Muscle Training

Best Supplements for Muscle Gain and Strength

When it comes to supplements for muscle training, nothing can replace good exercise and diet.  Sorry to disappoint, but there is no magic bullet.  In other words, you have to train and eat properly too.  Then, and only then is it even worth taking supplements.  You see, at this point they do provide positive results.  For example, a recent study found that when people who had started a resistance training program who did not seem to benefit from protein supplementation, and then moved up their volume, frequency and duration, saw significant benefit.¹  In other words, supplements can be effective muscle builders.  But they will not and cannot replace lazy training, low protein or low calorie diets.

Whey Protein for Muscle Training Recovery

Much of what will determine your muscle building will happen shortly after your workout.  The protein you consume will be the biggest factor.  Whey protein is special in its ability to absorb quickly and of course promote muscle.  In fact, it absorbs much faster than any other form of protein.  Consequently, this means that it can get into your blood and to your muscles as quickly as possible to start building more tissue.

Although your body can make some amino acids, it can’t make them all.  Three of these are very important in to muscle and happen to be abundant in whey.  These are known as the branch chain amino acids.  They are leucine, isoleucine and valine.²  By choosing whey after you exercise, you get quick protein as well as lots of branch chain aminos.    Of course drinking a whey protein shake is a great way to get extra protein anytime, but it is especially important to consume at least 50 grams of the stuff right after each workout for the best results.

Use Creatine to Up Your Muscle Training

Many people consider creatine to be almost a curse word.  Yet lifters love it.  Unfortunately, it is often loosely grouped in the family of illegal performance-enhancing drugs.  Although we might speculate about where these ideas come from, the truth is that creatine has no significant side effects.³  It is found naturally and almost exclusively in muscle tissue and in effect, recycles energy.  By re-using this limited energy, creatine ultimately provides the user with greater muscular power.⁴  Lifting weights, when done properly, requires an explosion of energy and creatine effectively increases the amount of time that explosion can last and reduces recovery time between sets.

Glutamine; King of Muscle Builders

There are a total of 20 amino acids that make up human protein.  Yet only about half of them are necessary in your diet since your body can make the rest.⁵   However, of all of them, glutamine is the most abundant amino acid in the entire body, particularly in muscle tissue.⁶  This is why glutamine significantly enhances muscle growth following strength training.  It also  lower rates of soreness and decreases recovery times.⁷

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