What you eat shortly after your workout is one of the most crucial nutritional decisions you can make during the day when it comes to nutrient consumption. Although total calorie intake is superior when it comes to bulking up, gaining muscle, or losing weight, adjusting your post-workout nutrition may be the secret to getting the most out of your workout.
Post-workout nutrition and care has become a subject of serious interest for bodybuilders over the years. It is now seen as a vital part of improving your physique and improving your health, as well as your abilities in the gym.
However, with so many products on the market, each claiming they will assist you in running faster, developing faster, or recovering quicker, deciding which one to buy may be difficult. If you’re serious about gaining weight, the appropriate selection might be the difference between success and failure.
3 Most Effective Post Workout Supplements of 2022
- Transparent Labs BCAA Glutamine – Best Growth And Recovery
- Jacked-Factory Growth Surge – The Ultimate Muscle Building Supplement
- Transparent Labs Mass Gainer – The Perfect Meal Replacement and/or Weight Gainer
Below, you will find our detailed analysis of each supplement, along with feedback, ingredients, and other key points for your consideration.
Livin3’s Top Pick: Transparent Labs BCAA Glutamine
Transparent Labs have created a growth and recovery supplement that comes with over 30 servings – and also comes in a delicious Sour Green Apple flavor!
This BCAA Glutamine increases and stimulates your muscle protein synthesis. It goes a long way to reducing your muscle breakdown and also improves your post-workout recovery. That means that taking this formula before you start pumping iron will make you feel fit, healthy, relaxed, comfortable, and productive after your intensive session.
What does BCAA Glutamine do to your body? Firstly, it improves your glucose metabolism, increases your glucose uptake in your muscles, and improves your immune function.
Highlights
- Helps you not feel very tired after working out
- Increases your post-workout muscle growth
- Accelerates fat loss
- Comes in multiple flavors
Ingredients
In each bottle of BCAA Glutamine, you will find ingredients that include Leucine, Isoleucine, Valine, Glutamine, and Coconut Water Powder.
It also has Citric Acid, Natural Flavor, and Stevia too.
User Experience
Not only do users love the results that BCAA Glutamine produces but they also really adore the flavoring of the formula too. Many reviews have said that the formula really does taste quite good, far better than other formulas on the market.
Others also comment that their recovery time after working out is really fast and they are feeling very healthy and comfortable shorting after going hard in the gym.
Best For
If you are looking to really step it up in the gym, you should use BCAA Glutamine. Not only will it help your body become more fit and physically impressive, it will also help you recover from an intense workout. Best of all, it tastes quite good too.
Livin3’s Runner Up: Jacked-Factory Growth Surge
When you are working out a lot, it is very important that you recover and rebuild your muscles and keep yourself feeling 100% healthy and comfortable, even when you are intensely pushing yourself in the gym.
That’s what will happen with Jacked-Factory Growth Surge. It helps you enhance your post-workout recovery, muscle building, and also goes a long way to eliminate soreness throughout your body, joints, and muscles too.
If you really want results from the gym, you need to be in there quite often. If you are trying to hit the gym every single day and really make the most of it, you need a good post-workout muscle builder. That is exactly what Jacked-Factory Growth Surge is. Increased strength, relaxed muscles, terrific results – that is what you get with this post-workout supplement.
Highlights
- Filled with verified and time-tested muscle building ingredients
- Helps you recover faster and then return to the gym quicker
- Promotes fat loss and builds lean muscles
Ingredients
Inside each serving of Growth Surge, you will find some common post-workout supplement ingredients such as Betaine Anhydrous, Carnitine Tartrate, and BioPerine.
User Experience
Many users have said that they have experienced near-immediate results when it comes to muscle recovery and growth. They have said that they are feeling much better after an intense workout and have said that they are able to hit the gym multiple times a week.
Best For
Anyone who is hoping to visit the gym a few times a week should try Growth Surge. By helping your body recover quickly after your time lifting weights, running, and more you will be able to push yourself to the limit.
Livin3’s Honorable Mention: Transparent Labs Mass Gainer
Transparent Labs Mass Gainer is a wonderful meal replacement and weight gainer protein shake that is nutritious, easy to use, and quite delicious too. Plus, it comes in at just 750 calories and 109 grams of carbohydrates per serving too.
Mass Gainer is terrific when you want the purest and best way to build your muscles and gain weight in a healthy, fast, easy way.
Plus it comes with no artificial sweeteners or coloring and is gluten-free and with no GMOs.
Highlights
- Completely 100% grass-fed Whey protein concentrate
- Made with Stevia and monk fruit
- Only 12 grams of fat and 109 grams of carbohydrates
Ingredients
Mass Gainer is packed with some of the usual ingredients you’d see in many gaining formulas. These ingredients include Organic Tapioca Maltodextrin, Hyrdox Cookie Meal, Natural Cookies & Cream Flavor, Stevia, Sodium Chloride, and more.
