Who uses what for sports supplementation?
Powders, Pills, pre/post whatever, vitamins etc.
I feel i have a considerable amount of insight on this topic, bored out of my mind recovering from a surgery and can lay out some solid info to anyone interested.
This is always a pretty fun topic on the internet.
And go.
I don’t use anything anymore as I no longer do any sort of training and can usually only haul my ass out of bed at 5am 2-3 mornings a week to get either a spin or a kettlebell workout in a week.
But nothing will beat the rush of jamming 2 scoops of the original NO Xplode circo about 2006 in and going and banging weights in the gym. There is no way that stuff should have been legal and subsequent revisions to the product never produced the same result. I also blame excessive use of preworkouts on my borderline caffeine immunity.
When my focus was primarily weight liftint and still working in construction i was putting my body through quite a bit of strain.
I was intaking between 150-200 grams of protein, i also had creatine along with glutamine.
I no longer take protein as i get it all from real foods. I still take glutamine on and off as its primary purpose is as a recovery supplement, its the one thing i reccomend to people
Preworkout is garbage i find, all the chemicals in it put so much strain on your heart. The best thing for energy was always a orange.
Ive seen countless people taking various " supplements" or “p.e.d’s”. Red rockets were a big one people were using for energy, it had amphedamines in it , you could see the person constantly sweating and trying to catch their breath as their heart was going a mile a minute.
P.e.d wise locally its even more common than ever in the gyms. There have several local bodybuilders who have had adverse effects from taking them. Everything from heart attacks, to collapsing on stage due to dehydration because of using diaretics (spelling?). Too many of them are going off info they get from someone from the back corner of the weight room or online instead of actual doctors who are closely monitoring their health while using them
Bottle of flat coke for the last lap. Chocolate milk for a recovery drink. Subway footlong veggie on white at the 200km point of any ride where available.
I’ve tried a bunch of stuff, and found nothing really helps much for MTB races.
Creatine, protein, different pre-workouts, trying to time intake exactly when you should before a race, all the way to jamming 1/2 a PB&J down 5 min before start because I am late.
I suffer the same, and honestly some of my better races have been on lack of sleep from being up with a small child half the night, being late, no warm up and jamming whatever down my neck on the drive to the race.
Not saying doing it all correctly is wrong, if you are already at the top and your performance and training are bang on, I am sure quality supps help. But I think for the average MTB hack weekend warrior, more riding, and more riding fast, is where its at, and a lot cheaper, if your goal is to be faster and go faster for longer.
Having said that, if you can guide me to a supp that will make me faster for longer, please do share it!
I don’t usually take anything for riding mainly just for the gym. Just the normal stack most use, pre, EAAs, protein(when I want it fast but rather real food), vitamins and creatine.
But out of the things I’ve tried I have to say Athletic Greens seems to take me from blah and tired to feeling full of energy the best.
Maybe try the lance Armstrong supplement guide
I don’t take Athletic Greens but I do take a greens mix daily and I can definitely tell the difference if I miss a few days.
Any recco’s on daily vitamins @Enduro_Performance ? I currently do multi vitamin, fish oil, K2, D, and B complex. In the winter I also toss vitamin C in and double the vitamin D.
I used to take stuff for knee joint pain like glucosamine/ MSM, tumeric, and tried some specialty joint pills over the years. I had a meeting with a knee surgeon a little over a year ago as the pain was bad and worse than ever (turns out after testing I had Lyme which was causing the pain, but i’m all good now thanks to the antibiotics) who explained my knee issues and then said the most beneficial and scientifically proven supp is fish oil and maybe some advil on rough days and that the rest do very little or nothing at all in testing or they haven’t been tested enough to have any real data. I cut out about 4 pills a day and had no increase in knee pais. The biggest change in my knees was more regular spin bike rides, dropping some weight, and getting the book from the knees over toes guy and doing some of his exercises a few days a week.
Few good responses so far.
As far as PEDs, I know nothing about them minus the countless negative effects I have witnessed over a few decades so I wont touch on that BS. That being said, TRT is legit and 100% is something alot more
common then most realize. There are also a few new things out now in the Peptide/Sarms world now that would be considered PEDs, but some have their places under strict medical administration. I have witnessed the positives of that world but never been in a situation to require its usage.
Nothing replaces quality diet and proper sleep. And the more I learn about myself, the latter is THE most important aspect of recovery.
With respect to sports supps, I have found their are a few ways to break things down and “organize” if you will.
Pre workout, Intra, Post, In season, training and bolt on.
Pre-I legit hate the way pre workout feels. Therefore, I don’t use it. Diet is everything. I really enjoy good coffee and for me, that does more then enough.
Intra - depends on how long the event is, but proper hydration with a good drink mix is key IMO, maybe some fast burning carbs in the mix. Highly recommend RynoPower Hydration. Anything over the 3 hour mark starts to require real solid food for me.
Post - Usually a trail side beverage. However for whatever reason I find any type of sparkling flavoured water quenches thirst like no other. Also, Coca Cola. Insane how quick that stuff brings you back to life and replenishes the soul.
Generally “In Season” is what I consider just day to day life, riding regularly, hiking, the odd gym workout etc. I usually only take a really high quality multi, sometimes all separately but I find the best value come in the packs. Animal Pak is a popular one, but $$$. There is one I recently started using from a local shop thats good but cant recall its name and its very well priced. I really focus on my diet, and take a few things to help with sleep, such as melatonin, CBD, magnesium and L-Theanine. I average about 30% Deep Sleep a night over 8 hours with this. This being said, I have issues with sleep due to a life of being put in some not so great sleep situations.
