If you look at all the vitamins out there, you’ll see there’s a pretty long list. Making things even more complicated is the fact that some vitamins in the alphabet (easiest way to follow all of them) are split into groups, where there is more than one. Whereas you can have Vitamin C or A, when it comes to Vitamin B it is called a complex because there’s a bunch of different vitamins that fall under it. Imagine thinking you can get all of that from your daily meal routine, it’s highly unlikely.

Besides making it easy for you by grouping them all into one single pill, a multivitamin supplement balances each of the individual vitamins based on what each one requires when ingested by an individual. For example, zinc is a copper antagonist as is iron and manganese. Taking vitamin supplements individually may cause vitamin imbalances and a multivitamin takes all of the guesswork out of “how much and what to take” out of the way. That, in and of itself, is a multivitamin benefit, no?

Furthermore, a multivitamin is essential to help recovery and provide your body with the necessary dosages of vitamins it needs to function and repair. If you weight lift, are part of any type of athletics, or do any type of physical activity, a multivitamin should be an absolute requirement. There is no excuse for not taking a multivitamin each day to keep your body strong. Technically, this statement applies to everybody, but it’s extra important for those putting their body through physical stresses. A multivitamin makes sure your body is not mineral or vitamin deficient, so this is especially necessary and relevant for those who engage in physical activities (especially taxing your muscles in the gym).

As a tip, I would like to add that men and women are not biologically the same. I think we all know this, so it should come as no surprise that the multivitamin you take should not be the same one either. We may be from different planets, but that’s not why we should take different multivitamins…more so for the fact we have different bodily requirements. There are versions for men and women, and those are the ones you should pursue. Universal brands focused on attempting to please everybody usually always fall short, as do those that require only 1 pill a day. Some vitamins require higher doses than others, and if one pill can really give you everything you need and not be the size of your thumb, well…link me to it. Make sure to choose a good brand, not a generic as well. It’s worth it. Good Luck!

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The unfortunate consequence of the huge media and fitness industries and their propaganda campaigns in all types of fitness magazines, shows, and any other popular source imaginable; is that they’ve effectively gotten the general public to believe that these muscle supplements work, and they work very well. So when an individual goes into a local Vitamin Shoppe or GNC, often times they’re not in there to find a product that works, they’re in there to purchase the product that makes the most creative claims that it works. This is a product (no pun) of these effective campaigns by these companies within the fitness industry to get you to buy into their pipe dreams, and they’ve done a great job. However, the fitness-oriented individual who understands how this process works will not be so easily duped, at least without first understanding some basic necessities when dealing with any types of muscle supplements.

1) Supplements are not created equal – just because it is sitting on the shelf, or you’ve seen it advertised on multiple magazines doesn’t mean that it works. The company simply has money to push the product, and you should be skeptical until you see some real research behind the effectiveness of the muscle supplement that hasn’t been skewed to help push the product.

2) Supplements don’t work magic – even if a muscle supplement does help in one form or another and this has been proven, understand the role that these supplements play. They aren’t there to substitute your diet, or to do the work for you. They are simply supplements, to supplement your already rigorous workouts and proper diet. If you want to reach results, you can reach all the results you need to reach on your own. These muscle supplements are there only to help fill in small gaps or give you that extra you need to reach your goals.

With all this talk of muscle supplements that work and don’t work, it is only fair we point out the supplements that have actually been proven to work.

Protein – Creatine – Multivitamin – Fish Oil.

Now, I’m not saying no other supplements work. They certainly may or may not, but if we’re referring to supplements that unquestionably play a role in helping your body reach your fitness goals, and have been proven extensively to work, those are the three. Everything else is up in the air, with some having more evidence behind them than others. Furthermore, out of these three, only enough Creatine can’t be supplied from eating foods alone (at least, an efficient amount that you can get from a supplement). Since Creatine supplementation isn’t necessary, you could argue there’s no need for any supplement if you step your eating game up. However, no need to go that far as it’s pretty tough to get all of your vitamins in without a supplement. Fish Oil is not a muscle supplement but is included in this list because Omega 3s are so important you should always have them on hand for overall health. Again, these muscle supplements are great to fix any gaps in your daily routine and diet, not as standalone powerhouses like many expect them to be. There’s a little more to expand on, however.

a) Protein Powder – this has been a staple muscle supplement for as far back as we can care to look back to. However, it is not the fact that protein powder has some special ability in it that allows it to be an effective supplement. It is simply protein, in powder form, that you can ingest for a quick dose of protein in order to help you reach the amount you should be taking in per day. We discuss this concept in How Much Protein Per Day.

