If you are in a hurry and just want to find out what the best multivitamin for bodybuilding is then I’d recommend Animal Pak Multivitamin as the best one.
If you live a busy, on-the-go lifestyle, it can be a challenge to get all the vitamins and minerals your body requires. These micronutrients are essential–not just for general health, but for muscle performance and recovery as well.
If you’re looking to make sure you’re getting all the micronutrients you need to perform your best, multivitamin supplements are a great first step. But what are the best multivitamins for bodybuilding? Don’t worry, we’ve got you covered.
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Bodybuilding Multivitamins 101
Before we dive into the details, let’s start with the basics. Here are some of the most frequently asked questions about multivitamins for bodybuilding.
What are Multivitamins?
Multivitamins are dietary supplements containing vitamins and minerals, collectively known as micronutrients. Compared to macronutrients such as proteins, carbohydrates, and fats, micronutrients can be more challenging to track. But they are vital to general health, cognitive development, and muscle performance.
Micronutrients are best absorbed through whole foods, but a multivitamin supplement can help ensure you are reaching a sufficient micronutrient baseline without altering your diet.
Where Can I Get Them?
Multivitamins are available at most pharmacies, grocery stores, and big-box retailers. Many can also be ordered online through their company’s website or major online marketplaces.
How Much Do They Cost?
The cost can vary, but on average, multivitamin supplements cost around $10 on the low end to $40 on the high end for bottles of 30 servings.
When Should I Take My Multivitamins?
It’s not necessary to take multivitamins at the same time each day. However, picking a specific time to take them can help make them a part of your routine. They are also most effective when taken with food and plenty of water. I recommend you pick a meal and take your multivitamins with that meal each day.
How Do Multivitamins Help With Bodybuilding?
At the most basic level, multivitamin supplements help with bodybuilding in that dietary health is one of the pillars of bodybuilding and fitness. Micronutrients are vital to our body’s ability to stay healthy and perform, and our bodies do not produce them themselves.
But micronutrients can also be specifically beneficial to bodybuilding. Here’s how:
Metabolism
Many different micronutrients contribute to a properly functioning metabolism. The higher the metabolic state, the more vulnerable you are to smaller vitamin or mineral deficiencies. Intense exercise can also increase the body’s micronutrient requirements.
Energy and Endurance
Micronutrients are essential to energy and endurance. B Vitamins (B12 especially) are responsible for converting food into energy. Vitamin B deficiency dramatically reduces the body’s capacity for endurance.
Muscle Growth and Recovery
Last but not least, several minerals included in many multivitamins contribute to muscle performance. These include zinc, magnesium, and iron. A deficiency in any of these areas can have a significant effect on performance. Other vitamins, such as A, D, and B6, contribute to protein absorption and muscle recovery.
Additionally, some bodybuilder-oriented multivitamins contain creatine, which can increase muscle mass.
What to Look For in a Multivitamin
On the surface, all multivitamin supplements might look the same, but they’re not. Here are some of the key features to look for in multivitamins for bodybuilders:
What’s in it?
The most important feature to look for in a multivitamin is also the most basic: what’s in it? There are nearly 40 “essential micronutrients“–vitamins and minerals that are vital to health that the body cannot produce itself. Most multivitamins will contain many, but not all, of these essentials. It’s crucial to look for a wide variety of ingredients, first and foremost.
Some multivitamins also contain additional, non-essential ingredients. These can include probiotics, antioxidants, amino acids, and more.
What’s the Dosage?
Once you know what is in a multivitamin supplement, the next question to ask is, how much? That is the area where multivitamin supplements can vary the most.
Vitamins A, D, E, and K are fat-soluble, meaning they can store in the body. That means you don’t need more than 50-100% of the recommended daily value in your multivitamin. However, vitamins B and C are water-soluble, meaning they cannot store in the body. That means you can benefit from a higher concentration of these vitamins.
Some multivitamins supplements will contain only the bare minimum concentration of their included micronutrients. But others will have very high dosages. These supplements can lead to better performance, but it is essential not to take more than the recommended amount per day.
Are They Targeted at Bodybuilders?
Specific multivitamins contain blends explicitly tailored for bodybuilders. These will typically feature higher doses of the micronutrients responsible for metabolism, energy, and muscle growth.
Some of these multivitamins will also contain creatine, amino acids, or fat burners.
The Best Multivitamins for Bodybuilding
Now that you know what to look for let’s dive in. What’s the best multivitamin for bodybuilding? I’ve narrowed it down to the following five products:
Animal Pak Multivitamin
Animal is one of the most trusted brands in the bodybuilding community, and the Animal Pak Multivitamin is specially designed for bodybuilders. It has unmatched variety, combining nine different stand-alone packs (including vitamins, minerals, amino acids, antioxidants, and more) into one single multivitamin.
Just about every essential micronutrient is covered, most with very high concentration. The blend targets muscle growth and recovery. In addition to the vitamins and minerals, Animal Pak contains antioxidant compounds directed at immune support and organ health.
Another cool feature of the Animal Pak Multivitamin is its convenient portioning system. Instead of loose powder and a scoop, Animal Pak servings come pre-packaged and individually wrapped. That makes it convenient to take on the go and easy to keep track of how much to take. That is particularly important with Animal Pak, as the high concentration makes it important not to take more than the recommended amount.
Overall, Animal Pak is one of the highest quality multivitamins for bodybuilders available today. The variety and concentration are among the best in the market, and they are convenient to take. They are, however, a bit on the expensive side.
