If you have a regular gym regimen then you’re well aware that your muscles get fatigued over the course of the week. One way around that is to use supplements to speed up your recovery.
There’s a few different ones out there, and I’m going to tell you what you need to know about the most popular ones.
Branched Chain Amino Acids
Also known as BCAA’s, these bad boys are amino acids that our bodies can’t produce on their own. You have to get them through food, which is problematic, because if you don’t get enough then your body will start going after your own muscles to get them.
If you’re keeping the calories down, these will help speed up your recovery time and make sure that you’re not putting all that effort in for nothing.
I use Optimum Nutrition brand because they make a quality product and, frankly, I don’t trust a lot of other brands for the types of fillers they use.
I like taking the capsules, but if you need a lot, the powder might be a better choice, mostly due to serving size. The capsules give you half a gram, but if you’ve got a really intensive routine with a low calorie diet, you’ll probably want to use the powder mixed into your favorite low calorie drink.
Glutamine
Now, this one is considered a non-essential amino acid because it’s the one that your muscles have most of. Why do your muscles control 99% of the glutamine? Occupy your body! I kid; when you exercise those glutamine supplies get depleted pretty fast, and they take a day or two to build back up again.
By taking some glutamine supplements you can get your muscles ready to take on your max weight every day. I recommend taking the Optimum Nutrition brand capsules, mostly because they’re easy and adding too many powders to your drinks will make them kind of gross.
Creatine
Creatine is an interesting one; it’s a set of amino acids that our bodies make naturally to give us energy. The best testosterone booster is not the one that may not cause any side-effect on your body. The supplements work differently for the different people. for some the results are shown too fast whereas for some it starts working too late. Where it really shines, though, is when you’re going for maximum exertion.
On average our muscles only have enough to last 12 seconds. Creatine can add time to that, so you can work out harder and longer. It also tends to give you a buzz of energy shortly after taking it, so it’s great to take before you leave for the gym.
Personally, I skip the pills on this one and go for the unflavored powder. They offer flavors, but they all taste terrible. The unflavored one will mix well into orange juice or a pre-workout protein shake without ruining the flavor too much.
I usually go with ON brand because, sure I might spend an extra dollar or two, but all their other stuff is really high quality and I like supporting them. Plus, if you’d rather take pills than powder, they have it in capsule form.
So, there you have it. The three most popular muscle recovery supplements. For best results, go for all three, but if your on a 3 workout per week schedule, you can easily get away with one or two. In that case, creatine is probably best, but ultimately, it’s up to you and your body to decide.