---
title: 'The Only 5 Supplements Worth Taking and Exactly How Much'
source: 'https://youtube.com/watch?v=5SFNbHaXLZc'
video_id: '5SFNbHaXLZc'
date: 2026-08-12
duration_sec: 1504
---

# The Only 5 Supplements Worth Taking and Exactly How Much

> Source: [The Only 5 Supplements Worth Taking and Exactly How Much](https://youtube.com/watch?v=5SFNbHaXLZc)

## Summary

This video presents a practical, no-nonsense guide to the five supplements the creators believe are worth taking for general fitness: protein powder, creatine, omega-3 fats, vitamin D, and fiber. It explains why each is beneficial, provides specific dosage recommendations, and discusses timing and practical considerations. The tone is humorous and conversational, with a clear emphasis on supplements being secondary to a solid diet, training, and sleep.

### Key Points

- **Supplements are not mandatory** [00:02] — The video opens by stating that no supplements are mandatory for fitness. A balanced diet of lean meats, veggies, fruits, whole grains, and healthy fats, combined with hard training, adequate steps, and good sleep, provides most of the benefits. Supplements just 'round it out'.
- **The top five supplements revealed** [02:51] — The core list is revealed: protein powder, creatine, omega-3 fats, vitamin D, and a fiber supplement. The creators note that these are chosen as core basics for anyone pursuing fitness improvement, not for competitive bodybuilders or CrossFit champions.
- **Why protein powder** [03:21] — Protein is the main food for building and keeping muscle. Protein powder helps hit daily protein targets, supports muscle growth with training, preserves muscle during cutting, and is convenient when time or food options are limited. It's not magic, but it's practical.
- **Creatine works with no caveats** [04:32] — Creatine monohydrate is highlighted as one of the few supplements that 'actually works with no caveats.' It helps regenerate high-energy fuel during hard training, leading to more strength, power, and extra reps, which over time can produce more muscle growth. It also increases lean body mass partly through water retention.
- **Omega-3s for general health** [05:53] — EPA and DHA omega-3 fats are recommended because many people don't eat enough fatty fish. They support cardiovascular health, help keep blood triglycerides in a healthier range, and may reduce inflammation. The key is to look at the EPA plus DHA content on the label, not just the total fish oil.
- **Vitamin D3 for deficiency** [07:31] — Vitamin D3 is included because many adults spend time indoors, wear sunscreen, or live far from the equator, leading to low levels. It supports bone health, immune function, and muscle function. Correcting a deficiency can make people feel and function better, but it's not a fat loss pill or testosterone booster.
- **Fiber supplement for fullness and health** [08:39] — A fiber supplement, usually psyllium husk, is described as 'one of the least sexy supplements in the world, and hilariously one of the most useful.' It helps with fullness when dieting, supports lower LDL cholesterol, better blood sugar control, and more regular digestion.
- **Protein dosage and timing** [10:05] — Protein powder is taken during any meal that doesn't provide sufficient protein from whole foods. The recommendation is about 1 gram of protein per pound of body weight daily, split over 4-5 meals. For example, a 160 lb person eating 4 meals would need about 40g per meal. It's a supplement for when you need it, not necessarily daily.
- **Creatine dosage and timing** [12:23] — Creatine is simple: 5g per day of creatine monohydrate for almost everyone. Up to 10g can be taken by larger individuals, but studies show no consistent benefit over 5g for most. Timing doesn't matter much; consistency is key because it needs days and weeks of intake to build up in muscles.
- **Omega-3 dosage and timing** [14:48] — You need about 1g of EPA plus DHA fats per day, not 1g of fish oil. Read the label to determine how many gel caps that is. Taking them in the morning or before bed is fine, as consistency is most important.
- **Vitamin D dosage** [15:58] — About 1,500 IU per day of vitamin D is recommended, with a range of 1,000-2,000 IU being acceptable. Ideally, dosage should be guided by blood work. If labs show low D3, you may need more.
- **Fiber dosage and timing** [16:42] — 5-10g per day of psyllium husk is great for most, but starting with 5g is wise for sensitive GI tracts. Take it with a full glass of water and drink more water throughout the day. For appetite control, take it 10-30 minutes before meals. Avoid taking it within 2 hours of medication.
- **Honorable mentions: caffeine, magnesium, beta-alanine** [20:35] — Caffeine, magnesium, and beta-alanine almost made the list. Caffeine reliably improves performance but can mess with sleep and anxiety. Magnesium is important for muscle function and sleep but only if deficient. Beta-alanine helps with high-rep performance but is sports-specific and causes tingles.

