Do Sports Supplements Make Me a Better Boxer?

Once upon a time, I got really into weightlifting. I had no background in it at all, and aside from a bench press and squat, I didn't even know any more names of exercises- let alone how to do them. It opened up a whole new world for me. The lifts, the gym atmosphere and even the supplements. In fact, as weird as it might make me sound, it might have been the supplements that I liked more than anything! At that point in my life, I was very much a "better living through chemistry" kind of person so, me being me, I decided to go crazy and just use everything. I figured anything I could do to bring my numbers up was worth investing a ton of money in. This was when I was younger, dumber, single and a renter with plenty of disposable income at the time. Trying all of the different supplements also provided motivation for me to go and work out. It was like every day was an experiment.

As I started to meet people at the gym, I was told that the stuff they sold at GNC wasn't as great as whatever they special ordered, so I ended up trying everything from homemade protein powders to something that supposedly altered my blood plasma (no steroids though, I wasn't going to go that far). Later, I eventually started removing supplements from my routine to see how everything felt. In the end, I can tell you it's all pretty much BS (at least, for me) but there are some things I still take. For a more detailed explanation on some of the specific, most popular supplements, read below!

Pre-Workouts

This is the one I still take pretty much every day. But it's pretty much just for the caffeine. I love caffeine. And it undoubtedly has a positive effect on your workouts. More energy, more stamina, more strength. Why take a pre-workout versus just coffee or energy drinks? A couple of reasons. Some pre-workouts have more concentrated caffeine and just generally higher amounts of caffeine, so I can wake up in the morning and become more functional faster with the pre-workout. Plus, if I am going to exercise myself, or even teach a class, I don't like the way I feel after coffee or an energy drink as much.

Of course always remember that my body chemistry is at least slightly different than everybody else's. I am also not at all sensitive to caffeine. You might be. Most pre-workouts contain beta alanine, which can make your skin feel weird and tingly. Some people really don't like this effect. I kind of do! If you haven't tried a pre-workout before, pick one that has less caffeine per serving, like 150 milligrams. Or, if whatever you try recommends 2 scoops, start with 1 your first time. The brands of pre-workout I like these days are Ghost, Stimul8, and Kaged and Mr. Hyde. They stopped selling Mr. Hyde at Vitamin Shoppe next door and thus, I am slightly worried that someone died using it so maybe don't try that one. It does have a pretty good rush of caffeine though. Really, I like every pre-workout except for the ones that have under 200 mg of caffeine, and C4 for some reason. Just never felt right with that one.

Besides caffeine and beta alanine, many of these pre-workouts have tons of other ingredients. Mainly BCAA's (branch chain amino acids) taurine and various seed, bean, root or fruit extracts. Do any of these things make any difference in terms of overall performance? I highly doubt it. I have used plenty of BCAA supplements and not really felt anything special. Always consider that when you are reading labels for a sports supplement (or vitamins), while it may indeed contain all of these ingredients, your body might not necessarily absorb any of them. For my money, I just like the boost from pre-workouts better than any other caffeinated options so that is why I continue to use them.

Protein Powder

We can all pretty much agree that protein is needed to build muscle. But does that mean that protein powder or protein bars = more muscle building potential? Not inherently. You may already get enough protein in your regular diet to build the muscle you want and the supplement does you no significant good. Or it could be even worse. Some of those protein supplements have a lot of calories. You might want these calories if you are going for absolute bulk but for many of us, they are just unnecessary and you can gain more weight from fat than muscle mass.

That being said, if you don't eat a lot of protein in your regular diet and want to build some muscle mass, even relatively lean muscle mass, you could up your protein intake. But this still does not mean you need a supplement. You could just add it to your regular diet - meat, eggs, beans, milk, nuts, etc., etc. Just like with pre-workouts, just because a protein supplement promises a lot of grams of protein does not always mean you will absorb it all.

I actually eat protein bars pretty much every day but it is not necessarily for the protein. I just like the way they taste and the ones I get don't have sugar. I suppose if there was another type of bar that tasted good and didn't have a lot of sugar, I would eat it.

