Monday, October 29, 2007

Are supplements really necessary for muscle growth?

Are supplements really necessary for muscle growth?
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?

Though this may be received as a bold and controversial
statement, I would assert that few if any supplements are
really needed to accomplish muscle weight gain. I refer
specifically to steroid alternatives and other supplements
meant to enhance muscle growth without any further action
from the consumer. (A careful distinction must be made
here between these kinds of supplements which may not be
necessary or even safe in the long term, and other
supplements which promote general health such as vitamins,
minerals, antioxidants, and the like. Nor am I referring
to pure protein supplements that can help provide extra
food in a convenient manner.) At best, steroid
alternatives may provide muscle growth that could have been
achieved naturally and safely. At worst, they may cause
the user long-term harm, either in health hazards or in
their finances.

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. One of the most
important things you need to be careful about when you
begin a weightlifting program is not getting caught up in
all the hype. You need to be ready to make a serious
commitment, both to education and to long-term training.
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.


----------------------------------------------------
Jon Cardozo, from Jcardozium research, writes on how to
build muscle naturally, nutrition, and general fitness.
Visit his website for more information on how to gain
muscle at http://maximum-muscle-gain.com

No comments: