Vitamins and Supplements???

[JJG]

Does anyone use any particular vitamins?? Multi-vit, B complex, Omegas, GNC "packs", etc.???

Any favorite supplements?? protein shakes, whey powder, flaxseed, etc???

Is it all hype and marketing???

[Dale K.]

Whey protein is pretty standard for me after workouts and when I don't have time to make real food. But yes, there's a lot of hype about protein powders for sure. I do it more for convenience.

After workouts it's beneficial to have a protein and high GI carb - so I mix mine with dextrose, maltodextrin & ice in a blender. Tastes like a sweet milkshake. It's very yummy. It's my reward for working out.

Plus I'm always starving after workouts - so it stops me from binging. Liquid form and high GI carbs means it gets digested and transported to cells faster than whole food would.

You can also get the same effect with non fat chocolate milk for way cheaper. Whey protein powders taste different depending on the brand. I've bought some costing over $20 that taste like gasoline. There's another - Designer Whey - that supposedly won some sort of "best tasting" award. That stuff makes me gag.

Omega3s? Yes. They are just a pain because to get the commonly reccomended 3g you usually have to take several pills. If you get them, try to find enteric coated, otherwise you'll get fish burps - and they're gross.

Of the things you listed Omega3s are the only one I would say are a must. Our bodies require them and most Americans don't consume nearly enough.

I sometimes put flax seed in my oatmeal. It's a good, tasty way to get in a healthy fat. Has sort of a nutty flavor to it.

I wouldn't rely on flax to replace Omega3 consumption however. Sometimes it's marketed as a good source of Omega3s but it's not. There's still other good stuff about flax but our bodies don't convert the ALAs in flax to Omega3s effectively.

I still have the $800 a month multi-vitamins my doctor made me buy last June. I'd have to take 6 a day and they're HUGE. How many pills do these people think I want to pop a day? eesh!

No they aren't really $800 a month but seriously like $65 I believe. I've been told that things like Centrum don't have the "bioavailability" that the expensive vitamins do - so we're wasting our money on them. I have no idea whether that's true or not. I only know that I'm not spending $65 a month on vitamins. I'll just eat my fruits and veggies instead - though these days they aren't much cheaper! I spend at least $8 a week on apples alone. ugh.