4 Supplements Every Athlete Should Have in Their Cabinet

Supplements are a tricky aspect of fitness. If you get it right, you see massive growth in shorter amounts of time. Supplements can help you to sleep better, delay fatigue, reduce muscle soreness, increase alertness ‒ and can even serve as great alternatives for small snacks and meal replacements. 

The tricky part is figuring out the best supplements for your goals. Not to worry, we know this is a common issue with a lot of people who step into the gym. That’s why we spoke with our supplements coaches and asked them a simple question ‒ what are the best supplements for building muscle? 

In this blog post, let's talk about 4 supplements every athlete should have in their cabinet. 

4 Supplements Every Athlete Should Have in Their Cabinet

1. Protein

The first one should come as no surprise to anyone who has stepped into the gym. Protein, along with fats and carbohydrates form the foundation of your caloric consumption. The tricky part about protein is getting clean, low-calorie, low-fat sources to fuel muscle growth.

Supplementing with a protein shake is a great way to consume high concentrations of protein without the excess calories that can come with some meats, fish, or legumes.

How Much Protein Should I have in a Day?

Depending on your level of fitness and the amount of physical stress you are putting on the body in a workout, you’d want to consume anywhere from 0.5-1g/protein per pound of body weight. 

You might be looking at this chart and thinking ‒ that’s a lot, why do I need that much? 

Protein consumption will vary from person to person. Your intake should be dependent on how much you weigh, and how high your energy levels are. Your goal should be to have a decent quantity of protein that is also good quality. 

High-quality protein supplements have a good concentration of protein/scoop, limit the number of fillers and junk, and have low calories. 

Remember, protein is the building block of muscle. Your body needs additional protein in its system to:

• Stimulate muscle protein synthesis
• Promote deeper sleep 
• Promote gains in lean muscle and weight loss

The most important factor to consider is the stimulation of muscle protein synthesis - a precursor to the recovery of muscle. 

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2. Aminos Acids

Our second recommended supplement that everyone should have in their cabinet ‒ amino acids. Now you might have come across amino acids in your local supplement store. 

BCAA ‒ also known as branched-chain amino acids is a formulation of L-Leucine, L-Isoleucine, and L-Valine in varying concentrations. 

An important distinction to make between amino acids is that there are two main types; essential amino acids and non-essential amino acids. 

Essential amino acids cannot be created by the body and must be consumed either through diet or supplementation.

Non-essential amino acids can be created by the body, but you can also supplement and obtain these through diet. 

Most people will get what they need from their diet. The biggest difference when it comes to weightlifting or bodybuilding is that you can benefit from increased amounts of specific amino acids ‒ like L-Leucine (which can stimulate protein synthesis) or L-Theanine (which can promote deeper sleep). 

Many athletes will benefit from a 2:1:1 ratio BCAA supplement, but those of you that are looking for more should look into a hybrid amino acids supplement like our recommended feature product, FALLOUT. 

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3. Creatine 

Creatine is the workhorse of supplements for bodybuilders. Not only does it have a long history of research backing up its claims, but creatine is also generally more inexpensive than other supplements. 

What does creatine do?

When you exercise, your body utilizes energy from glycogen and ATP (adenosine triphosphate) to contract and relax the muscles. High-intensity exercises like heavy squats, bench press, skipping, sprinting etc will force your body to use a lot of ATP. 

Your body's ability to regenerate this lost ATP is crucial for your success in the gym. When you supplement with creatine, your body synthesizes this into phosphocreatine, which can then be utilized again as energy sources for muscles during exercise. 

Creatine is not only beneficial in supplements like pre-workouts, to increase the number of stored phosphates in your muscles, but it can also be beneficial after a workout to help promote faster recovery. 

Supplementing with 3-5g of creatine monohydrate every day is a great way to volumize the muscles and promote greater strength gains. 

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4. Nitric Oxide Enhancers

The last supplement on your cabinet shelf should be some type of nitric oxide enhancer. Many of your exercise nuts will know that nitric oxide is in almost every cell in the human body. 

Nitric oxide serves as a vasodilator ‒ opening up blood vessels to allow for more oxygen, nutrients, and blood to travel between muscles, organs and other systems. 

So ‒ why should you supplement with nitric oxide enhancers? 

The most simple answer is that supplements like L-Citrulline and L-Arginine help to promote greater muscle pumps, increase blood flow and circulation ‒ but they can also help to promote faster recovery. 

The better your blood flow, the better your body is at transporting oxygen and nutrients around the body. This means you can recover faster and have higher intensity workouts to promote even more muscle growth

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Supplement Stacking 101

Many supplements work in conjunction with each other ‒ this is why supplement stacking can be so beneficial. When you combine a supplement like an amino acid with something like a nitric oxide booster, you have a potent blend that helps you recover faster, experience greater pumps in the gym, and overall ‒ hit your goals sooner.

Have questions ‒ come into any one of our stores and chat with one of our supplement coaches. We’d be happy to help you hit your strength and fitness goals!