Prelude to this supplement article == There are very smart people with very well-reasoned arguments on all sides of the supplement debate. In fact, it doesn’t stop at supplements. You can find smart people who will tell you that if you ever eat meat, dairy, or even produce that isn’t organic, you are killing yourself! On the other end of the spectrum, you can find smart people who will tell you that if used wisely, anabolic steroids can be a very useful way to promote health and fitness. I don’t agree with either of those extremes, but I just mention it because there are as many opinions about supplements as there are people taking them. My take is this — God has given us each one (and only one) body. We want it to be healthy. And some of us also want to see what it’s capable of if we push it hard. We all need to research the supplements, what is in them, and decide if it’s something we want to put in our bodies. With that said, let me tell you about my current supplements!
I’ve been doing P90X / Insanity / 1-on-1’s / P90X Plus for over a year now, and I’ve learned a lot by trial and error, as well as lots of research, about supplements. I’ve tried some and decided they weren’t effective. I’ve tried others and been very surprised by how effective they are. And I’ve been able to really dial in my favorite supplements to achieve my goals of building strength and lean muscle mass and getting very low body fat percentage. Below is the list of supplements I am currently using so that you can evaluate if these are supplements you want to try as well.
By the way, I am not saying that you NEED these. I am just saying that I wouldn’t want to put in the time, effort, and energy into an intense workout program like P90X or Insanity without having these supplements to maximize the benefits of all that hard work. With that said, here’s my favorite supplements — the ones I feel are well worth the cost:
Shakeology = This is by far my favorite supplement. I have used it every day for nearly a year, and I won’t go without it. My body runs at full capacity all the time thanks to the complete nutrition I get in this one shake. And my results speak for themselves. If I had to go with only 1 supplement, this would be it. I gave Shakeology a trial run during my first round of P90X just to see what the hype was about (they offer a 30 day guarantee so you have nothing to lose). Well, after the first month on Shakeology, I signed up for home direct and have been using it EVERY day since. There seem to be 2 types of people when it comes to Shakeology – those who haven’t tried it and are skeptical about the price, and those who have tried it and now rave about it. It does cost twice the amount of regular whey protein, but it’s got hundreds of nutrients and supplements in it, so comparing it to plain protein powder isn’t a fair comparison. Whey protein is just one of the 70+ ingredients in Shakeology. You’ll have to decide if it’s in your budget or not, but to me it’s worth the money. To learn more, click here. And if you are interested in a free sample, I’ll send you one. Just click here.
Whey Protein Powder = You will need to consume a lot of protein to fuel your muscles. A good quality protein powder is critical to giving you what your body needs, unless you like eating 20 cans of tuna per day! Haha. Beachbody sells Whey protein powder, but I go with a couple alternate brands. I like Optimum Nutrition Gold Standard as a good value (quality at a good price), but my favorite is Wheybolic Extreme 60 from GNC (it costs more but is a very high quality). The Wheybolic Extreme 60 also has a full supply of glutamine in it so that I don’t have to supplement it separately. To read more about your choices in protein powders, read this.
P90X Results/Recovery Formula = I am a firm believer in the Results/Recovery Formula after using it for nearly a year and seeing / feeling the results in myself. I love the way it makes me feel. No more post-workout fatigue. I am always ready to Bring It, and my muscles get exactly what they need to refuel and maximize their potential following a hard workout. It has 10 g of protein (giving this product the ideal 4:1 carb to protein ratio for post workout absorption. It has the key ingredients creatine, arginine, and glutamine, which all facilitate muscle recovery and energy replenishment. It has an excellent balance of electrolytes and vitamins to replace what has been depleted during exercise. Learn more about Results/Recovery formula by clicking here.
Creatine = This supplement helps volumize the muscles with water so that they can draw more nutrients in to aid with recovery and muscle building. It is important to cycle creatine, 2 months on and 1 month off. If you are unsure about using creatine, google it and read multiple reviews. I’ve also written a thorough review on creatine HERE. For most of the first year, I used plain creatine monohydrate powder, and it worked fine. Now I’m experimenting with Kre-Alkyline (which is a pH buffered version of creatine that supposedly absorbs better, is more stable, doesn’t bloat you, and doesn’t need to be cycled). I haven’t decided yet if it’s worth the extra cost, but I am definitely liking it so far (I’ve been using it about a month, and I ordered it from Bodybuilding.com. I got the Sci Fit brand, but all are pretty much the same). If you go with creatine monohydrate powder, don’t get the kind with lots of sugar in it. Just get plain, calorie-free monohydrate. You can mix it into a shake or with your recovery drink to help it absorb (you don’t need all that extra sugar).
Glutamine = This supplement is also naturally occurring in our bodies, and during intense exercise our glutamine stores are depleted, so replacing glutamine is important to giving our muscles what they need to repair themselves. I used to supplement this separately, but now that I’m using Wheybolic Extreme 60, I get enough glutamine from my whey protein powder so that I don’t need to buy this separately.
1MR (or similar pre-workout) = I like the intensity and energy of a pre-workout supplement. I used Jack3d during round 1, then experimented with a variety of other pre-workouts. My favorites are 1MR and NanoVapor. Warning — nearly all pre-workout supplements taste horrible! But you don’t take them for the taste. Just plug your nose and chug it down! Pre-workouts can affect different people differently, so it’s typical for people to have different “favorites”. You can read about my pre-workout experiment by clicking here.
IntrAbolic = This supplement is for use DURING a workout. I want something that will get fuel for my muscles in the form of amino acids, fast absorbing protein, and electrolytes (the things that stimulate muscle recovery and growth). IntrAbolic does that, and I feel like it helps me maximize my lean muscle gains because of this. To learn more about IntrAbolic and other intra-workout supplements, read this.
Multivitamin = Just to cover all your bases, it’s good to take a multivitamin. There are many to choose from. I just get a generic multivitamin from walmart (equate brand).
Fish/Flaxseed Oil = I get this from walmart as well. It is a great source of Omega 3, 6, and 9 fatty acids, which are essential.
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