Athletes are often considered as someone who is strong, who possesses speed and endurance and is basically proficient in sports and other forms of physical exercise. They are time and again scrutinized by fans and detractors alike especially if they are engaged in a popular sport such as football or baseball. The quality in terms of their skills and their physique as they are also looked upon by aspiring athletes and fans. Hence there are instances that some athletes feel the need to do more than just their regular work out and look into alternative ways to bulk up or to enhance their talents. What they don’t know is the harm it can do not only to their careers if their league finds out but also to their body.

Steroid abuse by athletes who play baseball, football and other sports have been in the news for a couple of years now; but did you know that the use of performance – enhancing substances has been widely used since 1889. Pud Galvin is written down in history as the first baseball player to be widely known for his use of performance-enhancing drugs. He was a vocal advocate of the Brown-Séquard Elixir, a testosterone supplement derived from the testicles of live animals such as dogs and guinea pigs. It wasn’t until 1991 when steroid was finally listed as part of baseball’s banned substance list in 1991, however testing for major league players did not start until the 2003 season.

What some of these athletes who were shamed into admitting that they used illegal substance to up their game failed to note was that there are legal supplements that they can use during their work out sessions. Pre workout supplements are now readily available in the market in different forms such as drinks, pills even protein bars. You can even alter your diet to add the supplements for you to be able to sustain high intensity training. Think of the body as a car, if you don’t take in calories (gas) before you train no matter what type of enhancements you take it wouldn’t go that far.

Athletes nowadays can take in nutrients such as protein with whey and casein as research shows that this mix provides the person with the right amount of nutrient needed. A protein shake would normally have about 25-50 grams of protein, depending on the weight of the person. They may also add fast digesting carbs to release insulin (energy) driving the nutrients to the muscles, which is important if the goal is to bulk up the muscle.

There are other pre workout supplements as well that are legal to take and wouldn’t harm your body unless taken incorrectly and wouldn’t your career as an athlete. There are strength boosters, energy boosters, pump boosters even fat burners. Most of the main ingredients of this supplements were derived from natural elements such as tomato extracts, enzymes from plants and such.