Some people think that by working out and taking in a protein shake post-workout they will wind up putting on muscle. The process doesn’t work that way! Protein is a basic building block of life, essential to the building and repair of muscle. Protein powder is simply a powdered version that one can use to help you reach a higher protein amount for the day (necessary for eventual repair and growth of the muscle you punished in gym). For example, if you haven’t had too much protein today because your meal choices weren’t high in protein-rich foods like meats and fish, you can use a protein shake as a supplement to help you reach your protein goals. It will give you that extra protein necessary. The protein powder is not a muscle supplement that will do anything on its own!

In order to actually put on muscle mass, a protein powder is irrelevant if you do not eat above your caloric maintenance. There is a certain amount of calories per day you need to take in so that your body grows, if that amount is not met, all the protein shakes in the world won’t help you put on muscle (well, unless you drank enough to give you enough calories to grow – certainly illogical and not recommended). Therefore, here’s the verdict:

If you use a protein powder, understand that it is merely a tool to help you reach an optimal protein count for the day, and without an overall diet that gives your body more energy than it expands (puts you above maintenance), it will not be very useful if you are using it with the goal of putting on muscle.

2) Fat Burners – whether fat burners actually play a role is debatable. Certain fat burners are muscle supplements in that they claim they help your body retain muscle as you try and lose weight (fat!). Again, this is all not exactly proven and set in stone. However, to illustrate how these supplements can’t be thought of as magic pills they are a great example.

When you buy a fat burner, it does not contain pills that will magically slim you down by following the recommended doses (although you’d be surprised, the writing on the bottle claims otherwise, no?). With that said, we return to the principle of calories per day outlined earlier. If you’re eating above your maintenance calories for the day (the amount required to keep you at your current weight), no matter how many of these fat burner pills you take it won’t make a difference. The fat burner isn’t a stand alone actor, it is simply a supplement that you should be using along with your proper diet and workouts. As a result, you must be eating below your maintenance calories and using it to help out with minor things such as appetite suppression (to help you eat less calories overall for the day) or metabolism increase (to help you burn a bit more calories for the day). Under those circumstances, it will act as a supplement to your already proper diet.

Someone who is going to take a fat burner but the diet is all over the place, unknowingly eating above maintenance but hoping to lose some fat, will be very disappointed, even though the bottle and the reviews clearly state the product works. That’s where this misunderstanding occurs between the consumer, and the company producing the supplement. It’s not easy to get your diet in check, it’s not a simple process. Many times we are led to believe that a quick fix is there and it will bring instant results, unfortunately, this is not the case. Make sure you have everything else in check (diet, workout routine) before you purchase a muscle supplement to help you achieve your goals. They may claim otherwise, but they are only (at best) supplements. Furthermore, make sure you don’t believe outrageous claims or any product that makes it seem it does work you know you should be doing. It will almost certainly be a waste of money. There’s those few muscle supplements that definitely do work, the rest do not have such concrete evidence. You can go ahead and try them, but even if they do wind up working for you, remember…they’re only a supplement, use them as such. Good luck!

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Fish Oil comes from the tissue of oily fish (hard to believe judging by the name, right?), but what’s so important about it is that it contains a specific, Omega-3 deposit. Omega-3 fatty acids (there’s 2 crucial ones) are the golden components of Fish Oil that bring us the much talked about benefits. Eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and Decosahexaenoic acid (DHA), are essential fatty acids, in other words, they cannot be created by our bodies. Therefore, we must rely on external sources for their benefits. You may have heard that an individual is recommended to have at least 2 servings of fish per week, since eating fish supplies you with these Omega-3s, you should now understand the correlation between having to get them from external sources and this recommendation.

