Pre/post workout? Supplements? Group gyms? Help?!

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warriorinchrist14

New member
Okay y’all. Be straight up with me. I’m a 24 yr old female. 190 lb, 5 ft 8. Carry a lot of weight in my stomach. I’ve really started to research what my game plan should be to have a sustainable healthy lifestyle and lose some of this weight that has haunted me for years. More like the stomach that’s haunted me for years. So I gotta know… what do I absolutely NEED to invest in? I of course see all the hype for pre/post workout and supplements… but it’s hard to know what’s going to actually benefit and honestly what’s BS that diet culture is trying to push. Now I say diet culture, I don’t mean I’m opposed to dieting because obviously I lack structure and I need a diet to help regulate bad habits I’ve acquired over the years. I’ve started macro tracking and I think that’s most sustainable for me. I just mean it’s hard to weed out with all these brand deals what works and what is fake. I just need some advice. Thanks everyone! Also, whats everyone’s opinion on group fitness gyms like F45, orange theory, etc?
 
@warriorinchrist14 I’m about 2.5 months into my journey of lifting weights and eating healthy with the goal of losing 30lbs and feeling strong enough to hold my own on daily tasks. The only thing I’ve purchased so far is protein powder, a gym membership, and a fitness app to track my workouts.

The protein powder is a must for me to reach my protein goals, I just can’t eat enough in a day otherwise.

IMO the only thing that’s required is accountability, ie actually doing the work and tracking progress accurately. Everything else is a bonus. As a beginner the most important part is spending more time exercising/eating a balanced diet and less time “planning” to do it.
 
@smithy94 Thank you! I knew protein powder would most likely be a staple and especially to hit that protein goal so that’s really the only thing I’ve incorporated so far in addition to healthy foods to keep me in a deficit!

Edit: spelling
 
@warriorinchrist14 High quality protein powder is the safest and best supplement on the market. Theres too much crap out there thats a waste of money.

If buying protein, try to get "Whey Protein Isolate", which is a higher protein percent content and lower calorie intake.

I just picked up some vanilla BioX Power Whey Isolate which has 31g of protein in a 35g scoop (~90% true protein). Tastes awesome too. But there's lots out there.

Lower quality protein powder might have a 45g scoop and only 25g of protein. You end up getting a bunch of filler and it has higher calories per shake.
 
@skilletgirlepic Okay, gotcha! Honestly I have been using Orgain just because they carry it at my local Walmart/target. Any brands you recommend?

Edit: I see you put a brand in your original comment lol do you have any dos/don’ts as to when to use protein powder? Like I’ve heard it’s good to have it within a certain window of working out?
 
@warriorinchrist14 I am not too sure what your local stores will have because I'm in Canada (.ca and .com are vastly different items stocked, and we don't have target)

I kind of stumbled upon this one randomly while looking for whey protein "isolate" at my local save-on-foods. It was on sale. I always go for vanilla. Now I think I'm going to stick with it.

I used to buy a lower quality brand before I learned about the differences between protein powders. The other one also had creatine which I am avoiding. So I'm glad to (very recently) make the switch. I'm a beginner too
 
@skilletgirlepic Ah okay gotcha! I’m in the US, so I’ll keep researching. I know it’s better to invest in better quality, but like you said there’s so much BS out there I can’t afford to invest in EVERYTHING🤣 but a few non negotiable staples I don’t mind!
 
@warriorinchrist14 You can use any protein you’d like, but reputable brands use better sources. Easier to digest, easier to absorb, and overall just better. The flavoring system and the macros in the cheap stuff, something has to give for the price and it’s usually one of those two.

I really enjoy the flavoring of Dymatize cocoa pebbles and JYM Rocky Road. Again, I’ve gone the cheap route, but if you can afford it everything about a higher quality is better.

You can find something like Six Star at Walmart, but it usually has a poor profile compared to some of the others. It is made by Iovate, which is the parent company of numerous brands like MuscleTech, but the two I gave examples of are much better for the 10-12 dollar difference you’ll see, and you can just get them on Amazon.

Regarding timing, you do not need to worry about having anything in (x) amount of minutes. The optimal timing is honestly within hours, but it truly is negligible in importance compared to just being consistent with your deficit and training.

You don’t need anything pre, though I do like a bit of caffeine myself. Just a sugar free flavored packet from Walmart that has electrolytes and a cup of coffees worth or so, but that’s because I have two kids and they’re tiring. Just make sure you have hydration and drink enough during and throughout the day.

