Supplements | My Fitness Journey

When I started my fitness journey, I would try supplements here and there, but I wouldn't stick to any of them. I wasn't really keen on why I would need them and what they were good for. I would try protein powders and not like the taste and the kinds that we had were not even the optimal for me. And when I would try pre work, I would try them just for fun. The flavors were okay enough to be like "I can take this", but I never added it into my routine until years later. The first supplement that I would stick to somewhat is protein powder because I knew that you needed to feed the muscle for it to grow. So, I would add that in to help when I wasn't eating enough. More years later when I had issues getting the energy and the motivation to workout, I would add in some pre-workouts and there are a couple ones that I've tried that I liked and then there's some that I really did not like. In the end I had to experiment a little to figure out what I liked, and I'll tell you what I learned.

Protein powder is something I'm still not big on. The problem with my continuing research with it in the beginning is that I didn't know what I was looking for. I would find the pre the protein powders that said casing on it or soup. or like super mass or something like that. And it wouldn't be tasty for someone who's just starting out trying to get more protein in. There are two brands that I liked. One of them being optimum nutrition, which I started with, and they also make ones that I didn't like. But the flavors that I found to be really good are the vanilla ice cream and the banana cream flavors. Those two are good entry flavors for people who may find the flavor of protein to be off putting. I still to this day do not quite use a lot of it, but once I got into my fitness journey really got super into it. I started using it more as I was going to work and not being able to eat breakfast in the morning. 

There is another brand called blessed under EHP Labs. Their protein powder is plant based and it's pretty decent. There are some flavors that I think are absolutely dog water, but there are some that I think are OK. I haven't tried all of them and I would like to but it's really expensive to be buying tubs of protein powder just to not like them. I've tried the peanut butter cups and they tasted like no, they were not good. Then they released the rocky road one which looked really good based off of their advertising. And I would say that it is good. It's not the best but it is really good and I prefer to mix it with some frozen banana and make like a thicker shake. These are good to supplement when you're not eating but I would recommend that you just straight up eat your protein. It is the most fulfilling way to get it and it's also just the best way to do it for your bodies understanding of like, "Oh we're actually eating something. We're getting in some protein" If you don't have time these are good when you just need to get that in.

Pre workout has been a little bit different because I have been able to experiment a little more cause pre workout is not quite as expensive as protein powders and also, I think that having a nice, tasty drink is something that I prefer then to have a thick shake anyway. It helped me to get back into the groove of things and to have the energy that I need to workout which also helps my discipline to persevere. I started off with Optimum nutrition's Amino Energy pre-workout and that's really good and it doesn't make you jittery. I also tried their other pre-workout, but that has the type of beta alanine in it that makes you super jittery. Literally five minutes after drinking it, you will feel like that jitteriness and it's really uncomfortable. I've also tried C4 that also has the jittery version of beta alanine in it and it is incredibly uncomfortable. The flavor is pretty good, but it's just the uncomfortable immediately. I've also tried Oxyshred by EHP Labs. I've not tried their powdered version. I have tried their canned version and that's very gentle on you in concerns of beta alanine. I don't have the specs in front of me right now, but when I tried it, it didn't do the jitteriness and it did give good flavor and good energy. I have also tried the EHP labs Pride pre workout and I will tell you that the flavor is not quite as good as their Oxyshred, but the energy and the sweat that you can get is really good. They also don't have that issue with their beta alanine that makes you jittery so you can have a pleasant experience except for the flavor. 

Now with my favorite pre workout that I have discovered is Aminolean by RSP nutrition. I have not tried their protein shakes but I would like to try them. (we can have a separate like review on that) but for their powder pre workout I will give every flavor like a 10 out of 10. It's a very sweet pre workout which I like because at first you have to get used to it because you're thinking it's going to be either nasty or good. It's going to be kind of sweet but they're all good. The only flavor that I would say is not the best is the pineapple coconut cause it's more coconut than it is pineapple and I am not a big fan of coconut but if you like coconut you will like it. It has beta alanine in it but it has  CarnoSyn® Beta-alanine in it which does not give you the issue where you start getting really jittery. In fact, this just gives you the cleanest energy that I've ever felt like. It feels like you're just drinking juice and then you're pumped up. You're in a good mood and you're able to sweat really well. It's not as crazy of a sweat as the pride pre workout but it's a really good sweat. I have tried almost every flavor and I will tell you that I like every flavor. They're all different vibes, but they're really good. And it's affordable enough that I have been able to try every flavor. I have maybe a few flavors at a time, maybe just two and I can like alternate that way cause they're only like $30 and they come in sparkling. Those are also good. I would also like to say that the sparkling is more like a tasty beverage like an energy drink as opposed to a pre workout. I like to use them as a regular drink as opposed to a pre workout because sparkling drinks before the gym just makes me gassy. 

Now, when it's come to a Creatine, I find that most creatines that are flavorless are good, but I've only really tried three different types of creatine. I've tried the 1 from optimum nutrition and it is decent because it doesn't have any flavor, but it sinks to the bottom, so you will crunch it and it will be unpleasant if you don't continue to mix it in. I like to take it with my pre workout so that I can get it in and it really helps with the muscle recovery. Most powders that you can get that say unflavored are unfavored so you can mix it into anything. I prefer to mix it into either my pre workout or my protein powder depending on how fast I'm planning on drinking it. If I'm taking a little bit longer, then it's going to be the protein powder because it kind of suspends in the thickness of the liquid, whereas the with the pre workout it will just fall to the bottom and have to keep remixing it. I also had tried these creatine gummies. I will tell you that the creatine is salty so it is not is not pleasant because it looks like it should be sweet, but it's actually salty and then it's an orange gummy inside and it's just the weirdest experience. But I find that creatine is really good for muscle recovery. I have found that my gains have less soreness and just like they recover better and faster when I'm taking creatine. consistently.

Greens are a supplement that you do not need unless you are not getting enough vegetables in your diet. If you have a really busy lifestyle and you were just kind of eaten as you go and you're a person who also finds that protein powder has been really helpful and you maintaining your gains, greens would be a good option for you, because if you're having issues with your gut health and going to the bathroom isn't consistent and good, then these ares for you. I take them because I don't always eat my vegetables like I should, and I always feel like I could eat more. Also, they taste good. I have tried Bloom greens. I have tried Oxygreens. There may have been some other greens in the past, but they have been so nasty that my brain has shoved them into the back corner of my memory. Both the bloom greens and the Oxygreens are really good. The Oxygreens are, in my opinion, better because they are less expensive for more product. But the Bloom greens are a good product to have when you're first trying greens for the 1st time because the flavor is really good and the way that it mixes is really smooth. with both products I have seen similar results. It's just probably that they have different sweeteners, and they will taste differently and have different flavors. Bloom has more flavors for sure, but oxygreens has more unique flavors because EHP Labs partnered with Ghostbusters to have a really interesting flavor. So, if you like any of their Oxyshred flavors, they might have them in greens. You don't need greens, but if you want them, they will help you out. You will find that your gut health will improve because you are just getting more vegetables in in an easier manner. And I do take minds every day if I can remember. It also helps me to drink more water because I'll put it into like a liter bottle or a 3 liter bottle and just sip on it and it will be just tasty and I'll benefit from it as well.