Welcome to the Supplements Page!
I’m glad you made your way over here! Before we dive into the supplements that I have personally used and benefited from, I want to make sure you know that while I am pursuing a degree in Kinesiology and have take nutrition/health science classes, I am NOT a registered dietician NOR am I a doctor! So please talk to your doctor or dietician before you consider taking any of these supplements I mention. Thank you!
In general, I am not the biggest fan of supplements. In my experience I with taking supplements, especially pill-form supplements, I do not notice the benefits as much as I do from the consumption of food (maybe I am doing something wrong haha). As a result, I try to make sure that most of my essential nutrients come from the food or drink I consume on a daily basis. I also feel that receiving these nutrients is a more natural way to do it regardless.
I alsoIn addition to this, consult with your doctor about whether or not any of these supplements may be right for you.
Creatine Monohydrate
The first time I even heard of creatine was at a showcase during my junior year. At this point I was topping 78 mph and trying to figure out any way possible to break the 80 mph barrier. One of the athletes at the showcase (who was pretty jacked) said, “Yeah, I used creatine and just put on 20 lbs over the past 3 months!” At that moment I thought this was it! My miracle drug, my key to high velocity. Unfortunately I still had to convince my parents that it was a safe supplement.
After doing some research on creatine, I became an instant believer. My dad thought it was alright after some research and so I went forth and started taking it. My mom to this day still thinks it is a steroid and was concerned that I wouldn’t pass a drug test because of it. (It is not a prohibited substance so there is no need to be worried about that.)
After the first 3-4 months of using it I made some solid progress in the weight room and gained about 5-8 lbs. (some muscle, some fat). I quickly realized that A. that kid was definitely exaggerating, and B. there is not any miracle drug to make you a great player overnight. Yes, I recommend creatine as I think it will help build muscle and you will gain weight because of how it retains more water. And yes, allow you to lift more weight/produce more force when training. But it will not do any of those things if you do not put in the work. DO THE WORK.
Now, as to which brand or which kind of creatine I would recommend, I only have used 3 different brands for creatine. All of them were creatine monohydrate and I would recommend that form of creatine because it has been the most studied and proven form.
The first brand that I used was Thorne. It is a pretty trusted brand and I have had no issue with it, I didn’t switch to a different brand for any specific reason beyond just wanting to switch it up. (Also I am not affiliated by any of these brands, so there is no brand agenda I’m trying to push).
Anyways, here is the link if you want to check out Thorne Creatine.