These supplements below are beneficial for any martial arts including MMA and boxing.
These can be taken for almost any martial arts training as long as you know what you are doing.
It is not hard to choose supplements and after reading this article you will not have any questions regarding the usage of these supplements.
Also, it is quite easy to understand as I write it in layman terms so you can understand which supplements are essential and non-essential and when to consume them.
Quick Navigation
- What Supplements do Boxers, MMA fighters Take?
- Essential Supplements for Fighters (Recommended)
- Non-Essential Supplements for Boxers and MMA Fighters
- Final Words
What Supplements do Boxers, MMA Fighters Take?
You will read various supplements for improving performance, endurance, building muscle, recovery below.
However, some of these are essential and some of these are not.
These supplements are protein powder, creatine, ZMA, BCAAs, glutamine, melatonin, creatine, pre-workout, multivitamins, various minerals, and extracts. In my opinion, you should use some of these no matter what and some of them are optional.
Essential Supplements for Fighters (Recommended)
Protein Powder
There are different types of protein powders which are whey, casein and isolate.
Protein powders speed up the recovery, help you maintain and build muscle mass. There are many different protein powder types like isolate, casein…
Some of these are better to consume just after a session and some can be taken before bed.
Also, if you want to consume specific amounts of protein, powders can help you. Protein powders also make it easier to reach your daily protein needs without consuming too many calories.
I do intermittent fasting and don’t eat anything after 6 p.m however, you may prefer consuming casein shake at night time you can as many martial artists recommend it.
Is Whey Protein Good for Boxers? Boxers need to maintain their muscle mass and whey protein shakes help with it. Thus it is included in many boxer’s regimens.
Creatine
Creatine provides you to have explosive strength and you can lift heavier weights. Also, you will gain some muscle mass however it will be mostly water. This also provides you to have bigger muscles. If you need to pack on weight quickly as much as possible and get stronger you should consume creatine.
However, after a couple of cycles, many boxing instructors don’t recommend you to continue consuming it as most of the strength gains will be minimal after it. So you also will be carrying water weight. Also, you don’t want to get really big for any martial arts. I will not talk about the reason as explaining this will make this article extra long. However, have you have seen a really bulky and successful MMA fighter lately? We have not.
Pre-Workout
Pre-workout provides energy and helps you focus more. You can go harder and longer and this will provide you to learn MMA at a faster rate.
It improves blood flow and helps you endure more thanks to ingredients like caffeine, beta-alanine.
Some pre-workouts hydrate your body throughout the workout as well. If you forget drinking water between your speed bag sessions, you can choose a pre-workout which includes silica.
Multivitamin
Multi-vitamins are essential for anyone who trains martial arts. This does not only include all the daily vitamins you need but also include special blends to support your immune system, probiotics and minerals to have a healthier body and boost your hormone levels.
I really don’t think it is a good idea for fighters to consume a lot of fruit. A small amount of fruit is fine however large amounts can make you gain fat as these are not processed like most carbohydrates. These are stored at the liver and this is not optimal for boxing, MMA training.
Many professionals don’t even consume fruits as pre-workout however it is a good idea to eat small portions of fruits daily for nutritional needs.
Glucosamine
Even though most martial arts are easy on your joints still you will need glucosamine supplements. Also, you probably lift weights somewhat regularly and if you want to keep your joints healthy and don’t want to feel ache the next day this supplement is a must. Also, if you are elderly your joints are more vulnerable to constant abuse and I recommend you to take this supplement as soon as you start throwing body kicks.
These are the best supplements for boxers and I seriously consider you to consume these regularly!
Non-Essential Supplements for Boxers and MMA Fighters
Why are these Non-Essential?
Well, these are optional. If you do boxing, MMA you will need to buy various gears for your training, sparring and you will probably break the bank. So if you want to save some money, you really don’t need to buy the following supplements and I will explain the reasons below.
BCAA
BCAAs actually have little to no research about maintaining muscle mass. If you look at researches, you will see that individuals always consume less protein than they should. When this is the case, obviously if they consume BCAAs during or after a boxing session, they will maintain more muscle mass.
Also, you can see many protein powders include all the BCAAs. If you consume sufficient protein daily, you really don’t need to buy BCAAs or any other amino acid. With that being said, if you eat in a calorie deficit and want to maintain muscle mass then this supplement becomes essential for you.
Glutamine
It is one of the amino acids. And if your muscles are really sore you might consider it.
“Pump” Pre-workouts
These pre-workouts provide you to look better after sessions and your muscles look fuller. But these really don’t provide extra benefits other than this. If you carefully read the researches I am sure no one will ever buy this pre-workout type.
Melatonin
Sleep helps you recover and help you focus throughout the day. You can burn more fat and maintain more muscle. I don’t need to explain all the benefits of sleep in this writing however we all know that good sleep is essential and melatonin has backed up researches which show that it can provide you to have a deeper, longer sleep. Also, sometimes you may be stressed because of work or life in general and may have a hard time falling asleep. Because of this, I honestly thought about adding melatonin in essential supplements however some people sleep like a baby and they really don’t need it.
Fish Oil
You can see that fish oil is always in the healthy fat category and there is a good reason for it. It is good for skin, hair and aids fat loss. It can help to treat mental disorders. Consuming fish oil regularly provides you healthier organs and joints.
Extracts, Minerals
If you purchased a good multivitamin these will generally include these. For example, GNC’s latest multivitamin includes a variety of minerals, extracts.
Thermogenics
If you gain excess fat then you might need to use thermogenic. Lipo 6 is my favorite and honestly, I was happy with the results after consuming a bottle. Granted I only have twelve pounds of fat to lose to see my abs still I was able to achieve that within six weeks. You may gain extra weight if you eat in a calorie surplus and if you don’t track your calories, you can gain fat at a fast rate. To lose fat as soon as possible, a good thermogenic might come in handy for you as you don’t want to go to MMA class with a belly, right? Also, many people want to get fit with boxercise classes and you can also use it before going to a boxercise class to lose those a few extra pounds!
As I mentioned at the beginning, this section is about non-essential supplements and after reading it, you can decide which one you should include in your regimen.
Final Words
Before taking any kind of supplement you should get enough sleep, consume whole foods, buy good, protective martial arts gears. Because supplements provide a lot of benefits and improve your training performance but these can’t replace whole foods, can’t protect your skin, bones and no matter how much protein shakes you drink, a good sleep would be better for your muscles to recover.
However, after you make sure that you do these, then you can start searching and buying supplements.
Also if you come this far you seriously want to improve your performance. If this is the case I suggest you have a look at my recommended elevation masks. These do not only improve your performance during training but also help you focus more.
Do you think are there any more good supplements for boxers and MMA fighters? If you want to share your supplement list or ask anything about these just have a comment below.
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