What supplements am I missing to gain big?

**fastclick** · 06-20-2011, 05:30 PM

Age: 23
Height: 6'0"
Body Fat: 15%
Weight: 168 lbs

Currently I bought a lot of supplements... and I just want to gain as much as possible. No steroids ... yet. Here is what I am currently doing, and always willing to experiment.

Beta Alanine
Citrulline Malate
Ginseng
Rhodiola
Cordyceps
Creatine Monohydrate + Creatine Magnesium Chelate
Whey Protein
BCAA with Glutamine
L-Taurine
L-Carnitine L-Tartrate
Eat a lot

Anything else?

**GunSlingR** · 06-20-2011, 07:47 PM

Dont focus so much on supplements, Get your training and diet right and then throw in supplements as exactly what they are supplements. Your main nutrition is food, you should get most of what you need from food sources. Ive made quite the body transformation in only 6 months with only two things on your list. Protein and branch chains which are used mainly for recovery 5 servings powder in gallon of water drank a day. So I get the bcaa and my water intake in.
Without a great diet and training regimine all these supplements imo are a waste of money.

**Turkish Juicer** · 06-21-2011, 01:11 AM

Do not waste your money on bunch of supplements, you will otherwise be disappointed in terms of gains. You need to be using 5-6 solid supplements at the most. In terms of real food, your options are that you either meet your daily macros or eat above maintenance, which completely depends on metabolic type, workout regimen and goals.

Here is a list of what I think to be the most optimal list of nutritional supplementation for a BB:

- Whey Protein (Pre and/or Post Workout)

- Casein Protein (Before Bed)

- Creatine Monohydrate (5gr Post Workout)

- BCAA (5-10gr Pre and/or Post Workout, with Whey shake)

- A Sports Multivitamin with meals (I use GNC Mega Men Sports, 2 tabs a day)

- Fish Oils with meals.

**PurpleOnes** · 06-21-2011, 04:50 AM

I would suggest whey protein, multivitamin supplement, omega-3 capsules, glutamine , night time protein , like casein and creatine pre workout. I myself use like 5 of those. Mianly concentrate on diet and training, like there was earlier said.

**bjo2925** · 06-21-2011, 01:30 PM

To get big, eat big!!! As simple as that...

Watch out for macros, of course. Eat at least 250 or 300 calories more than you are eating now, for starters...

And train hard in order to gain as little fat as possible. Train HARD!!

**xnotoriousx** · 06-21-2011, 07:47 PM

Protein and creatine and a multi vitamin is all you need. Maybe a N.O product if you need the boost pre workout. Save your money on the rest. My 0.02

**ray0414** · 06-21-2011, 11:41 PM

dont waste money on protein powder, it does NOTHING. focus on food, daily you should be eating tons of carbs, along with chicken breast, tuna, and 15-20 egg whites. every single day.

**Noles12** · 06-21-2011, 11:46 PM

Originally Posted by ray0414

dont waste money on protein powder, it does NOTHING. focus on food, daily you should be eating tons of carbs, along with chicken breast, tuna, and 15-20 egg whites. every single day.

Not quite right. I will say that most of your protein should come from food but shakes are very beneficial too. I have a shake post workout and in tight situations

To the OP the only supplments i use are whey, BCAA's, fish oils, and occasionally creatine. Food is the best supplement

**bjpennnn** · 06-22-2011, 11:14 AM

Originally Posted by Noles12

Not quite right. I will say that most of your protein should come from food but shakes are very beneficial too. I have a shake post workout and in tight situations

To the OP the only supplments i use are whey, BCAA's, fish oils, and occasionally creatine. Food is the best supplement

xxxxxxx2

**Corpsman** · 06-22-2011, 05:43 PM

I have cut way down on my amount and type of food. My bf% was way too high when I just started out. I have lost a lot of bf and have gone from 178 to 163. I want to gain size but since I still don't see my abs I am afraid to add too much food. So should I just keep doing what I am doing until my bf gets down to under 15%? I am not trying to hijack this thread but it deals with my questions.

**Noles12** · 06-22-2011, 06:19 PM

Originally Posted by Corpsman

I have cut way down on my amount and type of food. My bf% was way too high when I just started out. I have lost a lot of bf and have gone from 178 to 163. I want to gain size but since I still don't see my abs I am afraid to add too much food. So should I just keep doing what I am doing until my bf gets down to under 15%? I am not trying to hijack this thread but it deals with my questions.

Its not that you need to add food per se. You just need to be getting the proper food

**Corpsman** · 06-27-2011, 01:26 AM

I eat whole grain oatmeal in the morning with two HB eggs. At noon I eat 6 oz chicken breast or something similar. 3 hours after that I eat two more HB eggs. Then I come home and workout. Drink my BCAA/waxy maize/L-Glutamine pre workout, the 60g of protein shake post workout. For dinner I have lean meats, broccoli, and some type of starch like whole wheat pasta, plus a salad.