### Conclusion

The video concludes that these five supplements—protein, creatine, omega-3s, vitamin D, and fiber—are the core basics worth taking for general fitness, with specific dosages and timing provided. The creators emphasize that supplements are not a substitute for a healthy lifestyle, and they invite viewers to suggest future topics.

## Transcript

fitness. So long as you eat a balanced diet of mostly lean meats, veggies, healthy fats, put a bunch of supplements into one giant more value so they can charge you higher prices so they can have more money.
These [music] top five supplements just round it out and make everything click >> but neither is brushing your teeth. Here are the real reasons why you should are the real reasons why you should consider taking these supplements.
of supplements to take. And damn near every other claim is that every other supplement advertised is a must-take. Today, we'll give you the top five supplements we think nearly every person
chasing fitness should actually be taking. And we'll tell you how much of each supplement to take as well. Also, I have this weird growth on my left knee and I'll be showing you guys cuz honestly it's freaking me out and I
need all the insight I can get at this point. Let's go. All right. So, top five supplements, but for who? There are two super important points to make here before we reveal the extra super secret list.
don't be too shocked when we get into some adult activities." I say this over and over so as to prep them for the massive incoming disappointment.
supplements are chosen to be the core basics for anyone and everyone pursuing fitness improvement. Like if you try to eat well and you try to hit the gym regularly and use the RP Hypertrophy app, and you mind your daily steps, and
treat sleep as pretty sacred thing, you should probably be taking these supplements to round out your needs. If you're a competitive bodybuilder or aspiring CrossFit champion, kind of a whole different set of supplements on
we're not going to be getting into that here. Um but sort of all the fitness folks who are trying at all would benefit from including these supplements that we will discuss today.
thing. No supplements are mandatory for So long as you eat a balanced diet of mostly lean meats, veggies, fruits, whole grains, and healthy fats, you train hard, you get about 10 steps per
day, you sleep well, you're already doing the far and away biggest parts of the fitness thing, and will get most of the benefits. Straight up. These top five supplements just round it out and make everything click better.
three to save money or hassle, or take zero and leave a nasty comment on this video out of spite, by all means, do it up. All right, with those caveats of the top five supplements you should probably be taking in fitness.
They are protein powder, creatine, omega-3 fats, vitamin D. That's kind of >> That Well, there'll be more of those jokes later. And a fiber supplement. I know, I know,
five scoops of pre-workout didn't make the list. What is this life even? But, okay, why should you be taking each of these subs? Cuz I said so, that's >> Uh. >> Hey, forget about it. JK. Here are the
taking these supplements. Protein powder, often whey protein but not exclusively, is first on the list because protein is the main food your body uses to build and keep muscle. If you're lifting, dieting, or trying to
look less like Harry Potter and more like Harry Squatter, huh? Innit? Uh, getting enough protein powder is a very big deal. Protein powder helps with four big things. It makes hitting your daily protein target way easier in when
it's paired with whole foods. It supports muscle growth when paired with hard training, duh. It helps preserve muscle when you're cutting calories, which is huge. And it's super awesome when you're
pinched for time or the food you have around that day just isn't super high in protein. Is protein powder magic? No, but it's convenient, high quality, fast, usually tasty enough, often quite tasty, and way
through another two chicken breasts at 10:47 p.m. while reconsidering every life decision you've ever made because you have to meet your macros. Creatine monohydrate is next because it's one of the few supplements where the answer is
basically like, "Yeah, this one actually works with no caveats." Cuz with a lot oh man, they're so conditional. Creatine helps your muscles regenerate high energy fuel during hard training, which means you can often get in a
little more strength, a little more power, and maybe an extra rep or two here and there. Over time, that and the chemical effects of growth help training outputs go up and can
produce more muscle growth. Because more quality work in the gym It also tends to increase your lean body mass directly, partly from more water being stored in the muscle, which is not a bad
flat as a tortilla left under a couch cushion. And if you have tortillas under your couch cushions, you really need to evaluate your climatized habits ASAP cuz that's disgusting. Although very flat. All of your pumps in the gym will be
better if you are on creatine. And honestly, you guys, when you're on like a quarter pump all the time, which is amazing. As a bonus, creatine may have some brain
and general health upsides as well. Though for this video, the main reason we care is simple. It helps you train harder and get more jacked. EPA and DHA harder and get more jacked. EPA and DHA omega-3 fats are on the list next
