Over-the-counter supplements and strength training.

The group from the Exercise Science Department at Iowa State University and their colleagues in other departments at Iowa State have conducted two outstanding studies on human responses to resistance training. These have focused on the extent to which products that have been purported to enhance the responses to resistance training in humans (that are available over the counter to the public) actually work. One compound, androstenedione, seemed ineffective under the conditions studied; the other, HMB, seemed to enhance increases in lean body mass and strength in response to resistance training. These studies were well designed and well controlled and should serve as models for those interested in evaluating the impact of various interventions on body composition and strength in humans.