Nitric Oxide

These are designed to increase circulation. By relaxing the blood vessels, they can facilitate the "pump"  lifters like to feel. Better circulation and blood flow is certainly beneficial to all forms of physical activity, but there is little conclusive evidence to show that these supplements actually make a meaningful difference. Never did a whole lot for me personally. A normal human body will produce this on its own and even if the supplement does help you produce more, which I doubt, it is unclear if this has any significant effect.

Creatine

I have been out of the scene for a while but I feel like the creatine craze has kind of died off. I know plenty of people take the supplement, but it was all the rage for a while in the 2000s. There was one post-workout creatine product I remember that everybody liked because they felt like they looked somewhat bigger after the workout and maybe they did but it also contained a lot of sugar so that might have helped. In any case, like nitric oxide, creatine is something that our body naturally produces to improve exercise performance and increase muscle mass. Will the supplement help you make more of it? Would that even help you much? Probably not, has been my experience.

There's not really much harm to taking it so if you are body builder and every millimeter matters and you think it offers some benefit, then it's certainly worth considering. If you are a regular person, even an active regular person, I feel like it is a total waste of money. I bulked up when I was lifting heavy and taking it but then when I stopped taking it and kept lifting heavy, there was no perceivable difference.

Fat Burners

These I tend to find the most annoying because they all promise "hardcore weight loss" and that on it's own is a completely bogus claim. No one is going to lose weight taking something like Hyrdoxycut. Sure, there are people who take it and lose weight but this is due to the dietary and exercise changes and not the supplement. At best, it might curb your appetite a little bit as almost all of these contain caffeine and other stimulants. However, more negative side effects are reported from these products than other things containing caffeine. Rapid heartbeat, jitteriness, headaches, nausea, etc. There have been worse problems and Hyrdoxycut in particular was banned for a while because it contained something that might have led to a single death years ago. That ingredient is no longer in it and the product is back on the market but I still wouldn't touch it with a 10-foot pole. There are no magic pills for weight loss yet. 

Over-the-Counter Testosterone Boosters

Just like fat burners, these tend to pray on human weakness. Most average Joes want as much testosterone as they can and they sure as hell don't want to lose it when they get older. It's what makes us men, Men, we are told. It's also the same kind of thinking that I mentioned earlier, which is "Hey, if there's even a slim chance it can help me here, might as well try it, right?" Probably because I am older guy myself, I see a lot of commercials for these products nowadays. I guess I could give it another shot to see what happens but I can tell you as a younger man into my 30s, none of these things did absolutely anything for me and there is probably no reason any younger, healthier dude should take them. If I discover anything down the road as an old guy, I will be sure to let you know!

Magnesium

I am specifically mentioning magnesium because it has been recommended to me by people in the fitness industry and actually does have a noticeable effect. Well, it has a couple. First, it is a sleep aid. Taking magnesium supplements can make your body feel relaxed and there are athletes who swear by it as a way to help them with recovery. I've certainly felt the relaxed part and slept a little better but did it lead to an overall positive outcome with my daily exercise performance? Nothing detectable. But you could consider it as a non-narcotic solution to help you sleep, I suppose. Though if sleeping is an issue for you, you should definitely have a conversation with your doctor before taking anything off the shelf. There may be other factors at play that you should address first.

The other effect it has is that magnesium supplements have is that of a diuretic. I would not consider this a positive thing but hey, maybe you are looking for some help in that department?

So I have to say again that these are my experiences, as well as what I have heard anecdotally and through just some online research. I am by no means a doctor nor nutritionist but I am smart enough to know that all of our bodies are different so what worked or didn't work for me may/may not work for you. Even just the placebo effect could have some value though. Believing you've got these magic chemicals running through your system may indeed convince you to work harder. Or motivate you to go work out. But any potential negative effects far outweigh the positive so don't charge in headfirst without doing some research of your own first. As always, this includes talking to your doctor!