Nutritional supplements are a massive scam?
NA1979
Posts: 223 Member
I'm starting to read articles now that state most of these bodybuilding, fat loss supplements are a scam mostly. Only creatine is proven to work, (not sure how significantly) and protein, which is just food, so does what food does. Apparently the supplement industry has for years dictated popular,long held opinions on how to eat healthy, for example 6 small meals a day to "keep the metabolism going" but really they know it's hard to eat so much so you can buy and use more of their protein shakes as an alternative, even the 2grams of protein per pound of body weight , again to sell more of their product to you,it's just amazing how doctors and other health professionals also gave this advice.
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Yeah protein is more just convenient, it's just protein in a convenient form, and as such it's my most important sup. Creatine, I don't know if it's just over rated. But the rest is just balls, I bought beta alanine and citrulline the other day to make my own pre work out along with caffeine, as the normal ones are supposed to be under dosed, even with proper dose did bugger all for me.save my money from now on I think.0
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Absolutely.
Food is the optimum source.
I agree that for an individual's specific goals protein power is beneficial.
Some enjoy pre-workout supplements as well, but again, goal specific.
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Anything that promotes what exercise does without actually doing the exercise-scam.
Anything that helps you create a calorie deficit- ie meal replacement shakes- is nothing more than a waste of money- providing the same results eating FOOD at a calorie deficit will. However many choose these due to time. Fine, but the weight loss is not from the shake but the deficit itself.
Appetite suppressants may help but it teaches the person nothing on how to control their portions and timing, etc. Unless they take them for life when they stop they probably will still not know moderation and portion control.
A balanced diet and a good multi-vitamin is plenty for most
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Absolutely @MommyMeggo, I agree with the meal replacement stuff, it's just when they promise miracles, advertised with a steroid enhanced model, yeah protein definitely useful, it's just the manufacturer sells it though you'd get the results of steroids if you take 5 scoops a day, and naive people just fall for it (such as I,at one time,as early as last week lol)0
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Absolutely @MommyMeggo, I agree with the meal replacement stuff, it's just when they promise miracles, advertised with a steroid enhanced model, yeah protein definitely useful, it's just the manufacturer sells it though you'd get the results of steroids if you take 5 scoops a day, and naive people just fall for it (such as I,at one time,as early as last week lol)
I hear you!
Education and Trial and error.
Once people see the light though- it clicks.0 -
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Basically I didn't feel any different from when I exercised without it, just yesterday. No increased focus,no increased stamina etc.if you check examine.com or Web md,the research does suggest if these are effective, it's insignificant to make a difference, anyway I'm gonna get through my existing packets,and just maybe use protein from now on. What do you think, have they worked for you @kwtilbury?0
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I tend to agree.
Sometimes I think about what athletes did back in their day. Did Jesse Owens use BCAAs during training? Did Rod Laver take a preworkout before a match? What did bodybuilders with statuesque physiques take before steroids came out? Heck, with steroids they don't need to shop at GNC. All of this racks my brain and makes me question if a more holistic approach to nutrition, as it relates to fitness, will end up holding me back in the long run.
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Either way, it's false. No need to eat 6 times a day if it doesn't work for you. Meal timing is largely irrelevant to weight loss and body composition other than the really lean looking to get a touch leaner. And even then, I'm not 100% convinced.0 -
I think it's a load of crap.
I use protein powder during the summer in smoothies as I typically eat eggs and ham and cheese in the winter.
The rest eh.0 -
Either way, it's false. No need to eat 6 times a day if it doesn't work for you. Meal timing is largely irrelevant to weight loss and body composition other than the really lean looking to get a touch leaner. And even then, I'm not 100% convinced.
Yeah read that too, the idea is when you tell someone to eat 6 small high protein meals a day, it's hard for most people to prepare arange and afford this, not to mention just finding time in your day to eat that many times, ideal 'solution' protein powder! You eat more you buy more. Clever though.0 -
ClubSilencio wrote: »I tend to agree.
Sometimes I think about what athletes did back in their day. Did Jesse Owens use BCAAs during training? Did Rod Laver take a preworkout before a match? What did bodybuilders with statuesque physiques take before steroids came out? Heck, with steroids they don't need to shop at GNC. All of this racks my brain and makes me question if a more holistic approach to nutrition, as it relates to fitness, will end up holding me back in the long run.
