A Quick Supplement Guide

Hey everyone, I wanted to throw together a quick little compilation of some supplement information for you all—I hope you find it all useful!  I’m not going to cover every single thing I sell here, but just a few that I think deserve a mention.  If you have any other questions about anything specific, reach out and let me know!

Vitamin D

Especially now that the weather is changing and daylight is a lot more limited than it used to be, it’s important to get in your Vitamin D.  The best source is from the sun, but if you’re stuck inside all day and you’re like most of us who go to work when it’s dark and get home when it’s dark, you’re very likely missing out on this very important vitamin.  During the summer months, I don’t expect to sell much D3, but once it starts to get darker earlier, this is the time of the year to supplement what you’re missing out on getting naturally!  Vitamin D is responsible for keeping your bones strong, for higher muscle function, and prevention of many diseases, including cancer.  Did I mention most of us are deficient as hell, especially during the winter months???

Omega 3 fatty acids

Without going too much into it, our modern diets are a lot more inflammatory in nature than they used to be—with our meat sources given cheap feed and a lot of processed grains in our diets, the ratio between Omega 6:3 used to be about 2:1 and is now estimated to be around 15:1.  Of course the best course of action is to really pay attention to the quality of your foods (grass fed beef, wild caught salmon, etc), but boosting your Omega 3 intake is another way to supplement (notice I didn’t say fix) those essential fatty acids.  Keep in mind, not all fish oils are created equal, and you tend to get what you pay for—if you’re buying cheap fish oils at the store, you’re very likely getting what you pay for…a crappy product!

ZMA

Zinc Magnesium is a great supplement that help in muscle synthesis (among other benefits), plus not to mention that I hear from a lot of users that it helps you sleep well (I can personally attest to that!).  As a relatively inexpensive supplement, it’s a great bang-for-your-buck mineral to take.

Creatine

Speaking of bang-for-your-buck, creatine takes the cake hands down.  Not just for the gym-goers, as the most known benefits include increased lean mass, enhanced muscular performance, etc…but it’s even shown in the elderly to help with improved cognitive function.  Not only all of that, but it’s CHEAP and safe!  If you’re going to take only one supplement, it should be creatine.

Glutamine

Glutamine is an amino acid that has shown to help gut function and your immune system.  With as much new information that has been coming out about the relationship between the gut and your brain, we’re going to see in the next few years how imperative it is to have a healthy gut and how that will directly affect resiliency, bioavailability of foods, performance, and even cognitive and neurological health.

I’ll end by speaking a bit on post workout fueling.  It would be best for me (as far as selling supplements goes) if I pushed post-workout supplements on everyone who walked through the door.  However, I need to say a few points about it:  In my opinion and based on my experience and education, I think the best thing that a recreational gym-goer can do post workout is eat a good meal.  This is especially true if you are working on improving body composition (fat loss).  Supplements are just that—they are there to help supplement your food profile, whereas the food profile is going to be the MOST responsible for your progress towards your fitness, health, and body composition goals.  All of the products in the world won’t fix poor food choices.  If you really want progress, start paying attention to what you’re putting in your body every single day (your FOOD), and reach out for guidance.  I say this because I’m not a product pusher wanting to make a buck selling someone something they don’t need—I say it because I ultimately want you to succeed, and the answers are found in your food and lifestyle choices far more often than they are in your supplements!

To clarify, recommendations are largely individualized, though you probably can’t go wrong with supplementing with some extra protein—most people could use more of that macronutrient upon examination of a lot of food profiles!  But, just because an elite level athlete pounds a bunch of post workout sugars doesn’t mean that’s an appropriate prescription for the general population.  Know what and why you’re doing what you’re doing, and ask guidance as needed—that’s what we’re here for!

Keep up the hard work, everyone!

>RLTW <1>

—Coach Phil