Which Supplements To Take To Build Muscle

At one stage or another, most gym users want to learn how to build muscle more effectively. One of the areas people tend to get a little lost is supplements. Today we will be teaching you which supplements to take if your goal is to build a more muscular physique.

In the fitness industry, your worst enemy isn't something physical. It's information. With all of the various products being released and studies being performed each day, it is hard to find a piece of information which isn't contradicted elsewhere. This leads many people into the bizarre situation of having more information available to them than any previous generation, yet being unable to achieve their fitness goals because they simply don't know who to believe or where to get started.

Rather than being stuck back in the old days where the science behind fitness and nutrition was still fairly basic and more difficult to come by, they now find themselves in the opposite situation. They can't move without being told that they need to purchase a particular product or buy a workout program which will deliver better results than any others. This often leads to people simply quitting to avoid all the confusion which comes with getting fit.

Yet despite the great strides forward we've made in science and training, the basic principles remain almost exactly the same as they were 20-30 years ago.

The world of supplementation is often quite misleading and confusing because, like all areas of business, it has a lot of companies competing with each other for your cash. In their attempts to persuade you to choose their brand over a rival they need to come up with flashy, over the top statements and promise superior results.

While you could spend hours comparing the statements on different tubs of protein or creatine, the truth is you can learn how to pick the best product for you by simply teaching yourself what to look for, rather than which one claims to be the best.

* Whey is a highly effective protein source

* Creatine monohydrate

* Casein

* Simple carbs are great for your post-workout period

* BCAA's

* Glutamine can return enviable results in muscular recovery

We will now take a moment to run you through what you should expect from each item on today's list so you know why they made the cut. Despite the many products out there which survive purely on hype and word of mouth advertising, the items recommended today have a good base of scientific evidence to back them up. Here's a guide to each one.

Most people today have had a brief look into whey protein shakes and what they are designed to do. However, quite a lot of people are falsely advised that whey is designed to help you gain weight. This isn't true, it can be and should used by those looking to get leaner, too. Of the three main types of whey available, hydrolized formulas will hit your muscles faster and this is why they tend to cost more. Isolate and concentrate are slightly slower.

Each type is highly effective and the difference between the digestion speeds doesn't warrant the often huge differences in price, so although you would get better results with a hydrolized product you don't need to go down that route if you cannot afford to.

The facts on creatine are needlessly murky. This product has been around for 20 years and it's effectiveness is proven. It is designed to increase your explosive strength, which can lead to greater muscle gain if you are training regularly and watching your diet. Creatine was first used by sprinters looking to improve their times over short distances, then adopted by bodybuilders looking to push out a few more repetitions in their workouts.

With countless different formulas and blends of creatine, it seems every trainer and gym user has a different opinion on which one you should use. However, if you want to base your decision on scientific evidence then you won't have too much difficulty finding the solution. Creatine monohydate is light years ahead of any other formula on the market, despite being the oldest and most easily available of all.

Casein is an underrated protein product which can yield great results if used correctly. This product is a great example of how the world of supplements operates. Despite being on the market for many years now, it actually had no scientific evidence to back up it's claims until just 4 months ago. This shows you why it's easy to get lost in hype if you're not careful. However, this particular product does now hold sufficient proof to back up it's claims and is a very good way to keep the muscle building process switched on while you sleep.

Studies revealed that using casein prior to sleep kept the body's muscle building process activated for far longer and resulted in superior gains in lean tissue to those using whey alone.

Over the last ten years or so, carbohydrates have got a bad rap from those in the fitness industry. This is mainly due to the celebrity diet trends which tell people to cut carbs from their diets if they want to lose weight. That approach is, of course, nonsense and results in the individual piling all of their weight back on and more when they finish their diet. Carbohydrates are very, very useful even if your goal is losing weight.

The overall majority of your carbohydrates should be coming from slow digesting complex sources such as oats, however the period following an intense gym session is ideal for the other type of carbohydrates. During this brief time, quick-release simple carbs will provide your body with the instant hit of nutrition it needs. This can be obtained through food so there is no need to grab a powder or pill, although they are available.

Branched chain amino acids are a very underrated product in gyms around the world. While most people are desperately trying to pack on some lean muscle, the majority of them have never heard of this type of product despite it's proven hypertrophy results. You will get a good dosage of these in your whey protein product anyway, but if you can afford to add in a specific BCAA product as well you will notice greatly enhanced gains.

Glutamine rounds out the list today. Designed primarily for muscle recovery, glutamine is also great for improving your body's immune system and encouraging the release of more natural growth hormone, too. This all adds up to a supplement which will allow you to get more out of your gym sessions, so it is a useful addition to a diet.

The most important rule to remember, however, is that the key word in each of the products we have explained today is supplement. While every product on the market will lead you to believe that you won't be able to achieve your goals without it, the truth is you can go a long way to learning how to build muscle by simply taking care of your diet and training routine. With those two things in place, you will be able to decide which supplements to take to suit your goals and you'll notice great results from any of the items covered today.

By Russ Howe

About the Author:

More info: Discover which supplements to take to build a ripped physique with the UK's most followed fitness instructor, Russ Howe PTI. Discovering how to build muscle doesn't need to be rocket science, as you have seen today.