Absolutely!0 -
You pick up any 'fitness magazine' you see huge steroid guys sipping on some whey protein, implying he got so big drinking some of this,if your an impressionable youngster or a naeive person, you'd go and buy it for the wrong reason, I.e to get big like the poster guy, rather that to supplement your protein needs.0
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It's marketing. Every product on the planet uses it in one form or another.0
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Either way, it's false. No need to eat 6 times a day if it doesn't work for you. Meal timing is largely irrelevant to weight loss and body composition other than the really lean looking to get a touch leaner. And even then, I'm not 100% convinced.
Well it works for me. Not only do I get to relax some while I eat something tasty throughout the day, but it helps curb my appetite by eating more constantly than waiting 5 hours for a large meal. Plus I eat easy foods. Banana and shake for breakfast. Greek yogurt for brunch. Salad with chicken and eggs for lunch. Some type of snack (maybe tuna or something) later on before dinner. Something larger for dinner. Protein shake later or peanut butter later on before bed if I'm hungry. All really easy. No prepping needed. Boring? Probably, but routine is key to me so I'm totally used to it.0 -
Basically I didn't feel any different from when I exercised without it, just yesterday. No increased focus,no increased stamina etc.if you check examine.com or Web md,the research does suggest if these are effective, it's insignificant to make a difference, anyway I'm gonna get through my existing packets,and just maybe use protein from now on. What do you think, have they worked for you @kwtilbury?
Neither of the supplements you mentioned are intended to have an impact on focus or an immediate impact on stamina. Beta-alanine is intended to support lactic acid buffering, which increases the capacity of your muscles to do work. However, it requires regular doses to build up in your system. Citrulline increases nitric oxide synthesis (the pump) and reduces fatigue.
These two, along with creatine, are reasonably well researched. I have noticed a difference when taking them at recommended doses, both in terms of vascularity and ability to continue lifting toward the end of my workout.0 -
MommyMeggo wrote: »Absolutely.
Food is the optimum source.
I agree that for an individual's specific goals protein power is beneficial.
Some enjoy pre-workout supplements as well, but again, goal specific.
.
Anything that promotes what exercise does without actually doing the exercise-scam.
Anything that helps you create a calorie deficit- ie meal replacement shakes- is nothing more than a waste of money- providing the same results eating FOOD at a calorie deficit will. However many choose these due to time. Fine, but the weight loss is not from the shake but the deficit itself.
Appetite suppressants may help but it teaches the person nothing on how to control their portions and timing, etc. Unless they take them for life when they stop they probably will still not know moderation and portion control.
A balanced diet and a good multi-vitamin is plenty for most
TY, THAT was very well said. It summed up my thoughts on diet and fitness industry & drug scams exactly! Although I do use whey supp since I eat so little meat type proteins (and never did since age 3 ), so I need the high quality whey supp most days just for hitting macros.0 -
To be honest with you, I've taken them before on a regular basis, when I came off it really didn't make a difference, for me anyway, according to research it lets you may be push out an extra rep or 2, maybe that makes a difference to some people, but I think that benefit is insignificant on the grand scale of things, especially now some research is emerging suggesting that working to failure every work out isn't as beneficial as once thought.0
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To be honest with you, I've taken them before on a regular basis, when I came off it really didn't make a difference, for me anyway, according to research it lets you may be push out an extra rep or 2, maybe that makes a difference to some people, but I think that benefit is insignificant on the grand scale of things, especially now some research is emerging suggesting that working to failure every work out isn't as beneficial as once thought.
"Pushing out an extra rep or 2" is not the same thing as "working to failure". Pushing out an extra rep or 2 is just means your failure is pushed back a couple reps which allows for more volume. More volume. More gains.
I definitely feel like Creatine Monohydrate has helped me. Other than that, I take BCAAs when on a cut intra-workout, whey of needed to hit protein goals, fish oil, and a standard multi vitamin.0 -
Yeah, I really am starting to hope that's the case. Just this month I decided to cancel all my supplements except for the occasional protein powder and BCAAs. They're very expensive and I want to see if I can still reach my goals without them. It's like why would I throw money away on something if I can still reach my goals without them and keep all of that money in my pocket? I know there are plenty of women out there that don't use a ton of extra supplements and still reach their goals. So anyway, just canceled them last week. We'll see how things go as time goes on.
