Im working on getting into better shape and more so boosting my overall strength.  Im only 23 6' and weigh 165 Ive never really been big or had much muscle mass.  Ive tried building muscle Ive tried everything I could think but never been able too and I was wondering if supplements would help?  I have cleaned up my diet tons and no longer eat much processed foods and eat tons more fruits/veggis etc.

Pre Workout? Best I can tell is it is concentrated caffeine.  Anyone use it? Is it worth it?  I fatigue fast at the gym.  I start out with lots of good energy but I loose it really fast. Will it help me get another workout in or go a bit longer?


Protein? College diet isnt great for protein some days.  Would a protein shake benefit me?

Post workout any reccomendations?

Pre workouts are awesome i love c4, there are a lot of other active ingredients other than caffiene.

You are better off getting most of your protein from actual food. Buy cheap stack deep. I buy tons of steaks pork roasts chicken thighs etc when they are on sale and freeze. I always have tons of protein on hand. How many grams of protein are you getting a day?

Those two supplements are the only ones i have tried and the only ones i think are worth a shit. They certainly won't hurt anything except your pocket book so i would suggest trying them and seeing how it affects you.

As for your workout energy, what sort of workout are you doing? Are you actually eating and sleeping enough to sustain muscle recovery?

I'd bet you can save a bunch of money by eating differently and get better performance.  If you'll keep track of your diet for a few days the guys here can get you some good advice that would be far better than supps.

Hard to beat eggs, multi vitamin,  and maybe a pre workout.

Have you tried eating 5000 calories a day?

I'm a noob to working out, but like KaiK said eat tons, shoot for 3k calories. I know that I just feel better and my workouts are more productive and I get through them easier when I'm getting 3k calories a day. I think if your eating halfway decent food you oughta be getting all the protein you need from the food you eat. Good luck.

If you are on a college diet/budget it is hard to beat eggs.  Surprisingly my local Menard's is the best place to get them.  58 cents per dozen large.  Each individual large egg is 6.1 g protein 91 calories overall, so you're talking over a thousand calories and about 73 g protein for 58 cents.  I'm thinking you're not stuck in a dorm room with no stove at 23 yoa, so cook them however you want them.  If you ARE stuck in a place with no stove there are ways to microwave them.  I don't particularly care for the taste of eggs but with enough Cajun seasoning or something else I still eat them regularly.

If you're looking for a ridiculous way to consume tons of protein easily and cheaply try this:  One can A&W TEN soda, blend it for a bit to get the fizz out.  Add a tablespoon of cream or half and half.  Three scoops unflavored whey protein from myprotein.  Blend with maybe some crushed ice.  Tastes a lot like a root beer float, approximately 350 calories overall, with 60 g protein, and it doesn't feel very heavy.  I would not find it difficult to fit three of those in a day if that was my goal, but it's not.

Standard Self Defense & Fitness advice applies:  Change your workout program to a linear progression barbell program like Starting Strength while consuming a caloric excess until you are as strong as you want to be.  Then worry about cutting weight if that is still a concern at that point.

http://webcast.bodybuilding.com/fitshow/other/bulkingforectomorphs.pdf

Read through the nutritional guidelines.

Do the pre workouts give you enough benefit to justify?  I hear mixed results and its only a $20 gamble I was just curious.

Ill have to record my food and see what I am getting daily.  I live in a fraternity so our food is garbage but Ive been eating at the girlfriends a lot more so that helps.  I honestly just loose energy fast when doing upper body workouts.  It seems like right when I start to get a good workout I am out of energy and cant finish it.

I need to eat more eggs but they sometimes make me sick to my stomach so I dont eat them often.

Haha deffinately not.  Im afraid Ill gain fat and no muscle..

Eggs just do not sit well with me.  I dont know if I have an intollerance but some days they just make me sick.  Ive tried separating them and only trying egg whites/yolks and still the same issues.  Not sure what it is.  Im not stuck in a dorm but I am stuck in a fraternity... I have access to food but I dont really have any money to be spending on additional food and when our cook is around I cant use the kitchen.  Ive been staying/eating at the girlfriends a lot more so that helps.

Ill have to try that! Always looking for additional ways to make a post workout snack/drink.

If you're afraid to gain, you won't gain any muscle either.  Gotta eat to grow, start adding calories and adjust on the fly as you need to.  But you gotta eat.

What are your goals?
Have you tried a progressive overload program and stayed consistent?
How much are you eating now?  

Fatiguing very quickly in the gym could be a lot of things.
Mindset can be everything.  

Sounds to me that you need to figure out what you want to do, educate yourself and get consistent.

You're a 23 year old male with no major health problems, yes? If you eat 5k calories a day while lifting regularly you should gain a lot of muscle. And you only weigh 165 at 6 feet tall. You have room to add some fat along with all that muscle. (3.5 k is probably fine...)

