Should You Take Supplements?

According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, more than half of all Americans take one or more dietary supplements daily or on occasion. You can find a variety of different supplements at your local grocery store or pharmacy, and can be bought without a prescription. Many supplements are in the form of a small pill and are used to give the body additional nutrients that it may not have gotten in a normal day of eating. It is important for your body to receive the proper amount of nutrients it needs for good health, but not everyone needs to take supplements. According to Carol Haggans, a registered dietitian and consultant to National Institutes of Health, “It’s possible to get all of the nutrients you need by eating a variety of healthy foods, so you don’t have to take one.  But supplements can be useful for filling in gaps in your diet”. Dietary supplements are regulated by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration as foods, not as drugs. The label may claim certain health benefits. But unlike medicines, supplements can’t claim to cure, treat or prevent a disease. The answer to the question of should you take supplements is maybe. Whether or not you should take supplements depends on how good your diet is. You can always take supplements if you have doubt about how much nutrients you are consuming in a day, but supplements should not be taken with the expectation that they will cure diseases. If you feel like your diet is lacking a certain vitamin or mineral, or a doctor says that your intake of some nutrients is low, then supplements will help your diet and your overall health.

The Best Protein Is…

After physically exerting yourself time and time again during workouts, your muscles need proper nutrients in order to recover and grow. One of the most important nutrients for muscle recovery and growth is protein. Protein can be found in every well balanced diet, but sometimes athletes and gym goers need another source of protein other than lots of meat, egg, ect. The most common way to add extra protein into a well balanced and an already protein saturated diet is to consume protein shakes. Whether they are pre-made shakes, or ones made from powder, protein shakes are a popular choice by many in the fitness world.

There are many sources from which the extra protein can come from. Prominent example include whey, soy, and casein. Whey protein is the most common of the protein sources, and tubs of whey protein powder can be found for a low price. Whey protein is great for beginners as it is easy to afford and is effective pre and post workout. Casein protein is great for consuming throughout the day and before bed, because of its slow breakdown period which can range from 5-7 hours. Soy protein is a great source of protein for those who want a vegetarian source of protein. It works just like the other protein sources and has health benefits of its own too.

What kind of protein you use depends on what goals you want to achieve and the different protein needs of different people. Some people may want the long anabolic benefits of casein, while others may prefer the simplicity of whey protein. Personally, I use MusclePharm’s Combat Protein Powder (Cookies and Cream flavor). Everyone’s protein needs vary, so it is important to do your research before purchasing a tub of protein powder so that you know which kind will be the most effective for your lifestyle.

The Secret to Time Management

To many of us, 24 hours in a day does not seem like enough time to complete all the tasks that we set out to do. Yet, there are those people who appear to have their life together and are able finish whatever they needed to do. What is their secret? The answer to that question is time management. Knowing how to manage one’s time isn’t a talent that a select few are born with. It is a skill that can be taught to anyone and can be applied to anything in life. Time management can help the way your organize your day in order to be productive at whatever thing you want. Being able to go through the day in an organized and efficient manner will increase productivity and decrease stress. Not only does time management help you to organize your work or school tasks, but it can be applied to literally anything you need to accomplish.

Time management is especially helpful in the fitness world. Organizing your workouts is crucial for success. Without a consistent workout structure that you are committed to following, progress in the gym will be slow and could cause a lack of motivation to continue working out. In order to overcome the obstacles of a busy schedule and procrastination, we must have a plan. There are many proven methods for rising above poor time management, but the one that I personally use is writing out a detailed list of the tasks that I need to accomplish during that week. I normally write the list out on a piece of paper that I keep on my desk, and I also keep it on my phone so I always have a copy with me and can add to it on the go. As an avid procrastinator, I struggle with spreading out my work instead of doing it the night before. The specific strategy that I use is called the Pomodoro Technique. This technique breaks the time you spend working into 25 minute segments separated with a 5 minute break of activity, or something unrelated to your work/ computer.  The app that I use on my phone is called the Forest, which incentivizes you by growing a tree over a predetermined amount of time, and if you open a different app, the tree is killed. I set my timer to 25 minutes and use the app as my accountability partner. I find it rewarding at the end because you can see how much time you spent getting stuff  done. I hope this app can help you break your procrastination habits, as it did with mine!

An Intro to the Future

Welcome to the official website of Premier Performance. Join us as we work towards our goals, by giving you help along the way on your path to success. This site will include many topics including step by step instruction and guidance into the fitness world, product reviews, budget meal planning, specific program design based on athletic goals, along with a weight loss series/ physique updates. All of these topics and  more will be included as the site progresses. Along with this website, you can find more information from Premier Performance on our YouTube channel at https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC5GIqVAcyrorK2kRiKa_vWA

We look forward to sharing our knowledge with you as we progress together toward our aspirations.

 “The Victory of success is half won when one gains the habit of setting and achieving goals” – Og Mandino