If I am training, lets say an 8-12 week program, averaging 10-12 hours a week. The only thing I really add in on top of my in season are good quality greens, protein and BCAAs.
“Bolt on” is a term i basically came up with to describe a few natural items I have found along the way to use for specific events or situations in my life. I have done personal research on all, and recommend you do the same to see if it works for you.
Pre/post biotic - great if you are coming off a dose of prescription antibiotics, have come in contact with a parasite, travelled to a foreign country or just want to tune up your gut health.
NAC - N- Aceytyl L Cysteine
I would recommend this to anyone.
N-acetyl cysteine (NAC) is used by the body to build antioxidants.
I have played around with multiple ways of using this, but basically if I am doing something (typically) very early morning in humid temps where I find I have a bit of chest congestion, these help alot. Research shows however that long term usage of this stuff will make you build immunity fast. Its also relatively inexpensive.
Cordracyps - Recently had a really bad lung infection, lasted for about 4 weeks. Wouldn’t clear my lungs and one bottle of high quality cordracyps combined with NAC cleared me up in days.
PQQ-10 - Basically, Lung health. Same idea as NAC but from alot of research helps clean up free radical build up in certain muscle tissues.
supports mitochondrial function, which plays an important role in cardiovascular, neuronal and cognitive health. PQQ is an antioxidant that promotes the formation of mitochondria and has shown neuroprotectant and cardioprotectant properties in pre clinical studies.
Rohodelia Rosea - this is actually a key ingredient in alot of workout supps.
Its inexpensive, has its benefits but like most other natural supplements, the body builds immunity extremely quickly.
reduce stress, combat fatigue, increase mental performance and improve physical and mental fitness and resilience.
Glutathione - research shows it helps repair cells, specifically in the liver. Enough said.
Vitamin D3/K2 - Immune system and bone health. Using this combined with OST currently to speed up bone healing.
OST-GEM - Been recently using this to help speed up some bone growth from a surgery.
C Clear Nasal Spray - Started using this a while ago, tip came legendary Iron Cowboy. Great for post recovery to clear the sinuses and theres even research on this specific product that it helps keep covid at bay.
Like I said, this is a small bit of knowledge. Maybe its useful to you, maybe not.
Cheers
I will report back with the name of that multi listed below.
Have you experimented with CBD at all?
+1 on Tumeric. Also, Ice baths or Cryotherapy if your wallet can handle it.
I’ve tried CBD drops they’re nice but I trust a good indica concentrate to help me sleep. Nothing beats a solid couch lock. Haha
Multi vitamin daily in addition to vitamin C and D.
Clean diet, nothing replaces real food.
Regarding knee pain. Ive dealt with it for quite some time.
Ive had severe bursitis years ago which initially required being drained 3x then finally getting the bursa removed.
More recently ive been feeling sharp pain in the side of my knee… turns out its being caused by severe muscle tightness and by my i.t band… accupuncture has alleviated the issue combined with more regular stretching.
Glucosamine sulphate and occasional greasy food helps with keeping the joints lubricated
I did CBD for probably 2 years using a high quality tested oil (that I can’t remember now) and varying dosages and found 0 benefits from it so I stopped taking it. I also found the same with tumeric, 0 perceived benefits. I’ve done some cold work and am a fan of that as well as a cold/ hot mix, but I don’t have the ability to do it consistently right now. My general supplementation has always just centered around general health and well being with the add ons to try and help combat the knee joint pain, but after years of more than likely placebo effects I cut out most of the add ons that were apparently just wasting my money. I am not saying that they don’t work for some people, but in my quest they offered no benefit and were just a cost.
I’m definitely keen to look into that multi and I wil lcertainly be researching some of the other above things.
Interesting with the CBD. I don’t notice it really doing much, but for sure notice it when I stop or run out. I have been using it daily for over 2 years.
I will say though, what I have found is there is an insane amount of garbage CBD on the market. If its cheap, there is a reason.
I haven’t touched a general anti inflammatory since, which for me personally are really hard on my stomach.
I had high hopes as I had heard such good things, but alas, not for me. Or I need a financially irresponsible dosage, which could very well be the case due to my excessive mass.
I’ve also tired CBD for awhile for knee issues and didn’t feel like it did much of anything
Peanut butter sammiches and energy drinks are fueling the sends.
LOL
I was never huge on supplements. When I was training for selection I was taking a protein supplement mixed with Glutamine, Vitamin D and B, and BCAAs. I tapered off before selection because we weren’t allowed to have it on selection and our bags got tossed when we got there. There was zero time for that anyways. I kept up the same routine on my course and for most of the last half of my career. At one point I added Omega3, but I’ve got IBS from a parasite I picked up on a deployment in 2005 and had to stop taking it. IBS, Omega3, and heavy squats don’t mix lol. I tried pre-workout but it just made me itchy and angry. I don’t really supplement anymore. Just a multivitamin, Vitamin D, Lion’s Mane capsules and whatever CBD finds its way into the bong. I did work with a dudes who were hard on the PEDs, one dude went into liver failure and turned yellow. Definitely not for me though.
Cool that NAC works for you. I really didn’t like how it made me feel, my wife uses it daily though.