Katie Hogan Talks Supplements

Supplement:

[n. suhp-luh-muhnt; v. suhp-luh-ment]

noun

1. Something added to complete a thing, supply a deficiency, or reinforce or extend a whole.

How supplemental is your supplement intake?

I’m often asked what supplements I take and recommend to others.

Pop Quiz, Hot Shot:

-Does your diet consist of lots of protein, good fats, and well-timed carbs?

-Are you getting enough sleep every night?

-Do you mobilize daily?

-Do you have a well thought out and planned training program?

Typically when athletes are looking for supplements they are trying to enhance performance or to promote better recovery (which effectively leads to enhanced performance by allowing the athlete to train harder, more frequently). But think about the effect of proper nutrition, adequate sleep, specific mobilitizings, and smart training. This prescription can clear up a lot of common issues in athletes such as fatigue, loss in stamina, joint aches, lack of focus, muscle pain, and the list goes on.

If those things aren’t all in check, stop reading now and go fix them.

Go ahead. I’ll wait…

We all good?

Cool.

Here is what I take and why:

Pure Pharma fish oil and Vitamin D:

Fish oil is my first recommendation to athletes who are asking about taking supplements. The DHA and EPA Omega 3s are what are bodies need and are not always able to get from our daily nutrition intake. It helps with inflammation and from personal experience I always just feel less muscle soreness and pain when I’m taking it.

Vitamin D is great for daily use, and because I travel often I also rely on it to help regulate my system across different time zones as well as fight off any sickness I might be exposed to on the road.

ProAnox Genesis (antioxidants):

A great addition to my recovery plan, ProAnox helps on the cellular level by producing more mitochondria and enhancing cell regeneration.

Basically, I’ve trained for weeks while taking ProAnox and then went for weeks without it to compare. Without a doubt I noticed better performance in the later part of my training week while taking ProAnox.

Muscle Pharm BCAAs:

Branch Chain Amino Acids were a recommendation from my coach when we began adjusting my nutrition. With the BCAAs I am insuring that my body gets the complete proteins that it needs.

Muscle Pharm Bulletproof:

Since most recovery occurs during sleep, I want to take advantage of this and make myself super recovered! Taking Bulletproof about a half hour before I got to bed helps me get into a better, more restful sleep.

Muscle Pharm Assault:

Delicious magic. It’s hard sometimes to get as fired up after a long day as you would before a competition. But in order to get stronger and lift heavier you need to bring the same level of intensity to every strength session. I take Assault and I can run through a wall.

Muscle Pharm Muscle Gel:

Emergency science foods. I try to eat every two hours throughout the day and I make sure to include some protein at every meal. For when I can’t get to any real food due to sitting in traffic or training clients back-to-back I will take a muscle gel once, maybe twice a day as my protein source.