One of my regrets is not getting started on this stuff at your age.  I let money limit me a lot at that time.  Looking back spending the money on supporting a lifting regimen would have been one of the best investments of my life.

People respond more positively to you when you appear strong/fit.  The improved appearance and confidence will help you more in job interviews than you expect.

Found your problem. You think muscles are made of air?

Eating well and sleeping well are both a bitch in college, but yet important to what you are trying to do.  Get the myfitnesspal app and track you calories and macros for a week to see where you are--you won't understand any of it until you start doing it.  Some food is tough to quantify, so just do your best to look for a substitute.

At that age, my daily smoothie king visit alone was 2,500 cals.  Then there's the george foreman frozen chicken breasts by the bag and boil in a bag rice worth of another 3,000 or so.  Oh to be that age again.  Where it was no big deal to hit 265# and still have abs.

For me they do, i don't know how much more energy they give me during the workout but whether i wanna work out or not after i drink c4 im going to workout

My supplements are as follows:
Whey - allows me to hit my macro goals more easily....especially if i slip up and eat a high carb/fat meal and use up a big chunk of my daily calories.  
Creatine - it's not a game changer by any means, maybe give you another rep or two on an exercise, and it makes you a little fuller due to the retained water.  But it's dirt cheap so there's no good reason not to.  
Pre-workout - very good to get me out of that late day fog and hit it hard at the gym.  Yes it's concentrated caffeine basically.  Your mileage off of it will depend on how sensitive to caffeine.  If you pound coffee in the morning or drink a lot of caffeinated drinks, you may not get a lot out of it.  

working back around on your issue.  Gaining muscle (without using anabolics) comes down to three things.  Stimulation (lifting), diet, and rest.  For most people, the first two things are the hardest to grasp.  

Your workout should revolve around heavy compound lifts.  Bench, Deadlift, heavy pulls (overhead and horizontal), squats, overhead press, etc...It needs to be progressive in nature, meaning you need to add weight/volume over time and consistently challenge your body.  (as an example, say you're doing 3 sets of 8 on the bench at 185# and can do all 3 sets without failure, you need to bump up to 190# and work at it until you an do 3x8, then bump to 195.)  Do the isolation stuff (curls, flys, tri extensions, etc...) as a supplement to the compound stuff.   An excellent way to start is an established program like starting strength of stronglifts.  

For diet, you need adequate protein (.6-.8g/pound of body weight) a day, and sufficient calories to build muscle.  You should also be taking in a surplus of calories and should expect to get fatter during the process of building muscle.  shoot for gaining .5-1# a week.  

As for the difficulty in building muscle....i think that goes for everyone.  It can take YEARS and many bulk/cut cycles before you get to where you want to be.  It is a long, grinding process that will demoralize and destroy those who are not committed for the long term.  IF you have been going at it consistently for years and are still getting nowhere, i would point to a deficiency in your lifting program or diet.

I have always taken Fish Oil, Creatine, protein supp, and multivitamin.  Most of these are out of convenience rather than need.

Honestly getting good protein intake was the toughest problem I had in college until I started meal prepping for the whole week.

I personally do not like pre workouts for regular use.  Cup or two of coffee and some whole milk has me gtg.

I am in the same boat you are. Im 23, 5'10" 178lb and working my ass off to be in shape for the PD academy that starts in March. I am on a constant rotation five days a week of running and doing weights on alternate days and changing this schedule weekly to rotate weeks out. I also do 50-70 sit ups and push ups every day. The only things Ive done so far have cut all soft drinks am am only drinking water and yogurt type drinks. In addition to this, I have been drinking a muscle milk after each hard workout and call tell a major difference. I am not bulking but I can tell a difference in my arms, shoulders and my endurance for running.

Ive looked into preworkout ect and just have a feeling about it and do not use any of it. The biggest thing is to stay determined and stick with working out. I started working out heavy in Aug of last year and slacked off due to travel and work in Nov and Dec. That break has kicked my ass. Stick to your plan and youll start noticing a difference.

Creatine - if you're lifting heavy/low rep and pushing to near failure.  Tough to get much through diet.
Protein - if you're not eating enough protein and creating a demand.  if you're not creating a demand, it won't do anything for you
Vitamin D - if you don't get much sunshine

Everything else you should be able to get through eating food. 

Eggs are a highly allergenic food.  I'm glad that I am able to eat them, because I love them fried, over easy, scrambled, pickled, or used in other recipes.   Are you allergic to anything else?  The folks I know who are allergic to eggs also have issues with casein and gluten.

Whey protein (don't split hairs over WPC and WPI, just get one from a reputable brand with a half decent unit price).
ZMA (helps you sleep)
Creatine monohydrate (get the cheap stuff)

The rest of it will just be a matter of you fixing up your food, and actually getting 7-8 hours sleep a night.