I’m a firm believer of letting food be your medicine and that goes for nutritional supplements as well. A lot of people ask me what are the supplements I recommend for the middle-aged man and woman (and older), or what’s called the “baby-boomer” generation. There’s just too much positive research out there that points to the importance of nutritional supplements. Now I’ll be the first to admit, and as I always say that there are NO guarantees taking supplements. However, I also believe in being proactive toward your health. Sometimes however, you only need common sense to see the results that a combination of exercise and taking supplements can make. Just look at the people working out and taking supplements consistently compared to the people who don’t; they simply look better, meaning they have more muscle, are more lean, and seem to have a lot more energy no matter what the age.

Listed below I have put together my favorite, and what I feel are the most important, nutritional supplements for this age group. These supplements range from a wide variety of health and athletic performance benefits. First, I have listed my favorite “General Supplementation”, but don’t let the term “General” fool you. These supplements are taken because of their importance for being on the front and being proactive in trying to achieve optimal health. The second list is my “Advanced Supplementation-Phase I”. This Phase simply adds or goes a little beyond what you’re taking in your general supplementation, depending on what your needs are. The Third list that I have suggested, “Advanced Phase II”, is for the fitness enthusiast, no matter what types of workouts you may be performing, that can help keep muscle mass high and help keep your motor running during those intense workouts.

Now I know that consuming nutritional supplements 2-3 times a day, 6-7 days a week can add up to a lot of cash. I have listed below 16 different supplements all for different purposes and needs. However, if you’re like me there is simply no way I can afford all 16 because I have to watch my budget as well. What I try to do is always take, for the most part (with a few exceptions), all the supplements from group One, the General Supplementation, year round. I will, however, rotate the supplements from the second and third group. For example:

In the General Supplementation: one of those exceptions is the multivitamin pack that I take has fish oil and vitamin D both so the cost benefit is very helpful.
In the Advanced Phase I Group: I’ll go on and of a joint supplement because I’m consistently taking Fish Oil in the General Supplementation Group. I’ll also go on and off the Probiotic as needed and if and when I can afford it. The same holds true with the Immuno Care by Himalaya. Since I take Juice Plus year round I only take Himalaya in the winter when colds and Flu are at their highest. On a side note however I’ve been taking juice Plus for almost 5 years and I can’t tell you when is the last time I’ve had a cold or the Flu!
In the Advanced Group Phase II: I’ll take Creatine for 4-6 weeks and rotate it with HMB or even the Bio-Grow from Isatori. I’ll also go on and off of the Beta-Alanine (also from Isatori) depending on my intensity of training and the affordability at the time. If I’m doing a lot of circuit training with some Cross-Fit mixed in, then 9 times out of 10 you had better believe I’m taking The Beta- Alanine.

References:

HMB: Journal of ISSN 2013, 10:6
Protein: ISSN Position Stand; On Protein and Exercise
Bio-Active Peptides: Top 5 Muscle Building Supplements by David Sandler; ISSN Europa University presentation Power Point Presentation, Orlando, 2013
Branch Chain Amino Acids: NSCA Strength & Conditioning Journal, Vol. 34; August 2012