Alright, so they are deemed essential, and you’re recommended (American Heart Association) to eat fish a couple times a week to get Omega-3s, but why is all of this the case? The reason is simple, once you examine the amount of benefits they bestow upon you for consuming them, you’ll quickly realize why the word “essential” isn’t there to make the name sound cooler.

Benefits:

1) Anti-inflammatory – ever feel a sharp pain when you’ve stepped on the ground wrong that won’t go away for a while? That’s inflammation inside your body. Ever have a mosquito bite that is larger than usual? That’s inflammation outside on your body. There are very vast amounts of inflammation that can occur to you, however, getting foods riddled with anti-inflammatory properties make sure that inflammation stays small, if occurs at all. Sounds good right? Omega-3s are highly anti-inflammatory.

2) Skin and Hair – the benefits of Omega-3s on skin are well noted, particularly on inflammatory conditions such as acne, eczema, itching, etc. It allows the skin to stay hydrated by preventing loss of moisture to the cells. Omega-3 properties also help prevent hair loss, and have been linked in terms of helping speed the development of hair.

3) Heart and Brain health – Omega-3s help bring out the “good” cholesterol, while lowering the bad. It can also help lower blood pressure and keep the heart rhythm at a steady pace preventing sudden unnecessary spikes. The brain is composed of 60% fat, a good portion (around half even) is specifically Omega-3 DHA fat. I think that speaks for itself.

4) Weight Loss – that’s right, you read that correctly. Studies have shown that ingesting good amounts of Fish Oil in accordance with regular exercise can help that exercising shed those pounds. Can’t hate on that one!

5) Improvement of Mental Health – whether being used to help treat ADHD, or as something that can help your mood if you are anxious or feeling a little down, Omega-3s work their magic. Older people who may be at risk, or already have, Alzheimer’s disease should be glad to know that Fish Oil is regularly prescribed to help combat the disease.

These are just some of the major benefits of Omega-3s, there are plenty more…but we’d wind up writing a thesis paper, now is that really essential? Others include anti-aging, protection against cancers, wonderful benefits for pregnant mothers not only as the host but also for the developing fetus, improvement to blood circulation, and even fertility (survival of sperm enhanced). Now that we’ve gone over the importance of making sure you take in a solid amount of Fish Oil, what exactly is that solid amount?

Although you can get enough from eating fish such as salmon on a regular basis per week, Fish Oil capsules provide a wonderful quick alternative to meeting the necessary quota you should be feeding your body per day. Keep in mind, however, that there are more than 1 type of oil in “fish” oil and therefore, what it says on the bottle is not what we’re exactly counting into our dose. For example, a standard bottle may have 1 (300mg) to 1.2 (360mg) grams of Fish Oil per pill, however we need to focus on the parenthetical amount because that is the amount of Omega-3s (remember, the essential ones with the great benefits) that the capsule has. Always look on the back at the nutritional label, and note how much Omega-3s are there per capsule (or sometimes per 2, note up top how many servings the bottle describes). Usually if it’s 1 capsule, it’ll either be 300 or 360mg of Omega-3s (EPA + DHA). Also, make sure the EPA amount is higher (it should be standard, but doesn’t hurt to check). For Example, if it is 300mg, it should be 180mg EPA and 120mg DHA. I have not yet encountered one with a higher DHA than EPA, but I heard they’re out there so just check before you buy.

Now, onto the amount. Keep in mind that these amounts are for a healthy individual who is not considering taking Fish Oil for a specific medical condition, if that is the case you need to consult your doctor on the amount. However, if you’re just taking it to reap the benefits discussed, a good amount to start with would be 1g of Omega-3s per day. If that’s 360mg per pill, take 3 a day to reach that amount. If you’re looking to fight acne or other specific conditions that aren’t harmful to you in general, more is advised for noticeable effects. You don’t want to overdo it, however, so don’t rush out and start popping these pills like candy. Anything good can have its downsides if overdosed. Also, make sure the bottle says mercury free, and as a suggestion the common fish used for extracting Fish Oil are salmon, herring, lake trout and sardines. Check the label for the types of fish used. Most likely some of those will be on there, but again, won’t hurt to check. Good Luck!

