Do you take any kinds of supplements or eat any foods that work into your workout regimen?

As for me, supplement-wise I take whey protein when I wake up and after working out. I'm about to start taking creatine again, I haven't for a year or so.

As far as food goes, I don't eat red meat or pork so I get protein from chicken, fish, turkey, and organic peanut butter. Lot of poly and mono unsaturated fat in the peanut butter, too. I'm about to start eating (yuck) cottage cheese for the slow-absorbing protein before I go to bed. For carbs, oatmeal and brown rice are staples, also brocolli and leafy vegetables like spinach and romain lettce.

I don't take supplements but I try to keep a pretty balanced diet overall, with lots of steaks and rice, some chicken, lots of peanut butterzz and fruits. I usually make smoothies with those. Banana + peanut butter + milk + honey + dulce de leche ice cream (vanilla is fine too) = breakfast

I usually take a multivitamin every morning. On workout days I take whey protein before and after my session, as well as right before I go to bed. On off days I'll usually make a shake in the morning and if I don't feel like I got a lot of protein then I'll have one before bed too. I also just started taking creatine so that's 2 pills before and after each workout. It's also the non-monohydrate stuff, which I've been told is a lot safer.

Why whey before bed and not some type of casein?

Because I don't know any better haha? I don't even know what casein is, my true knowledge of nutritional stuff is pretty limited. I just know it's good to have protein before bed because of the way it's absorbed, but I don't know much about the different types.

Care to enlighten me ?

Well, whey is a fast-absorbing protein so it's best to take it early in the morning and after you work out because those are two of the times that your body needs protein the most. Before you go to sleep, you're basically going to starve for (hopefully) 8 hours, so a type of time-released protein is ideal. The best way to get casein in food is cottage cheese, you can also buy it in supplement form.

How about milk? That's where I get at least 2/3 of my protein.

I take a vitamin packet from Costco, and a few others my mom's told me to take. Started taking fish oil on recommendation from Taped, since I'm a pretty depressed dude, and it seems to be helping (<3 Taped). And I take this Nutrajoint jive to try and fix my knee, but so far nothing's happened.

I've considered some kind of protein thing, just because I'm pretty skinny, but I decided that's just kinda weird. I get by all right with the amount I eat, and I don't really need to be bigger.

Milk isn't all it's cracked up to be, from most of what I've read, actually. It does have protein, but it's packed with sugar. There is skim milk, low fat milk, everything but sugar-free milk it seems. Hell, they even have sugar-free sugar...but milk is full of lactose. Also, it's not the kind of protein you want to be getting after exercise since it's slow-absorbing, not fast like whey.

I don't buy into alot of the supplementations.

I'm not too worried about the different speeds of proteins. Yes, one type may be absorbed faster than another but both are relatively slow. Also, the bulk of muscle growth(When you need the protein) is going to be needed long after exercising. Due to the rapid digestion of the proteins, you have a poorer amino acid profile later on.

Most people should be fine on meat, provided you're getting enough of it, which, most people are. As an added bonus, meat doesn't give you diarrhea.

Sources?

Influence of the Protein Digestion Rate on Protein Turnover in Young and Elderly Subjects

Google is giving me jack on the average/estimated absolute speeds of protein digestion from various sources. I'll see if I can find it later.

Morm I believe milk is a combination of whey and casein (sp?).

This is true but the segments have vastly different properties when compared to the whole.

And protein shakes do? Or were you referring to milk?

I don't know for sure what he meant, but in my experience milk is more likely to give you the runs than a good whey powder.

I don't know, but I haven't had diarrhea in many years, probably because I get a decent amount of fiber.

The reason I was asking about milk, though, Morg (I find my instinct has changed to call you Morm, now, but I will stick with Morg just to be cool), is as a substitute for the gross cottage cheese. And what's wrong with sugar? I've also heard some things about milk not being great for you due to some sort of digestion problems, but I don't buy it.

I meant protein powder. It's something that will fuck up my poor intestines every time.


The problems that Morm was talking about with milk sugar(Lactose) and the ones you've heard about digestion are most likely the same. Humans are not meant to consume milk after infancy. Because of this, the body slows down the production of the enzyme needed to digest lactose(lactase) after the age of two or so.

I take a multivitamin.

Here's an excellent article with up to date information about creatine and how to use (and not to use) it.

http://www.t-nation.com/findArticle.do?article=06-086-diet

I just got the rest of my supplements, should be all set now. I've added glucosamine/chondroitin/msm for my joints,which give me trouble sometimes. It's a good supplement to take in any case, though, keeps your joints flexible and healthy. Also, I'm taking flax seed oil, which is an excellent source of good fats.

