Bodybuilding Supplements That Work

A buddy of mine who is entering an all natural bodybuilding contest shortly had a question for me recently. His trainer, apparently, had recommended a kre-alkalyn based creatine over the plain old regular creatine monohydrate, on the basis that creatine monohydrate was "old technology" and that kre-alkalyn was newer, and therefore more effective.

"Anything to it?", he asked?

"No!", I responded.

For those of you who don't know, Kre-Alkalyn is creatine monohydrate (CM) that has been treated with alkaline salts. Why would you want to do that? Well, the argument in the Kre-Alkalyn patent goes like this...

Typical creatine monohydrate powders are unstable in water, and extremely so in an acidic environment, and convert almost instantly to creatinine (a toxic waste by-product of muscle metabolism, whch is filtered from the blood by the kidneys) when ingested.

By combining creatine with alkaline salts and boosting its PH level to between 7 and 14, the creatine is 100% stable, does not break down, and is therefore entirely available to be shuttled to your muscles to power intense and productive workouts.

Special note: PH is a measure of a level of acidity; 1 is extremely acidic, 14 is alkaline, and 7 is neutral,

That`s the argument in favor of Kre-Alkalyn.

It might not surprise you to hear that the argument has some serious flaws.

First, none of the arguments put forth by the founders of Kre-Alkalyn have been qualified by published, peer-reviewed studies. In other words, they haven't presented any credible proof to validate their assertions.

Special note: Kre-Alkalyn is patented. Don't let this fool you; a patent is a legal instrument; not proof of a product's effectivness. You don`t have to prove your product works as advertised in order to obtain a patent!

Second, independent research contradicts their argument - that creatine monohydrate is inherently unstable in liquid.

For instance, Dr. Tony Wallner of Barry University`s Nuclear Magnetic Resonance spectroscopy experiments found that creatine was extemely stable when dissolved in water - up to a matter of weeks. Dr Roger Harris demonstrated that creatine monohydrate was entirely stable in water for up to 8 hours, and degradation beyond that was quite minimal.

Additionally, clinical studies conducted to determine creatine supplementation's effect on creatinine levels is not consistent with the argument made for Kre-Alkalyn. This study, for instance, concluded...

"Creatine supplementation minimally impacts creatinine concentrations."

It's hard to imagine how this could be the case if creatine monohydrate converted instantly to creatinine.

It's also difficult to believe that scientists would be using CM as a therapeutic aid for muscular dystrophy if it "instantly" converted into a toxic by-product like creatinine

So where does this leave Kre-Alkalyn?

On very shakey ground, when arguing its superiority to plain old powdered creatine monohydrate. At the same time, Kre-Alkalyn IS creatine monohydrate, so there's no reason to believe that it should not work. The problem in my mind is threefold;

1) It is significantly more expensive than creatine monohydrate.

2) It has not been proven to be any more effective than CM.

3) The recommended dosage is much smaller than the amount of CM shown effective in clinical studies. If one argues that a large percentage of any ingested powdered creatine is immediately converted to creatinine, then you can make the argument that a much smaller dose of a stable compound would deliver similar effects.

However, if that is not the case - and it very clearly seems like it isn't - then you would need to deliver Kre-Alkalyn on a dose level similar to plain CM to obtain the same degree of effectiveness. Since that isn't happening, it's hard to imagine how Kre-Alkalyn could outperform - even perform as well as - plain old CM.

Bottom line?

Creatine monohydrate may be "old", but it's still the only creatine proven effective in numerous clinical studies. Of course, it's cheap (between $10-$20 will get you a month's supply of the stuff), and the supplement retailers don't like that.

They'd rather sell you a $40 product.

Don't believe the hype. Stick with a good old German sourced creatine monohydrate (like Creapure).

Pre-workout supplements (like Muscle Tech's Nano Vapor, Gapari's SuperPump Max and BSN's No-Xplode) are incredibly popular products. Just about everybody loves the boost of energy and pump they provide.

But what's with the itching?

Many people complain that within 15 to 20 minutes of taking the product, their hands and feet, and sometimes their ears, start to itch uncontrollably (some folks feel a tingling or a slight burning sensation, too!).

Why is that?

The itching is caused by beta alanine, which is present in most pre-workout supplements (and for good reason; I'll talk more about beta alanine in another post).

And no, you are not allergic to beta-alanine.

It's a completely natural response to this ingredient, not dangerous, and should diminish over time. At most it should last between 30-60 minutes. The severity of the itching will be largely dependent on your sensitivity to beta alanine, and the dose present in the product you are taking. You can reduce the severity of the itching by taking your beta alanine with food (not an ideal solution if you're taking a pre-workout supplement, obviously), or if possible, reducing the dosage.

Why does beta alanine make you itch?

There are a couple of theories at this time, but since they haven't been confirmed, there's really no point in discussing them. The important point is that it's a completely harmless reaction.

Drink up!

As I've already mentioned, pre-workout supplements are incredibly popular with just about everybody who likes to workout with weights. In the last year or two, the products which have been gaining the most popularity in this niche are the "concentrated" products. These include USP Lab's Jack3d, Isatori's PWR, Nutrex's Hemo Rage Concentrate and BPI's 1MR (1 More Rep).

