The term body building supplements refer to chemical substances produced for and used by body builders especially those specializing in weight training in a bid to aid the build up of large, powerful and compact body muscles and replace body fats with tough fibers and tissues. The large numbers of body building supplements are found packed in capsule form.
Primarily, body building supplements improve performance during workouts and greatly improve recovery after strenuous training sessions. A misconception common among none users of supplements is that supplementing muscle-building adds up to steroid abuse. This is unfounded because supplement users do not aim at altering natural hormonal levels in the body beyond their natural limits. Anabolic steroids users especially those fond of testosterone borne steroids primarily target to change the natural levels of body hormones. That’s the fundamental difference.
The basic and most used diet supplements are protein supplements, because proteins are the basic building blocks in muscle accumulation. They contain proteinious whey and or creatine monohydrates and some times vitamins. Body builders prefer powder form of proteins for easy digestion and absorption, especially if consumed immediately prior to and after a workout session.
Sufficient protein levels in the body allow efficient muscle growth and tissue repair. The most used proteins are whey proteins due to their high levels of the complete amino acids rare in the body, followed by Casein protein found in milk. Milk contains the highest levels of glutamine amino acid crucial in tissue recovery and repair. Vegetarian body builders use soy protein which has all necessary amino acids and also isoflavpnes, a phytestrogen with mild estrogen qualities. Glutamine by itself is the amino acid most available in human muscle tissues and is key to strengthening the immune system and muscle repair.
Other common body building supplements beside proteins include meal replacement products (MRP) either pre-packed as powdered drinks or chewing bars. These are consumed as a total replacement to whole meals. MRPs contain concentrated proteins and low fats. They couple up in supplementing body building with moderate carbohydrates calories and a variety of vitamins and mineral salts.
Prohormones are also found in the body building market as a precursor to natural hormone testosterone. Because Prohormones requires natural body enzymes, they are riddled with side effects especially in prompting further conversion of DHT and estrogen.
Creatine is also a common body building supplement. It’s an organic acid naturally found in the body and supplies short busts of energy to muscle cells necessary to lift weights in body building workouts. Studies have established that creatine increases not only energy levels, but also body strength, muscle mass. Recent studies have actually shown that creatine reduces recovery time and improves brain power, by reducing mental fatigue.
Thermogenics are also common in the supplement market. The term thermogenics refers to any diet supplement claimed to cause thermogenesis by increasing metabolic rates, body temperature and fat combustion. Testosterone boosters are also supplements especially those that occur naturally in plants and vitamins but also those that are synthetically manufactured.
The body builder however needs to ascertain the validity of these diet supplementing products because sometimes manufacturers make questionable claims without scientific proof or support.