Few days back I was discussing with a teenager about fitness & he told me he is in cutting mode. He was creating a calorie deficit & burning body fat to meet his renewed body building goal. Later on, he planned to alternate cutting with bulking to build muscle mass supported by over the counter supplements such as protein powder & creatine. Although whatever he was doing was legal, but it was far from being safe.
Use of supplements widespread & every third person is consuming these ill fated supplements to meet their aesthetic goals (we discussed this in our previous blog). There is no evidence it is better than meeting daily dietary protein requirements from natural food. Some protein supplements provide extra calories. We have discussed earlier that protein powder contains lead, arsenal, mercury, and cadmium which is toxic for our health.
Another popular supplement is Creatine which boosts short term performance & increases muscle mass by increasing water uptake into muscles. Actually, you get bigger muscles since you are getting water into muscles. Creatine can cause stomach pain, nausea, diarrhea, and muscle cramping. Since it causes muscles to draw water from the rest of your body, make sure that you drink extra water to make up for this.
Many supplements contain harmful substances & have been banned. A lot of pre-workout, weight loss supplements & muscle building blends contain experimental stimulants which have artificial impact on your bodybuilding goals. The side effects are much more serious. According to a study published last year, body building supplements contain nearly 3 times more likely than vitamins to cause several medical events which includes emergency room visits, hospitalizations and death.
Instead of supplements, fitness folks specifically teens should focus on basics-they should prioritize nutrition, training & sleep. A former weightlifter, Dr.Hatfield recommends a good resistance strength & a solid resistance & strength training for a great build. Just by going to gym & consuming supplements are not going to make you stronger.
Equally important is recovery including adequate sleep. You should get at least 8 hours of sleep. Your muscles are constantly breaking down and rebuilding to be better and bigger and stronger. And especially when it comes to muscle mass and protein synthesis, night sleep is an important aspect for overall growth. During the recovery period, fitness folks(specifically teenagers) should consume 15 to 25 grams of protein every couple of hours & before bed. This is because- there is alignment between working out and protein ingestion that drives synthesis of new muscle.
