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NUTRITION

THE 8 BEST
SUPPLEMENTS
FOR MUSCLE
GROWTH YOU
SHOULD TRY
RIGHT NOW

JA CQUELI NE K A M I NS K I | STAY UPDATED WITH NASM!

If you go to the gym regularly, you want every

workout to count right? You don’t spend all
that time exercising to just waste your time
and energy! So, to get the most out of your
workouts and maximize your muscle growth,
we’ve compiled a list of 8 supplements that
can help boost the results you’re looking for.

Supplementation is found in chapter 13 of the

NASM Nutrition Coach Course. It is also a crucial
part of successfully training physique and
bodybuilding competitors. Sign up today if
you're interested in learning more about
supplementation as a professional.

THE 8 BEST SUPPLEMENTS

FOR MUSCLE GROWTH
1. Whey Protein Powder
2. Creatine
3. Amino Acids
4. Carb Supplements
5. HMB
6. Glutamine
7. Carnitine
8. L-Arginine

1 - WHEY PROTEIN POWDER

Whey is the liquid remaining after milk has
been curdled and strained. It is very fast
absorbing and is generally the type of protein
that is recommended after exercise. There are
2 primary types of protein: concentrate and
isolate.

Concentrate will generally contain less protein

by weight and have more carbohydrates and
fat. An isolate indicates the protein powder
went through further processing to increase
protein content and eliminate any
carbohydrate or fat sources. Ideally, an isolate
will digest and absorb faster than a
concentrate, but both are equal in terms of
protein quality.

Since whey is a by-product of milk, you can

source it naturally from dairy products.
Consuming whey protein is extremely
beneficial because whey is a complete protein
— meaning it contains all the amino acids
necessary for muscle growth. In fact, in terms
of protein quality, milk proteins have the
highest digestibility score. However, whey
protein contains a myriad of additional
benefits aside from enhancing muscle growth.
Studies have shown that consumption of
whey can also improve sleep quality and
enhance immune system responses.

Several studies have evaluated the e!ects of

whey protein on training and performance
and have found that consumption of whey in
doses of 20-40g/day or more over 8-12 weeks
showed increases in lean body mass,
strength, and decreases in fat mass.

So, what does this mean if you’re trying to

build muscle? Whey is a great, complete
source of protein that will o!er the most
benefit if consumed every 3-4 hours (if not
consuming additional sources of protein via
food), or within 2 hours after exercise in
doses of 20-40g.

2 - CREATINE
Creatine is a non-essential amino acid that is
mainly stored in our muscles with a small
amount stored in the brain as well. It’s
naturally found in foods such as red meats
and fish. In a normal diet that contains about
1-2 grams of creatine per day, muscle stores
are only about 60-80% saturated.
Vegans/vegetarians will likely have lower
stores since natural sources mainly exist in
animal meats.

Creatine is one of the most widely studied

supplements — namely for its ability to
increase muscle mass! Research has shown
that increases in muscle mass can occur in as
little as 4 weeks by supplementing with
creatine in the diet.

To see the fastest results, a loading protocol

for creatine is often recommended. For most
individuals, supplementing 5 grams of
creatine per day (or about 0.3g/kg) four times
daily for 5-7 days can fully saturate stores.
After a loading protocol, stores can be
maintained by ingesting about 5 grams per
day (for larger individuals, doses of 10g per
day may be needed).

In regard to timing, creatine o!ers the most

benefit when consumed after exercise since it
can help facilitate water and carbohydrates
back into the muscles more quickly (aka faster
recovery).

Learn about what creatine does by following

this link.

3 - ESSENTIAL AMINO ACIDS

Essential amino is nine amino acids that must
be consumed via diet because the body
cannot produce them on its own. Therefore,
you can obtain essential amino acids naturally
from any animal-based product!

Essential amino is used in the process of

muscle/protein metabolism and has been
postulated to help promote increases in lean
body mass. In fasted states or very-low-calorie
diets, supplementing with essential amino
acids can preserve lean tissue and stimulate
muscle protein synthesis.

There is no limit on the number of essential

amino acids you can consume per day. In
regards to frequency, doses of 5-9g of
essential amino are recommended before
and/or following resistance exercise to
stimulate muscle protein synthesis.

However, all essential and non-essential

amino acids are needed to stimulate muscle
protein synthesis. This would make high-
quality protein sources superior in the ability
to promote muscle growth over essential
amino alone. Additionally, supplementing
with essential amino in conjunction with a
high protein diet will not o!er additional
benefits to increasing muscle mass.

See also: Branched-Chain Amino Acids

4 - CARBOHYDRATE SUPPLEMENTS
(VITARGO, KARBOLYN)
Carbohydrate supplements such as Vitargo
and Karbolyn are specifically processed to
yield a high molecular weight, which allows
them to be digested and absorbed almost
twice as rapidly compared to other “natural”
carbohydrate sources.

