~10 BJJ Classes/week. Will these supplements/diet plans help?

[Armadilha]

I have done some research, mainly going through a lot of the threads found in the FAQ section and it really helped me find what I think I will need. So I've picked out some things I believe will benefit from. I'm looking for the guidance of the forum to tell me what I should add/remove to this list. I am a complete novice at D/S so bare with my stupidity.

A little about me:
Age: 18, Height: 5'9-5'10ish Weight: 125-130
I am pretty much skin and bones, with a very high metabolism. I've also had some tendinitis problems in both my elbows in the past. I've been out of BJJ for a couple months but now I want to get back into training as much as possible.

My goal is to minimize any problems with my joints, get proper nutrients, and gain enough energy to get me through all the classes. I do not plan on much, if any strength/resistance training. Also would this plan help me gain weight/muscle? Not necesarily my focus but that would be a plus.

1. Whole Greens Vitamin- Provide necesary nutrients that I don't get in my diet + fish oil for my joints
2. Mass Gainer w/ Protein- Protein + Cals because I don't always have enough time for meals.
3. Diet consisting of lean protein, whole grain foods, greens, etc. Lots of cals +carbs
4. Creatine- Increase muscle energy/workload
5. Beta Alanine- Muscle growth/recovery
6. Carnitine- Muscle growth/recovery

I'm pretty sure 1-3 would obviously be good for me. I'm not sure if taking all 3 of the creatine, BA, and
carnitine would be over the top and necesary or not. Please make any and all edits that you feel would benefit me. I am ready to get torn apart by everyone here :icon_sad:

Edit: How many calories should I be looking to intake a day?

 

[Revok]

Looks splendid. The only thing I fear for is the health of your wallet. I suggest investing in the very best of supps 1-4; hold on before bothering with creatine and/or BA, as a decent, supplemented diet, hard work and the general panacea of being a goddamn spring chicken is a more than solid foundation for pretty much any training regimen.

Also, carnitine I'm not sure there's any justification for - I believe it's fairly useless when taken orally, and BA is the best method of stimulating intramuscular levels anyway.

As a highly active, skinny 18 yr old, you probably do not need to think about calories. Eat decent foods whenever you feel like it (and even some crappy foods on occasion) and you should be fine. I'd say that, given your age and activity level, putting on mass might well require a singular dedication to heavy lifting (and heavy eating) so don't count on it happening by accident.

 

[Armadilha]

Looks splendid. The only thing I fear for is the health of your wallet. I suggest investing in the very best of supps 1-4; hold on before bothering with creatine and/or BA, as a decent, supplemented diet, hard work and the general panacea of being a goddamn spring chicken is a more than solid foundation for pretty much any training regimen.

Also, carnitine I'm not sure there's any justification for - I believe it's fairly useless when taken orally, and BA is the best method of stimulating intramuscular levels anyway.

As a highly active, skinny 18 yr old, you probably do not need to think about calories. Eat decent foods whenever you feel like it (and even some crappy foods on occasion) and you should be fine. I'd say that, given your age and activity level, putting on mass might well require a singular dedication to heavy lifting (and heavy eating) so don't count on it happening by accident.

Thanks for the input. Money isn't exactly a huge problem for me, but i definitely don't want to overspend. I'll probably skip out on the carnitine.

Excuse my lack of knowledge, but wouldn't I want to be taking in a somewhat large amount of calories for energy for the amount of activity I'm doing?

I just want to make sure I'll be able to go to class without my muscles and me being completely sore/exhausted.

 

[Revok]

Thanks for the input. Money isn't exactly a huge problem for me, but i definitely don't want to overspend. I'll probably skip out on the carnitine.

Excuse my lack of knowledge, but wouldn't I want to be taking in a somewhat large amount of calories for energy for the amount of activity I'm doing?

I just want to make sure I'll be able to go to class without my muscles and me being completely sore/exhausted.

If you want a ballpark number for daily calorie intake: 3000-3500 calories? I'm not much of a fan of nutrition by calculator. Given your age, high activity level and that you're somewhat underweight, I highly recommend stuffing your face at every available opportunity, and forget the numbers. Time spent adding up is better spent cooking, chewing or digesting.

BTW I've always found mass gainers containing simple carbs to be problematic anywhere outside of peri-WO. IMO it's smarter to just get a decent whey and blend it with regular oats/banana/gatorade/etc. as required - this way you can control the ratio.

 

[pliftkl]

I do not plan on much, if any strength/resistance training. Also would this plan help me gain weight/muscle? Not necesarily my focus but that would be a plus.

You're probably underweight now, so you'll gain a bit of weight from almost any exercise program and eating a lot. However, don't expect to pack on a lot of muscle without adding strength training. I suspect that you could make some pretty good strength gains with just a couple hours of strength training a week, and those gains WILL transfer over to your BJJ. It's your call, but it might be worth sacrificing 2 of your 10 hours of BJJ time per week for 2 hours of strength training. It may be worth reading the S&C FAQ to understand what your twice a week options are.

EDIT to add: Revok's advice is right on for your supplement questions.

 

[Hamsterdam]

You don't need to carnitine. Beta-alanine doesn't work for everyone either, but that one is reasonably priced for what it does.

 

[fittafeis]

With regards to recovery I believe that adding fish oil and vit D (if you don't already take it, shame on you) as well as magnesium could potentially be more benificial.
I'd definitely take this stuff over the carnitine or BA - I wouldn't take any of these anyways.

 

[BangWhosNxt]

I don't quite understand how/why one would train bjj 10x a week unless your an instructor...

IMO, I would train less and implement so sort of strength training routine. But, I have no idea what your goals are and can't expect them to be close to mine.

 

[Kuvasz]

I suspect that you could make some pretty good strength gains with just a couple hours of strength training a week, and those gains WILL transfer over to your BJJ. It's your call, but it might be worth sacrificing 2 of your 10 hours of BJJ time per week for 2 hours of strength training. It may be worth reading the S&C FAQ to understand what your twice a week options are.

This definitely. I know instructors are always harping on the benefits of technique over strength etc, but in your case I think a pound of strength is probably worth two pounds of BJJ (if you get my meaning).