Maybe you are feeling pretty good because you are in a groove when it comes to your workouts. You’ve established a cardio schedule that is keeping your heart rate up and the extra pounds off. You have added weights into your weekly routine because you know the value of building muscle and how that ramps up your body’s ability to burn calories. But how much thought have you given to what dietary supplements you should be taking, and how those work into your overall fitness nutrition goals?

Adding the right nutritional supplements into your workout routine can help fill in the gaps, making up for the vitamins and minerals you are not getting from your daily meals and snacks. Selecting the best supplements to complement your exercise regimen will help provide your body with the proper nutrition it needs.

Let’s walk through the different types of vitamins and supplements that can help enhance your workouts.

Pre-Workout

Nutritional supplements can give you a boost before you even start your workout. There are a variety of pre-workout supplements. Some are designed to ramp up your energy, while others are geared toward improving your endurance ahead of a long workout.

For example, taking a supplement or sipping an energy drink containing caffeine before you exercise can help raise your energy level and stimulate your nervous system. If you need a little help getting started, try an XS™ Energy + Burn drink. They come in great fruit flavors like Strawberry and Blood Orange, and contain a blend of herbs and B vitamins to help fuel your workout. Each drink contains 80 mg of caffeine, which is comparable to a cup of coffee.

Another pre-workout supplement to consider is nitrate, especially if you’re doing endurance training like running or cycling. Nitrate is naturally-occurring in the human body in small amounts. Taken in larger amounts as a supplement, nitrate turns into nitric oxide, which can increase blood flow and allow some people to work out a little longer before exhaustion sets in.

Protein

Once your workout is over, protein can help fuel your body’s recovery. This can take many forms: protein shakes, protein-rich snacks or a protein supplement. Protein is important after your workout because it helps your muscles to heal. Once your muscles recover, you are able to build on that new muscle mass during your next workout, so using protein as part of your recovery actually sets the stage for your next great workout. Protein also helps you keep your lean muscle mass.

There are a couple different types of protein that are beneficial after a workout: whey and casein protein. Both are milk products, but they have different benefits for your body after a workout. Whey protein can be quickly absorbed by your body and is effective right after a workout. It helps your body recover and builds muscle mass. Casein protein is digested more slowly. It can be taken before you go to bed, allowing a steady release of muscle-building proteins while you sleep.

Nourish With Aminos

Amino acids are some of the superstars when it comes to your fitness goals. These little organic compounds team up to form proteins, which in turn are macromolecules – the building blocks of life that combine to make up our muscles. These amino acids are workhorses when it comes to building muscles and muscle recovery. The human body has 20 different kinds of amino acids, which can arrange themselves into hundreds of thousands of different types of protein strands, depending on what our bodies require.

To nourish your body, tap into the amino acids that are right for your fitness goals. If you are trying to lose fat and keep muscle mass, try a supplement like Nutrilite™ Lean Muscle, which contains conjugated linoleic acid, an essential fatty acid that supports lean muscle retention.†

Take Essential Nutrients

Nutritional supplements are designed to help fill in the gaps, providing an array of essential vitamins and minerals that you might not be getting from your daily diet. To help reach your nutritional goals, pick a multivitamin that will support your health and well-being.

The more you exercise and the more active you are, the greater your body’s need might be for B vitamins, antioxidants and electrolytes. Getting these from daily nutritional supplements can help fuel your body’s natural processes of energy metabolism, muscle function and muscle recovery.

A few of the vitamins to make sure you’re getting the recommended daily dose of include vitamins A, E and C. Nutrilite™ Daily contains 100% or more of that trio, plus another 21 essential vitamins and minerals, along with whole plant concentrates.

Fish Oil

Lastly, don’t forget the beneficial fatty acids that come from fish oil. They can support joint health. The Omega-3 fatty acids found in fish like salmon, sardines and tuna are particularly seen as benefiting heart health.

Nutritional supplements aren’t a quick fix in and of themselves, but taken at the right time, they can help you meet your fitness and nutrition goals when combined with a healthy diet and exercise.

† This statement has not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.