Have you have just gotten back into the gym, or you are looking to take your gym game to the next level but don't know where to start?
Then you see someone with a shaker cup chugging down something before their workout…and you ask – what is that? To which they reply, “preworkout”.
And that has you thinking…should I be using dietary supplements to help me get to my goals quicker?
What dietary supplements should I use?
What brands can I trust?
What should I look out for?
IF YOU ARE LIKE MOST PEOPLE OUT THERE, YOU FIND THE WORLD OF Dietary SUPPLEMENTS CONFUSING AND YOU DON'T KNOW WHERE TO START. THIS BLOG IS TO HELP GUIDE YOU TO SEE IF SUPPLEMENTATION IS RIGHT FOR YOU, AND WHERE YOU SHOULD START.
WHAT ARE THE TOP PRODUCTS?
PROTEIN POWDERS
Protein is probably the most common dietary supplement. It is used to help increase your daily consumption of protein, recover from your workout, and build lean strong muscle. There are many types and qualities of protein powders available, so you want to make sure you get the right one for your needs. Below is a list of some the most common protein supplements.
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Whey Protein – dairy based and one of the fastest digesting proteins. This is the protein most people think of when they are talking about protein supplements.
LEARN MORE ABOUT: PROPELLO LIFE WHEY PROTEIN
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Plant Based Protein or Vegan Protein – more and more people are turning to non-dairy, vegan proteins. These plant based proteins are slower digesting and higher in fiber and can be a great protein option for many people; especially Vegans and Vegetarians who can sometimes struggle to get enough protein in their diets.
LEARN MORE ABOUT: PROPELLO LIFE VEGAN PROTEIN
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Collagen Protein – many people are using collagen to help with hair, skin, and nail health. Plus, it can help with ligament and tendon health as well. It is a great protein to add on in combination with a Whey Protein or Vegan Protein.
LEARN MORE ABOUT: PROPELLO LIFE COLLAGEN+
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Casein Protein – this is another dairy based protein and is much slower digesting than Whey Protein. Think cottage cheese – the liquid is Whey and the chunks are Casein. Many use this protein as a before bed snack because it digests slowly.
GREENS POWDER
Greens powder drinks are a fast growing dietary supplement. The unfortunate truth is that our lives are getting ever more busy and our food is getting more and more depleted of needed vitamin and minerals. Additionally, there is increasing scientific evidence of the health and performance benefits of specific hard-to-find adaptogens (medicinal mushrooms) and trace minerals. Lastly, boosting immunity is so important given the hardships we have faced recently.
If you want to optimize your health and performance, then check out a high quality superfood greens powder drink.
LEARN MORE ABOUT: PROPELLO LIFE COGNIGREENS
PREWORKOUT Powders
Preworkout products are probably the second most common dietary supplement product. There are preworkout products for performance and for energy. Most of the energy products are full of stimulants, so be careful and read the label. You don't want to take a product and then feel like you need to go to the hospital because your skin is itching, your face is flushing, and you can't seem to stop sweating…(yes, this can happen!)
Also, preworkout products are commonly known for making big claims and then don't have formulas to back them up. So do your research to find out what the scientific dose is to get the benefit they are claiming. Ingredients in preworkouts will often be mega-dosed to make you feel something or micro-dosed to make a claim, but don't work.
LEARN MORE ABOUT: PROPELLO LIFE ENERGY + FOCUS (ENERGY BLEND)
LEARN MORE ABOUT: PROPELLO LIFE PRE-WORKOUT ( VEGAN PRE WORKOUT PERFORMANCE BLEND)
BCAA & AMINOS
BCAA & Amino Acids products are a fast-growing category of products. They are mainly used to aid in muscle recovery. They also help reduce muscle soreness, prevent muscle wasting, and support a leaner body. These products are also the most flexible and can be used before, during and after a workout.
You can drink Aminos before and during your workout for a slight boost of energy, fasted exercising, and to prevent muscle wasting.
Use them after your workout and throughout the day for a slight boost of energy, improved recovery, reduce muscle soreness, and to just make water taste better!
LEARN MORE ABOUT: PROPELLO LIFE REJUVENATING AMINOS
FAT BURNERS
Fat Burners are a huge dietary supplement category. And the riskiest. It is enticing to use a product to accelerate your fat loss goals but be careful. Do your research. Ask your doctor. There are ingredients to help metabolize fat and boost your metabolism, but the benefits are small and need to be paired with a clean diet and sound exercise program. In the end, the best road to fat loss is through long-term healthy lifestyle choices.
HOW TO READ A DIETARY SUPPLEMENTS LABEL?
Learning to read labels is very important. The products you are considering will either be a Supplement Facts or a Nutrition Facts label.
Supplement Facts are for dietary supplements and Nutrition Facts are for food products.
The ingredients are listed from largest to smallest. This means there is the biggest amount of the first ingredient listed, and the smallest amount of the last one listed. Usually, the less number of ingredients the better. You want to be able to pronounce the ingredients and know what you are putting into your body.
See if it says on the label what the source is for specific ingredients. For example, “grass-fed whey protein” is much better for your body than “whey protein isolate.” In terms of whey protein, you want it to be undenatured and the least processed. With plant based proteins or vegan proteins, look for those that are a “complete protein,” meaning there is a combination of plant based proteins to create a complete profile of all nine essential amino acids. For BCAA
Amino Acids, also check the source of the amino acids – you want to look for vegan amino acids because many others can come from questionable sources such as human hair or duck feathers (although they probably won't say that on the label… just look for Vegan Aminos Acids!).
Also, many brands will use “Proprietary Blends” on their labels to hide the amount of each ingredient. Be careful of these – they are either mega-dosing, micro-dosing, or both!
In the end, look for products that tell you exactly what is in the product, how much of each ingredient, and use ingredients you can pronounce. Simple & Transparent!
WHAT TO LOOK FOR IN THE COMPANY?
Trust – this is what you want from the brands you buy from. Does the company clearly tell you:
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Who they are?
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Why they are in business?
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What they stand for?
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Where they source their products?
WHAT TO START WITH?
If you are just getting into dietary supplements, here is what we recommend.
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Pick your protein powder – we recommend either a Whey Protein or Vegan Protein (Plant Based Protein) to use after your workout and/or in smoothies for a meal or snack
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Pick your Amino Acids – use a high quality, great tasting Amino Acids product to sip on throughout the day
- Pick your Greens Powder - use a high quality, great tasting superfood greens powder. You will want to see that the greens blend is sourced from organic ingredients, and that it is using branded ingredients with scientific evidence to back up the claims.
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Pick your Preworkout – use a safe, effective preworkout that gets you the right amount of boost and performance without the negative side effects.
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