How long should one take a particular sports nutrition product to see results?

Author: Timko Ilya - master of the whole project and fitness trainer.
2016-12-24

People often buy the smallest jars of sports supplements and the smallest packets they can find, hoping that this will significantly change their training progress. To think this way is akin to believing: Here, I will eat (regular food) now, and then I can not eat for a week and see results.

In reality, the effect of any sports supplement is cumulative, not immediate (except for pre-workout complexes). In this article, I will list the most popular sports nutrition and explain how long it needs to be taken for you to feel the effect. Let's go!

Table of contents

1. Protein
2. Gainer
3. Creatine
4. Joint and ligament supplements
5. Vitamin and mineral complexes
6. BCAA
7. Fat burners
8. L-Carnitine
9. Amino acid complex
10. Tribulus

1. Protein

Duration of intake: at least one month.

Dosage: about 1 gram per 1 kg of body weight per day.

Protein is taken for weight loss as well as for gaining muscle mass. Both processes take anywhere from one month to… infinity. This means that it can be taken for a lifetime without breaks. However, not everyone can afford that, and often it gets monotonous, so usually, people take it in "cycles" when cutting or bulking.

If a petite woman needs to take about 60-70 grams of protein a day, that adds up to 2 kg in a month. Therefore, there is no point in buying less than 2 kg of protein. Manufacturers simply create packages of 1000, 900, and 500 grams to ensure you buy at least something.

2. Gainer

Duration of intake: at least one month.

Dosage: about 1.5 grams per 1 kg of body weight per day.

The same can be said for gainers, with the only difference being that they are taken solely for gaining mass, and typically about 20-40% more is needed compared to protein. Therefore, it needs to be purchased starting from 2.5 kg. Just think about how you would gain mass over, say, 2 weeks? It’s unrealistic. Thus, gainers also need to be considered for a minimum of a month.

3. Creatine

Duration of intake: at least one month.

Dosage: about 1 gram per 10 kg of body weight per day.

Creatine has a cumulative effect. It gradually accumulates in the muscles, and you will feel its effects in about 6-7 days. However, it also dissipates quite quickly after stopping intake. Therefore, there’s not much point in taking it for less than a month. Moreover, it is usually used for gaining mass. But how can you gain the necessary mass, for example, in a couple of weeks? You can’t. Thankfully, there are usually no problems with creatine since it's inexpensive, and packages typically start from 250 grams and up.

4. Joint and ligament supplements

Duration of intake: at least 2 months.

Dosage: collagen - 1 g per 10 kg of body weight per day. Chondroitin or glucosamine - 0.3 g per 10 kg.

This includes glucosamine, chondroitin, collagen, and comprehensive supplements. The thing is, the recovery of joints and ligaments is generally a very long process that can stretch over months or even years. Therefore, the intake of these supplements should last several months. At least 2, but ideally 3-4 months.

5. Vitamin and mineral complexes

Duration of intake: at least 2 months.

The same applies to these products. You will not saturate your body with vitamins in 1-2 weeks. Particularly since synthetic vitamins are relatively poorly absorbed. Furthermore, modern food is deficient in vitamins, and generally, vitamin and mineral complexes can be taken continuously throughout life. They don’t even have to be sports supplements. Regular pharmacy ones will work too.

6. BCAA

Duration of intake: at least one month.

Dosage: approximately 2 grams per 10 kg of body weight per day.

They are often produced in small packages (200-300 grams) because they are expensive. So, if you read the composition, you will see that often the % of BCAAs is far from 100%. It can be 80%, 70%, or even 50%. This means that if a 100 kg man needs 600 grams of pure BCAAs in a month (20 grams a day), then he needs to take 60% BCAAs for the month – 1 kg! Yet people buy a 300 gram jar and stretch it over a month.

In addition, there are also BCAAs in capsules. Often there are 0.5 grams of BCAAs in one capsule. So, does this mean that a 100 kg man needs 40 capsules a day?!! – you might ask. Yes, that's right. Ideally, that is indeed the case. But people take 3-5 capsules a day and expect results! In general, take at least 500 grams of pure BCAAs.

7. Fat Burners

Duration of intake: at least one month, and no more than 2 months.

Yes, you may feel the effects of some fat burners immediately. More precisely – the side effects (increased temperature, tachycardia, and elevated blood pressure). However, the visual effect only appears after some time. Because the ideal weight loss speed is 1 kg per week.

8. L-Carnitine

Duration of intake: at least one month.

Dosage: 0.5 grams per 10 kg of body weight per day.

L-Carnitine burns fat not directly, but indirectly. Its effectiveness is not that great. In general, time must pass before you feel its effects.

9. Amino Acid Complex

Duration of intake: at least one month.

Dosage: 2 grams per 10 kg of body weight per day.

Amino acids are essentially broken down protein. Ideally, you should take as much as you would take protein (60-100 grams per day). Imagine, if you buy amino acids in capsules, and even if there’s 1 gram per capsule, that would mean up to 100 capsules a day!!))). Of course, no one will do that. Therefore, at least 2 grams per 10 kg of body weight is recommended. But almost everyone takes 3-5 capsules only on workout days and expects results from that.

10. Tribulus

Duration of intake: at least one month, and no more than 2 months.

Dosage: 500 mg per 10 kg of body weight per day (at 45% saponin content).

Tribulus stimulates our brain (pituitary gland), which, in turn, signals the body to produce more testosterone. To kickstart this process, it takes about a week. So, you will begin to feel the effect in about a week. It would be foolish to take it for just 2 weeks in that case.

Moreover, if taken for too long, the body loses sensitivity to it. That is why I recommend taking Tribulus for a month to 2 months.

Conclusions

1. As you can see, any sports supplement should be taken for at least a month. And some types should be taken for several months.

2. If you skimp and significantly reduce the dosages, you will not feel any effect, even if you take it forever.

3. Sports supplements are essentially sublimated food. You should treat them like food. And just like regular food, you need to take them in adequate quantities and consistently.

4. All sports supplements (except pre-workouts) should be taken EVERY day, not just on workout days.

5. Some may say that taking them for such a long time and in such dosages is very expensive. Yes, it is. And there’s nothing to be done about it. The average person spends about 10,000 – 12,000 rubles a month on food. In a good scenario, you should spend around 50% of that on sports supplements. That means about 5,000 – 6,000 rubles a month.