because a lot of people simply do not eat enough fatty fish and these fats are very useful for general health. They're not like a get shredded supplement so stare angrily at your abs waiting for them to shred themselves into
you think we could talk someone into eating and staring to watch for abs until they get to the idea that we're with them? Like a Like a container? >> You know, I went to GNC once and the guy
tried to sell me on fish oil for like leanness and thinning the skin. Imagine like seeing an Olympia bodybuilder in an elevator like fish >> I guess also, I guess. >> Damn, you must be on a lot, bro.
>> You must be on a lot of fish oil. Yeah, it's pronounced clan. >> All right, real talk. >> [gasps] >> But, having said that, EPA and DHA can support cardiovascular health, help you
keep blood triglycerides in a healthier range, which is huge, contribute to sort of important, and may support a less inflamed overall physiology, especially if your current diet is low in fatty seafood.
The big practical point here is that you buy omega-3s, you don't just look for because you're not buying it for the fish oil. You look at the back and add up the EPA plus DHA fats, which should be listed. That's the actual useful
like marketing slop, unfortunately. Next, vitamin D3 makes the top five because many adults spend a ton of time indoors, wear lots of sunscreen, live really far from the equator like in the
countries of Norway and Sweden and Finland, for example, and Iceland, I Or otherwise have vitamin D levels that are not exactly thriving. Vitamin D is stuff. Bone health, immune function, muscle function, and correcting a
deficiency, even a small one, can make people feel and function better when they were low in the first place. But, again, it's a supplement. It's not a fat loss pill. It's not a testosterone booster. And it does not turn you into a
golden sun demigod because you took 10,000 IUs and yelled, "Photosynthesis!" which if you have family, that's a really good idea for them to I've tried that, actually. Legit, it's just nothing happens, you guys.
yourself. Yeah, I was bummed. Have enough vitamin D, ideally confirmed with blood work regularly, and healthy range. If you're already sufficient, taking
not even better. It just doesn't do anything. Finally, lastly on this list, a fiber supplement, often, I would say usually, something like psyllium husk,
makes the list because it's one of the least sexy supplements in the world, and hilariously one of the most useful. Funny how that works. Fiber can help with fullness when dieting, which is huge, because being
leaner is much easier when your stomach is not screaming at you to eat every made. That's a tough thing with dieting. Psyllium can also support healthier LDL cholesterol, right? Which is to say, lower LDL cholesterol.
Better blood sugar control after meals, and more regular digestion, which is your poop become more solid and thus healthier for you. Most people should still get plenty of fiber from fruits, veggies, beans, whole
grains, and other actual foods, but a fiber supplement can help to fill in the gap. It's not glamorous, but neither is brushing your teeth, and look how stop doing that. Huh? Scott, you ever been on a date with a
brush your teeth and you're like, whatever, let's roll the dice. >> Because you just don't brush your teeth anyway, so that conditional statement >> No, cuz I don't go out with girls. >> Damn, the other conditional.
>> Uh, all right. I'm upset we're supposed to that's reality. How much of these supplements should you take is our next question and what are the plusses and minuses and adjustments to make? Like,
taking? So, it's protein powder, creatine, omegas, vitamin D and fiber, but how much and when? When you're supplementing with protein, you take it during any meal that does not give you a sufficient protein amount
from whole foods alone. Which gives us both the quantity and the >> [clears throat] >> as a fitness person, trademark, copyright, Scott. Yeah, I'm a fitness man, see?
>> Yeah. Oh, that was a fitness woman chiming in. As a As a fitness person yourself, you want about a gram of protein per pound of body weight daily split over a oh, like four or five evenly spaced meals.
So, for example, if you weigh like 160 lb and you eat about four meals per day, then you eat about 40 g of protein per meal, pretty simple. If your breakfast has egg whites and turkey bacon all to the tune of 45 g of
protein, then you absolutely don't need protein powder in that meal. Scott, you breakfasts like some supplement companies advertising their shake as a a shitload of protein. They're like, also our shake. You're like, what are we
doing? 180 g of protein in the meal? Like, ta- take our supplement cuz cuz, right? You don't need that much protein in a meal. But but if your lunch, for example, is on the run and it's just like a bagel with cream cheese for a
because wheat protein from the bagel sucks for building muscle it's basically like a non-starter. It's like a whopping 7 g of utilizable muscle growth quality protein, then yeah, adding in a 35 g protein shake is a great idea.
Protein, unlike the other supplements, is more of a supplement you keep around for when you need it rather than something you religiously take every day like the other subs on this list. Basically, there's not a situation that
comes up super often in which you're like, "Every morning and night I take a protein shake." That can be a thing if you dependably every morning and night you don't have solid food protein, but it's not how it typically works. It's
