I want you to start segmenting supplements into three categories:
1.) Magical Super Lies
2.) Drugs
3.) Food
Those are the three kinds of supplements that are out there. And I know what you are thinking – "drugs aren't supplements!" and you're right. And the more deeply you understand that, the less you are going to get sold crap that doesn't work.
Supplement Category One: Magical Super Lies
This is what most people buy, and this is the majority of supplements for sale.
"Super fat burning awesomeness with no work at all!" Obviously this is a lie. But people buy it.
In fact, Jillian Michaels just got in a class action lawsuit over her fat burning pills. Which I think is kind of funny – whether you love or hate The Biggest Loser – anyone watching should know that it wasn't pills that produced the fat loss on that show.
Massive muscle growth like never before! Another one that's definitely a lie.
These kinds of supplements sell because people want to believe there is an easy way out. Or that there is some trick that other people know that they don't.
It's not really your fault: We're a consumer culture, and we've been programmed that we can buy a solution to anything.
And you actually can buy a solution, but it isn't supplements. If you want to buy a result, then ephedra and/or steroids would do the trick that Magical Super Lies supplements would claim to produce. And that brings us to Category Two…
Supplement Category Two: Drugs
This will explain a lot about Supplement Category One.
You see, if the supplements in Category One could produce the results they claim… they wouldn't be supplements. They'd be drugs.
Let me repeat for emphasis:
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If a supplement can produce a result, it's not a supplement. It's a drug
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For example: That super amazing muscle supplement that's going to blow up your biceps like nothing else? Well… if it's a STEROID it might actually do some of that.
But if it's some combination of amino acids and caffeine, probably not.
And that brings us to a great example: Caffeine. Caffeine is the only legal drug in the supplement store. You take some caffeine, you can FEEL it. That's a drug.
Compare that to a multivitamin. Not quite the same. Take some vitamins, and you don't exactly feel jacked out of your mind. That's the difference between drugs and supplements.
But is caffeine enough of a drug to cause fat loss? Not usually.
Ephedra was a supplement powerful enough to cause fat loss… so powerful that they banned it.
So that's the deal. If there is a supplement that is powerful enough to produce a result, it will be reclassified a drug and made illegal.
Supplements don't produce results.
Drugs produce results. And the problem with taking something that produces results is that there will always been consequences later. Drugs produce results… and they also have side-effects.
And they're illegal.
Side effects + illegal = not an option.
Category Three: Food
This is the category of supplements that personal trainers, body builders, fitness models and bikini models actually take.
Supplements that either are food, or they are parts of food.
Examples of food:
Protein powder – It's protein.
Fish oil – It's fat.
Examples of parts of food:
Branched chain amino acids: It's parts of protein.
Vitamins and minerals: Nutrients extracted from foods
Essentially, the point of this category of supplements is to add something to the nutrition plan you have in a way that's more convenient to consume. For example, making a protein shake with protein powder is faster than cooking a steak dinner.
Another example would be your multivitamin. It's been shown that the sheer volume of vegetables and fruit you would have to eat to get all of your vitamins is unmanageable. So while you should *attempt* to get all of the nutrients you need from food, it makes sense to add a multivitamin on top of that.
So, even though whole real food is always preferable, supplements that are food can make your life easier.
Every every fitness model, bikini model, bodybuilder I know take these kinds of food supplements. 90% of the personal trainers I know take these kinds of supplements.
Supplements I Like
Olympian Labs Beef Protein: I like it because there are so few ingredients: Beef Protein, Dark Chocolate, White Chocolate, Stevia (Stevia Rebaudiana) Extract (Reb-A). And Stevia is probably the healthiest no-calorie sweetener there is.
Aminocore: I like it because you get mad BCAA's per scoop.
Carlson Salmon Oil: Just my favorite fish oil right now, no good reason.
Conclusion
Don't get sold on Magical Super Lies. If the Magical Super Lies could deliver on what they promised, they'd be drugs.
Don't take drugs. Drugs are like the genie in every movie, while they do actually produce a result, you always pay a huge price later.
If Food Supplements make your life easier, those would be the supplements worth taking. A
Again, you should always attempt to fulfill all of your nutrition needs through whole food. In the real world though, sometimes a protein shake or some fish oil caps can be a life saver.
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