Supplements?

My income level is over half of his. we are low income. i have to work overtime to bring in spending money. so, telling him its fine if he buys it with his own money only works if he doesnt need any of mine to survive... like i said, if we buy this, then it cuts into our food money--so if it costs $30 then thats $30 less in food; this isnt a food supplement but a addition onto his food in take if i understand it correctly, so then now, we are looking at having to buy less food, and me eating less (when im eating less than 1500 calories a day as is even on days im lifting), sooo now i need to cut back my calories so he can have the supplement... the logic of that doesnt make sense to me. If the cost is $50, then thats an entire weeks grocery's--meanign no fresh vegetables that week, no restocking the eggs that week, no anything else, other than what we bought the week before. I could work more overtime to pay for his supplement, but what are the benefits of supplements?

supplements, meaning the pre-workout, post workout, rip fuel, animal cuts were ones he mentioned... i looked up animal cuts, a bunch of ingredients i didnt understand, including stuff that flushes your water out, when in my opinion you need water to lose; and reduces your appetite which again, messes with your metabolism--you stop taking them and your body doesnt know how to naturally curb its appetite, etc. also, if it suppresses his appetite--he's already not getting enough calories... how does this help him? My doctor told me that even vitamins were unnecessary with the way i eat because i get plenty from the foods im eating, and that taking vitamins were redundant and i end up paying for vitamins that im just pretty much pissing out because your body can only use so much. Animal Cuts is 21 days for $35.00 (sale price), then take 7 days off, and start over.

is there is better stuff he could be taking that doesnt cost as much? what should he be doing? im willing to compromise, but taking a completely unnatural thing with side affects and links to causing cancer isnt cool... he's 5'11", 270lbs, 35yrs old, ex-marine, wanting to train for a marathon, and be 180-200. When he works out, he spends 45 to 60 minutes on the elliptical, and then lifts weights for awhile trying to build muscle.

i know im sounding like a ***** the way i put it, but he said he wanted to eat well, he said he wanted to eat more natural, he said he was all for clean eating. this is not clean eating. we are doing this together. we agree on the foods that I cook, i make him very involved in the grocery store decisions. He wants to try cutting out most carbs like potatoes, whole wheat breads & pastas, rice, etc, even though these are natural things and I dont want to do that at all, but Im trying to do it because this is what he wants to try....

im sorry i didnt mention which supplements, i already said i didnt understand this subject. ive tried reading up but theres so many different things that im confused.

Like I said, i could work overtime and afford the supplement, but what are the benefits of supplements? why is a supplement better than eating real, vitamin rich food? is the only reason for something like a protein shake because of workout recovery, or are there additional benefits? why should i work overtime for it?--is it worth it? i want him to beable to achieve his goals, but does he need them?
I dont understand, i lost 115, i went from not making it up a flight of stairs without stopping, to running 6miles straight (wiht a major hip issue), i dropped 15 sizes, and had a dramatic difference in strength, endurance, stamina, and had so much energy i couldnt sit still...all without ever drinking a cup of coffee or tea, taking a vitamin, drinking a shake, or anything else, losing on average 10lbs a month ...if i had taken these types of things, how might the results been different?---and i know one persons way might not work for anothers, of course, but he tried my way last year and lost 40 lbs rather quickly, so it obviously works for him, but now he thinks he needs extra for some reason, which is fine, if i understood why people take them...... i tried asking him, and he didnt really give a good answer that helped me at all.
Yes, Im concerned about cancer...arent we all? what would be the point in eating natural and clean otherwise if it wasnt for health? what would be the point in reverting low fat/fat free/light/sugar free things for whole foods--cuz the higher calories for those items certainly arent helping me in my weight loss attempt... why should i stop that path of thinking? being concerned about your loved ones health i dont think is something anyone can just drop like its not important....

im just looking for some basic information....

the neighbor pays half the internet bill, so it only costs $20 a month. and need internet for a multitude of different things including work. A gym membership is kinda needed in oregon, you cant go outside and enjoy the sunshine 8months out of the year- $59 a month for two of us. Running on iced over sidewalks is dangerous esp without health coverage. and cant afford the gas to go drive somewhere for a hike, but I think fitness is important sso thats why i choose a gym membership over some extra, like cable, that we dont need. I work nights so on my days off im up during the nights when its often below freezing, dark, and dangerous in downtown with the homeless, etc to be outside alot. I use to do at home workouts before i moved, but the floors creak really bad here and you can hear everything your neighbor does, so if i can hear them walk across the room next to us, they can definitely hear me jumping about--i lost 115lbs with at home workouts, i know they can work wonders... ok so what, cut the gym membership and the internet, and then buy supplements with that money, so he can see better results with lifting? lifting what? couldnt afford the dumbbells...and wouldnt have room for them anyway in our ubber small apartment.

