When to Take Your Supplements

When to Take Your Supplements

It’s all very well and good having supplements, but when to take them can really be a pivotal time to determine how effective their use will be. You will often hear stories of people having 3 extra shakes a day just cause it might say so on the tub that they bought it in. But is such high use warranted and is there an ideal or optimal time to be taking all your supplements.

The short answer is yes, of course, we call this theory “nutrient timing”. By timing the ingestion of certain nutrients into the bloodstream at a certain point we can provide the muscles with what they need and when. For example, after a workout your muscles are depleted of their glycogen (carbohydrate) stores, and as a result are very receptive to the intake of carbohydrates to kick start recovery along with amino acids (protein).

So let’s look at the basic supplement stack that many people take and look at when and how to take them. This will enable you to have some idea of why you might be taking such a supplement and the environment it is providing for.

Creatine: a popular mainstay for anyone looking to build muscle, strength and power. For the purpose of this we will look at its most common form, creatine monohydrate or creapure. This can be loaded, but the research seems to suggest that loading and long term use provide equal benefit over an 8 week period. So if you are taking an all in one blend after your workout that contains creatine, congrats as you are taking it at the optimal time. Otherwise if taking it normally in your diet you can take it either with your food after a workout, or in the morning for breakfast. High exercisers and people that have high energy demands could even take creatine monohydrate or a similar creatine product for breakfast and after a workout.

Whey protein: for anyone taking whey protein shakes throughout the day to boost their calorie intake carry on, there is really no golden rule as the idea here is to use the shakes to bump up calorie intake in a convenient and easy manner. Otherwise the ideal time for whey is after your workout, again taking advantage of the environment where tired muscles are waiting for nutrition, specifically amino acids. The best protein choice for this time would be whey protein isolate or whey protein hydrolysate. These are both the fastest absorbing proteins and will speed up the recovery process.

Sugar: simple sugars like dextrose, vitargo, maltodextrin and paltinose are ideal, again, for the recovery window. The quicker carbohydrates and protein enter the muscles the quicker we can repair and optimise the anabolic environment. After all the manipulation of hormones such as testosterone will only go to enhance your results. Perhaps this is whey all in one shakes have become so popular to the weight trainer, providing all the essential ingredients that the muscle needs in an instant fashion.

Amino acids: aminos can stimulate a required response exactly when you want it. Various amino acids are marketed for their potential benefits, which in most cases are true, such as glycine and its effect on helping blunt cortisol output. But for the context of this article we need to focus on the weight trainers aminos, that being branched chain amino acids or BCAA’s. If you are dieting, or bulking, amino acids are highly beneficial during the workout window. This limits muscle breakdown and again enhances the anabolic environment. Also, when dieting, it has also been shown to speed up the weight loss process. All in all a winning supplement, try 5-10g pre and during your workout for best results.