It seems to be fairly hard to find good, unbiased objective reports regarding supplements, especially those targeting 1) fat loss or 2) muscle gain.

It seems that glutamine and creatine are popular for muscle-building, but is there any solid, scientific (double-blind) evidence that they work?

What about fat-loss supplements, such as CLA? Do any really work?

(That they are safe as well as effective should go without saying..)

For me personally, cost isn't much of an object, but I haven't found much solid scientific proof regarding supplements, so I'm reluctant to bother. I'm hoping there's a good website collection or something.

I can personally vouch for creatine monohydrate, though some people are "non-responders" and don't see much if any benefit. I seem to respond pretty well to supps, so I'll be picking up some L-Glutamine on my next supp order. With my current "stack" and caloric defecit, I've been seeing simultaneous strength gains and fat loss. I'm pretty happy about that :)

Stuff I really like:
Preworkout -
NO Xplod

Postworkout -
BCAAs
Creatine Monohydrate
GABA
MSM
Whey protien
Glucose/Sucrose/Dextrose

Before bed -
ZMA

Over the last little while...quite a while actually....I've been experimenting with different supps.

The only ones I'll "two thumbs up":-


Whey protein
Good Multi-vitamin
Lactobacillus/Bifidus (bacteria culture)
Lecithin

"One thumb up"

BCAA's
Glutamine
Tribulus Terrestris (if you're over 45).

The rest, as far as I'm concerned are a waste of moolah.


I get better results through careful manipulation of reps,exes, and poundages making sure not to overtrain. "Not overtraining' does not mean I'm not going to lift any heavy weights....it means I'm going to listen to my body and treat it right.

I also eat well. And I rest/sleep well.

Relying on supps to take care of all the other mis-calculations and shortcomings does not work too well, if at all.

You cannot argue one should not take a solid multivitamin.

Beyond that it depends on the person, their needs, their goals.

I personally will never take another protein shake with over 40 grams of sugar ever again.

My recommended supplements, notice how some of them are food.

Fruit (natural sugar good for your body)
Exercise (a supplement to your life and doesn't cost anything)
Green/oolong/red tea (in hot liquid form)
Fish/flax oil (depending on your goals and fish consumption, not really necessary but very good)
Whey protein (mornings and after workout, beyond that you are better off eating solid food)

ZMA and GABA both help me sleep better, or at least give me a lot of weird dreams. My knees and shoulders have responded really well to Animal Flex but that may be a placebo effect. All I can say is they don't bother me at all now.

Anyone suffering from joint pain or arthritis should also look into Joint Support (Glucosamine Chondroitin Collagen & MSM).

You're right.....I forgot that one...

Glucosamine/Chondroitin/MSM.....I take it every day although I don't have Arthritis.

And I also use Fish Oil Caps.....daily

Two thumbs up for those two..:tucool::tucool:

It seems to be fairly hard to find good, unbiased objective reports regarding supplements, especially those targeting 1) fat loss or 2) muscle gain.

It seems that glutamine and creatine are popular for muscle-building, but is there any solid, scientific (double-blind) evidence that they work?

What about fat-loss supplements, such as CLA? Do any really work?

(That they are safe as well as effective should go without saying..)

For me personally, cost isn't much of an object, but I haven't found much solid scientific proof regarding supplements, so I'm reluctant to bother. I'm hoping there's a good website collection or something.

Although not directly about fat loss and muscle building, a good multivitamin/mineral supplement is a very good idea since then you can do more stuff with your diet and not have to worry about getting a deficiency that would get in the way of your progress.

Additionally, many people are deficient in Vitamin D, and more of this is probably a good idea. So it's not a bad idea to add that.

I do think when you are doing a bulk or eating really clean maybe you don't really need a multivitamin.

I remember when I put everything I ate in fitday. I typically had 250-400% for most vitamins/minerals. . .

Supplements account for perhaps 5% of your progress - diet, exercise, and lifestyle account for the other 95%. Are your diet, exercise regimen, and lifestyle (e.g., alcohol consumption, smoking, recreational drug use) all in place? If so, you are right in focusing on supplements. Otherwise, you will have better results fixing these elements first.

Having said that, there have been clinical studies showing a real value for glucosamine in joint health (but not Chondroitin Sulfate, which is usually added in most commercial formulations). There are a host of papers on the benefit of creatine supplementation in muscle growth and repair (some double blind studies on rehab are pretty solid).

I have been taking BCAAs during my cutting phase this year, and have noticed that I am retaining, and possible adding a small amount of muscle mass as I lose weight.

Protein shakes are a supplement used by many here. I had them in my diet for a while, but I have shifted to high protein foods such as shrimp, steak, chicken, and cottage cheese instead.

Protein shakes are great when you actually calculate how much they cost.

I can make a shake for under $0.60. :D Shrimp? Sounds delicious.

I take centrum performance,l carnatine,cinnamon tabs,and arson fat burner.and occasionally vinegar tablets.so far soo good.

I have always made it a point to ONLY formulate and sell products that work as claimed. That has been the case since I started AtLarge. So, to answer your question, go to www.atlargenutrition.com and check out our lineup of products. There may be other supplements that work, but I have yet to be convinced thus I do not sell them.

Chris

Nothing beats whole food.

IMO: Unless you are competing athletically you don't really need THAT much other help. . .If you want to have that edge then by all means look into supplements.

Anyone suffering from joint pain or arthritis should also look into Joint Support (Glucosamine Chondroitin Collagen & MSM).

I take that anyways.

Everyone should, especially if you do heavy lifting. Your joints will thank you when you're older.