Please Review My Stack (Advice pls)

[mjs5155]

Alright, so I've done a ton of reading on product reviews here at BB.com/M&F articles and I've been using protein powder and creatine for years. Recently I wanted to up my supps to a better standard. I also wanted to use different kinds of supps to complement my protein, recovery, etc. Here's what I'm using, along w/ ~3500-4000 cal/day diet to gain some mass.

Gaspari Nurition Superpump 250- Rasberry Lemonade (1 scoop before workout--> just started using this)
Optimum BCAA Caps (2 before and after workout)
Optimum Glutamine Caps (2 before and after workout)
Optimum Nitro Core- Extreme Cookies and Cream (1 heaping scoop after)
NOW Beta-Alanine (1 heaping scoop before and after workout)
Centrum Daily-Multivitamin (not concerned about using another form like Opti-Men/Animal)

Height: 5'9
Weight: 176-179
Age: 22
Goal: 180-187

*Workout is Muscle and Fitness 2010 "New Year, New You" program. I just started month two which focuses on mass (5sets 8reps)

Health-wise I'm feeling great with an intense motivation to constantly hit the gym which is great. I usually get motivated more when I start a new program anyway. My diet, while not explicitly planned, is strong because I almost never eat junk food.

THOUGHTS?
(Just started using BB.com after seeing some ppl in the gym with the shirts so I checked them out. Good prices. Advice would be much appriciated.)

[tuxified]

You dont need the bcaa's

[user94984100999]

everything looks good,but you could drop the glutamine

[AKheavyhitter]

You guys are ****ing idiots BCAA's and Glutamine are both essintial In recovery and muscle growth

[jhare54]

I don't know about the protein you're using.

I also don't care what the two guys up there said--AKHeavyHitter is right--BCAAs and Glutamine are two of the essential nutrients in recovery.

The protein you're using looks pretty good--but it has 24 grams of protein per serving, right? If you're wanting to bulk up, I suggest a mass gainer protein. With that protein, I would be drinking about four shakes a day. I firmly believe in getting at least 1 gram of protein per pound of body weight. (I try to get two or more grams per pound) You need to eat lots of carbs, too.

As for recovery, though--BCAAs and Glutamine are the two essential products. Taking a multivitamin is always a great idea, too. The only thing I could suggest is to get a glutamine complex and BCAA in powder form that you can throw in your protein shake. You're doing right by taking the tabs pre and post workout.

I'm not an expert, and I know that you need protein, glutamine, amino acids, and vitamins to build and maintain muscle. Don't listen to these idiots telling you that BCAAs and glutamine aren't useful. They obviously don't work out seriously or have enough muscle mass to worry about things like muscle wasting. Keep at it.

[jhare54]

That is not to say that you cannot gain muscle mass or keep muscle mass without glutamine or BCAAs. To prevent muscle wasting--and to answer YOUR question--the glutamine and BCAAs ARE beneficial in complementing your protein and workouts.

I got off task in that last paragraph of my last reply. ----^^ My bad.

[mjs5155]

Great responses from everyone.

I definitely want to keep adding some size and of course muscle mass and definition. To answer the one post, I am bulking up, but not so that I think I would need a mass gainer. My optimum is 185-190 but I am happy with 180-185 using what I have now (I do drink 2-4 shakes a day). The Nitro Core (from Optimum Nutrition for the person that wasn't familiar with it) is a good economic choice because I'm a college student, it has fast, intermediate, and slow digesting proteins. I would ideally have ONs Whey and Casein. The serving size per container is high and it is quality that's why I buy it.

The BCCAs and Glutamine are a must as well. I am looking for some combo though. I consider price, quality, and serving size when buying, I need some of these things to stretch money-wise.

Again thanks for the advice, any more opinions would be great.

[svillasenor]

Kick BCAAs, Mult-V, Beta, and Glutamine, and get Anabolic Innovations Essentials + Joint Complex, gives you all four plus creatine, digestive enzymes, and glucosamine, which you don't have listed, in one easy formula. Thank me later. Superpump is a quality product. As for a protein, check out AllMax Nutrition AllWhey, best flavor is Butterscotch Maple Fudge. It is also loaded with OmegaEFA (a source of stable essential fatty acids), and Protein Digesting Enzymes that increase whey peptide transit speed to muscles. If you want a great blend, go with Gaspari Myofusion, Banana and Chocolate are best flavors IMO. Hope thsi helps.

[xStevenx]

Kick BCAAs, Mult-V, Beta, and Glutamine, and get Anabolic Innovations Essentials + Joint Complex, gives you all four plus creatine, digestive enzymes, and glucosamine, which you don't have listed, in one easy formula. Thank me later. Superpump is a quality product. As for a protein, check out AllMax Nutrition AllWhey, best flavor is Butterscotch Maple Fudge. It is also loaded with OmegaEFA (a source of stable essential fatty acids), and Protein Digesting Enzymes that increase whey peptide transit speed to muscles. If you want a great blend, go with Gaspari Myofusion, Banana and Chocolate are best flavors IMO. Hope thsi helps.

The butterscotch maple fudge allwhey is amazing! comes highly recommended, Isoflex is another great option for a pure Isolate, great for post workout