how much can supplements help ?

[abett07]

how much can supplements help somene gain muscle? some people at the gym today were talking about supplements as if they were kind of like a steroid and can give great gains

All that I have been taking is ON protein , should I think about getting anything else ?

[Rich Knapp]

Originally Posted by abett07

how much can supplements help somene gain muscle? some people at the gym today were talking about supplements as if they were kind of like a steroid and can give great gains

All that I have been taking is ON protein , should I think about getting anything else ?

Supplements are just that, a supplement.

They are to supplement what you are missing in your meal plan. IF you are missing somthing then a supplement is a great help.

Nothing replaces good nutrition and good hard work gains.

[Rich Knapp]

I take a lot of supplements but I'm a whole different scenario/case being a wheelchair bodybuilder.

When a new person asks me what to start with I tell them:
Good nutrition plan, protein powder if needed.

At this point research and learn about sups.

Gains slow with honest hard work add Creatine.

Keep researching then when your gains slow, then you will know what you need to know.


NO sup will put on mass without hard work backing it. Not even roids.

Yes a Pre workout like the K-Otic I take will give you the drive to hit a better and harder workout.
YES as a old fart and having M.S. I take Test Charge to naturally raise my test levels like I was 16 -18 again.

For a advanced lifter sups can help but for a beginner make your max gains with out them first.

[Soldier]

There are many misconceptions about supps. The biggest one is that they give you any muscle at all. They don't. They can ALLOW you to more towards your goals faster, through your own hard work, if you use the right ones.

Here are the one's I use that fall into that category;

Pre-workout- I train hard and it's hard to get hyped for every training session. This allows me to give my all and push all the way through a session.

Creatine- Again, this serves to allow you to push harder in your session. 1 more rep here and there and 5lb more on the bar can make a big difference as you progress.

BCAA- Branched Chain Amino Acids are an amazing supplement. They keep your body from using muscle for energy when you're cutting, and help you recover from your training much more quickly with less soreness. I take BCAA pills both before and after training, and also drink a BCAA powder during training.

Some supps are also just health based. As lifters we have specific dietary needs that can't always be met through food alone. Here are the ones I take that fall into this category;

Fish oil- Not too expensive, and according to what I've read the health benefits are numerous. I pop upwards of 8 of these a day sometimes.

Multi-vitamin- Again, you won't always get everything you need through food alone. This is important so you know you're filling any gaps you don't know about.

[Goat]

Soldier, I would appreciate if you would post exactly how you use creatine.

[Soldier]

I include 1tbsp in my preworkout on training days, and 1tbsp in a protein shake on non-training days. I use monohydrate.

[Pull14]

I'm of the opinion that supplements do help, but that help is marginal. If diet is already half-way decent, any benefits from the addition of supplements will be hard to recognize. Supplements are not steroids.

The less you worry about supplements and the less you think of them as necessities, the better off you will be.

If you want supplements, I wouldn't stray to far from fish oil and a quality protein (just straight protein, no fillers or hardkore ingredients). The money can be used elsewhere... say buying good food and/or additional equipment.

[Disciple X]

were these guys 140 lbs and curling in the squat rack? Tell them they need to take more muscleteck products and keep at it. Lol just kidding man. Supplements are way overrated. Too many muscle and fitness ads and not enough of preaching the basics of good nutrition and hard work. Eat a lot and hammer the basics and you'll have these guys wondering what you're taking to get such good tesults...

[abett07]

I just got some more ON gold whey protein , will this do or should I get the casein for night and the platinum hydrowhey for post workout ?

[Soldier]

Originally Posted by abett07

I just got some more ON gold whey protein , will this do or should I get the casein for night and the platinum hydrowhey for post workout ?

If you're getting lots of protein from real food then you don't need to worry that much about what type of protein you supplement with. I just use protein powder to push me over the edge, but most of my protein just comes from food.