There are a lot of supplements out there designed to help us to get SUPER LEAN or grow HUGE MUSCLES and some that claim to do both!  Are these supplements necessary or are they simply a waste of your money?

We know that to achieve optimum results we need to fuel our bodies with the right food.  What few of us consider is the supplements we ought to be taking after we have had a gruelling workout in the gym or a gut busting Boot Camp session.

Latest studies tell us that we need to replenish our bodies with a combination of amino acids (the building blocks of protein) and other supplements to aid recovery, promote muscle growth as well as reduce the amount of muscle soreness.

The reason your body needs these particular supplements is because when you have had a high intensity weights training session the muscle fibres are slightly damaged with micro tears.  Now, don’t be alarmed…this is a good thing!  You see, when these tiny muscle tears are repaired by your body, they actually then form more lean muscle mass. So, if you have been reading anything that we send to you, then you will know that the more lean muscle mass your body has, the higher your metabolic rate!  The higher your metabolic rate, the more calories we burn.  The more calories we burn, the less body fat we ultimately have.

Science has shown us that the best time to flood the muscle with nutrients is immediately after a training session when you have done your last rep.   This helps to prevent the loss of muscle tissue and helps you get leaner.

The supplements we are talking about here are:

L Glutamine: NOT to be confused with glucosamine.  L Glutamine helps to increase your immune system as well as improve your recovery from exercise.

Branched Chain Amino Acids (BCAA): These are of special importance to people who train hard as they are metabolized in the muscle rather than the liver like most other supplements. This form of amino acid (the building blocks of protein) is used instead of breaking down your lean muscle mass and used as fuel.

Creatine:  This supplement is called a cell volumizer and at a cellular level it increases the amount of fluid in the cell thus making the cell bigger which in turn will make the muscle bigger and stronger enabling you to lift more weight or to run faster.

The combination of these supplements is not a chemical cocktail as it may appear but they simply replace the stores that your body has used for exercise.  Serious exercise certainly takes its toll on the body and quite often we need additional supplies of these basic amino acids to assist with recovery and increase your lean muscle mass.

However, if you are a novice or someone who doesn’t really push yourself too hard, then you might not need these supplements.

So, the next time that you are in the Health Food store, don’t get caught up in the sales pitch.  What we have listed are the basics that you need post workout.  The rest is all marketing and hype, so beware!