The world of sports nutritional supplements is, unfortunately, flooded with very aggressive marketing that, besides playing with emotions, is at least scientifically questionable.
When I was a student of both engineering and personal training, I approached reading papers with a lot of caution. That’s why I’m going to give you a list of supplements that I usually suggest to my clients and that, surprise, are the ones I regularly use and others at specific times of the season:
Regular Use:
1. Whey Protein Isolate
2. Unflavored Whey Protein Isolate
3. Creatine Monohydrate
4. Creatine Monohydrate with Creapure Seal
(Same as the above, but pricier due to the seal)
5. Multivitamin (With an ideal dose of vitamin D for Copenhagen!)
6. Omega 3-6-9
For pre-workout and during the workout, I also use some. The philosophy behind this selection and its prioritization is:
Simplicity: ingredients and doses that we know work and studies not funded by private companies.
Naturalness: ingredients that are naturally obtained without following an extravagant and difficult-to-follow methodology and patent.
My Pre-workouts:
1. A Good Night’s Sleep
2. Rice Cream (Used as a pre-workout)
3. Caffeine (Only during strength-focused workouts)
Intra-workout:
1. Bananas: Potassium is key. How often have we seen top tennis players eat bananas during long matches?
2. Water: No fancy electrolytes—just lots of water.
3. Maltodextrin (Only for long workouts needing quick sugar replenishment)
4. Dextrose
And that’s it. If my customer wants to fine-tune more than I do, I focus on suggesting supplements aimed at relaxation and recovery, such as:
1. Ashwagandha
2. Melatonin (For customers with sleeping issues who follow a set bedtime routine)
That’s it. As for additional supplementation for relaxation, I would recommend implementing relaxation habits before spending more money, such as meditation, meditative walks in the cold (Copenhagen in winter is great for this), sauna and cold baths, breathing and relaxation exercises, and the application of sleep habits.
Sometimes, we think that a little pill will solve what our lifestyle does not, and no, it doesn’t work that way, and I don’t care what your doctor has told you. For each supplement, I have left links to the company where I buy them. Why I chose that company:
1. Doses aligned with scientific literature
2. Public laboratory analyses for the majority of their products
I hope this helps, if you have any questions about selection and prioritization, feel free to contact me.
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