Thursday Q and A: What Supplements Should I Take?

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Supplements are a big deal these days. Whether you’re looking for an extra edge on top of all the work you’ve put in, or looking for a short-cut, you’ll probably consider them at some point. Rockaholic Jake is in the first group, and hit me up for some advice. As usual, I cleaned up my response a bit, and turned it into a blog for #ThursdayQandA:

The supplement industry is raking in billions of dollars every year. It’s also entirely unregulated by any official governing body. I’m not saying all supplements are BS. It’s certainly tough to be an informed consumer, without experimenting for yourself… This experiment can be a deep and expensive rabbit hole. Consider yourself warned.

The “placebo effect” is a trip (check out the book “You Are The Placebo” for more on that) which further complicates things, as you can’t really be sure how much the supplements are legitimately helping and how much your brain is convincing you they’re helping because you spent $60 on 20 servings of pink lemonade muscle mass fat-blaster, or whatever.

If the placebo effect “works” for you, I say run with it for as long as your wallet allows! I’d also remind you that supplements are supposed to SUPPLEMENT a healthy lifestyle where you’re controlling your exercise and nutrition variables (see any of my past blogs for tips on those). If just you’re looking for a “shortcut”, save yourself the dollars!

So, assuming you’re consistently exercising; eating your fruits, veggies, and protein; and hydrating (which will likely give you all the benefits you’re looking for- I was tempted to be a smartass and just list those below), and STILL want to run the experiment to see which ones will be best for you, the following supplements are pretty well-backed by science:

For nutrition:

  • Omega 3’s: EPA & DHA (Fish Oil)
  • Probiotics
  • Greens Supplements
  • Protein Powder (Whey is the most popular but makes a lot of people bloated and/or gassy)

For exercise:

  • Essential Amino Acids
  • Creatine

For Happiness:

  • Live Music
  • Good Friends
  • Time in Nature

Look for brands tested by a third party like GMP, that have minimal (ideally, zero) additives. I can tell you from experience, the ones with minimal additives usually don’t taste that great, which is all the more reason to eat real foods that contain all these things! Walk into any supplement store and you’ll realize how expensive this experiment can get, which is why I don’t take any supplements outside of caffeine (which I just kinda assume everyone uses already!)

Down With The Fitness is here to give you simple, actionable tips that will improve your health. If you found this helpful, feel free to check out the archives for more. I'm pretty proud of the rabbit hole this thing has become.
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Have fun and do your best,

Matt Koch

Certified Personal Trainer and Nutrition Coach (American Council on Exercise; Precision Nutrition)