Supplements are an important part of any fitness regime for two reasons:
One because they enhance the effects of your workout; and two because they can help prevent injuries.
While some supplements like creatine will make your body bigger, others like pre-workout powders will give you energy and focus before your workout.
They can be key to take a workout from good to great, upping the intensity but making sure you are putting only healthy and natural substances into your body.
While there are many different supplements and products that you can take to help with your workout, you should always make sure that it is something that is safe and won’t interfere with anything that you are already taking.
But what should you take exactly?
From protein powder to pre-workout, all of the options should at least work with your diet, not instead of!
Supplements come in all sorts of shapes, sizes, and forms, and are all about suiting them to your needs and your goals.
Supplements can be expensive, so it is extremely important to make sure you are buying the right ones.
Working out from home has always had a stigma behind it.
People view it as less intense than working out at the gym, or less serious.
However, nowadays, most of us are deciding to flip the switch and work out from home.
No more do people want to spend all their extra income on a gym membership or travel in the rush hour traffic for a workout.
Hey, I don’t even think you need a gym to work out.
You can work out from wherever you like, whenever you want. If you are interested in how, check out my Ebook ‘Train Wherever The F*ck You Want!’ for workouts, tips, and tricks to moving from working out in a public gym to chasing your goals in your own home.
The thing is, a home workout can be just as intense and effective as a gym workout (if not more intense if you like HIIT!).
Supplements are extremely necessary to subsidize a workout, no matter your goals.
They help push you past that barrier when trying to build muscle or help better your diet.
Think of supplements as being able to push your ability through the roof.
You have your workout, eat and drink well, sleeping is perfect, and now supplements are there to help you progress to the next stage.
Now, supplements aren’t a requirement.
You can USE them in a home workout, but you do not always NEED them.
If you can get enough protein into your system without protein powder or are motivated enough without pre-workout, that’s great, but they can be used when working out at home, despite what some may think.
First things first, I will not be listing the exact brands of products you should buy.
This is up to you to research, and research you must do.
Some of these colorfully branded supplements are not worth the money, or even the bottle they are in.
They just don’t work.
Supplements you shouldn’t be taking are the ones that are not supported by science, advertise losing weight fast (remember to lose weight, you only need to be in a calorie deficit, so supplements are not that necessary, you should concentrate more on your diet), and dare I say it, avoid supplements that you have to inject yourself with.
These are the dangerous ones, we all know what I’m talking about.
Most beginners will have heard of this supplement, which is an excellent addition to a diet to aid with building muscle – protein powder.
Protein powder comes in different forms, but the most common and favorable is whey protein powder.
Whey is fast releasing, and not only increases the endurance and size of muscles but has been proven to improve the speed of protein synthesis to aid recovery after a workout.
Protein shakes are perfect to up your protein intake but do not use them as a replacement for high-quality protein sources, as these contain minerals for healthy living.
Speaking of healthy living, not all supplements need to be directly related to working out.
A simple routine of taking vitamins you may be lacking and fish oil supplements are amazing for your health.
Fish Oil supplements are known to have positive benefits on all sorts of illnesses, and just make you feel more energized!
Other supplements I recommend a beginner to take, but are not as necessary as the others are:
Creatine is definitely a supplement I recommend taking.
If you’re interested in trying it out I recommend using this creatine it comes in capsules so you don’t even need to measure out your serves!
As I said before, some supplements are not that reputable.
If you are going to be ingesting something, it needs to be reputable.
The process of staying safe when taking gym supplements is pretty simple, and I would like to say most supplements you find will be fine.
I recommend when researching a supplement to stick with the big brands.
Supplements are not regulated, so only big brands can afford quality control measures.
Check for third-party verification, online and on the bottle.
The bottle should be certified by a pharmaceutical convention, and the labels should most definitely state what is in the bottle.
Most websites should provide an analysis of their supplements as well.
Finally, avoid purchasing proprietary blends and aim for more organic substances, as these have a lower chance of being contaminated!
Reviews shouldn’t be relied on as the single thing to make or break your purchase of a supplement, but make sure to check them out as they can help give you an idea of how good the substance is!
Coffee is a big part of my life.
And pre-workout, although it’s safe, has a few drawbacks.
Pre-workout is full of harmful sugars and additives that are potentially ruining your diet and health.
It is usually pumped through with caffeine, which isn’t a bad thing, but if you are already drinking coffee, that’s where the problem is.
Intaking too much caffeine in a day can become a huge problem when you start to build up your tolerance.
You begin to increase your intake, and then build a reliance on caffeine.
The same can happen with coffee, but it is much less likely than pre-workout.
Coffee is a cheap, organic way to get the motivation for your workout, and for a lot of us, does not require any changes to the routine.
For more reasons on why you should make the switch to fueling your workouts with caffeine through coffee, rather than pre-workout, and more natural ways to get your caffeine intake, read this article right here!
I’ve also got a video up on youtube explaining how your choice of coffee could be causing your weight gain. So give that a watch below.
Simply speaking, supplements are an easy way to boost your progression.
Whether it’s endurance, strength, or size, there is a supplement that you can add to your diet, while staying safe and natural.
The supplements discussed above are a sure-fire way to get more out of your training, as long as you buy the right ones!
The only thing left for you to do now is getting that researching cap on, take your time when you decide to buy and implement them into your training routine!
Remember, supplements are not a replacement for a poor diet, or a magic pill to get you ripped, you still have to train hard, as always!
