[Closed] Do you take supplements and why?

I take omega 3 because I doubt I get enough of it in my diet. I also take a protein shake if I've been out on the bike for a big session as it directly affects whether or not my legs will be sore in the days following said ride.

People will doubtless be along to tell you that all supplements are a pointless waste of money and that you should get everything you need from your diet, which is a fine principal assuming you have the time and discipline to eat perfectly.

I used to take glucosamine on a daily basis,, but I'm not sure whether it actually had any benefit to my creaky knees.

Right now I take a single multivitamin thing (more for B complex vitamins than anything else) and take whey protein after I've been to the gym. It seems to help recovery a bit and, at my advancing age, I'll take just about anything that can stop me feeling achey.

Normally wouldn't bother, but immunologist has suggested vitamin D to give my immune system a little boost...400 iu per day...

Creatine here, does what it says on the tin, plenty of evidence to back it up. Without doubt the best thing i ever did was clean up my diet and pack up the booze, never felt better. 52 years young.

Not sure if you'd call multi vitamins supplements but I've been taking Berocca daily for 10+ years, massively reduces my susceptability to colds for example.

Indeed erecting comments above about protein drinks and aches. If ibuprofen was a supplement I would have had to mention that !

Bacon sandwiches here.

You mean WHO-certified-death-meat? Is that like taking small doses of poisons to make yourself immune?

Quite a few...

Creatine, Whey Protein powder, Cod liver oil, Calcium & Magnesium, BCAAs

All weight lifting related, mainly aimed at maximising recovery (being old).

but I've been taking Berocca daily for 10+ years, massively reduces my susceptability to colds for example.

Going freelance, working from home and time off "on the bench" massively reduced mine.

Basically, less time in a stuffy office full of people with snotty colds 😀

Oh and riding bikes loads.

Supplements - as much as there are plenty of articles from the industry providing evidence that they work, there's plenty of articles from peer reviewed independent scientists not financially involved in the industry that says mostly the opposite. Mostly. There are some that have some benefits to some people. A lot of people are taking supplements though that are of no benefit to them as they are not actually deficient. And yes, most of the essential vitamins you get from food, drink and sunlight more readily than from pills.

I've been down that route a little. Did crap all for me. Sorting out diet and exercising has worked amazingly though.

E(ggs)P(otatoes)O(ranges)

All taste like shite if placed in a blender together..

multi vitamins soluble type- make your pee neon and noticeable keeps the colds away / recovery faster
ginseng- boost when feeling a bit run down
lutein - dry eyes at certain times in the year

Sis go, haribo, energy gels, cheap flapjack , energy drink before long ride. Basically anything to keep going mentally and physically.

As said exercise had a positive effect on my immune system

B12, Krill oil, Creatine and Beta-Alanine.

Tempted to take Glucosamine for knee pain due to running. Interested if anyone has used it successfully before I waste my money.

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Nope, as far as I am concerned I get enough of what I need in my diet. I think it is all nonsense and not required unless you have particular health needs (such as being on a restricted diet due to food intolerances) in order to get the required vitamins.

I do not think I am any more or less healthy than the next person.

Been taking glucosamine for a few years now, I'm 60 and have no cartilage in my left knee. I'm also veggie so don't get much through my usual (healthy) diet. I reckon it has a positive effect but it's such a long-term thing it's hard to tell for sure. How do I know how I'd be without it? I tend to be sceptical about medication/supplements and occasionally stop taking it, did so recently and it seemed to start getting worse so I've started again.

Nope, eat healthy diet and job done. don't waste your money unless you particularly want to change something about your physique or have a medical issue to support and even then, finding a food source is likely better than anything in a tin.

I was on glucosamine for a while when I had dodgy knees. Don't bother now that the knees are (mostly) fine.

Beer and some straight single malt

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Link to interactive version of Snake Oil infographic:

[url= http://www.informationisbeautiful.net/visualizations/snake-oil-supplements/ ]Snake oil[/url]

No supplements for me apart from the occasional protein shake mix if I'm out of milk.

Vitamin D and Calcium, as I have had a couple of small broken bones, which happened under very little stress and no impact.

Vitamins M,T,F and U.

Bacon sandwiches here.

You mean WHO-certified-death-meat? Is that like taking small doses of poisons to make yourself immune?

