Have little money, want some honesty and truth...

[Briguy]

Hi there, and thanks for reading.

I workout regularly, try to eat good (ugh), and also get some cardio in there for burning some fatties away (again, ugh).

I am also studying to be an A.C.E. certified trainer, as I enjoy the workout environment and helping people that want to be helped.

I have little extra money for supplements and have read hundreds of threads, hundreds of ads, and of course, hundreds of articles from everyone who seems to be an expert, all with different opinions on what works.

How about amateur bodybuilders out there?
What has been working good for you and has been money well spent?
I thought about creatine, but it adds water retention for a more bloaty, albeit bigger look, and can cause gastro problems. Thought about ZMA to help work at night with being anti-catabolic, but many say it does nothing.
I know that a decent whey powder helps and I take Optimum Nutrition's because of the lower cost.

ANY help and replies would be greatly appreciated. I know most of you out there have gone through this and really want people to know the truth.

Thanks again......Brian.

 

[22"bi's]

Briguy,

The only thing u need to do is clean up your diet, and eat lots of good foods....like 5-6 small meals a day...

The only supp. u need is protein powder for ur post workout shake, and even that isn't mandatory, u could take a chicken breast w/ u and eat immediately after workout....

u should really read the diet and nutrition forms on this site....Jodi has some pretty good cutting and bulking diets in her sticky post.

 

[Flex]

what are you asking? it seems to me like you want to know what good supps there are?

NOt to bust your balls, but i hope your not askin how to build muscle.

again, i can't really distinguish what you're asking.......but i guess the answer to your question is hard work, diet (discipline, clean food, enough protein) and sleep. And does creatine work....yes.

 

[Monolith]

Goals, budget, and current problems you think supplementation will help with would help us give you advice.

 

[MarcusMaximus]

you dont' need anything. the 10 pound bag of ON whey is good enough. cut the serving size in half.

 

[nikegurl]

and a good multi vitamin/mineral would be worth your time and $ in my opinion.

 

[MarcusMaximus]

oh yeah, and watch out for the shills and shameless hucksters who will run to this thread to get you to try the newest bestest supplement from the fine people at ThyroMax or whatever company du jour.

 

[MarcusMaximus]

Originally posted by nikegurl
and a good multi vitamin/mineral would be worth your time and $ in my opinion.

good point Nike gurl!!

A month's supply of vitamins should only set you back 5 bucks. take one every other day. unless you eat nothing but bugs, you should be getting enough vits in your food. the mineral thing is diff ; especially if you drink lots of coffee or caffeinated products. yet evrey other day is fine.

unless you are stranded on a deserted island or been living on a boat for 6 months with no lemons/limes- the water soluble vits can wait a day. it ain't like you aren't getting them in between days anyway!

 

[Briguy]

Thanks everyone for responding! )
I been a little scared to take creatine, as with all the negative things I hear, such as stomach distress and such (hate having stomach aches and sick feelings...kinda have sensitive stomach).
My goals are to get some definition and obviously more muscle to every body part. Maybe creatine is worth trying for a month or so?
How quickly can one see the results of creatine, using let's say 5g a day, with no loading phase?
And...are all creatines equal? Always see this or that one only really contains 1%, the rest is poop!
How about the NOW brand, as it is readily available in stores around here (ohio), and is low cost?
Thanks again....Brian

 

[Monolith]

Originally posted by Briguy
Thanks everyone for responding! )
I been a little scared to take creatine, as with all the negative things I hear, such as stomach distress and such (hate having stomach aches and sick feelings...kinda have sensitive stomach).
My goals are to get some definition and obviously more muscle to every body part. Maybe creatine is worth trying for a month or so?
How quickly can one see the results of creatine, using let's say 5g a day, with no loading phase?
And...are all creatines equal? Always see this or that one only really contains 1%, the rest is poop!
How about the NOW brand, as it is readily available in stores around here (ohio), and is low cost?
Thanks again....Brian

Assuming your diet is in order (and thats a pretty big assumption)... creatine, whey, a multivitamin, and fish oil would probably be the best things you could take.

Creatine is cheap as dirt... you can get 2 kilo's, enough to last you 6 months @ 10g/day, for $38 (www.1fast400). If you are going to take it, dont half ass it. Take the recommended amount. As long as you're taking in plenty of water, you won't have any problems with it (also assuming you have no current kidney problems, as the creatine could potentially aggravate that).

The multivitamin is rather essential. Stuff you need that you aren't getting from your diet. Like others said, it's also really cheap. Just make sure you get one without iron.

Whey is self explanatory, and you already take it. Easy/convenient source of protein. 1fast has cheap 10lb bags, but blackstarlabs also has some very cheap 10lb bags.

Fish oil... i could go on forever. It's an EFA that has effects ranging from fat loss to an antidepressent. Do a search in this forum for a more in depth answer.

 

[Dale Mabry]

I would just like to point out that as long as you are eating well, you don't NEED a multi-vitamin. What is your monthly supplement budget?

 

[Briguy]

Don't really have a monthly budget per say...
Can buy when have any extra money...ugh...(
Right now...take the protein powder, multi vitamin, and flax oil capsules. Is the flax caps ok, or get another fish oil cap instead?

Anyone take any of the 'NOW' brand supplements though?

 

[Monolith]

Originally posted by Briguy
Is the flax caps ok, or get another fish oil cap instead?

Read this and make up your own mind:

http://www.1fast400.com/index.php?articleID=38&

 

[nas]

I went through a similar problem. Lots of people spend 250+ / month on supplements and that just isn't an option for me. Nor is it something I consider valuable. After a lot of research and personal testing this is what it comes down to in order of importance:

1) Whey protein - $20-25 / 5 lbs, lasts months
2) Daily multivitamin - generic brand from walmart is just fine, I like to get one with 100-300% of everything rather than the ones with 6500%

Thats it. Lots of water. If you hit a plateau in your lifts, creatine is the cheapest way to go to bust through. I do not think you need creatine until you start noticing significant slowing of progress. Fish oils are also pretty cheap and something I added in although only at 1 cap / day.

You can spend thousands / year on crap. The best formula is whey + multivitamin + HARD WORK. Eat chicken every chance you get.

 

[brodus]

Everyone here is right, Whey Protein, Multi Vitamin, Flax Oil (or fish oil if you prefer), lots of water. And then good protein and carb choices in yoour diet.

Wait on creatine till you hit a plateau. If you do everything at once and feel sick, you won't know which to reduce/quit. If you do creatine and have stomach issues (I have this problem a lot with creatine) use smaller doses.

 

[plouffe]

1. Multivitamin
2. Vitamin C
3. Vitamin E
4. Fish Oil
5. Glutamine
6. Whey Protien
7. Creatine
8. ZMA
9. B-Complex
10. Anti-Oxidants ( w/ Milk Thistle and NAC )

Here's a basic list of all the stuff that would be worth taking. Everything on this list can be taking at once, and a majority of it is apart of my supplement regimen. All this stuff is also pretty easy on the wallet. Goodluck man.

 

[Flex]

Originally posted by nas
1) Whey protein - $20-25 / 5 lbs, lasts months
2) Daily multivitamin - generic brand from walmart is just fine

1 5lb tub last months??? lasts me 2 weeks tops.

course you can throw in all kinds of stuff like glutamine, flax oil, etc. etc. etc., but alls you really NEED is whey ( to increase protein intake), a multivitamin (to assure you get everything you need), and creatine (which will help your gains).

other than that, EAT TRAIN SLEEP and VOILA