Hey guys!
With summer being just around the corner, I know a large proportion of you will be going extra hard as the thought of beach days and swimming provide that little bit of extra inspiration to surprise a few people with the fruits of your hard labour in the gym with your summer bod.
Some of you will be using nutritional supplements to help get those extra little percentages to make progress and in this blog I’m going to cover my top 5 supplement choices and the reason why. As you can imagine, there are so many different ideas about this topic and some which are very conflicting. As always, this is just my take on it with the study and personal experience I have as a personal trainer and I’m sure there will be people that will disagree with certain things and that is completely fine as all of you very well know that not every one person is the same and people react differently to certain things.
Firstly I would just like make clear that nutritional supplements are not for the purpose of replacing a bad diet. If you eat a heap of processed foods and consume too much sugar, then I suggest that you look at cleaning that up before you spend a penny on any form of supplement. A good clean diet with the right amounts of food will give you far better results than anything artificial. You should look at using supplements to help get that extra 5-10% more out of your training and recovery and the other 90-95% as you main dietary intake. When you have your diet sorted, then supplementation would be worth looking at.
- Choice number 1: Water
This is a no brainer! It isn’t really classed as a supplement, but it is highly overlooked and far more important! We not only need it to survive, but it is also very important for everyday function in our body. Every aspect of the body functioning is impaired when we are dehydrated and if you are training, then you will need it even more so. When you are dehydrated, your blood thickens and becomes harder to pump through your blood vessels. This in turn puts more stress on your heart and has to work harder. It also puts stress on pretty much all your internal organs, as well as your brain. So in a nutshell being dehydrated will reduce your body’s ability not only to function, but to perform and repair with the extra stress that training has on it. There are many scientifically back studies which clearly show that hydration improves weight loss, so be sure to stay hydrated! Use a hydration/ urine colour chart if you are unsure (also just be aware that you can over hydrate, but the chart will help with that).
- Choice number 2: Sleep
Yet another one which isn’t a proper supplement, but is more important and just like water, costs next to nothing. This is a common one I see in people and it is one of the first I tell them to prioritise. If you can get 8 hours sleep, then you are doing pretty good. If you have a physically demanding job and training on top of that, then you may even need more. When we sleep, a lot of magic goes on behind the scenes. Our body goes into repair mode and recharges our nervous system. Resting is equally as important as training and it allows our body to repair the damage done by training or physical activity as well as cause adaption in our body to deal with the physical stress eg increasing muscle mass or connective tissue strength etc. If you have trouble sleeping, then try to find ways to reduce stress in your life or try doing more exercise and staying away from electronic devices before bed. In some cases it could also be a vitamin, mineral or hormone deficiency in which case I would recommend you see a doctor or health professional about if you are really struggling to sleep.
- Choice number 3: A good quality protein powder
getting into the actual stuff now. This too is debated by some to be a waste of money and in some cases I agree, but if you have nailed your diet then I personally recommend it to help boost muscle repair post train. There are many kinds of protein, the main one being whey protein which is derived from cow’s milk as well as whey protein isolate which is just a more refined version which digests faster. There are also many vegetable based ones such as pea or hemp protein which are a preferred choice for vegetarians or vegans.
I generally recommend it only after training as it will digest faster than natural forms of protein. The rest of the time real food is the better choice, but I do understand that sometimes preparing food is difficult so if you can only have a shake then it’s better than nothing. I generally recommend having carbs with your protein post train to replenish muscle glycogen which is used while we train, so having a protein fruit smoothie like the ones at the Good Things Cafe are perfect or if you have your own protein then take that. Just be aware that the amount of carbs you have will entirely depend on your goals. If you are already lean, then have a greater amount and if you are overweight or trying to reduce body fat then be a bit more conservative.
- Choice number 4: Creatine monohydrate
If you are more advanced in your training and you are looking for a little more, I recommend using this. It is generally quite cheap and will help you work just that little bit harder while training. Creatine works in fuelling our max power output energy system which is called the ATP energy system. Without getting too technical, in a nutshell it will allow you to get an extra rep or 2 in your set before reaching failure. This extra rep or 2 will obviously help get those extra gains. A side effect of creatine is water retention. Most people will think this means it will make you bloated, but it actually makes you hold more water in your muscles which is actually a good thing (just like mentioned in the water paragraph). I gain about 2kg of water using it (@87kg BW) which isn’t even noticeable as 2kg spread over the whole body doesn’t make a difference for someone who isn’t competing on a stage at 3-5% body fat. I use 5g and mix it in my post workout protein shake after every session.
Just as a note; some people say that it is hard on your kidneys, but in reality it has nothing on the stress of dehydration and consuming alcohol on the kidneys, so don’t worry. It is also found in red meat, so it isn’t that foreign to the body unless you are vegetarian or vegan.
- Choice number 5: Fish oil capsules
If you are vegan or just don’t want this, then hempseed oil is the alternative. Good quality fish oil is rich in omega 3 fatty acids in the form of DHA and EPA. One of the effects of consuming this is a reduction in inflammation which is highly important as inflammation can reduce the body’s ability to repair efficiently, which effectively means that losing weight or recovering will be impaired. It is also good for joint health as well as your skin and brain function. In terms of weight loss, it can also help by improving insulin sensitivity (which in a nutshell means that it will encourage your body to use blood sugar as energy rather than store it as fat).
There are plenty more supplements I recommend, but these are my top 5 and I will cover more in the future. To recap and reiterate, you have to remember the importance your diet has and you have to get that one sorted as well as water and sleep.
The supplement industry can be a dicey one, but if you are interested in using some of the ones mentioned then we have a selection of protein, fish oil and a few others by Form which is by the Good Things cafe at Aspire. Good Things also use Form protein in the smoothies too. It is all tested and actually a product of Nic Gill who is director of the HPC at Aspire as well as the strength and conditioning coach of the ABs (who also use his products due to them being tested and cleared of banned substances). If you are also uncertain about nutrition then the PTs at aspire can help you with advice, but if you want something a bit more comprehensive then I recommend making an appointment with Emma McMichael from Focus on Food at the Sports Med department upstairs. She is awesome at what she does, but more importantly is a registered dietician and nutritionist.
Thank you all for reading and I hope there was at least one thing from this blog that can help you!
Enjoy the rest of your week =)
- Planning for success at Club Aspire Health and Sports - December 1, 2015
- My top 5 supplement choices - October 19, 2015
- Ideas for a healthy breakfast - October 9, 2015
- Personal training in Tauranga - October 3, 2015
