Image via Craze 4 Muscle

There is a magic secret to building lean muscle and strength faster than you ever imagined. This secret has been obscured from public view, but now, with the help of modern science and yours truly, the golden bullet will be revealed . . .

OK, I lied. There’s no magical secret to getting bigger, stronger and faster. Because our culture is geared towards immediate results, and because steroids are illegal, potentially dangerous and morally questionable, literally thousands of companies have popped up, purporting to offer the next big thing in muscular science. Not surprisingly, most of them have fallen by the wayside, leaving a few reputable juggernauts to duke it out for market share.

I would also be lying if I told you that ALL supplements are a waste of time and money. It is a fact that a select few have been proven useful through years of use, but another, more alarming fact is that the vast majority of all bodybuilding, fitness and fat loss supplements are about as effective as folding up dollar bills and stuffing them into your air conditioner vents in an attempt to get ripped. Sure, the bottles look cool (my god, has the packaging improved over the last five years!), but when it comes right down to it, most of these products cannot and do not live up to their marketing hype. Most are advertised with what is at best pseudo-science and at worst outright lies. Sandwiched in between pages of Jay Cutler’s massive legs and Dexter Jackson’s amazing abs are the B.S. ads that make up the bulk of an average bodybuilding magazine. Young kids read these things, wanting to get bigger and stronger as fast as possible so they can get laid and impress their friends, but are usually disappointed when they find that there’s really only one way to success in the iron game:

HARD WORK AND DEDICATION!

You’re going to be at this for a while, and if you wanna go anywhere with your strength and size, then you’ll be in the gym regularly, eating well, and getting plenty of rest. Then again, once you have these three pillars of training success well established, there are a few things that you can, and that I’d recommend that you add to the equation. I toyed with the idea of telling you which exact brands I use, but for now, I’m going to stick to the basics. Here is the short list of supplements that I have used and suggest to my clients (yes, even I have been burned by the super nitro booster energy paks of the world, but I finally learned).

• Multivitamin/multimineral. These are among the three most important supplements any athlete can invest in. I’d call them 1a on my list, because even people who don’t train (please, if you don’t train, at least do some walking or running or something active, but I digress) – almost everyone can benefit from multivitamin/multimineral supplements. Even the best of us who strive to eat a wide variety of fruits, vegetables and grains can find it hard to get enough of these little natural chemicals that are crucial for the body’s growth and maintenance. Some even have extras, like joint support, immune and digestive enzymes, and male or female-specific herbal enhancements. They’ll help you get stronger, faster because they regulate your body’s processes. Plus, you won’t get sick, since you’re getting plenty of the good stuff you need to fend off the constant onslaught of germs and viruses in the environment.

• Fish oil. This is my 1b, because like the multivitamin/multiminerals, they are just as valuable to sedentary folks as highly tuned athletes. Fish oil contains omega-3 fatty acids, which are essential for body processes, but often overlooked in our prepared food-based diet. Supplementing with fish oil will reduce inflammation and soreness. Another interesting benefit is that ingesting this fat actually reduces cholesterol and decreases body fat. Serum cholesterol is dropped because fish oil raises your HDL levels, which effectively cleans out your arteries, while it helps your body burn fat by teaching it how to utilize fatty acids for energy more effectively. Find a fish oil supplement that has a good amount of EPA and DHA, and take 6-12 caps each day. I usually buy them when they’re on sale, buy-one-get-one free at the local drugstore. You can stock up with 10 or more economy sized bottles, then put one in your cups and glasses cabinet. Whenever you go to get something to drink with a meal, take 2 or 3 caps of fish oil as well.

• Whey protein. Though it’s 1c, it’s every bit as important as the other two for succeeding in adding strength and muscle. When you’re lifting weights, you need at least 1g of protein per pound of bodyweight each day. Some people find that they’re stronger and more energetic with 1.5g or even 2g/lb, so experiment with different levels to see what works best for you. Use whey only after working out (or if you like doing some cardio first thing in the morning, you can have some whey as soon as you wake up so that you’re not totally fasted). Whey digests in less than an hour (more like 45 minutes for whey isolates), so it’s not suitable for meal replacement, but this fast digestion time makes it perfect for post-workout recovery. Shoot for at least .5g protein per pound of bodyweight in your post-workout drink. (For what it’s worth, I’m currently mixing two scoops of protein into 16oz. skim milk, plus an ice cube.)

• Creatine monohydrate. I wrote a paper about this to earn my nutritionist certification, and it’s shocking how many things creatine helps. Most people familiar with the world of bodybuilding and strength training know that creatine can make you bigger and stronger, but did you know it can help repair broken bones, increase brain function in elderly folks and possibly even prevent brain damage from blunt trauma?! There are several different ways to use creatine, and we’ll go into those later. For now, let’s just keep it simple: creatine helps you lift heavier weights or lift the weights more times, or BOTH! It’s also dirt cheap (you can get a kilogram of the stuff for under $20 with a quick search on the web). Perhaps the best testament to the effectiveness of creatine is the fact that you’ll see the cover of bodybuilding magazines ask the question “Is [supplement x] the new creatine?” at least once a year. So far, nothing has topped CM’s magical mix of effectiveness and affordability.

So there you have it. Four supplements that we know work very well for enhancing strength and general health. We’ll delve into each of these in depth later, plus discuss some of the other supplements and why or why not to even consider spending your hard earned money. Stick with HOPEisSTRENGTH and we’ll make you stronger, wiser and wealthier

4 Supplements *Actually* Worth Buying5.051