My top two supplements for fat loss and building muscle are fish oil and magnesium. A note of caution. Please don’t go out and buy these at the store. Firstly, you won’t know how to find your personal dosage, you could just waste your money on supplements that don’t really work or worse you could cause more harm than good to your health. I can only recommend that you consult a qualified health professional that actually knows your medical history, your body composition, nutrition, lifestyle and exercise regimen.
Fish oil has many health benefits due to its content in omega-3.
Eating grains increases omega-6 in the body. If you’re looking to burn fat then you’ve most likely been eating grains on a regular basis. I’m talking wheat here – bread, pasta etc… Yes omega fats are healthy, but one must find the optimal ratio of omega-3: omega-6. Too much omega-6 causes inflammation in the body and is counterproductive to fat loss and optimal body composition. Therefore, a personalized nutrition around the elimination of wheat combined with an increased intake of omega-3 will decrease inflammation and promote fat loss by helping to balance out the ratio. Large quantities of omega-3 for too long can also create an imbalance and eventually result in inflammation. Too little fish oil and you’ll not reap the benefits of physical transformation.
Omega-3 comes from fatty fish. In supplements, we want small fish like sardines and anchovies because they’ll contain less of the toxic mercury found in larger fish. Poor quality fish oil can be rancid at the moment of consumption because it is very sensitive to light, can contain mercury (toxic to the brain), contain mould or not be at the actual strength that it claims on the label.
Fish oil has been said to help prevent all deadly diseases known to man.
There are 2 primary components to fish oil; EPA and DHA.
EPA is what we want for fat loss and muscle gain. It has anti-inflammation properties. It also helps to eventually become more sensitive to insulin aiding in being able to eat carbs later down the road in your physical transformation without gaining body fat.
DHA is great for memory, cell regeneration like the eyes and skin.
Fish oil has been known to help with the following issues:
- Sleep
- Focus
- Memory
- Improved insulin sensitivity
- Decreased inflammation
- Decreased belly fat
- Improved cardiovascular health
- Better skin
Magnesium is involved in over 300 essential biochemical reactions. It is a great supplement to help decrease cortisol and improve insulin sensitivity.
Therefore, it can help with the following:
- Sleep
- Stress
- Better carbohydrate management by managing insulin
- Decreased belly fat
- Constipation
- High blood pressure
- Muscle cramps
- Increase testosterone & build muscle
It is important to note that if your stress levels are too high then you won’t be able to optimize sleep, carbohydrate management, fat loss and muscle gain.
Taking the right magnesium for you can help improve your sleep and therefore improve insulin management, fat loss and muscle gains. It’s not because it’s a quality magnesium that it will help you sleep. Some types of magnesiums are cheap quality and may only make you poop more often as it is not absorbed. Magnesium malate is great quality, but it has an effect on mitochondria which increases energy production. I have often seen people consuming this type of magnesium in the evening and not sleep well as a consequence. I prefer a magnesium bisglycinate from Designs for Health as it contains a good amount of elemental magnesium (EM) and it is well absorbed by the body. Because it contains the word ‘gly’, it acts on the liver to aid in flushing out toxins from the body especially excess xenoestrogens – a type of oestrogen that comes from the accumulation of external toxins that cause a decrease in testosterone. The liver is the main detoxifying organ. These toxins can come from pollution in the air, BPA (plastics), parabens, perfumes / fragrances, and not drinking enough water are just a few examples. I have found that non-optimal levels of xenoestrogens are very common in new clients at my Montreal based gym.
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