just replacing meal by meal. As for the type of protein, so long as it's either type of protein, so long as it's either milk, whey, casein, egg, soy, or another high-quality protein blend, it really doesn't matter.
Next, creatine intake and timing is actually way more simple than protein. 5 g per day of creatine monohydrate for almost everyone. You can be an overachiever and take 10 g, especially if you're big and muscly, but the
majority of studies find no consistent benefits over 5 g for most people. Yes, up to 20 g or more per day still isn't bad for you. And if you're super tired and underslept, can help you potentially with keeping your cognitive performance
from being total crap. But that much creatine for when you're rested is as of yet not really supported by the scientific literature. That doesn't mean can't confidently assign just tell you like, "Hey, you got to take 20 g." And 5
almost everyone. As for creatine timing, it's really just like when can you be the most consistent with it? Creatine isn't magically giving anyone energy or recovery if taken before or during workouts, but it does
massively rely on consistency. This is because creatine doesn't do hardly if you take it once or irregularly. It needs days and weeks of consistent intake to add up in your muscles, which is how it exerts most of its benefits.
specially for back in the day? It's like pre-workout shake now with creatine. creatine. You're like, "How I drink I drink it and I feel the creatine." You guys, you can't feel the creatine. It's not really a thing.
they put a bunch of supplements into one giant supplement to they can charge you higher prices so they can have more money. Scott, um I supplement industry, do you think we'll make enough money to have a a yacht that
has supplement branding on the side? >> Wouldn't that be awesome? >> Yeah, like a mega gains Lambo. You won't get any attention in that car. All right, back to the real world here.
Taking creatine, when you'll be able to take it most consistently is huge. I that, I never miss taking it. And yes, I do dry scoop it and swish it with water. Gross. You can do that too if you're an animal like me, but I leave the
water, you can do whatever you want with it. Next up, omegas like creatine are super simple. You need about 1 g of them per day. And taking them in the morning or before bed is a good idea
because here again, consistency is king. Now, here's a super important caveat. Now, here's a super important caveat. It's 1 g of EPA plus DHA fats, not 1 g of krill oil or fish oil because only some of that is actual EPA plus DHA fat
have to turn the bottle around and read the label to figure out how many fish oil gel caps that is. For example, I know it's hard. you could just take a picture of the back of the bottle and have chat GPT figure it out, but
yourself every now and again or AI will Probably not entirely false. Do some thinking. Back in my day, we used to have to ride stationary bikes to power our GPUs, you
ungrateful kids. Grandpa, is that really true? No, I don't know what a GPU is. Get out of my face, kid. I'm playing Cyberpunk 2077.
>> you can take the D anytime you want, baby. >> [gasps and laughter] >> Um ladies, hello.
>> All right, but for real, about 1,500 international units, aka IUs, per day of vitamin D is legit. Again, however you can be consistent with it. I night time subs. Anything from 1,000 to 2,000 IUs is
totally cool, but ideally you get guided by your labs. So, you go to a doctor, you get blood work, vitamin D is part of the blood work, and blood work shows low D3, then yeah, you need to consider more, and so on and so
on until it's really good vitamin D levels in your blood work consistently. Lastly, the fiber subs, most often in the form of psyllium husks, which to me Wars. Your ship isn't worth the psyllium husk on Tatooine, you bantha fodder.
>> not. >> No. Consider this a first, you bantha >> Did you just I'm sorry. Star Wars lore. How dare you?
Star Wars lore. How dare you? 5 to 10 g a day is great for most folks, but starting with 5 g is wise if you have a sensitive GI tract, cuz you'll be spraying and praying if you jump the gun on too much fiber at the
same time. And I do mean spraying out of the bottom of your body. For psyllium timing, the most important thing is not magic timing, it's again
consistency and water. If taking it at once in the morning makes you actually take it every day, great. One morning dose is totally fine. Start with about 5 g mixed into a full glass of water. And here's the thing,
you got to drink it right away before it turns into construction grade pudding water. And try to drink a bit more water through the day. Psyllium actually works by absorbing liquid and forming a gel,
which scoots through your GI tract. So, taking it dry or with too little fluid is not ideal. And then if you get thirsty, you drink a bunch of water tract. So, front-loading the water, having plenty of water with it is a
really good idea. If you're using psyllium more specifically for appetite control, cholesterol, or blood sugar management, to take it, taking it before a meal can make sense. So, in that case, a
practical setup is 5 g about 10 to 30 minutes before each one of your major meals. Splitting it can also reduce bloating and gas cuz your gut doesn't get one giant fiber meteor dropped on it at 7:00 a.m.
it and tell it to shut up. No, sorry, I read that wrong. If your stomach complains, lower the dose and build up slowly. The big timing caution here is psyllium can interfere with the absorption of some meds or supplements.