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There was a documentary here in the UK on the BBC about this supplement addict, he was in really good shape but used a lot of supps, from BCAAs to pre workout and everything in between, As an experiment they removed his supps and I think they told him to eat sensible, a month later, he didn't lose any muscle, lost body fat and got stronger, I seem to rmbr.0
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Anyway, in terms of actual, measurable, and significant results, according to sites like examine and Web md, it's only creatine that is supposed to work in terms of muscle building. Everything else,if it does work there are caveats and the results are so insignificant it's not worth it according to them. But anecdotal evidence suggests otherwise.0
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Why eat nutritious, disease preventing, fiber filled, phytonutrient dense legumes and leafy vegetables when you could drink 60g of splenda flavored whey protein! Have to make those gainz #nocarb #nobelly0
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Or meat, don't forget meat.0
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Since the entire fitness market is well over $100 Billion a year - if everything worked as advertised, we would all be at our proper weights, fit, and happy. They can't keep their promises or they don't have a business.0
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I've worked in one of the top grossing GNC locations for the past 4 yrs and I can tell u that 90% of claims on supplements labels are straight BS. Sure a few things are true pre workouts and fat burners will give you energy and increase metabolism but so would a cup of coffee/espresso, there's no magic behind them. Creatine definitely works, at least creatine monohydrate, nowadays there are about ten other forms of creatine which I'm pretty sure are crap. And then there's protein powders which are helpful if you just can't manage to get enough protein in your diet, but here too there is no magic in simply taking protein that will make you "gain up to 7lbs of lean muscle in 1 month" as the labels claim. There are also tons of ingredients that have been clinically studied to work or be somewhat helpful but most products that contain these ingredients don't contain enough of them to be effective, just enough for the manufacturer to say it's in there and cite the clinical study it was in...
Just keep it simple. Eat clean. Train hard. Get enough sleep. Have fun0 -
I've worked in one of the top grossing GNC locations for the past 4 yrs and I can tell u that 90% of claims on supplements labels are straight BS. Sure a few things are true pre workouts and fat burners will give you energy and increase metabolism but so would a cup of coffee/espresso, there's no magic behind them. Creatine definitely works, at least creatine monohydrate, nowadays there are about ten other forms of creatine which I'm pretty sure are crap. And then there's protein powders which are helpful if you just can't manage to get enough protein in your diet, but here too there is no magic in simply taking protein that will make you "gain up to 7lbs of lean muscle in 1 month" as the labels claim. There are also tons of ingredients that have been clinically studied to work or be somewhat helpful but most products that contain these ingredients don't contain enough of them to be effective, just enough for the manufacturer to say it's in there and cite the clinical study it was in...
Just keep it simple. Eat clean. Train hard. Get enough sleep. Have fun
Apparently nowadays you don't even have to eat clean,as long as it fits your macros.0 -
My trainer has recommend I start using evolve why protein , for post work out . How is this going to help me ?
Thoughts ?0 -
For the many who have fully functioning digestive and endocrine systems with no food allergies or sensitivities additional vitamins, mineral and other supplements are probably of little importance because this person utilises what is needed from their existing diet. For those who have dietary restrictions or are stricken by ill health, possibly of an autoimmune origin which restricts one's ability to take up nutrients from ones foods then good quality supliments could make all the difference.
The problem is then to find a product or products which are not full of questionable fillers, in a form which survives digestion to be absorbed and are of medical grade. Many of the over the counter products do not fulfil these requirements. In general the medical profession do not have the time or inclination perhaps experience to put good nutritional advice and supliments in place for those who would really benefit from them.0 -
I've worked in one of the top grossing GNC locations for the past 4 yrs and I can tell u that 90% of claims on supplements labels are straight BS. Sure a few things are true pre workouts and fat burners will give you energy and increase metabolism but so would a cup of coffee/espresso, there's no magic behind them. Creatine definitely works, at least creatine monohydrate, nowadays there are about ten other forms of creatine which I'm pretty sure are crap. And then there's protein powders which are helpful if you just can't manage to get enough protein in your diet, but here too there is no magic in simply taking protein that will make you "gain up to 7lbs of lean muscle in 1 month" as the labels claim. There are also tons of ingredients that have been clinically studied to work or be somewhat helpful but most products that contain these ingredients don't contain enough of them to be effective, just enough for the manufacturer to say it's in there and cite the clinical study it was in...
Just keep it simple. Eat clean. Train hard. Get enough sleep. Have fun
Apparently nowadays you don't even have to eat clean,as long as it fits your macros.
You never had to, ain't that a twist.0
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