#7 The Secrets of Minerals

Like vitamins, minerals have existed since the dawn of time. In fact, they are even found outside in the form of “ore” 💎. 

And to tell you a little story quite well-known in the world of sports and minerals, I will talk about Victor Conte. 

A story that ends with a little prison 🚓 for him, but a fantastic product for us. 

In fact, Victor is the creator of ZMA. A blend of Zinc Aspartate, Magnesium Aspartate and Vitamin B6. And this Victor prepared high-level athletes for major competitions, like the Olympics for example 🥇. And his athletes were super strong, apparently thanks to the revolutionary ZMA! Except that scandal, his athletes were caught doping. Results of the races: prison for Vic, records canceled, medals suspended and lifelong exclusion from the Olympics for certain athletes. 

But the positive thing to remember from all this is ZMA. It wasn't a bad idea in itself. We, we took it, and we pimped it: we replaced this aspartate form with pidolate. Believe me, if his athletes had taken our ZMB, no need for EPO to win medals. 

Minerals are like precious stones for your body. They are essential for your survival, a bit like vitamins. In fact, they are chemical elements that are really found in nature. You'll see just below. 

Minerals are often distinguished into 2 categories. Macroelements, and trace elements. 

The difference between the two lies in the necessary quantity of each for the survival of an organism. For trace elements, for example, a very small amount will be needed for the body. 

Macroelements include for example potassium, sodium, magnesium, calcium, etc. 

And trace elements include zinc, iron, copper, iodine, selenium, cobalt, etc. Yes yes, we have cobalt in our body, not just in your phone battery 📞. 

Like vitamins, fortunately for us that minerals exist in powder form or capsules. 

Knowing about mineral deficiencies in French people, it should be the basis of supplementation even before thinking about taking creatine, for example. We will see this in the study section below. 

A lot of things actually. Like vitamins, again (the two complement each other in fact), it is essential for the body's functioning. Hormonal role, bone maintenance, immunity, muscle growth, oxygen transport, nervous system functioning...... 

In short, a whole host of things for the body. And a well-functioning body means performance 💪! 

The most important ones are magnesium, potassium, zinc, selenium, and iodine. A well-dosed multimineral will do the trick! 

Iron if you are deficient, especially for women during their menstrual periods. Guys, apart from a severe deficiency, avoid iron supplementation, especially if you already eat red meat 🥩. 

If you already take whey and dairy products, you are generally good for calcium. 

Regarding the form of the mineral, there are many: citrate, bicarbonate, malate, aspartate, lactate, oxide, chloride, sulfate, nitrate, etc. etc. 

To choose the ideal form, you need to know your goals. 

Let's take magnesium as an example. One of the most popular forms is bisglycinate, recognized as having excellent absorption. However, since it is preferable to take magnesium in small doses throughout the day (to maximize its absorption), the citrate form is ideal. It is cheaper and has the advantage of being alkalizing for the body, which tends to acidify in weightlifters due to protein. If for convenience you prefer to take magnesium only once a day, then bisglycinate is the right form. 

By the way, a technique to know if you assimilate magnesium well: if you go to the toilet and it causes you laxative effects, it is a sign that you are assimilating it well 💩. 

It depends on the form. For example, if you take your minerals in bicarbonate form, avoid taking them at the same time as proteins, it can cause bloating. You can take them during your workout, when minerals escape the most. 

If you take your minerals in pidolate form, then you should take them in the evening, as they promote relaxation and improve sleep 😴. 

It's better to, yes, at least magnesium and potassium. 

Obviously, for people with hyperkalemia, meaning too much potassium in the blood (which can be very serious), it should not be taken. But in general, the balance between sodium and potassium is too high in favor of sodium 🧂.