Features/Ingredients:
- 29 essential micronutrients
- Water-soluble concentration range: 100% to 9,000% daily value
- Digestive enzyme complex
- Amino acid complex
- Antioxidant complex
Pros:
- Huge variety of micronutrients
- Sufficient concentration
- Made for bodybuilders
- Convenient pre-packaged servings
- 100% money-back guarantee
Cons:
- Cost
- High concentration can be dangerous if you take more than the recommended dose
Jym Sports Multivitamin
The Jym Sports Multivitamin is a supplement focused primarily on micronutrient absorption. It features some massive concentrations, topping out at 20,000% daily value of vitamin B12. The supplement also features BioPerine, which enhances nutrient absorption.
Further, the blend avoids zinc, magnesium, and calcium as they can interfere with the absorption of other nutrients. However, this is a sacrifice in another area, as these minerals directly affect muscle performance.
Jym Sports Multivitamin focuses on quality nutrients. Their vitamin A is beta-carotene, and their vitamin K is all menaquinone, the most effective form of each.
Rather than doing many things, Jym focuses on doing one thing well. It doesn’t have as wide a variety as other multivitamins for bodybuilders, and it leaves out several essential minerals. But it focuses heavily on maximizing absorption of what it does include. Jym Sports Multivitamin is a focused supplement at a competitive price.
Features:
- 20 essential micronutrients
- Water-soluble concentration range: 300% to 20,000% daily value
- BioPerine
Pros:
- Huge concentration
- Focus on absorption
- Highest quality vitamins
- Affordable
Cons:
- Leaves out several key nutrients
- High concentration can be dangerous if you take more than the recommended dose
Legion Triumph Daily Multivitamin
The most expensive item on the list is the Legion Triumph Daily Multivitamin. The Legion supplement’s distinguishing factor is a large amount of secondary, “non-essential” ingredients. They include a wide variety of phytonutrients and antioxidants to boost energy and immune support. They also advertise ingredients designed to reduce depression and anxiety.
The essential micronutrients themselves are a bit more narrow. There are only 20 essential vitamins and minerals, though they do come in substantial concentrations. The focus of the blend is on muscle performance and mental health.
Overall, this is a high-quality product. The wide variety of non-essential ingredients is a definite strength. And concentrations of difficult to absorb essential nutrients are high. However, it might not quite live up to its heftier price tag.
Features:
- 20 essential micronutrients
- 14 phytonutrients
- Water-soluble concentration range: 150% to 10,000% daily value
- Antioxidant complex
Pros:
- Wide variety of additional ingredients
- Sufficient concentration
- Focused on muscle performance
- 100% money-back guarantee
Cons:
- Very costly
- Narrow essential micronutrient variety
Evlution VitaMode High Performance Daily Vitamin
The Evlution VitaMode multivitamin is a particularly balanced supplement. It’s not the most comprehensive product on the list, but it is well-rounded and affordable. It features 22 essential micronutrients, along with a phytonutrient complex for antioxidant support.
The blend focuses on muscle performance and immune health, and it is relatively highly concentrated. It has additional ingredients that contribute to bone, eye, and skin health. It also comes with BioPerine to boost overall nutrient absorption.
Another great feature of this supplement is choline, which emphasizes neural support, health, and mood. However, it does not include iron, a common and important ingredient in most multivitamins for bodybuilding.
Overall, Evlution VitaMode is a reliable, well-rounded multivitamin for bodybuilding. It is not the highest performing product on the list, and the lack of iron is a red flag. But there is still a wide array of essential ingredients, and thanks to the BioPerine, you know they’ll all be properly absorbed and metabolized.
Features/ingredients:
- 22 essential micronutrients
- Water-soluble concentration range: 400% to 4,000% daily value
- Phytonutrient complex
- BioPerine for absorption
- Vegetarian
- Gluten-free
Pros:
- Good variety of micronutrients
- Sufficient concentration
- High absorption
- Affordable
Cons:
- No iron
- No calcium
MuscleTech Platinum Multivitamin
The MuscleTech Platinum Multivitamin is a unique product on the list. It effectively acts as part multivitamin, part pre-workout. It has the lowest variety and dosage of micronutrients on the list, though they are still effective doses. But it also includes common pre-workout ingredients like creatine, citrulline, and an extensive herbal matrix.
Another feature of the Muscletech Platinum Multivitamin is the amino acid complex focused on brain health.
Overall, this is a very diverse product. The MuscleTech Platinum multivitamin is the most specific to bodybuilding of all the products on the list. However, the multivitamin aspect is the least effective.
Features:
- 18 essential micronutrients
- Water-soluble concentration range: 75% to 1,500% daily value
- Creatine
- Herbal matrix
- Amino acid complex
Pros:
- Made for bodybuilders
- Pre-workout ingredients
- Fat-burners
Cons:
- Very narrow multivitamin variety
- Limited concentration
Conclusion
Depending on your needs, you can’t go wrong with any of the multivitamin supplements on this list. But overall, I believe the best multivitamin for bodybuilding is the Animal Pak Multivitamin.
Animal Pak has by far the most comprehensive variety of micronutrients, with very high doses of the ones that are harder to absorb. It is made by a trusted bodybuilding brand, specifically for bodybuilders. It comes at a competitive price point, and if you aren’t satisfied, you’re covered by a 100% money-back guarantee.