**MastaMan** · 06-27-2011, 01:40 AM

the general consensus to save your money is right. However, having said this, HMB has been showing some positive results.

**Swifto** · 06-28-2011, 04:35 PM

Originally Posted by Turkish Juicer

Do not waste your money on bunch of supplements, you will otherwise be disappointed in terms of gains. You need to be using 5-6 solid supplements at the most. In terms of real food, your options are that you either meet your daily macros or eat above maintenance, which completely depends on metabolic type, workout regimen and goals.

Here is a list of what I think to be the most optimal list of nutritional supplementation for a BB:

- Whey Protein (Pre and/or Post Workout)

- Casein Protein (Before Bed)

- Creatine Monohydrate (5gr Post Workout)

- BCAA (5-10gr Pre and/or Post Workout, with Whey shake)

- A Sports Multivitamin with meals (I use GNC Mega Men Sports, 2 tabs a day)

- Fish Oils with meals.

No benifit to putting BCAA+Whey.

Whey IS BCAA's.

**Far from massive** · 06-28-2011, 07:30 PM

The only supps I always use are whey/creatine/glutamine post workout (this is the only time supplimental food is needed IMHO. As you really can benefit from the rapid absorption of whey right after a workout also when using slin PWO I add 100gs of maltodextrin to my 80gms of whey) and the glutamine is not really needed...just happened to have some.

I also feel fish oil as well as casein has good benefits, I just happen to be out of both right now.

Anyway the only other thing I disagree with is the idea of taking multivitamins frequently, most vitamins are stored in the fat tissues and really do not need to be taken daily and when taken more than once per day can quickly build up to toxic levels. B vitamins on the other hand are water soluable and pass quickly from the body so they need to be taken at least daily (either from natural sources or as a supplement) because of the way they are stored excesses can easily be passed by the body so there is not much danger in taking them in reasonable doses 2 times a day.

**Turkish Juicer** · 06-28-2011, 11:52 PM

Originally Posted by Swifto

No benifit to putting BCAA+Whey.

Whey IS BCAA's.

There is in fact a benefit to adding extra BCAA to your Whey, unless the subjected Whey here is already loaded with BCAA, which is not the case with most Whey products in the market, however.

**Turkish Juicer** · 06-29-2011, 12:30 AM

Originally Posted by Far from massive

The only supps I always use are whey/creatine/glutamine post workout (this is the only time supplimental food is needed IMHO. Studies show that pre workout nutritional supplementation is significantly more beneficial than post workout nutritional supplementation. As you really can benefit from the rapid absorption of whey right after a workout also when using slin PWO I add 100gs of maltodextrin to my 80gms of whey) and the glutamine is not really needed...just happened to have some. I would never dump 100gr of simple sugars in my body at one sitting, nor would I ever advice anyone to do so regardless of body weight.

Anyway the only other thing I disagree with is the idea of taking multivitamins frequently, most vitamins are stored in the fat tissues and really do not need to be taken daily and when taken more than once per day can quickly build up to toxic levels. Fat-soluble vitamins (vitamins A, D, E and K) dissolve in fat before they are absorbed in the blood stream to carry out their functions. Excesses of these vitamins are stored in the liver. B vitamins on the other hand are water soluable and pass quickly from the body so they need to be taken at least daily (either from natural sources or as a supplement) because of the way they are stored excesses can easily be passed by the body so there is not much danger in taking them in reasonable doses 2 times a day. Same principle applies to other water soluble vitamins such as Vitamin C.

Responses in bold.

**Far from massive** · 06-29-2011, 06:35 PM

I would never dump 100gr of simple sugars in my body at one sitting, nor would I ever advice anyone to do so regardless of body weight.

Thats fine but I would suggest that you recommend that you or anyone you advise stay clear of slin because if you take 20 IU's as I do and don't ingest a lot of simple sugars you might find yourself in a bad situation.

As far as the vitamins go that is exactly the problem if you take large excesses then they overload the liver.

**Swifto** · 07-04-2011, 11:39 AM

Originally Posted by Turkish Juicer;5681***

There is in fact a benefit to adding extra BCAA to your Whey, unless the subjected Whey here is already loaded with BCAA, which is not the case with most Whey products in the market, however.

Why is there benefit to adding BCAA's to Whey which is already loaded in BCAA's anyhow? Even poor quality Whey products, like Concentrate, contain high emounts of BCAA's.

Whey isolate has a great deal of BCAA in it as it is.