Wednesday, February 4, 2009

Do you really have to buy all those supplements to grow muscle?

By Jon Cardozo

Often one of the first things a person thinks about when initiating a bodybuilding program is buying supplements. Many people begin to consider buying a host of supplements before they have even settled on their exact weight training program or a diet plan.

This may be due to an unfortunate tendency in North American society to look for shortcuts and quick fixes in accomplishing any new goal, or it may in part be due to the daily bombardment of advertisements that we face on TV, radio, and yes, even the Internet. These ads often promise incredible results in improving our physique in various ways without any discipline or effort needed on our part. Could this possibly be a healthy way to achieve weight gain or any other important goal for that matter?

I would even go as far as say that no supplements are necessary to accomplish your goals. Now that's a pretty bold statement!

When I say that supplements are not necessary for your weight training program, I'm not talking about a multivitamin or anything like that. I think it's smart to take basic nutrients on a daily basis, but some supplements are definitely over the top. When it comes to building muscle, most supplements are all about the marketing and not about results.

We won't even talk about steroids because most people know how harmful they can be. Even so, many people spend much of their hard earned money on steroid alternatives in the hopes that they will have quick and easy muscle growth.

The bottom line is that everyone can achieve massive muscle growth by adhering to the basic principles of progressive resistance training and increasing caloric intake. In other words, lift more, and eat more. Repeat until you achieve the desired results.

You don't need to consider questionable steroid alternatives, or even more reliable substances such as creatine, until you have practiced basic principles and achieved as much success as you can. You can then consider something like creatine to give you an extra little boost for advanced progress.

Learning to rely on supplements first can put a heavy load on your bank account and ingrain some pretty unhealthy habits like choosing quick fixes instead of learning discipline and commitment. - 15438

About the Author: