Once you’ve got solid training and nutrition programs in place, an equally solid supplement plan will only enhance your ability to get bigger, stronger, and leaner. As you’ve no doubt already seen, though, there’s a lot of hype and misinformation swirling around the supplement industry. Before you fall for the hottest pre-workout supplement or some random ingredient that a fitness “guru” promises will make you grow muscle like body hair, take a long look at this guide, because all you need to get started on the right foot is here.
And don’t think we’re about to sell you on a bunch of products you can’t afford. Some of the most anabolic supplements can actually be obtained from whole foods. All of the following supplements, whether derived from whole foods or manufactured sources, help form the nutritional foundation upon which you’ll build your best body ever.
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Whey Protein
Milk contains two primary types of protein: whey and casein. Whey is soluble and makes up 20% of milk protein, while casein makes up the remaining 80%. There’s a reason whey is not only the bestselling protein powder on the market today, but the best-selling supplement, period: It builds lean muscle. No other protein digests as quickly as whey, with its amino acids delivered to the bloodstream within 60–90 minutes. This allows it to rapidly turn on muscle-protein synthesis for instigating muscle growth, which is especially important around workouts, when the muscles are primed for it.
Another benefit of whey is that it’s the richest source of branched-chain amino acids (BCAAs) of all the nutritional proteins. The three aminos that make up BCAAs are the most critical for muscle growth and also provide the muscles with a fuel source (more on BCAAs shortly). Additionally, whey protein supplies special peptides that relax the blood vessels to cause vasodilation, which gets more blood flowing to the muscles and helps to deliver whey’s amino acids to the muscles more quickly.
There’s no more critical time to take whey than before and after workouts. In fact, research from Victoria University (Australia) found that when subjects consumed whey protein, creatine, and glucose immediately before and after training for 10 weeks, they experienced an 80% greater increase in muscle mass and about a 30% greater increase in muscle strength than subjects taking the same supplements in the morning and at night. They also lost body fat, while the other group lost none.
Furthermore, researchers from the University of Copenhagen found that subjects taking a protein and carbohydrate supplement immediately after workouts for 12 weeks gained significant muscle mass. The group taking the supplement immediately after workouts also gained greater muscle strength.
Dose: Take around 20 grams of whey upon waking, within 30 minutes of your workouts, and then again within 30 minutes after your workouts.
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Creatine
This is one of the most studied and effective supplements ever to hit the market. Research confirms that creatine can increase muscle mass by about 10 pounds and muscle strength by more than 10%. As you may have heard before, creatine does, in fact, increase the water weight inside muscles, pulling more fluid into the cells. But this fluid places a stretch on the membrane of muscle cells to signal an increase in muscle protein synthesis, which results in real, long-term muscle growth. So don’t listen to that know-it-all friend of yours who says that creatine just increases water weight. Creatine also provides the muscles a quick source of energy to fuel muscle contractions during workouts. In fact, creatine is a critical energy component of muscle cells. Having more of this energy available allows you to complete more reps with a given weight, which, over time, leads to gains in muscle strength and size.
Dose: Depending on the form of creatine you use, take 1–5 grams before and after workouts with whey protein. If you take creatine monohydrate, consider doing a loading phase for the first five to seven days. To do this, take 5 grams four to five times per day with meals. On workout days, make two of those doses pre-and post-workout. After the loading phase, stick with 5 grams, both pre- and post-workout.
Fact: Research shows that creatine, when taken both pre- and post-workout, can yield notable increases in both muscle size and strength.
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Casein Protein
Unlike whey, casein is a very slow-digesting protein. It can take as long as seven hours to deliver all of its amino acids to your muscles. This is why we recommend that you get some form of casein before bedtime, whether that be from a protein shake or from whole foods like cottage cheese or Greek yogurt. Since casein is so slow to digest, many feel that it’s a waste to take it around workouts. Yet numerous studies show that when you add casein to whey protein post-workout, muscle growth is increased beyond what’s possible with whey alone—because while whey quickly starts muscle protein synthesis, casein decreases muscle protein breakdown, which normally goes up after workouts. Since milk is a good source of casein, an easy way to add it post-workout is to mix whey in milk.
Dose: Add 20 grams of casein to your 20 of post-workout whey, and take 20 grams before bed. Other options include mixing whey in about two cups of low-fat milk or one cup of Greek yogurt, or drinking your whey shake with a cup of cottage cheese.
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BCAAs
The branched-chain amino acids (BCAAs) include leucine, isoleucine, and valine. Of the three, leucine is the most critical for muscle growth for two main reasons. First, it turns on muscle-protein synthesis in muscle cells, which means increased potential for muscle growth. The second reason is that leucine spikes levels of insulin, an anabolic hormone released from the pancreas that helps glucose, amino acids, and creatine reach muscle cells. Leucine also decreases muscleprotein breakdown and increases muscle-protein synthesis. That said, all three BCAAs are important because muscles can use them as direct energy sources, especially during workouts, which allows you to train harder with less fatigue. As a result, BCAAs are ideal throughout the day for anyone looking to maximize gains. Take them before workouts (for energy), after workouts (for better recovery and muscle growth), and first thing in the morning (to stop muscle breakdown and put your body in an anabolic state).
Dose: Take 5 grams of BCAAs upon waking, within 30 minutes of starting your workouts, and then again within 30 minutes after your workouts.
Fact: BCAAs are direct precursors to muscle growth. You’ll want to take them in the morning and pre- and post-workout to maximize their effect.
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Fast Carbs
When you train, the main fuel source you burn is glucose, supplied by stored glycogen within the muscle fibers. To have ample energy for your next workout, you need to restore that muscle glycogen as quickly as possible. Otherwise, the amount of glycogen your muscles store for the next workout will be compromised, along with your energy and strength levels. After workouts, you need a very fast-digesting (highglycemic) carbohydrate. The absolute fastest one is actually a complex carb called Vitargo, and the next fastest is the sugar dextrose, which is actually glucose—what your blood sugar and glycogen are composed of. If you don’t want to buy a dextrose/glucose powder supplement to add to your postworkout shake, there are some candies that are mainly dextrose. Wonka Pixy Stix are pure dextrose, and other good options include Wonka Bottle Caps, Wonka Sweetarts, and Haribo gummy bears. Less sweet but almost as fast is white bread and white potatoes.
Dose: Shoot for around 40–60 grams of fast-digesting carbs within 30 minutes after completing your workouts. If you use milk to mix your whey protein, remember that every cup of milk provides 12 grams of sugar. A good post-workout meal would be one scoop of whey mixed in two cups of milk plus 10–15 Wonka Pixy Stix.
