Mar. 24--SILVER CITY -- In this day and age in the sport of fitness, you can't pick up a single magazine without being flooded with ads of supplements. Buy this one. It's the most extreme. Take your body to a new level. There are literally thousands of supplements out there to entice you to buy and try while you hope that it takes your body to a new level.
Now, I consider myself a workout guru, and I find myself in the gym as often as I can. I have taken almost every supplement out there over the past several years in hopes of finding the right one(s) for me, and I will say this, that every year, new and improved supplements come out that shatter the old ones. How much of a gym rat am I? Let's just say that I plan my stays out of town depending on which hotel has the best fitness center or is closest to the Gold's Gym.
The craze that is sweeping across the U.S. is pre-workout supplements. Getting an individual all jacked up and crazy before they get to the gym is what these new and interesting supplements are trying to do. Let me tell you that some really do help, while others lack the claim that really sets them apart. I recently came across a new item called VASOCOR. I visited a Nutrishop in Albuquerque, and the husband and wife team that worked there convinced me that they new what they were talking about so my wife and I grabbed a sample and headed to the gym to see if the claims made about the product were true.
To say the very least, I was very impressed, as was my wife. We both felt a big difference when we took it in only the first dose. Pre-workout formulas are fairly new to the fitness world, and most claim to get the individual prepared for his or her workout and to help with muscle strength and endurance. The new ingredient that is sweeping the country in these supplements in Nitric Oxide. NO is a vasodilator which forces more blood into muscles, which is supposed to help carry more nutrients to the muscles during your workout. More nutrients equals more strength, and bigger size and more fat loss. Most of these formulas have some form of creatine, some amino acids, caffeine, glutamine and other items.
VASOCOR claims to induce extreme training intensity, promote explosive strength & muscle growth, increase vasodilatation for full, rock-hard muscle pumps as well as amplify energy, intensity & mental focus like no product you've ever tried before when used in conjunction with proper nutrition and a regular exercise program.
Everything they claimed was true, and I have been using it for a little while now. I have literally taken tons of pre-workout supplements, and I will say that Gaspari Nutrition's Super Pump 250 is a close second. Monster Pump follows in third, while I had a hard time taking Muscletech's NANO Vapor.
You see that's the thing with supplements. Every body is made different, and what works for one person may not work for someone else. The idea is to find something that helps you and something that you literally will use and motivate you to get to the gym.
I find myself walking into GNC's, Vitamin Shoppes and other health shops to talk to different people and see what works and what hasn't. You can find out a bunch of information if you can talk to the right person that has actually some knowledge in this crazy supplement world.
A lot of information I have received has actually turned out to be very true. Talking to friends or other gym members is also another way of finding out what they are taking and what has worked and hasn't. You'd be surprised as to the claims made by a lot of companies in the supplement world just don't measure up.
In the supplement world, you pay for what you get. This is true with creatine, protein drinks, amino acids, and now pre-workout formulas. Instead of the case of beer, or carton of cigarettes, my wife and I find ourselves hooked on supplements, and when we run out and head to the gym, we don't feel as good or have as good a workout when we are taking our supplements.
Maybe this crazy idea is what has the U.S. fitness gurus spending approximately $5,000 a year on supplements. I will say this, find what works and stay with it and keep working out hard in the gym. For now, I'm sticking with VASOCOR until a new supplement comes out that shatters this one.
Danny Udero may be reached at dudero@scsun-news.com; (575) 538-5893.
-----
To see more of the Silver City Sun-News or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://www.scsun-news.com.
Copyright (c) 2010, Silver City Sun-News, N.M.
Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services.
For reprints, email tmsreprints@permissionsgroup.com, call 800-374-7985 or 847-635-6550, send a fax to 847-635-6968, or write to The Permissions Group Inc., 1247 Milwaukee Ave., Suite 303, Glenview, IL 60025, USA.
NYSE:GNC,