Meal wise - You don’t need to worry about eating X amount of meals or having this much every few hours or (insert bro science here).

At the end of the day, a moderate to high protein diet, resistance training, and some cardio is the key. And your deficit. Also key

The rest you don’t need to worry about now.

I worked in both, in some capacity (fitness and nutrition), and was an online rep for a couple supplement companies in the past (not the ones listed lol, years ago), so feel free to ask anything you want.

Protip - If you can find Gaspari Strawberry cream protein, it’s amazingly amazing. I have not found one from them in years that captured the original MyoFusion from them. But that was so good I never even had a dessert craving with that around….
 
@warriorinchrist14 Here's some quick info on different whey powders:

Whey Concentrate - Up to 80% protein by weight, but many brands offer much less. The remainder is compromised of mostly carbs and fats. Slightly higher calorie content.

Whey Isolate - 90+% protein by weight, very concentrated with very few additives. Lower calorie content.

Whey Hydrolysate - Very high protein content where the protein has been treated to "pre-digest" for consumption. Is rapidly digested compared to others. Expensive. Harder to come by.
 
@warriorinchrist14 You’ve received some really good feedback! I’ll keep my response short and sweet!
  1. Track macros. Start by tracking protein and total calories only. Then start tracking carbs and fat. Counting macros is not a diet. It teaches you the way you should eat for long term and sustainable living. Get a digital scale and weigh food until you learn proper portions.
  2. Be consistent. Find a workout plan you like and foods that help you hit your macro goals each day. It’s okay and actually recommended to be repetitive!
  3. Do not overthink it. You do not need fancy exercises, multiple supplements or difficult recipes in order to reach your goal. Keep it simple and be consistent
  4. Be consistent. Can’t stress this enough. It’s not a thirty day race or a 3 month goal. Retrain your brain to eat right and exercise for your entire life. Then when you want the fun foods or to go on Vaca without tracking you can do so guilt free. A few days of poor eating won’t derail you if doing the right thing is a lifestyle.
 
@warriorinchrist14 hello! I don't think you should go for pre-workout now, but whey protein and creatin(basically increases your strength=lets you work harder in the gym=more efficient, but still optional) can be really helpful. macro tracking is amazing and absolutely needed, you can find info about macro proportion(how much protein, fat and carbos is preferable for weight loss) and build your diet based on that(but don't beat yourself into eating just chicken broccoli and rice or something please). walk, cycle, run, do cardio and I believe you can do it! good luck
 
@warriorinchrist14 You absolutely NEED to invest your time and hard work, along with dedication to making incremental changes to both your nutrition, hydration, sleep (making sure you're getting enough!), and exercise. Fitness and health are a marathon, not a sprint, and you don't need anything besides that which is listed above. The supplement industry has paid a lot of money to make you think you do, but you do not. You don't even technically need protein powder.

If you decide you want to take supplements, though, whey and creatine are the only two that have science behind them as working in some capacity. Protein fills in the gaps that you may have in your diet/nutrition as far as not getting enough protein, and creatine helps with muscle building and muscle recovery, among other benefits. Pre-workout is usually a caffeine bomb and while it certainly can work, a cup of coffee or two could have the same effects (depending on your tolerance for caffeine). Many pre-workouts on the market rely on caffeine and maybe one or two other ingredients to make you think it's working (usually vasodilators, which give you the tingles) and otherwise just have a bunch of junk that has no scientific basis in humans for working. That's not to say you can't take them, of course! If you want to, then go for it! Your mileage may vary. But you certainly don't need any of these supplements.

Any other supplements (like vitamin d or something) you should speak with your doctor about, though for your age, I would guess you don't need them.

As for group fitness, it definitely works great for some! Most group fitness gyms will offer a free trial, so you can usually try it out and see how you like it. I do take some issue with some group training places just making things hard for difficulty's sake (not having structured breaks, doing purposefully difficult exercises to make you feel like you sweat like crazy even if the movement is too advanced for most people in the room), but the camaraderie in the classes can help a lot with adherence and can frankly be very fun! It will just depend on you.

Best of luck on your fitness journey!
 
@warriorinchrist14 Definitely look into creatine more to assure that it's for you - one side effect of it can be temporary water retention in the muscle, which can cause temporary weight stagnation. It usually passes in a few weeks, though! I use it because my goals are strength and muscle building. If you want more information, I cannot recommend the Youtube channel Shredded Sports Science enough: he does a lot of vidoes analyzing supplements and breaking down the ingredients, pros and cons, etc.
 
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