So, the three products that particularly really got my attention for their potential to help me with my own personal fitness goals of competing in my upcoming fall men's physique contest within the UNBA which will take place in Hermosa Beach, CA on November 19.
I chose these 3 items among the many items ProSupps brand offers because these have the best direct purpose for my goals. I say this as I urge anyone using dietary supplements to have a purpose, a justified, rational reason for taking and using any supplement brand at all. Make sure the ingredient(s) have substantiated benefit for your particular goal or outcomes as well. Be it stamina, strength, power, body composition, more lean muscle mass, fatigue reduction, recovery enhancement etc......take a product that fully supports that outcome. NEVER take a product "just cuz" or because Jack/Jane "know it all from the gym" said so. That's just, wasteful, silly and dangerous as I see it.
The 3 products I selected were those with strong utility and purpose in my own training goals and needs as it relates to preparing for this contest. The 3 items are as follows: Click the product title to be taken to the page that gives full description and use and ingredient facts labels.
- CRASH (sleep assistance and support)
- I train at 530pm and end at 7ish so I am pretty wound up yet after workouts and its nice to be able to come back down and sleep well for better recovery and so this item (taste is amazing) with 6 oz water 30 minutes before bed has been helpful so far. I sleep pretty well as it is by keeping a very consistent sleep wake schedule all week long. This helps establish a strong circadian rhythm and better recovery. I also control things like blue light, noise and room temperature as best I can to promote better sleep conditions. I also like my coffee but make sure not to ingest much after 530pm so its out of my system by the time I hit the hay around midnight......I am a total night owl by the way.
- HDYRO BCAA (intra-workout training support and muscle retention)
- A staple year round product for me during my workout sessions. Research has shown equivocal to some positive benefit to using properly dosed (6-10g) BCAA in a 2:1:1 or more ratio to help with preventing muscle breakdown from strenuous resistance exercise. While dieting on lower calories like I am now; I find BCAA's like this with electrolytes and citrulline to be a nice buffer for keeping every ounce of muscle I worked to build. It also promotes hydration and muscle performance by keeping sipping more fluid and the added sodium/potassium.
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| Blue Raz flavor is amazing! 2 scoops mixed with 50/50 Sprite Zero & Water with ice. Take that to the beach! |
- I LOAD (post exercise blood sugar and insulin control)
- When dieting down for contests like I am, getting ultra lean (5% or less) is the goal and it is not normal to be this lean for long. Doing so takes careful design in training and diet to get there. Carbs for me are needed to do my day job, train 90 minute sessions of my own in the gym and function as a human. I cant and do not do the keto or super low carb thing....I cant. I stay around 200g carbs even in the grinding end of my contest prep diet. But to get super lean carbs must be taken in strategically to do their job but not stall fat loss. Timing, type and amount are the keys to making this work. Manipulating the hormone response to these carbs I eat is also something I found very helpful. This product takes chromium and 4 other well known ingredients, helpful in keeping a tight rein on blood sugar and insulin and thus, better fat loss. This allows me to eat higher carbs before and after training sessions to promote recovery and performance without stalling fat loss. Diabetics and those with hypoglycemia issues should consult a sports dietitian (CSSD credential besides RD designation) prior to using this item or those like it.
With this being said I do not mean to say anyone has to use or take these items. If your goals do happen to match that of my own then consider these as possible aids in such pursuits. The flavors are on point, they are all manufactured in a cGMP facility and made here in the USA. No adverse event reports have ever been filed on these 3 items that I could find on SupplementWatch or ConsumerLabs. I hope some of you found this 2 series blog post edition on sports nutrition and dietary supplements a nice change of pace and perhaps if you all like this, I will do more in the near future.