I'm intrigued by the creaky knees/vitamin D thing. I wasn't aware of the link, but I do have creaky knees.

Vitamin D3 10,000 iu, Fish Oil, Multi Vitamin and a probiotic. Pleasingly enough all the stuff at the top of the Snake Oil chart with the exception of multi vitamins. Why? [url= https://foundmyfitness.com/about-dr-rhonda-patrick ]Dr Rhonda Patrick [/url]on the [url=

Rogan Experience podcast[/url]. Definitely worth a listen.

Interesting to see the qualifications of the naysayers and how recently they've had their bloodwork done

Whey protein - I try and have 200g+ of protein a day and this is a cheap and convenient watway of hitting that target.

Omega 3 - anti inflammatory, recovery, good evidence

Vitamin D - well I did when I lived in the north of England, especially in winter.

Creatine - good evidence, naturally occurring substance, helps recovery, well tested

Vit D in the autumn/winter

Omega 3 for the joints.

Turmeric/black pepper/O Oil for anti-inflammation (metal strut in my back attached to my spine)

Pumpkin seeds (bladder getting on a bit)

Hypericum Perforatum (Misery from S.A.D)

Protein shakes (post-ride)

Cocodamel/Ibuprofen (just for fun)

Beer (oh, wait...)

Fish oil, for my hereditary high colestoral and because it improves my mood (I don't know why).

Cod liver oil daily because it's highly nutritious. Plenty of fat soluble vitamins including the all important Vitamin D in a wholly natural form.

Check out Green Pastures Fermented Cod Liver oil as the very best supplement you can spend you money on (and probably the only one you need if you're eating properly).

[url= http://www.westonaprice.org/health-topics/cod-liver-oil-basics-and-recommendations/ ]Link to more info on fermented Cod Liver Oil (Weston A. Price website)[/url]

It needs to be Vitamin [b]D3[/b].

Just had a blood test back and I scored 19 for vitamin D, where 50 is about where you should be apparently....
Guess I'll be looking into this.

My Dad's spent the last 25 years going through pretty much everything available in an attempt to improve his condition (fibromyalgia, CFS, injuries not healing)

One variable at a time, scientific method medical/biochemistry papers scoured, down the rabbit hole of ever-increasing, baffling complexity.

The key for him was finding out through trial an error what he was short of that was holding up, at various points, the processing of toxins in his body. Toxins (which can just be from exercise), if they can't be dealt with, can be locked away by the body in fatty tissue and mineral deposits in connective tissues. The other key was vaso-dilators, as the mineral deposits tend to be in places with poor blood supply.

He's currently on chelated zinc and magnesium, B6 and B12, and some fancy immune response-modifying collagen supplements, probably a few other things too.

Massively slow process, pain always accompanies increased repair, might be a few months between trying something new and finding out if the increased pain is good, or if he's ballsed up.

Bizarre but true, decades-old injuries have been healing in reverse order, he's only got a few left to go. Then he's going to be aging in the standard direction again!

Creatine here, does what it says on the tin, plenty of evidence to back it up

Which is what for a health benefit - genuine question? I understood it contributes to building lean muscle if exercising, retains water & therefore adds bulk & weight.

@ nedrapier - this link may be useful, as may your father getting his FT3 tested:

http://www.drmyhill.co.uk/wiki/Main_Page

I understood it contributes to building lean muscle if exercising, retains water & therefore adds bulk & weight.

That's more a side affect, it helps muscles repair themselves, so you recover quicker, and it used as an energy source for explosive power (ATP).

Only real downside is that some people respond better to it that others, so for some it has no affect and they're just wasting their money (although it's really cheap).

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2649889/

Adcal so I don't crumble to dust

And that chart needs to be taken with a big pinch of salt. you need to spend quite a bit of time on it to get value out of it.

Quite a few things on both sides of the "worth it" line, depending on what they've been tested as effective against.

That's more a side affect, it helps muscles repair themselves, so you recover quicker, and it used as an energy source for explosive power (ATP).

Thanks Footflaps. So would it be useful to be taking it through winter training, then ditch it - and the weight - come race season?

I've used it before (Rugby), so I know it works for lean muscle gain but also inflates me by about 3/4 stone.

Latest topic from the one and only Dr K who always cuts through the crap:

http://drmalcolmkendrick.org/2015/11/07/changing-the-definition-of-familial-hypercholesterolaemia/

Kryton57

Which is what for a health benefit - genuine question? I understood it contributes to building lean muscle if exercising, retains water & therefore adds bulk & weight.

In addition to what footflaps said tt also increases testosterone (to varying degrees). Up to 22% if you believe the hype. Very useful stuff.

Thanks Footflaps. So would it be useful to be taking it through winter training, then ditch it - and the weight - come race season?

That's an interesting question! (Especially as someone who could probably do with putting on a few kg (especially if it's pure muscle - braaaap))

I tried creatine and it made me feel like I was hungover .

I think there is quite a lot of evidence for Vitamin D supplements now? Here in Sweden it's given to small children during winter and I think Scotland is toying with the idea?

Does dioralyte count? 😕

I've been using Vit D spray recentyl and while its probably just expensive minty water I have avoided a lot of bugs even while quite tired and broken.

Omega 3.
The northern European/American diet is woefully lacking in this apparently.
The benefits to heart health have been known for some time but studies are showing significant benefits for a healthy brain.

Vitamin D, I have ms and whilst there is no proven link my neurologist recommends taking it just in case the less sunshine/increased ms prevalence correlation proves to be related to vit d deficiency.

Thanks Footflaps. So would it be useful to be taking it through winter training, then ditch it - and the weight - come race season?

You really need to experiment and find out what gains (if any) you get from it. In terms of performance enhancement you would expect it to benefit sprinters more (use a lot of ATP in sprints), so it's probably more of use in the race season than in the base building winter season (although recovery enhancement might benefit a bit).

Vitamin D3 - i do live live near the Arctic circle and it's a tad dark up here

Been riding a lot recently and have been getting cramps on the inner thigh.

Magnesium B6 supplements as advised by the pharmacist seems to have coincided with me not ever getting cramps, so although this would never count as medical evidence, I'll go with it.

Duntstick - just out of interest are you using Electrolyte Tabs? I had the same issue and it turned out to be magnesium poisoning from overdosing on those.

The best source of unbiased info on supplements IMO is examine.com

I take D3, Creatine, Omega 3, ZMA, whey protein, leucine and ibuprofen!

I've just realised this is the first post I've made in over 3 years... I've spent the time olympic weightlifting, a sport I did as a teenager (now 52!). I blame Dave's iDiet (anyone remember?)

I did get out on my love/hate SS last weekend and loved it all over again. What's all this 1x10, 27.5, 29", fat bike malarkey that's happened in my absence? Is 26" SS as a dodo now?

glucosamine and omega 3, sometimes flirt with multi-vitamins if i am away traveling a lot.

@DrT remember seeing your post and dunno if you'll see this but new research on ms and vit d - [url= https://www.mssociety.org.uk/ms-news/2015/12/could-vitamin-d-help-repair-myelin ]https://www.mssociety.org.uk/ms-news/2015/12/could-vitamin-d-help-repair-myelin[/url] that suggests it's quite important in myelin repair

Vitamin D.

Because I live in Scotland.

Creatine will make you feel crap if you don't hydrate enough.
Really, really crap due to its "hunger" for water.
Of all the "muscle" supps it is the one time and time again that comes out on top.
Increased ATP transfer, vascularity, muscle recovery/repair, etc.
Its cost due to popularity is rock bottom too in relation to its benefits however I'd say to go just above the cheapest of the cheap and with a good supplier - MuscleFood/MyProtein/etc - theres no need going for the daft brands as its all made in the same place here or germany.
It helps me massively with neuropathy, paresthesia, concentration, etc and recovery after physio or training.

I've spent the time olympic weightlifting, a sport I did as a teenager (now 52!).

How do you find it now? I just ask, as having started mid 40s, I'm coming to realise that it's not an older person's sport, lack of Type-II muscle fibres I'm guessing....

Talking of 50 year old lifers I bumped into [url= https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dave_Morgan_%28weightlifter%29 ]Dave Morgan[/url] in our street the other day! He's still built like a brick shit-house, but not competing any more....

Fats help absorbtion of some vitamins and minerals

http://empoweredsustenance.com/low-fat-diet-bad/

http://www.webmd.com/food-recipes/20040727/fat-helps-vegetables-go-down

https://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/patientinstructions/000104.htm