First time getting serious with supplements

[DJ Paradise]

Hey, im a newbie to this board and as my inaugural post I would like to ask a question since everyone here seems to be very knowledgable.
--I have been training for the past two years, just for health and stress's sake. And i have seen remarkable improvement. But I have yet to take any serious supplements ( I had my post workout protein shake but thats about it). I'm 5'7'' 160lbs and I can put up a respectable 205 on the flat. Thing is i've been there for about a year and it's about time to break thru that plateau. Enough BS........my question is what would be the most efficient (in terms of cost, im still in college) supplement regimen, where do i obtain them, and how should i take them? i'm not really interested in taking steroids at this point in my life either. I am currently starting a new program that I obtained from Fitrex.com. ...its the (4 day advanced bodybuilding) ...it seems pretty legit, but if anyone has suggestions, I am definately open to them....Thanks for your help.

 

[riskybizz007]

Firstly, I know you're probobly going to get a million suggestions on what to take. You're best off looking around the boards and see what people post on their results from products, unless you have a question specifically. In my experience, as far as gain in muscle i think Creatine is the best for me. For strength, I like 4AD and 19NorAndrodiol, but i think the 19Nor is better just takes a little longer to work.

About your plateu... I can see a plateu lasting maybe a month or 2. But more than that and you have to start questioning your diet, recovery, and your workout. Are your calories adequate? Are you sleeping enough? Are you working no more than 4 days a week w/ weights? Is protein intake at least 1g/pound of body weight? And how intense are your workout? Do you change routines, sets, reps, are you increasing your intensity?

Bottom line is you need to look at all those questions and more, b/c i know i'm missing more. But 1 year at the same weight is not good. Especially for you since you're still kind of new. I would look at all those factors first before you reach out for a supplemental aid. There's something wrong w/ at least 1 of the 3 i mentioned: diet, recovery, training.

 

[DJ Paradise]

It's more like a little of each. My schedule is pretty unpredictable but I do get in the gym at least 4 days a week. In terms of recovery (or lack thereof) is probably is what is hurting the most. I do indulge in some of the more enjoyable activities of college life, and sleep is becoming an increasingly scarce commodity. I have also taken a week or two off because of various injuries. So I was hoping that supplements such as protein and creatine would make up for what I lack in some of the other departments. Is this logic wrong and would I just be wasting time and money? Thanks

 

[NateDogg]

Supplements will not make up for an otherwise not-good-for-successful-weight-training lifestyle. Supplements are just that, they are IMHO for those who are doing just about everything right, sleeping 7-10 hours a night, eating well and training 3-5 days a week. So, no, IMHO supplements will not "make up" for a good nights sleep or a diminished intake of alcohol. I guess protein shakes can "make up" for some missing protein, but that's about it.

NateDogg

 

[javaguru]

Once you get these in order then tackle the supplements.

1. Foundation diet, plenty of protein(at least 1g/lb) and a diet log.
I prefer a macro ratio of 40% Protein 40% carbs and 20% fat , mostly from EFA's and healthy fats, experiment to see what works for you.

2. Sleep, at least eight hours

3. Water, as much as you can drink in a day

keep the partying to the weekends.

For Supplements,

Start with a good multi vitamin and basic protein powder if you have problems reaching your protein requirements with lean meats. Then I would take creatine, it's pretty cheap and most respond to it. I would also add a post workout shake consisting of .4g protein per kilo of bodyweight and .8g carbs per kilo of body weight. Use hydrolized protein from http://www.proteinfactory.com and dextrose from http://www.supplementdirect.com. If you have extra cash you can add 5g BCAA's and 5g Glutamine peptides to the mixture. You could mix the creatine with the post workout shake as well.

 

[riskybizz007]

i agree w/ what they're saying... a supplement is an aid. It's not deca, d-bol, or test. It's a legal supplement, and it doesn't make sense to me to take it if you haven't fixed the underlying problems. It can help a little, but from your progress you stated you need a big change in what was stated above.

 

[FitnessFrk]

post your training routine and diet....

 

[DJ Paradise]

Monday: Flat Bench 10,12,12,15
Superset1 - dumbell Incline (30 degrees) 12,8,12; dumbell incline (45 deg) 12,12;cable x-over 12,12,10
Superset 2 - rear lat raise 12,12; leaning lat raise 12,12
Pushdowns 12,12,10
1 arm reverse 12,12
triceps kickback - 20,15
some abs

Wed: Squat 10,12,15,12
lunges 20,15,10
superset : leg xtension/leg curl 20,115
deadlifts - 20,15
low row - 12,12,10
lat pull down - 12,12,10
preacheer curl 12,12,10
hammer curl - 12,12,10

Friday - close grip bench 10,12,10
superset: dumbell incline(45deg)/dumbell fly 12.8.15
Military press 12.8.15
superset:dumbell lat/rear lat 12,12
upright row 20,15
lying triceps xtension 12,12,10
overhead tri's 12,12,10
superset: pushdown/kickbacks 20,15
toe press
abs

Sunday - bent over row 12,8,15
wide grip row 12,12,10
lat pull down 12,12
leg press single leg 20,15
lunges 20,15
leg curl 20,15
shrugs 12,8,15
dumbell curl 12,12,10
cross curls 12,12
barbell reverse 12,12
abs

ive just changed over to this program 3 weeks ago and its kicking my ass

my diet: i basically ingest as much turkey product as possible with a post work out shake

 

[riskybizz007]

This may or may not help you... but as w/ me i tend to focus a little less on reps and more on intensity. I do low reps, i may aim for 8 or just end up w/ 5-6. Or i may aim for 6 and end up doing 10 just to bring up the intensity. Intensity is the key

 

[Tha One CrumCake]

1 MultiVitamin
30mg Zinc taken at Night or preferably ZMA
Vit C 2 grams
Vit E 800iu
Selenium 200mcg
Glutamine, taken throughout the day.
Creatine, taken pre- and post workout.
1 gram L-Arginine taken with your Protein meals to increase N.O.
Good ole Whey.
BCAA's taken with Glutamine on cardio days.

Once you have all those supplements covered, you can start experimenting with others.

Good Luck.