They are sourced from various plants such as

potato, rice, corn, and barley. While dosing
and frequency largely depend on individual
needs, they are extremely beneficial when it
comes to building muscle because when
carbohydrates are combined with protein
after exercise, it creates a much larger
stimulus for muscle protein synthesis
compared to carbohydrates or protein alone.

5 - HMB
Beta-hydroxy beta-methyl-butyrate (HMB) is a
metabolic byproduct of leucine degradation.
Leucine is the main amino acid responsible
for stimulating muscle protein synthesis. By
increasing the availability of HMB, leucine
degradation would be prevented which would
minimize muscle protein degradation.

HMB is naturally produced in the body, but to

obtain doses needed to incur performance
benefits about 600g of high-quality protein
would need to be consumed per day.
Therefore, supplementation is more practical
to increase stores.

Many studies have shown that

supplementation with HMB in both trained
and untrained individuals increased strength
and muscle mass when compared to controls.
Currently, two forms of HMB exist: Calcium
HMB and free form HMB. It is speculated that
free form HMB may absorb more e"ciently,
however, research regarding the benefits of
this supplement is still in its infancy.

However, it is currently recommended to take

this supplement in doses of 1-2g, 30-60
minutes before exercise. Supplementation of
1.5-3g/day is recommended for at least 3-12
weeks to see increases in muscle mass.

6 - GLUTAMINE
Glutamine is one of the most abundant non-
essential amino acids in the body and plays a
significant role in various physiological
functions such as immunity, gut health, and
protein and glycogen synthesis.

However, no compelling evidence exists to

show that glutamine supplementation leads
to increases in muscle mass. Studies have
shown that subjects who included 5g of
glutamine along with 3g of BCAA and 40g of
whey protein had no increases in strength or
muscle mass after a 10-week strength training
program.

7 - CARNITINE
L-Carnitine is naturally produced by the liver
and kidneys and plays a major role in lipid
metabolism. Namely, it helps facilitates fatty
acids into the mitochondria of the cell so they
can be metabolized. However, it also plays
minor roles in pathways that regulate muscle
protein metabolism and can act as an
antioxidant.

In some animal models, supplementation with

L-carnitine increased insulin, a major
hormone that stimulates muscle growth.
However, in human models, 8-24 weeks of
supplementation showed no increases in
insulin levels or increases in muscle mass.

While this supplement still warrants further

research, it is recommended that it should be
taken with carbohydrates to increase
bioavailability and that ingesting 2-3g/day for
at least 3 months can prevent exercise-
induced muscle damage.

8 - L-ARGININE
Arginine is one of the non-essential amino
acids (conditionally essential in circumstances
of extreme illness or injury), which means you
can obtain it naturally from animal meats.

Arginine plays roles in protein and glucose

metabolism, influences growth hormone, and
is involved in creatine synthesis but is
specifically involved in the synthesis and
bioavailability of nitric oxide (NO), a very
potent vasodilator. Vasodilators expand the
diameter of blood vessels to allow for greater
blood flow.

As a supplement to aid in muscle growth, L-

arginine does not show promising results in
healthy individuals. However, dosing with 1.5-
3g/day for long periods (at least 4 weeks) or
acute ingestion (6-10g/day for 7 days) can
increase exercise capacity in aerobic and
strength-based events.

Also read this blog on Turkesterone for

another interesting supplement to look into.

REFERENCES
https://jissn.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.11
86/1550-2783-10-6
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/P
MC6090881/

Essentials of exercise & sports nutrition -

Richard B Kreider

THE AUTHOR

JACQUELINE
KAMINSKI
Jackie Kaminski is a
registered dietitian/
nutritionist with a
Master's degree in
Exercise Physiology &
Sports Nutrition from
Florida State University.
Her first introduction to
working with
professional athletes was
back in 2017 when she
worked at the UFC
performance institute in
Las Vegas, Nevada. Since
then, Jackie has worked
with various professional
fighters and other
clientele and now
operates under her
company she started
back in March, The Fight
Nutritionist LLC. The
Fight Nutritionist is
dedicated to providing
the most e"ective
nutrition plans to ensure
her athletes are
performance at their
absolute best. All of her
plans are individualized
to the athlete and are
backed by the latest
research to ensure
complete safety and
e#cacy. Jackie is also a
member of the
international society of
sports nutrition, where
she often participates in
di"erent research
projects and data
collection with other
ISSN members from
Nova University. When
Jackie isn’t working, you
can find her at Combat
Club where she trains
kickboxing and Muy Thai.
As a sports dietitian,
Jackie’s aim is to provide
her athletes with the
necessary fuel to excel in
training and provide the
proper education to
ensure her athletes are
engaging in the safest
health practices (as they
relate to combat sports).
You can find her on
LinkedIn here.

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