So, a good general rule is to take at least 2 hours away from medication. MedlinePlus specifically flags some meds, for example, like >> [clears throat] >> digoxin,
salicylates, such as aspirin and nitrofurantoin, >> as needing 3 hours of separation. Scott, why are medications so hard to
>> I mean, they should make it simpler. >> God damn it. >> The clean answer is this. Morning is fine. Pre-meal is useful if you want that appetite and glucose modulation benefits. Split doses are
always take it with plenty of water. Really straightforward. The supplement using it badly are definitely more eventful. Now, here's the thing. If you want a really fun practical joke, take your whole family on a long road
where like the next gas station or service station is like 100 miles before after the last one. Convince everyone in the car to take 30 g of psyllium husk with 32 oz of water right before the trip starts, and boys are we going to
have fun. Folks, this is a joke. Please don't do this unless your family has it to you. You might have to retire the car after Now, what supplements did we not get to, but
get kind of the honorable mention? And why didn't they make our top five? Three supplements that almost made it to the top five, but got left standing outside the supplement nightclub looking sad. Aw, Scott, that's a sad analogy, isn't
it? They want to be in there having fun. And they can hear Scott like the faint electronic music like um um um but like some also some street noise, you know? >> [gasps] >> And with that setup, these are caffeine,
magnesium, and beta alanine. And Scott, I guess they're all huddled together other at this point, right? It gets cold, it's like December, right? >> Caffeine is probably the closest call because it very reliably improves
feel a bit less like you're being audited by Satan, and can reduce appetite a little bit during dieting. And I would say you happen to be responsive to the
appetite reduction effects of caffeine. But it didn't make the top five for us because a lot of people already consume it. A lot a lot of people. And here is the most important thing. It can mess with sleep, anxiety, heart
rate, and blood pressure. If you take it too late in the day, congratulations, workout for worse recovery because you won't be sleeping well. It's not ideal. There's just a lot of interference that it has on the rest of the body, so we're
averse to saying to people, "Hey, just take a bunch of it." because it's important for muscle function, nervous system function, sleep quality, blood pressure regulation, and general health. The problem is that it's
mostly great if you need it supplement and not everyone clearly benefits from having this or most people clearly benefit. If your diet is low in magnesium or you cramp a lot, sleep poorly, don't eat many nuts, seeds,
legumes, whole grains, [snorts] or leafy greens, it's very reasonable to consider top six supplements, this is an easy number six. But, if your intake is already solid, extra magnesium doesn't automatically turn you into a calmer,
better sleeping, more handsome pimp or pimpette. That's right. Scott, I made up >> Ooh, I'm not sure. >> good Google at some point, yeah. What pimp and pimpette? And remember,
you're supposed to be eating all that healthy food already. honorable mention and could have been because it can improve performance in hard efforts that last roughly one to
super high rep sets, and a lot of cardio stuff, which it means it can matter for some lifters on the high rep range and tons of CrossFitters, fighters, cyclists, rowers, and people who
voluntarily do exercise that feels like being chased by psychotic latinas if you're Jared Feather IFBB Pro. But, it didn't make the top five because it's a bit more sports specific than general. Like, a lot of people who just
really don't benefit much from beta-alanine. It doesn't directly build muscle by itself. It has no independent anabolic benefit. And the main side effect is the classic beta-alanine skin tingles where your
face feels like it's receiving haunted Wi-Fi. Uh spooky. And then some folks like this feeling. I personally hate it. Scott, what do you think about it? Scott, what do you think about it? >> It's fine. It's fine.
sweater on but everywhere. >> Yeah, I don't like love it. it? Let us know. A lot of people really love it. It tells you your pre-workout's working or whatever. Is it a fine supplement to take? Yeah.
Can it be useful? Yeah. Is it a core supplement for almost everyone? Probably not. All right. So, before we outro this thing, do you guys want to see a video like this for top five drugs for fitness people? Scott, that would be quite
>> Oh boy. Let us know in the comments if that interests you guys. All right. That's the whole round up. I would just order all these on Amazon and click that keep regularly sending me stuff button that pays Jeff Bezos. But
then again, and this is not so well known but is about to be, Jeff Bezos and I have been romantically involved for some time now. I know, I know that makes me biased and incredibly sexually satisfying. Have you seen the man? Um
but it is what it is. And guys, lastly before we go, video. We might make a video about the top five drugs you could be taking to get more jacked, lean, and healthy all with the approval of your doctor.
Or we can do a video on all of the supplements I personally take daily pill by pill. It would be a 5-hour long video. I'm kidding. vids in the comments and we might film them. All right. Go load up on subs, get
veiny, get huge, and we will see you huger and more veiny next time.