Taking vitamin supplements

[Eric Day]

I'm considering taking some vitamin supplements (not the muscle growers or junk like that, just vitamins).
Any reasons why yes o why not?
If yes, any suggestions on which?

Thanks!

[adam]

How's your diet? Look at that first. You should get most of your vitamins from that.

The majority of supplements generally go through you and into the toilet. Vitamin supplements don't go through any regulations, and names of vitamins/amino acids/supplements aren't trademarked, which means the bottle of "Vit C" can have some amount or no amount of actual Vitamin C.

[Eric Day]

My diet? I consider myself to have healthy diet. My wife is sort of a healthy food geek. So I have to live with that.

[Benn Griffin]

My brother came to me and asked me yesterday to convince my mom to let him get protein whey supplement to "bulk up".. but I don't think he should. I mean he's 16, 5'9" maybe and 130-135 pounds. But I still don't think he should be doing that sort of stuff until he's done growing. Plus it can't be healthy, right?

[adam]

It's not bad for you, but most likely for him, its pretty useless. I'm assuming he doesn't really have a training plan (which would be the first step to "bulking up") and doesn't really have it in his mind that he will need to be doing it consistently for many months to see the changes he wants. Tell him if he will train consistently for at least 6 months, then you'll get him the supplement. By that time he will know why or if he needs it. But for right now, he doesn't have any reason to supplement what he isn't losing. You get that for him now, and a months later it sits in the pantry with a couple scoops gone.

And if you wait until he "stops growing", you could be waiting until he's like 23 or 24 or whenever. If anything weight training does the complete opposite of stunting your growth. Those excuses are kin to "running being bad for your knees and joints". He probably shouldn't get into really heavy intense weight training right now though (which would be impossible anyways, given his inexpierence).

[Eric Day]

'Bulking up' at that age would not be a good idea. Adam has a good point, if he hasn't started a training program then there is no use.

[Benn Griffin]

He's a runner for xc and stuff and does the weight room about 1 x per week. I told him that if he really wants to "gain weight" then he has to hit the weights like 3 or 4 times a week during the winter months when he's not running you know?