CURVE APPEAL
Muscles aren't just for men, so it makes sense, then, that
muscle-building supplements aren't just for men. That
said, there's a science to figuring out how to put supplements
together in a way that fuels your workouts (and your gains)
without flummoxing your stomach. You need to build slowly,
allowing your body to adjust before adding to your stack. For
a strong foundation, start with these five basics.
Supplements to Help Add Sexy Muscle
#3 ZINC MAGNESIUM
ASPARTATE (ZMA)
#1 PROTEIN
Protein is absolutely crucial. Sure,
you eat chicken and steak, but if
you're not supplementing with pro-
tein powder, you're not on the fast
track to muscle gain. After workouts,
getting protein to your muscles as
fast as possible boosts protein syn-
thesis and, therefore, muscle growth.
But which protein to use? Current
research, shows that supplementing
with a combination of whey and ca-
sein proteins after working out spurs
the greatest increases in lean muscle
gains.
Take this: Pre-workout (30 minutes
before training), take 10-15 grams of
protein; post-workout (immediately
after training), take 20-30 grams.
Pro Tip:
Kelley
Gene
Wheeler
#2 CREATINE
This ever popular supplement is the
second most important component of
your new plan. Produced naturally by
muscles, creatine has been reported
to promote significantly greater gains
in strength, lean muscle development
and performance primarily of high-in-
tensity exercise tasks. It also increases
endurance and helps create the pump
that makes your muscles look so full
at the end of a workout.
Take this: Pre-workout (30 minutes
before training), take 3-5 grams of
creatine; post-workout (immedi-
ately after training), take another 3-5
grams.
Is a Nutrition Con-
sultant and Healthy
Lifestyle Coach. She
has a Bachelor of Sci-
ence in Nutrition and
Food from Ryerson
University.
Wait, you might be thinking, I already
get zinc and magnesium in my daily
multivitamin. And you do, just not
enough. The most definitive study on
ZMA to date, published in the October
2000 issue of the Journal of Exercise
Physiology, found that subjects who
took the supplement experienced
higher levels of two muscle-boosting
hormones: testosterone and insulin-
like growth factor-1 (IGF-1). Zinc is
also known to be involved in protein
synthesis, and magnesium works on
the pathways that influence muscle
growth.
Take this: Before bed, take two cap-
sules of standardized ZMA, which will
deliver 20 mg of zinc and 300 mg of
magnesium. [Editor's Note: The upper
limit for zinc and magnesium is 40 mg
and 350 mg, respectively. Check your
multivitamin, if you're currently taking
one, to make sure you don't reach
these levels.
Insulin is the “storage”