Everybody's workin for the weekend.

With the weekend over, its time to get serious for this week. Now that the eating is on the mark, lets go over some supplementation advice. For the meat-heads out there, I'm sure you've experienced someone coming up to you in the gym and asking you "hey, what do you take?" and for some reason when I tell the truth on what supplements I'm using, they seem to be let down. I'm sure thinking to themselves that I was going to let them in on the secret pill that only big guys know about.

With that in mind here's the low-down on the best all-natural supplements that I've been taking for years, and are proven to work.

AMINO ACIDS - The building blocks of all proteins. They break down rapidly and are absorbed into the bloodstream. Your blood then escorts these amino acids to muscle tissue, where they can quickly ignite protein synthesis-the process that ultimately produces bigger and stronger muscles. Lets go over the best of the best.

GLUTAMINE - Glutamine becomes depleted during heavy and intense workouts. Use Glutamine to curtail delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS) and to prevent overtraining syndrome (OTS). All in all, Glutamine is considered a recovery agent. Best dosage - 5 grams before and after workouts.

Branched-Chain Amino Acids (BCAA's) - BCAA's are metabolized to the greatest extent in the muscle itself as opposed to to the liver or other organs, such as the intestines. The same as Glutamine, BCAA's will get depleted throughout your intense training which results in a rise in cortisol, causing the breakdown of muscle proteins and release of amino acids. When you lose them, you wanna put them back. Best dosage - About 6 grams a day, 3-4 grams of L-leucine, 1-2 grams of L-isoleucine, and 1-2 grams of L-valine. Take it within 30 minutes of postworkout.

Arginine-Alpha-Ketoglutarate (A-AKG)/
Ornithine-Alpha-Ketoglutarate (O-AKG) - These natural Amino Acids are used in nearly every nitric-oxide (NO) pre-workout supplement. The reason I'm recommending you to use them separately, and not just go out and buy a pre-made concoction, is you skip on all the fillers and caffeine they use. Also you save a few dollars too. A-AKG is a great vasodilator. O-AKG has a strong influence over amino acid metabolism and hormone secretion. Best dosage - A-AKG 1.5 grams - 2 grams 30 minutes before workout. Best dosage O-AKG 250 - 500 mg taken with A-AKG.

Well there you have it. My very simple pre and post workout supplement recommendation. Now, dont think this is all the supplements that are out there, but this is what I'm taking on my road to getting cut like a diamond.

Soon I'll go over my entire day of supplements, from waking up to what I take with my meals. But remember, don't rely on supplements. Make sure your eating and workouts are perfect before getting caught up in the supplement game.