User Experience
When you are using Mass Gainer, you should really enjoy it daily. The good news is that users say enjoying it is easy because it’s effective and really yummy too. Multiple reviews stated that it tastes great and the sugar flavoring isn’t too strong.
Best For
Using a weight gainer supplement is a smart move when you are trying to bulk up in the gym. But Mass Gainer is the best of them all because it is nutritious, produces results, and also tastes really good too. If you are committed to gaining mass, you should use Mass Gainer and stick with it as part of your daily regimen.
What To Look For In A Post Workout Supplement
When you are looking for the right post-workout supplement to add to your daily gym schedule, there are a few things to consider and keep in mind. Once you have decided what you need in your post-workout supplement, you can rest assured you will find it in the supplements we have reviewed above.
Goals
What are you looking to do with your post-workout supplement? Are you trying to rehydrate and replace lost electrolytes? Are you hoping to improve the recovery time you have after a gym visit or are you looking to build muscles? All of these things should be kept in mind when you are shopping for the right post-workout supplement for you.
Form
Do you want to use a liquid or capsule or powder when you are ingesting your post-workout supplement? You can find a supplement in many forms and you should consider and know which version is best for you. Which is easiest to take on the goal? Which tastes best?
Quality
Here is perhaps the most important thing to consider when you are looking for a post-workout supplement. Taste is very important too. You don’t want to take anything that tastes gross. It will only discourage you from using it and making gains in the gym. But you also want to make sure only the best ingredients are in your supplement, ones that will help you feel good after your workout and make your goals.
How To Use Post Workout Supplements
Although they are called post-workout supplements, most are actually taken before you start your workout in the gym. And each supplement asks that you take them at different times. Some supplements state they should be taken thirty minutes before working out, others say less than that. Whatever it is, you should follow the instructions of your post-workout supplement closely. They ensure that you will feel great and will see results faster.
If you don’t take the post-workout supplements as prescribed, you will not experience many of their benefits, such as increased muscle recovery rate, improved physical performance, hydrated muscles, reduced soreness and fatigue, and more.
Frequently Asked Questions
What Should I Eat Right After A Workout?
Doctors and nutritionists have noted several types of meals that you should focus on after working out to heal your body and recover. These include grilled chicken, roasted vegetables, salmon with sweet potatoes, pita and hummus, tuna and crackers, and more.
Will Post Workout Supplements Help With Sore Muscles?
Yes, one of the main goals of a post-work supplement is helping with muscle recovery, this is done through proteins, branched-chain amino acid such as BCAA and fatty acid supplements.
Is Creatine Good For Recovery?
Creatine is found in many post-workout supplements because it has been found to improve strength, increase lean muscles, and help muscles recover much faster too. However, research has shown that not everyone’s body responds to creatine in the same ways.
Side Effects Of Post Workout Supplements
The benefits of post-workout supplements are plenty. The biggest one is that it will increase the effectiveness of your time in the gym – while preventing you from feeling super sore afterwards too.
There are some side effects you may experience if you rely on post-workout supplements. They are not too common nor do they deter too many people from using them.
For one, you may feel jittery after using a post-workout supplement. That’s because caffeine is sometimes included in a post-workout supplement.
Another side effect may be digestive issues because of the ingredients mixed into the supplements. This is especially true when you first start using a supplement but as your body and constitution adjusts to it, this should usually subside.
Others have commented on experiencing minor headaches when using post-workout supplements too but those also go away the more you use the products.
The Pros and Cons
When it comes to using post-workout supplements, the pros definitely outweigh the cons.
The biggest pro is that you will be able to go to the gym more often because you won’t feel so sore, uncomfortable, and wiped out after working out hard. Your body will be able to recover and repair itself faster and that will only encourage muscle growth and fitness.
Also, some of these post workout supplements taste really good too so they can be a refreshing and delicious treat before you hit the gym.
The cons related to post-workout supplements are the same you find with many other supplements. They include things such as minor headaches, some digestive issues, and maybe feeling jittery.
Looking for best muscle building supplements? Check out our list of top 7 supplements.
Final Thoughts
Using a post-workout supplement is a great way to step up your workout game. Why? Because it helps your body recover and it also helps you feel so much better after pushing yourself hard.
Post-workout supplements used to be chalky, gross, and very unappealing. Now they are the opposite and taste great and are easy to enjoy multiple times a week. The question isn’t should you take a post-workout supplement. Instead, it is which one should you take?
Thankfully, there are a few great post-workout supplements that will get the job done. We can guarantee that the ones we have reviewed and recommended are the ones you should invest in and add to your workout regimen. The results will speak for themselves.
Article Sources
- Ryan Andrew, MS, MA, RD, RYT, CSC. All About Post-Workout Nutrition
- amino VITAL. Is A Post-Workout Supplement Necessary?
- Arlene Semeco, MS, RD and Celia Shatzman. Post-Workout Nutrition: What To Eat After a Workout
- ISSA. 7 Supplements for Muscle Recovery
- Stephanie Watson & Melinda Ratini, DO, MS. An Overview of Creatine Supplements
