There are hundreds if not thousands, of supplements you can splash out on to beef yourself up a little more, but if you don’t know what you’re getting, you might end up a little disappointed. With the help of Peak Body, we have rounded up eight of the best supplements you could use to push your sports performance to the next level:
Caffeine
Arguably the grandfather of all stimulants, caffeine is surprisingly powerful when condensed into a concentrated form rather than a drink. There’s debate as to whether or not it directly boosts your strength. Still, the decreased fatigue and pain-lessening effects will help push your endurance further, even if you only use it casually.
Glutamine
Although it doesn’t do much to help you in terms of strength, Glutamine has a serious role in keeping you able to work out frequently. By bolstering your immune system after a workout, when your natural defenses are lowest, this supplement ensures that you won’t catch any workout-ending illnesses or energy-sapping viruses after a particularly unhygienic session.
It also allows your muscles to repair faster, so you won’t experience as much downtime, especially if you’re not in the middle of a calorie deficiency.
Citrulline Malate
As a more focused version of caffeine, CM lets your body pull off far more repetitions during a workout session and helps reduce after-workout pain for a long time. The increased ATP energy production is an overall benefit rather than just being for part of your body, so it can work across multiple mini-workouts if needed.
Omega-3
The primary reason that fish is known to be good for you is that Omega-3 has a huge list of health benefits, some of which can apply to everyday life. Improved mental awareness and cardiovascular health are the two most obvious. Still, its effects on protein synthesis and general energy levels make it a must-have for anybody willing to switch up their diet to achieve better performance.
Muscle is a big priority, but having a handle on your mental health and general body status is extremely important. Omega-3 is one of the easiest ways to keep both of them balanced.
Branched Chain Amino Acids
Essentially pre-broken-down protein, BCAAs give your body amino acids faster, skipping the breaking-down process and providing a direct source of fuel that can be used up before your body has to tap into its natural reserves.
If you’ve been dieting, it’ll also prevent your muscles from being broken down for energy, an all-too-common sign amongst health and fitness lovers. Balancing weight and strength can be a chore otherwise, so even the smallest venture into using BCAAs can be worth it.
Zinc
Another “utility” stimulant that doesn’t impact performance directly, zinc, helps reduce sweat and balance metabolism, meaning that you won’t sweat all over your nice gym shorts or overwork your body into a cycle of hunger and sleep. It’ll also cut down your copper levels, but that’s not difficult to rectify if you keep it in check.
