I think we’d be a lot better off if we remembered that they are named Supplements and not Replacements. No pill in the world will ever replace good planning, hard work and determination. Instead, they should be used to augment an existing plan to make it even more effective.

Here is a list of supplements I am currently taking.

Multi-Vitamin

This one is simple enough - just playing it safe and making sure I get everything vitaminmineral wise that may otherwise be lacking from my diet. In the future this may be eliminated based on the makeup of my nutrition plan. I’ll have to see if I’m covering everything through what I eat.

Green-Tea Extract

I try to drink green tea when I can, but it’s really not convenient at all, so I take Green-Tea extract caps. Studies have shown that green tea has the following benefits (source):

• decreases risk of cardio-vascular disease
• lowers risk of cognitive impairment
• improves cholesterol levels
• prevents and reduces the severity of rheumatoid arthritis
• has thermogenic properties and promotes fat oxidation beyond that explained by its caffeine content

Flax Seed Oil

I take 8 caps daily of a good quality flax seed oil. I may increase this by adding a liquid version as well - depending on how up to the taste I’m feeling. Flax Seed Oil is rich in omega-3 fatty acids, an essential fat that is mostly missing from our diet. Studies have shown the following benefits of Flax Seed Oil (source):

• reduces the risk of coronary heart disease
• may help prevent cancer
• improves circulation
• improves cholesterol levels

Conjugated linoleic acid (CLA)

I take 4 caps daily of a good Tonalin brand CLA. Benefits include (source):

• improves muscle growth
• helps prevent lipogenesis (storage of fat in adipose tissue)
• helps reduce body fat, particularly visceral abdominal fat
• this is the biggest plus for me - as visceral abdominal fat is fat surrounding the organs and is known to contribute to many conditions

Whey Protein

I have a protein shake immediately after my workouts and will be adding one in the morning / before bed. Protein is the building block of muscle, and muscle is what has the most control over our metabolism. Since I’m more active now, I’m making sure to keep my protein level high to prevent me from losing muscle along with the fat I’m dropping.

This helps to prevent the yo-yo effect often seen in most diet plans. Often a diet plan involves dropping calories to an unsustainable level with little protein and little fat. The person will often lose weight because hey, they’re starving. But our body is smart and it adapts. It will slow itself down and go into starvation mode. It still needs protein to run, so it begins breaking down muscle. Eventually the person will lose a lot of weight, but a lot of muscle as well. At that point their metabolism will be very slow and they will stop losing weight. They’ll be forced to reduce calories even further and since they were generally already at an unsustainable level, the body will protest with hunger pains. Once they start eating a little more, they take in more than their reduced metabolism can handle, and the weight comes right back on and sometimes they end up even heavier then they started, but still with less muscle.

I know this from experience - i’ve gone through it four or five times. I nver learned because i was stubborn and would attribute it to lack of willpower or make other excuses.