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Many of these weight gainers promise extensive results in terms of muscle gain (and not weight gain in general). As if the powder you’re ingesting will fuel your body to act a specific way based on the fact you’re supplementing with that particular company’s product. None of this is true of course, and you can unveil the media-hyped cloak about all of this in our Benefits of Supplements article if you’re extra curious. In short summary, no supplement is magical but many can be used with great results if used correctly as a supplement to an already in-check diet and training routine. Buying one type of weight gainer over another will not spur your body to produce more muscle, it just doesn’t work that way.

Now when it comes to the best weight gain supplement, you have to break that term down to really understand what you’re indeed paying for. Outside of the aforementioned point about supplements not being magical, a weight gain supplement is simply a bunch of neatly separated calories (in terms of the three macronutrients – fats/protein/carbs). Many people seek these out for the wrong reasons, assuming they’re going to solely be responsible for helping them gain weight (muscle, I hope). Well, they won’t. They’re simply a bit of help for you to go past your maintenance calories. Once you are above your maintenance (and you train hard if you’re trying to gain muscle), over time you’ll be able to put on size. Whatever is advertised on the container is just that…an advertisement to lure you in. Therefore, practically speaking, the best weight gain supplement does not even exist because they all have the same function by aiding to provide you with calories. To the human body, calories are calories. If you put in more than you burn, over time it’ll add up and give you a plus on the scale. That plus that you need to put on plus pounds. That’s just how it works.

Of course, the question now becomes…do you even need to spend money on a weight gain supplement in the first place? Well, think of it this way. If we refer to our Clean Food Effects vs. Bad Food Effects article, we know that at the end of the day your body breaks down a calorie as a calorie no matter what the source is. Understanding this, since a weight gain supplement does nothing extraordinary outside of providing a caloric-punch, the only time I see it as a worthy purchase is when you clearly cannot stomach eating enough regular food to go over your maintenance for the day. Notice, however, that doesn’t mean it should be an easy cop out. Unless you are a complete health freak and stay away from “bad foods”, how could you really rationalize ingesting some powder in the form of a shake to get calories when you can eat clean for the majority of the day and then (if necessary) go over by eating anything you’d like? The world is filled with delicious goodies, enjoy the fact you can eat whatever you want and wind up with lean gains. Due to the struggle to get over maintenance in the first place, getting lean gains shouldn’t even be a problem. Therefore, the best weight gain supplement isn’t even a supplement, it’s whole food.

Now, if you really cannot eat enough because you excessively dislike many foods and are really picky, a weight gain supplement is a wise investment. Sometimes an individual just cannot stomach large meals and a small meal is all that is necessary for satiety to be reached. Other times an individual might have a killer combo of excessive physical activity (playing sports + gym) and a high metabolism, and they run into the problem of requiring so much to get above maintenance that it is quite hard when adding the fact that time is also not on their side. These are just a few instances, but they are certainly common. Under these circumstances, those extra calories from a weight gain supplement are more than welcome additions to the diet. Whole foods alone will not suffice to put that individual over maintenance, and packing a caloric-heavy dose through a weight gain supplement is an easy way to fix this problem.

Top 3 Rated Weight Gainers:

1) CytoSport Cyto Gainer

2) Optimum Serious Mass

3) Dymatize Elite Mass Gainer

At the end of the day, you have to decide what you can and can’t accomplish when it comes to meeting your caloric requirements for the day based on your lifestyle and your body. Under certain circumstances a weight gain supplement might be useful, but for most all that is required is a more dedicated initiative in the kitchen. Remember, these weight gainers aren’t going to give you results because they advertise they will. They’re simply going to give you calories. Good Luck!

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