Whenever we hear the term supplements we directly relate it to our muscle building and then we start taking supplements without knowing about that. Well, that is not the case, supplements will never help you build muscle if your diet and training are not up to the mark.
So first, we need to know about the supplements and their uses, and we have to find that is that supplement worth taking, or is there any alternative we can use for that supplement, just blindly taking supplements will not help in muscle building or fat loss, it will only help in MONEY LOSS.
Here are 4 supplements that are not worth taking.
1. Glutamine
Glutamine is an amino acid that is used in the biosynthesis of the proteins. Its side chain is similar to glutamic acid. Glutamine is an amino acid that is found naturally in the body. Your body naturally produces Glutamine, and it is also found in many foods. Glutamine supplementation is known for reducing muscle soreness and heal after an intense workout session. Glutamine is also found in eggs, chicken, beef, pork, dairy, and spinach. Glutamine is also needed at the time of weak immunity and intestinal infection, but taking it for the muscle building won't help, our body produces enough glutamine to meet our daily muscle building requirement. So if you are a healthy human being with no immunity and intestinal problems then you don't need glutamine, taking glutamine then is the waste of money. But if you have low immunity or any intestinal infection then Glutamine can really help you because our intestine feeds on glutamine, so it will be really helpful at that time.
But taking it for Muscle building or fat loss is a big NO.
2. Testosterone Boosters
This is another chain of supplements that are very famous within gym-goers and bodybuilders. When we talk about testosterone boosters, we are talking about Withania somnifera (ashwagandha), Tribulus (gokshura) these are some testosterone boosters that people fall for.
Ashwagandha is an ancient herb that is believed to support and revitalize bodily functions, that is indirectly believed to boost testosterone, and that is right actually ashwagandha can sometimes help you boost testosterone if you have low testosterone levels but if you are a young person between 20 to 28 years of age with no testosterone problems ashwagandha will not boost your testosterone levels or help you in muscle building and same goes with gokshura, blindly taking the testosterone boosters won't help you.
But, if you have low testosterone levels then instead of taking steroids, this would be the better option. Ashwagandha and gokshura can help boosting testosterone if you have low testosterone levels but if your testosterone levels are fine they will not boost it further.
3. Casein
Casein protein is commonly found in the milk of mammals. Cow's milk contains about 80 percent of casein protein. Milk has two naturally occurring proteins that are Whey and casein. When we curdle the yogurt the solid part is casein and the remaining liquid is whey.
Casein has all the nine essential amino acids that are needed for muscle building. The main reason people take casein is that it gives slow release of protein throughout the night and that is why people take it at night.
But, the question is why casein supplementation is a waste of money?
The answer is simple that casein can be replaced by something cheap.
Replacements for casein are:
- Have whey in milk with 1 spoon of peanut butter, it will become a slow digesting protein and will give you protein release throughout the night.
- Eat egg yolks at night they will also take time to digest and will give you slow release.
- Have chicken breast with some olive oil, it will also act as slow digesting protein.
4. BCAA
BCAA, Branched-chain amino acid, the supplement every gym goer has heard of, BUT the question is do we really need them?
Well if you ask someone who takes BCAA the only reason they would give is that it enhances recovery, though that's the word they use with anything supplemental. If you ask the supplement companies about BCAA, they may use certain other common statements like recovery, reduces muscle damage, increases muscle growth, etc. But the reality is something different and won't be easily digested by the BCAA lovers.
Well if you ask someone who takes BCAA the only reason they would give is that it enhances recovery, though that's the word they use with anything supplemental. If you ask the supplement companies about BCAA, they may use certain other common statements like recovery, reduces muscle damage, increases muscle growth, etc. But the reality is something different and won't be easily digested by the BCAA lovers.
A study was also done on a group of people who were given BCAA, and the results were that no extra effects were seen on muscle building of fat loss
Well if you are consuming whey protein and your overall protein intake is adequate then there is no need to take BCAA.BCAA supplementation has shown to be ineffective for healthy individuals who are consuming enough protein through other sources, be it whole foods or supplements like whey protein.
So, these are 4 waste of money supplements that people are taking, instead of buying them invest in supplements like whey, fish oil, multivitamin, creatine, etc.
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