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Bodybuilding Supplements: Do They Really Work? | Ask The Fitness Nerd

December 6, 2008 on 8:01 am | By Matt | In Ask The Fitness Nerd, Supplements | 10 Comments

Do bodybuilding supplements really work, or are they just a waste of good money? The Fitness Nerd dissects body building supplements.

Dear Fitness Nerd,

I have a question: 

I’m 41 years old, and workout 5 days a week. I use a lot of bodybuilding supplements and spend a lot of money on them.

Unfortunately, I’m not gaining muscle like I want.

Currently, I take Masstech protein 2x a day. But I’ve also tried  Anabolic Pump, NoXplode, SuperPump 250, Universal Animal Stak, Size One, and Vitrix. But I don’t see many results.  Am I  doing something wrong? Can you help me on it? Thanks — Gleidson

Thanks for the question Gleidson.

I’m afraid that what you just discovered is probably discovered every day by countless bodybuilders and fitness buffs who are hoping to get an edge at the gym by downing expensive shakes, powders and pills.

Just browse the myriad of bodybuilding supplement discussion boards out there and you’ll find plenty of mixed opinions on whether supplements actually result in better performance at the gym. Some people swear by them, others shrug their shoulders and say all supplements give you is really expensive pee.

it’s often hard to sort out what really works, versus how many of the reported results are just the product of the placebo effect.   

While there are some supplements out that may be effective for helping more highly-conditioned trainees overcome plateaus, unfortunately, the majority of bodybuilding supplements and sports supplements marketed in fitness and bodybuilding magazines (and increasingly, online) are more sizzle than substance.

Bodybuilding Supplements: Big Demand, Big Promises … and Big Money

The first thing to realize is that bodybuilding supplements are a huge business.  

In 2007, sales of sports, diet and bodybuilding supplements — as well as energy/sports drinks and specialty diet foods —  topped $19.6 billion. That’s a lot of dough. So there is plenty of demand out there and lots of money to be had. With all that blood in the water, it’s bound to attract sharks, unfortunately.

The second thing to understand is that supplement manufacturers have figured out what nearly every other good direct marketer has discovered: That people want quick fixes. And they are capitalizing on that.

The idea that you can down a shaker of “clinically-formulated” protein powder, or the latest NOS booster and suddenly build that beach body or killer physique is very attractive. I mean, if it really worked, who wouldn’t do it?

And supplement manufacturers pull out all of the stops and use every clever trick in the book to make you really believe that they’ve cracked the code to “insane anabolic pumps” — whatever the hell that actually means.

Anatomy of a Bodybuilding Supplement Ad

There is a pretty standard formula to marketing bodybuilding and fitness supplements, whether those supplements promise to help you burn fat and get “ripped” or help you add pounds of lean mass fast.

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Free Printable Workout Log | Exercise & Training Logs

June 28, 2008 on 12:12 pm | By Matt | In Workout, Exercise and Training Logs | 24 Comments

Use This Free Printable Workout Log To Keep Track of Your Exercise and Fitness Training & Progress in the Gym

Keeping a regular workout log or exercise log sheet is one of the best ways to make sure that you are constantly making progress toward your fitness and exercise goals in the gym.

Regardless of your goals or fitness experience, recording your workouts, cardio, and weight training in a daily exercise log can help you make sure that you are always moving forward in beating your last workout, as well as let you identify possible sticking points in your training before you hit a wall or plateau.

As I’ve mentioned before in previous articles, one of the seven habits of highly fit people is that they keep a log of their workouts and exercise to not only make sure they are always progressing, but also to hold themselves accountable. Writing down your daily exercise in a log makes you mindful of what you are doing and allows you to review your progress after each workout or training session. It also let’s you build on each subsequent workout, so that you are always pushing yourself a little harder each time you hit the gym.

Why I Created This Free Workout Log

There are a number of free printable workout and exercise logs available on the Internet, as well as some excellent exercise logs that can be purchased at your local bookstore. However, after taking a look at the dozens of free blank exercise log sheets available on the web, I generally found that they didn’t treat exercise holistically enough.

Most of the workout logs used the generic Exercise/Weight/Reps/Sets formatting, and didn’t take into account other key factors that you need to keep track of, including rest periods, pre-and-post workout nutrition, training and fitness goals, sleep, duration of exercise and mind-body factors. All of these variables can impact your training performance and progress, regardless of whether you are a beginner or an advanced bodybuilder.

I also found that the formatting and visual presentation of most free printable workout logs left something to be desired. Having kept regular exercise logs for nearly five years, I know first hand the usability factors that can impact how easy it is for a person to consistently and effectively keep an exercise or workout log in a busy gym environment. 

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