Guide to Crossfit Supplements
Crossfit is the new craze in athletic training and it can be a little more intense than your typical Pilates or Zumba class. It is a workout that focuses on both building strength and high interval training, so it can cause a lot of wear and tear on your muscles while also burning fat at a rapid rate. If you want to maximize your results, you can try using Crossfit supplements for the workout to improve the rate at which you are building muscle, burning fat and improving your endurance.
It’s important to be cautious when looking into purchasing supplements for your workout enhancement. There are a lot of scams out there that want you to buy products that are full of filler chemicals that are designed to falsify the lasting results that you are looking for.
Often times, people will get faster results from these fake products but end up with some very damaging results to their health.
You need to do your research carefully before you even consider purchasing performance-enhancing supplements and you should also consult your doctor if you are on any medications. They may interact with your chosen Crossfit supplements poorly, and you don’t want to do any unnecessary harm to your body.
- Creatine Monohydrate:
This is the most effective and thoroughly researched product in the world of performance enhancement for athletes. It is extremely impactful on the performance of your body during Crossfit training and will surely show you results when you want them.
Creatine is known to increase your muscle mass and strength which in turn also increases your capacity for high-intensity training. When you work out, your body depends on something called phosphocreatine to produce energy. The more athletic you become, the more your body produces so you are able to continue to increase your strength and stamina.
Creatine Crossfit supplements simply help add more of the chemical that you need for producing energy, essentially adding a second source for it. This second source of energy allows your body to jump into a high interval training session without feeling the effect of fatigue as much.
Be cautious in how you use this because if you go too quickly then the body can begin storing the Creatine too much and you will initially gain weight. Start the supplements slowly and try to ease into the routine of using it. As you exert more energy and you see the composition of your body and its capacity change, you can increase the dosage of your daily supplement. - Beta-Alanine:
This product is designed to improve your recovery time by reducing the negative impact that the wear and tear of exercise can have on your body. When you work out intensely, like you do in Crossfit training, you can get a lot of pain and soreness in your muscles the next day. You can also get a burning sensation in your muscles during the actual exercise, which can cause you to limit how far you will push on your workout.
Although a lot of people assume that the lactic acid buildup in your muscles is what causes all of that pain, it is not the only reason why our bodies feel that way. We also get a buildup of hydrogen ions in our muscles, and these are far more likely to create that contraction which is causing the pain in your muscles. These ions can also be responsible for your fatigue after a workout, so reducing those ions makes a huge difference.
Beta-Alanine helps your body increase its storage of carnosine. This is the chemical that is responsible for removing the additional hydrogen ions that buildup in your muscles when you exercise. By adding more of this chemical through a supplement, you will improve your body’s capacity in each workout and improve your recovery time as well.
Be careful with the dosage because it can cause a tingling sensation and that may make you uncomfortable. If you feel that sensation, you can cut your dosage in half to reduce or eliminate it. - BCAAs:
If you want to improve your recovery time more rapidly, look to this product to help you out! It is a really easy one to incorporate into your routine because you can simply add it to your water. It comes in flavors that taste great, so it will not disrupt your water intake at all.
These Crossfit supplements are designed to improve the repair in your body so that you can get right back to the gym. Regardless of the type of exercise you are doing, this one is great but since Crossfit is so hard on the muscles it is particularly great for that.
The BCAA that is having the most impact on your muscles is leucine. It improves protein synthesis and reduces the breakdown of proteins, meaning that it preserves the muscles that you have and allows them to rebuild at a rapid rate. If you utilize it prior to your workout, it will likely prevent soreness and muscle fatigue afterwards and if you use it after your workout then it will likely help you get back to the gym faster.
The three BCAA’s are leucine, isoleucine and valine so it’s important to make sure that all three are in the supplement that you are buying. Try to make sure that it is a 2:1:1 ration respectively with leucine:isoleucine:valine to get you the best results for muscle building and recovery. - Fish Oil:
Something else that your body relies on for muscle recovery and building are omega-3 fatty acids. Of course, you get this from a healthy diet by eating things like salmon and other healthy proteins but if you are doing Crossfit then your body is using up a lot of what you need.
Fish oil can help add the omega-3 fatty acids that you need to avoid depletion and improve your recovery process. The two fatty acids that are particularly helpful in fish oil are EPA and DHA and these two also help with muscle recovery. They also have the added bonus of improving heart health and cognitive performance, so it’s a great supplement with or without the excessive exercise.
Since it is designed to help your body balance fat and muscle, it can also help you in shaping and toning if taken with proper exercise. Take anywhere from 1.5-3 grams of fish oil per day depending on your size and exercise performance needs.
Try to take it in conjunction with a meal that contains some amount of healthy fat so that the fish oil can be absorbed into the body better. - Protein Powder:
This is by far the most popular everyday workout / Crossfit supplement on the market and many people use it as a meal replacement. However, if you are in a Crossfit workout plan then you are going to need protein powder to kick-start your muscle building and the repair process for post-workout.
Since you can sufficiently gain the proteins that you need through food intake each day, you may not need this powder to be added. However, if you are going to several workouts per day or your sessions are particularly long then you may benefit from some added support.
There are a lot of different options with protein powder, and whey protein is the easiest for your body to digest. That means it’s better for post-workout because it will allow your body to rebuild and repair faster.
You can also use egg or beef protein powders which will have similar effects to whey’s digestive process. If you use soy or casein protein powder then you should try to avoid using it right after a workout. They don’t break down in the same way and can leave you feeling overly full.
Try to stick with 20-30 grams of protein powder right after your workout to help you rebuild and repair your muscles. In between meals you can also benefit from protein powder, but be careful not to go overboard. You still get a lot of protein from your meals so too much protein powder being added to that can present some challenges in achieving the results that you want.