Muscle Soreness & Supplements

During the night Monday night, my leg muscles started cramping up from the leg workout with the girls.  I couldn't get comfortable, regardless of the position I was sleeping in.  Then it seemed like seconds later, I woke up to a tiny fist in my face.  Needless to say, I was exhausted on Tuesday!  And I think it's time to up the glutamine intake perhaps?

The Cause

Muscle soreness is caused by trauma to your muscle fibers.  Think of it this way: you're essentially tearing down your muscle during a workout and the soreness is your body's reaction to that breakdown during the healing process. 

No Pain, No Gain... sort of!

I secretly love when I get this type of soreness.  It's not a sharp pain that alerts you that you've hurt yourself, rather a dull one that lets you know that you've really worked those muscles.  In fact, I feel like I didn't really have a great workout if I don't feel it.  Without the soreness, I almost feel as though I didn't really push myself to any new gains, you know? 

What Helps

Glutamine can greatly help to alleviate muscle soreness.  I usually add a little over 10g in my post-workout shake.  The one I have is in the photo here; it's tasteless and odorless.  It has a tiny bit of a gritty texture, but it is barely noticeable.  Eric's trainer has him on 30g of glutamine per day to help with this.  The amounts will vary based on your needs.

Branched-chain amino acids (BCAA) are also very good with promoting muscle growth and helping with recovery.  I've read information that says it's best to take your BCAAs before a workout, and some that have recommended taking some before and some after.  I personally am doing both, but have found that I can't take these on an empty stomach because it makes me a bit nauseous.

Why Take Supplements?

Think of it this way: you're putting your body through a bit of stress when working out and it will be utilizing a lot of the nutrients already in your body.  So why not give it the proper nutrition that it needs, and the amount that it needs?  It just makes sense to take care of yourself.

You can purchase this stuff at your local nutrition store.  If you're in Texas and are close to a larger H-E-B that has a healthy living section, then you can locate these items there.  I personally like Nutrition Depot because they're much more reasonable (and because I get 10% off on top of those low prices as a client of Natasha's).  You can also find these things at your local Vitamin Shoppe or even order them online from www.bodybuilding.com.

My Supplements

Currently, I'm taking the glutamine and BCAAs mentioned above, my protein shakes and the Vi-Pak.  The Vi-Pak contains an amazing multi-mineral and vitamin, an anti-aging and energy pill that works on the cellular level, omega vitals (no fishy taste, no aftertaste, incredible for your hair and skin health), and a supercharged antioxidant that fights off free radicals in the body.

Another one of the cool things about the Vi-Pak is that it makes things simple for me because it's already sorted out.  To be honest, I'm a bit lazy about sorting out pills for the day/week and it gets a bit cumbersome.  Oftentimes I would put it off and then not take them.  But with the Vi-Pak, everything comes already sorted out for you (as shown by photos I found online) in morning and evening packets.  It's perfect for my lazy tail!


Daily supplements already sorted



AM packet example

As I always state, don't get overwhelmed by all of this information.  Baby steps are okay.  It took me a while to absorb all of this information and there's still more that I'm learning every day.  Keep it simple and start with the small stuff, then branch out from there.  Every step counts, even if they are baby steps. 

=) Amanda