One week a month I buy the meat, canned items, and main staple items, and that weeks basic staples like the fresh veggies, etc $100-150 tops including the personal items like tp and dish soap, shampoo, whatever...the other 3 weeks of the month, its $50 a week; which would restock milk, bread, veggies, fruit, eggs...basic items.. i guess its actually $75 a week if evenly divided... we dont go out to eat at all, and i make a large dish once a week (like whole wheat turkey spaghetti with veggies or chicken/brown rice with veggies) to last us the entire weeks lunches. clean eating is so much cheaper, its another reason i do it. but i cant afford organic, so some people might not consider it real clean eating...but whatever, its close. i still have a few items in the house that arent clean eating that im trying to eat up so that they dont go to waste in the garbage (salad dressing and such). but now with him wanting to get rid of the pastas/potatoes/breads, im not sure how to cook, let alone cook without going over budget. I dont shop at Costco, I shop at Winco...they have bulk bins for nuts, seeds, rice, grains, dried fruit, etc, and things like whole chickens at $0.89 a pound, it will last us several meals if shredded down plus can save the juice for broth for other things like soup or rice water; other types of pork are closer to $2 a pound, ground turkey was 2.50 a pound the last time i went, cheese is under $5 a pound.. veggies & fruit are super cheap too (for the ones i buy anyway-not sure of the rest) its pretty easy to shop there on a budget, especially since there price tags list as per ounce cost as well, so you can compare everything ounce for ounce (come to find out im not saving money by buying a bigger package of something).

hes not looking for a magic pill, he goes to the gym 5-6 days a week and eats well--mostly clean--not like hes sitting at home taking some pill and waiting for results while watching tv. he's looking i think more for an additive to help him...yea i guess maybe a magic pill, to move things along faster?... i could go with protein shakes, fine, but animal cut & those type of supplements look dangerous. he hasnt asked for protein shakes. I can get soy protein isolate for $5.85 a pound (last i looked) in bulk bins at winco--thats $30 for a 5# amount, saving over $20 for a name brand whey powder (and i know the $50 is a sale price of the whey). I will talk to him more about this, if this is what people thinks he needs... i was just trying to get info.. is soy isolate ok, compared to whey? hes got a lil lactose issue and idk if whey would upset that being a milk by product... he can handle yogurt, cottage cheese, cheese ok, but milk seems to always give him an upset tummy.

JayDavila--we eat well/clean (as i said), he's already cut soda that he had an issue with, having an issue cutting caffeine (coffee--caffeine takes away from your water instead of helping your water). We dont go out to eat, but i know all to well of the cost of a burger and fries vs a chicken salad with side of veggies grrr frustrating. its cheaper, at the grocery store anyways, to eat healthy. i use to spend over $400 a month when i was buying alot of processed stuff, now that ive cut it out i cut over $100 off the grocery bill.

I talked to him more, and i suggested protein shakes. he said he had thought about them, but was more interested in something like animal cuts because its a diet aide, and his co-worker takes it so thats why he was thinking about that one in particular.. so he is after a magic pill after all argh. I told him "but you already need to eat more, not less", and he said he didnt want to eat more, he thought he was eating too much... even on days where hes suppose to eat 1000 calories more, and admits he's starving after work outs, he still feels he needs to eat less...when he could be losing muscle mass because hes not eating enough.... he just started going to the gym again a week or two ago, so he should be losing water weight at least, but he hasnt lost any weight... so i think his body is just holding onto everything because he's not getting enough. i think he's putting more stress on his body by not getting enough, counting calories, and looking at the scale and seeing nothing, which stress also causes us to hold into those extra pounds. i know he's gaining muscle (which muscle weighs more than fat), but isnt it if you arent getting enough your body basically eats away its muscle from one area and puts it on the area you are working? and its only when you get enough food into your system that you can maintain muscle mass?
also, coffee flushes your water out of your system, and you need water to lose, and even if he's drinking a gallon of water a day would 12 cups of extra strong coffee a day as well cause him to be flushing that water out of his system?

if his goal is to build muscle, he needs to eat more. if he is trying to lose fat he needs to eat less.

does he drink that much coffee to keep him awake?

He wants to build muscle while he's losing fat, so run a marathon.

Yes, he drinks that much coffee to keep him awake and keep him energized. he says he couldnt survive without it. he cut soda and energy drinks, so now when i try to complain about the amount of coffee he just says cant i at least have one thing? so id rather him drink coffee than an energy drink and a 2-liter of soda a day. he doesnt drink that much everyday i dont think, but often.

he cant seem to wake up in morning and getting him breakfast before work is impossible. if he'd eat more throughout the day then he wouldnt be so hungry at night. he often times just has a string cheese & an egg for snacks plus lunch (leftovers from dinner the night before).

I got him TwinLabs whey protein fuel (chocolate & vanilla) last night (buy one get one free). I bought 13oz packages thinking it would last him awhile, and then I saw the size of the scoop. damn, shoulda went with the BOGO on the 2lb container. I tried one too, and that was a mistake cuz i like it lol. we both agreed it wouldnt be a daily thing, but only on days extra protein was really needed and it wouldnt be a calorie substitute for him--that we had lots of food with higher cal (like a serving of nuts is under 40cents, and he could have 2 servings even, and it would be cheaper than the protein shake)