The GBAtemp Fitness club

[Densetsu]

1 year...

Yep, sounds like you and I both did a lot of the same things as far as diet and supplements are concerned. I heard all the same things about zinc, magnesium and fish oil, also that zinc helps with absorption of nutrients, not just T-boosting. I also drink two cups of black coffee every day, but mostly because I need to stay alert and study. The appetite control is an added bonus. I was bulking for a while, and during that phase I ate a lot of lamb Greek salads and at least one whole rotisserie chicken every day, sometimes two. I've been avoiding soy for the same reason. I think the major difference between our strategies is that I'm consuming nearly double the calories that you are. But I'm also consistently exercising, so I get really hungry and I have to eat.

 

[Hungry Friend]

I think the main reason for that is I'm simply trying to lean out while you're trying to bulk up. I mostly use those supplements to prevents muscle loss, but with that said I am stronger than I was when I was like 200 lbs so it seems to have worked. I've maintained muscle and strength while dropping a ton of fat weight, but I definitely need to lift more often. I try to get around 100g of protein per day, especially on workout days. I have insomnia(need to buy some melatonin) so lack of sleep is often what keeps me from wanting to work out.

Also, I've heard very mixed thing about L-glutamine but I started taking around 5g of it with my protein shakes along with the Creatine and while I don't think it'll make much of a difference, I've heard it also prevents muscle loss, especially if you're at a caloric deficit. BCAAs are also apparently good if you're at a deficit and trying to maintain strength but useless if you take in plenty of calories and protein.

You have any other supplement experience? I don't wanna mess with the hormonal stuff but I have nothing against people using roids or GH as long as they're doing it outside of athletic competition.

edit: Had a seriously bad pigout/binge day yesterday, which happens from time to time but pretty rarely. Had like 4000-4500 calories so it fucks with my average for the week and it's gonna take a good bit of hard work to make up for it. As long as I don't do it again for a while I'll be fine, but I'm a perfectionist so I always beat myself up badly when I fuck up.

 

[Densetsu]

You have any other supplement experience? I don't wanna mess with the hormonal stuff but I have nothing against people using roids or GH as long as they're doing it outside of athletic competition.

Besides vitamins and protein powder, I haven't really tried much else. As a med student, everything I've learned tells me that creatine doesn't really work, but there must be something to it if it's one of the best-selling supplements, so I'm willing to give it a try--can't hurt. The worst thing that happens is that I waste money. I know that creatine causes the muscles to retain water, so it's probably more for looks than for increasing functional strength. When someone sees the increase in bulk, it motivates them to workout harder, which is the actual cause for the increase in strength. I have nothing against others using hormones to bulk up, but personally it's not something I would do myself.

 

[Hungry Friend]

Besides vitamins and protein powder, I haven't really tried much else. As a med student, everything I've learned tells me that creatine doesn't really work, but there must be something to it if it's one of the best-selling supplements, so I'm willing to give it a try--can't hurt. The worst thing that happens is that I waste money. I know that creatine causes the muscles to retain water, so it's probably more for looks than for increasing functional strength. When someone sees the increase in bulk, it motivates them to workout harder, which is the actual cause for the increase in strength. I have nothing against others using hormones to bulk up, but personally it's not something I would do myself.

Huh, I never really responded to common Creatine Monohydrate but HCL did provide literally an immediate(but very mild) strength boost, ie adding a few reps or a few more pounds to certain lifts along with more endurance. I believe there's a possibility it could be at least in part placebo but the HCL gave me enough of a boost that I'm pretty sure it's the real deal, and it's also supposed to be good for preventing muscle loss when cutting weight but I'm not sure about that. Monohydrate is much cheaper than HCL and is the most commonly used and most researched type of Creatine, however. Loading phases and cycling provide no benefits and it's not like you're gonna get steroid-like results from it. It basically gives me a very slight strength/endurance increase and speeds up recovery time a bit but I have to make sure to drink around double the amount of water I did before I started taking it.

Had another 3000 calorie pigout day yesterday, but I'm also weighing like 147 when I wake up in the morning so maybe I needed one.(5'9, so I'm getting a little too light, especially since that's while being on Creatine which makes me retain water) Least I took in like 150g of protein and didn't binge on junkfood. Mostly binged on meat and protein bars.