I was already taking MSM when you said something about Glucosamine/Chondroitin, Morg, so I switched to this MSM/Glucosamine stuff that Costco has. My mom is allergic to chondroitin or something, so we left that out. Hopefully it'll help with my knee. I've noticed that it doesn't hurt my knee to run on the treadmill, but I have a hard time making myself run if I'm gonna be staring at the wall the whole time. I eat cereal with flax in it sometimes, and my mom puts it in some of the food that she cooks. Dunno what it does except that I think it's supposed to make it harder for you to get breast cancer.

On a related note, I still have the painful lump in my right nipple, only now it's about twice as big as when I first got it, and a little smaller than it was a couple of days ago.

Flax is a good sorce of poly/mono-unsaturated fats, they do a lot of good things for you...I started to write an article on nutrition a year or so ago, might still have it around. I don't remember if I ever got past proteins and carbs or not. Lets see...aha

http://www.ghettodexter.com/diet.html

Incomplete, but something, I guess.

Hmm, not too shabby. It seems to be hard to find any information out there on diet health that's easy to read (not that I've looked toooooooo much>_>), and that was.

Finish it. For me, baby?

I take a one a day vitamin (I think Centrum), a calcium supplement because I rarely eat dairy, and flax seed oil.

Muslemilk for me. I love it very much.

I've been lifting for a long time, and I've taken a lot of supplements, and all my friends lift a lot, and they have all taken a lot of supplements.

I'm pretty skinny so keep that in mind (maybe supplements have different effects on different people)

Here are my thoughts on some supplements...

Creatine - I've never noticed a significant gain from creatine, and have never gotten larger physically. For all I know it's a mental thing and I'm slowly just getting stronger, I've tried many different types as well.

WHEY - I mean you get what you buy, it helps build muscle, there are a lot of different types so actually research what you're getting. It's not just grams of protein you want, it's what kind of amino acids etc are included.

NO2 - I took a pure NO2 called Blitz and it was even worse than creatine, I would never take it, well I would never take Blitz again

Here are a few things that I have been taking and I actually have noticed a difference.

I have a friend who reccomended me a combination of supplements which was working great untill I got busy with school work.

I bought all of these from bodybuilding.com which has great prices (half the price of GNC)

I was taking L-Glutamine, a type of WHEY (I'll edit when I get back to school on what type it is), Fish oil, Elite-K Creatine, dextrose sugar, and ZMA.

L-Glutamine, WHEY, and dextrose I drank in a shake with water after I lifted. I noticed my body was a bit more defined after this.

The creatine once again I didn't like that much. I've noticed bigger friends of mine have a lot more gains from creatine...coincidence? I don't know.

ANd the ZMA is a zinc, magnesium supplement I took at night before I went ot bed. ZMA is supposed to increase some sort of anabolic hormones in your body. It's pretty cheap too.

Instead of the creatine when I start this cycle again, I'm going to bye NO Explode. It's the best supplement I've taken by far. I would seriously take this mix (it tastes good too) and 15-25 minutes later I felt like I drank a coffee, except it wasn't like a caffeine high (I feel weak on caffeine). I didn't see that much of increase in strength, but my reps and endurance sky rocketed. I added about 3-4 reps on all my bench press reps.

My biceps also got bigger and stronger. On a preacher curl, I could put 35 lbs on each side and rep that 3-5 times, which isn't normal for someone who is 130 pounds. The only problem is if you take it too long, you become immune to it. So I am currently taking 3 months off before I start it again.

NO explode is by far my favorite supplement, I reccomend it to all.

Blitz and NO-Xplode are both NO2s. You're saying one is your favorite supplement and the other you wouldn't touch again, why? Studies don't look favorably on NO2. You're spending alot of money on sugar water.

Creatine, on the other hand, is shown to work in studies.

Drinking sugar and protein mixed in water will absolutely not give you definition. Definition comes from a lack of fat.

I'm just telling you what I have felt, you can't refute my opinion. I've taken a lot of creatine and I never felt it did much for me.

And I like NO Explode over Blitz, I don't know why? I'm just telling you which I felt helped me and my roomates who have taken it.

And I guess I should use the word "defined" seeing as I am really skinny already, I apologize. I mean more muscular, bigger as many put it. And it wasn't just sugar and protein in a shake, I also took L-Glutamine. And the sugar is used (according to friend who is crazy about lifting) to help absorb the protein faster or something. I guess I can ask him on more detail next time I'm back at school.

Which types and brands of creatine did you take? Regardless, if you didn't follow a regimen like this, it's no wonder the creatine didn't help.

You want pure, micronized creatine monohydrate, preferably taken spooned into your mouth chased by water or a sugary non-citrus drink. It's not necessary to spoon the creatine, but a lot of people advocate this practice because of creatine's volatile nature. It rapidly breaks down into a different substance called creatinine when it comes into contact with water. While it's probably not so big of a concern, many people think it's safer to delay this reaction for as long as possible due to the unpredictibility with which the process occurs. You also want to get some sodium in your system when you take it.

You get fastest results if you load for one week with 20g a day, the results will be clear by the end of the loading phase, after which you maintain with 5g a day or 5g after every time you work out. The purpose of creatine isn't to gain mass or get defined, though due to the increase in water in your muscles, it's normal to look bigger while you're on it. What it does do for you is allow your muscles to work longer and lift heavier weight by speeding the process through which they replenish their ATP stores.

As for the NO stuff, all I've heard of it is that it's bad news and/or a gigantic waste of money. I have no experience with it myself, but trustworthy people have convinced me.

Yea I know what you're atlking about Morm, a loading phase is necessary for all creatine..although some brands don't require it now.

I've taken GNC monohydrate, Nito something, K-Elite, another monohydrate I don't remember specifically, and I tried a vitamin store brand that was supposed to be good.

Like I said I never felt that much stronger on it. The NO Explode is the only supplement I've taken that actually made me feel like I could lift longer and heavier weight. But that's just me.

But I also have a lot of friends who enjoy creatine, and have taken NO Explode and they preferred the explode. I'm not bashing creatine, I'm just telling you guys my preferences, hell I'm taking creatine right now.

Just thought I'd share my opinion with you guys.

Yeah, I understand, just wanted to get that out there and make sure. Thanks for the input.

Yea i hear ya, I'm not saying creatine is bad.

I'm just saying what I prefer.

I can list numerous instances in which I've seen my friends who haven't lifted in months start lifting a week without creatine to warm up their bodies to lifting, and then start cycling and put on 40 pounds on their bench and rep it just as much as they did 40 pounds less.

Creatine does work for people, but unfortunately it never did much for me.

In terms of all of the creatine talk, I've heard nothing but bad things health-wise when it comes to your kidneys with the monohydrate stuff. Why not take the non-monohydrate stuff now that it's out and really isn't any more expensive? That's what I've been using anyway, works just as well (I would assume, I'm getting great results with this type but I've never taken monohydrate) and it's supposed to be much safer.

Err, I've not heard anything about any type of Creatine being bad for you, at all, no matter how much you take and how long you take it, provided you don't have a prior condition.

Creatine is something that is already in everyone's body. Your body produces small amounts and you gain some through eating meat. Consuming more gives lets you store more in your muscles, to a point.

Creatine will not make you stronger. It can not make you lift 40lbs more. That's placebo effect. It will let you lift longer. Yes, there are going to be some people that won't see results from it but they're in the minority. Creatine is one of the few sports supplements that actually works.

Loading is not needed for all brands of creatine. Excess is wasted and creatine stores are depleted when used.


L-glutamine is an amino acid. Proteins are chains of amino acids. Dextrose is a simple sugar. You were just drinking sugar and protein. I do understand the effect of insulin response on protein uptake and it is valid science but it's not going to magically make you bigger if you're not already eating and lifting enough.

It's not that it really damages your kidney directly per se, however the kidney is responsible for clearing the creatine out of the blood once it's used or any excess, and if you're using more than your body normally produces it puts an unnecessary strain on your kidneys. I'm just going by what my dad, who does kidney surgery, has told me about it. He's not a nutritional expert or anything though, and his surgeries are mainly transplants and not the specifics of kidney damage.

The stuff I use is ethyl ester, which apparently "allows for easy absorption in the intestines and is taken directly into muscle cells through the cell's walls" according to wikipedia and is supposed to have a higher absorption rate. Apparently this stuff is also easier on the stomach, I've heard some people complain that unless the monohydrate is in a very finely powdered form, it upsets their stomachs.

I never said drinking dextrose with my protein and l-glutamine made me magically bigger.....

And I've heard creatine supposedly fucks up your kidneys but I never really thought it did, but his dad being a doctor that does kidney surgery is a pretty legit source of information.

But I doubt it does that much damage to them, if any at all.

I'll ask my father when I remember, he is a pediatric nephrologist, aka kidney's are his life.

I want to build myself to be a runner. A good runner too.
So i figure I should start taking some supplements.
I don't really know what I should be taking in terms of protein, but I know that the following I should take (generally speaking):
-fish oil
-glucosamine/chondroitin/msm
-cottage cheese before bed
-some kind of protein, eh?