understanding what endurance means and how it relates to swimming.
From there, it’s just a matter of working toward your goals.
If improving endurance was easy, everyone would do it—but keep in mind that by simply putting in the effort (and maybe with a little bit of help from supplementation), you can make yourself stronger both physically and mentally as a swimmer—which will ultimately improve your time in both training and competition.
Why Do We Need Endurance For Swimming?
Swimming is a great way to get fit and stay in shape, but it can also lead to injuries.
Endurance plays a key role in reducing your risk of injuries, as well as increasing your athletic performance.
Endurance also has many other benefits outside of sports, such as reducing stress and improving your ability to focus.
So what exactly is endurance?
It’s your ability to push through exhaustion and go beyond what you previously thought possible.
To put it simply, endurance is one of those skills that never comes easily; to get good at endurance means constantly pushing yourself further than before and getting used to things not coming easy.
No matter how good you are at swimming, there will always be room for improvement when it comes to building up your level of endurance.
1) Magnesium
Nearly 80 percent of Americans are deficient in magnesium, which is important because it plays a major role in energy production.
Magnesium is also critical to the neuromuscular function and muscle contraction—without it, you can’t run or swim very well.
Fortunately, there are a ton of ways to get more of it in your diet: green leafy vegetables like spinach, broccoli, and Swiss chard; seafood like cod; nuts like almonds; and seeds such as sesame and sunflower.
2) Vitamin C
When you exercise, your body uses extra oxygen—and produces free radicals in return. Vitamin C, an antioxidant that helps our bodies remove free radicals, can be taken as a supplement to help us stay in peak performance mode.
It’s best to take vitamin C before and after exercising.
While most people think of oranges when they hear vitamin C, it also comes in a pill form and is easy to add to your diet.
3) Creatine
Creatine is one of, if not the most, effective bodybuilding supplements.
But it’s also very important for improving performance in athletes as well.
It’s a naturally occurring substance that helps your body produce energy faster, which means you can lift more and gain muscle more quickly.
The trick is finding a supplement that delivers it effectively.
Our advice: Go with creatine monohydrate. I
n one study published in Sports Medicine, athletes who used it as part of their workout regimen added 5 pounds of lean mass to their frame after 16 weeks—without working out any harder than usual.
4) Zinc
Zinc is an essential mineral that’s used to repair muscle tissue, among other things.
A deficiency in zinc can result in reduced strength and endurance.
Zinc deficiency is extremely rare but it can occur if your diet doesn’t contain much meat or seafood.
If you don’t consume any animal products, you may want to consider taking a zinc supplement, especially if you feel yourself getting fatigued while swimming.
5) Beta-Alanine
Research suggests that consuming beta-alanine can improve your workouts by boosting muscular endurance and reducing lactic acid build-up in your muscles.
If you’re looking to squeeze out every last second from your swim set, supplementing with beta-alanine may be just what you need.
Approximately how many milligrams of Beta-Alanine should I take per day?
You can safely consume 3,200mg of Beta-Alanine per day without experiencing any negative side effects (that’s about 7g).
That said, most people only need 3g per day.
6) Ribose
Short for D-ribose, ribose is a five-carbon sugar molecule that’s found in every living cell of our body.
Swimming uses up a lot of energy and ribose plays an important role in helping to replenish it. It also improves athletic recovery times.
To help your body recover faster from your next swim workout, try taking some ribose before you hit the pool.
7) Betaine Anhydrous
If you’re looking to increase your power output and drive, betaine anhydrous could be a great supplement for you.
Research has shown that betaine can help improve sprint performance by enhancing muscle contractility and fluidity, as well as enhancing grip strength.
8) Fish Oil Capsules
Fish oil capsules are a great way to reduce inflammation and boost immunity.
They’re also an excellent source of Omega-3, which helps reduce fatigue.
Swimmers are prone to overtrain, so it’s important to keep up your intake of fish oil in order to boost your overall stamina and allow you to continue training at full capacity.
9) Glycogen
Glycogen is a complex carbohydrate that’s stored in muscles, and it’s used to create energy during workouts.
Swimmers depend on glycogen because they need to be able to swim all out for extended periods of time.
To increase your stores of glycogen, consume carbohydrates about 2 hours before you exercise, and consume carbohydrates immediately after your workout.
This will ensure that you have an ample amount of glycogen available to fuel your muscles.
10) Protein Powder
When it comes to supporting muscles, protein is king.
It’s absolutely essential for muscle growth and repair and can even help you lose weight by curbing your appetite between meals.
Protein powder gives you a convenient way to boost your intake if you don’t have time or access to a full meal.
As with all supplements, though, choosing a reputable brand with high-quality ingredients—and that fits your dietary needs—is important.
Swimmers burn a lot of calories in training and practice, which means that an increase in protein is always a good choice.
The International Society of Sports Nutrition recommends between 0.4 and 0.7 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight daily, so if you weigh 150 pounds (68 kilograms), your target intake would be 68 to 105 grams each day.
You can easily meet these goals by drinking protein shakes as snacks or adding them to meals.
If it’s difficult for you to get enough food with sufficient protein through diet alone, try some post-workout whey isolate powder; research has shown that ingesting 20 grams or more after intense exercise increases muscle growth by up to 50 percent over a 24-hour period!
To get yourself the supplements you need now follow this link and start shopping!
Whey Protein Vs Plant-Based Protein
Whey protein is an excellent source of amino acids and other nutrients that aid in muscle growth.
However, plant-based proteins are a great alternative to whey protein if you have a sensitivity to dairy, or if you’re simply looking to try something new.
Soy and pea proteins are two common alternatives, but hemp protein may be another interesting option.
All three types provide a complete set of essential amino acids—without all of those extra additives found in processed foods—and can be added to smoothies or other recipes with ease. In addition, they work well as stand-alone shakes when you want to shake things up on your fitness journey.
No matter which you choose, aim to get at least 25 grams of protein from either supplement per day.
Also, keep in mind that amino acid isolates are generally easier on sensitive stomachs than whey powders.
A Bit More About Me.
I’ve competed in multiple open water swims so I’m no stranger to what it takes to get your fitness up for swimming.
That being said, one of the toughest swimming-based challenges I’ve done was actually the swim at the start of the navy seals fitness test.
Before you get too excited though, I did the test a challenge for youtube.
You can see the whole video below. How do you think I got on? Before you go!
Make sure you get your free copy of my EBook. Train Wherever The F*ck You Want!