The reason why these products are so popular is the energy kick they provide; the only major difference in ingredients between these and "traditional" products (like Gaspari's SuperPump Max or BSN's No-Xplode) is that they contain the now illegal DMAA, or dimethylamylamine. When stacked with caffeine and a couple of nootropics for focus and cognition, dimethylamylamine gives you the energy to throw the weights around like a champion, even after a long day, or a terrible night's sleep.

Despite this, one of the most common complaints I hear from people is...

"Where did my pump go? I got an amazing pump from No-Xplode, but I don't get it from Jack3d, what gives?

The problem is that for the most part, the "concentrated" claim made by the retailers is nonsense - all it really means is small. And when you are dealing with ingredients that need to be present in multi-gram doses to have any effect (including arginine, which is the ingredient required for that great pump), small is not such a good thing.

A single serving of Jack3d contains about 4.4 grams of ingredients.

A single serving of No-Xplode contains about 20 grams.

Even allowing for a generous amount of sweeteners and flavoring, No-Xplode is much more likely to include optimal doses of the supporting ingredients like arginine (although we can`t confirm this for sure, since the label lists a proprietary blend).

Concentrated ingredients like Jack3d, on the other hand, simply can not, due to the logistics of serving size.

Which is why you do not get the same pump from a concentrated pre-workout supplement as a "traditional" one.

Some guys (and girls) I know have gotten around this by purchasing ingredients in isolation and adding them into their concentrated pre-workout supplement.

So if you love USP`s Jack3d, but are missing the pump, purchase arginine is isolation and add a serving to your Jack3d before consuming!

Energy and pump... gotta love it!

If you've been pumping iron for awhile and are familiar with bodybuilidng supplements, there's no doubt you recognize that in the world of supplements, creatine monohydrate (CM) is pretty tame stuff indeed. After all, it's pretty hard to imagine doctors willingly enrolling patients suffering from Lou Gehrig's Disease into a clinical trial that tested CM as a potential treatment aid if it were particularly dangerous.

And yet, for people new to bodybuilding, and who rely on the mainstream media for their information, supplementing with creatine monohydrate is akin to injecting anabolic steroids, or at least, the first step on the slippery slope that leads to doing so. I can't count how many times I've heard from anxious moms and dads of teenagers who have recently discovered weight training and bodybuilding, and are interested in supplementing with CM...

"Is it safe?"

"I don't want my son (or daughter) to ruin his (or her) body or test positive in a drug test!"

And so on (and no, I'm not making this stuff up).

The first thing that needs to be pointed out is that creatine is not an "anabolic", and does not alter the hormonal environment of the body in any way (I'll talk about this later in more detail, but creatine "works" by providing the necessary chemical compound required for the "re-energization" of the energy creation process that occurs in the muscle cell).

Secondly, it occurs naturally in red meat and to a lesser degree, in fish. So if you eat either of these foods, you are already actively consuming creatine monohydrate, albeit less than what's recommended by the typical dosing regimen.

Third, numerous studies (see here, here, and here) have confirmed that for most people, creatine supplementation is completely safe.

On the other hand, it would be irresponsible not to point out the obvious, which is echoed in the conclusion of this study...

"...idiosyncratic effects may occur when large amounts of an exogenous substance containing an amino group are consumed, with the consequent increased load on the liver and kidneys."

Which essentially means that very occasionally, side effects can and do occur.

And, as suggested here, those with impaired kidney function who may or may not be taking nephrotoxic medications, probably should avoid this supplement.

Lastly, all studies establishing the safety of creatine monohydrate have been performed on adults. It's safety has not been established in children or adolescents.

Special note: It has been argued that the vast majority of side effects from creatine monohydrate are likely a result of impurities in the product, present as a result of inferior manufacturing processes. For this reason, it is important that you experiment with a German sourced creatine only. Look for "Creapure" on the label; it's a patented German-sourced product.

If you were to believe the advertising that exists for some tribulus-based products on the market, you might be under the impression that current IFBB Pros are setting aside their vials of Sustanon and GH, and throwing back the tribulus instead. That's because tribulus is advertised as a potent "natural" anabolic, that "works" by goading the pituitary gland into boosting the production of leutinizing hormone, and accordingly, testosterone production.

There's even clinical data to support this, according to the advertising.

That's true. An old Eastern Bloc study does verify tribulus' androgen boosting effects.

Unfortunately, there are a lot more studies - more recent, Western studies - that do not.

This study, for example, concluded...

"The findings in the current study anticipate that Tribulus terrestris steroid saponins possess neither direct nor indirect androgen-increasing properties."

Those conclusions are also echoed in these studies (see here and here) as well.

It's pretty conclusive; tribulus is a bust for androgen production - it does not boost testosterone levels.

Yet tribulus is still a very popular supplement with men. Why is that? Well, tribulus also has a reputation as a "libido-booster" and aphrodisiac. Many guys who take it notice more frequent and more intense erections. And while there's no human based date to support this effect, there is some animal based data and plenty of anecdotal evidence.

This effect on its own may be enough to explain why so many men keep taking the supplement, although I suspect many "see" this effect as validation of its "testosterone-boosting" effects.

This is not the case. Enhanced libido and erections are not necessarily consistent with a boost in testosterone. Consider how the drug Viagra works, for instance - it does not modify androgen levels.

So what's the verdict on tribulus?

Thumbs down on androgen production. Worth a try as a libido booster. You don't need to spend a lot though; a month's worth of a decent product won't set you back much more than $10-$15 (check out the Now brand Tribulus at BodyBuilding.com).