Last night, in the middle of our first significant snowfall of the season (which feels weird to say that, given where we live… but a different story for another day), my son, while splashing around in the bathtub, sending Ducky sailing through the air to plop messily in the bubbly water, points to my phone perched on the bathroom sink and questions: “Zat?”

“I’m not sure who that one is buddy,” I reply. And I’m serious in my answer. Despite listening in on several conference calls over the past two months, I still cannot tell the difference between the voices I hear on the calls.

Back to kicking and splashing he goes, and back to tidying the bathroom up I go as I listen in on the recording of the missed call.

“Zat?” He asks again, pointing. Someone on the call has chimed in with a question. He listens for a moment, a thoughtful expression on his face. He says something in his curious baby language and go back to playing, again.

The conference call recordings have become a regular part of our household. Either playing while I’m making dinner, during bath time, folding laundry and even while I’m working out. Such is the life of a busy, working parent. I have only ever caught one live, during a rare afternoon when my day job was slow. But the rest have all been played either later that evening, or over the weekend while doing house chores.

The voices in the phone or coming from my iPad or computer have become sort of an integral part of our household.

Little did 1st Phorm supplements know, back in December when I was welcomed into their “phamily” as a Legionnaire, they were also being welcomed into ours.

Over the span of the calls, I’ve gained a knowledge about supplements I wish I’d had back in the initial forming of my fitness journey. The days when I’d stand in our local GNC, staring down the shelves of proteins, vitamins and the likes, trying to figure out which one had the most servings for the cheapest price.

Back when I thought protein was just… protein. That those shysters who charged $50 for a pound of protein were running a racket and getting rich quick. While there may be some truth to that, the past two months have been a huge eye opener for me.

It’s not only changed the way that I’m looking at my own supplement use, but how I talk to my clients about theirs.

It’s something that was never discussed in my nutrition classes in college. Well, it was, but in summarization. Like, a blip on the radar. Now that I know why that protein in the two-pound tub was only $19.99, I want to go back and kick myself in the shins.

In the two months I’ve been under some serious supplement education, and using the 1st Phorm supplements myself (protein and vitamins), I can say one thing: I will never use other again.

The bloat I felt after drinking my post workout drink is a thing of the past. They sit better with my body. My body digests them better. My body is certainly happier that I made the switch, that’s for sure. Not to mention, my training results have taken a completely different, and much better turn (that’s honest truth right there, that’s not me trying to get you to buy into it. I didn’t think this was a thing, but I’m finding out that it is – and I’m angry with myself for being fooled and not knowing that there was a difference).

What’s the difference? Is it worth the price? Hands down it’s worth the price, and the difference is easy – more bang inside that tub of powder.

The easiest way to explain it is with chicken. Chuck a piece of chicken breast on the grill, move that thermostat up to the highest temp setting and cook it. It’s gonna cook quick, it’s going to shrink up, dry out and probably char. Do you think that piece of chicken is going to hold any nutritional value for you? Maybe just a little.

Now, take a piece of chicken breast and toss it in your slow cooker. Set it to low and let it cook for awhile. Sure, it’ll take longer, but when it’s done, you’ve got a nice, juicy piece of chicken to enjoy. It’ll be packed with all the nutrient greatness that we know chicken to have.

It’s the same way with protein. 1st Phorm is low temperature processed, never exposed to high temps during the process. What does that mean? It means that you’re going to get the max integrity of the bio-active protein fractions – further meaning: your body is going to be able to utilize the highest amounts of protein possible. Which will help you repair your muscle, and develop lean muscle tissue.

Break it down in fitness speak: less suffering of the dreaded DOMS and more gains. Bro.

Since making the switch, gone are the super tight and sore muscles the day after. I get some soreness, I won’t lie. But I no longer feel like I have to hug the elevator walls the day after leg day.

Fueling your body properly, and with the proper tools is essential. Not just for someone like me who has powerlifting meets quickly approaching and needs to really buckle down, but for someone looking to lose weight, or just live healthier (supplements aren’t just for people who workout! #breakingnews?) Sometimes we just can’t eat all of our macronutrients our body needs (I’m not the only one with an insanely busy schedule who may need to reach for the shaker and drink their nutrients in a shake/smoothie), and that’s where these supplements come into play. To fill in the gaps where/when needed.

Most of us can gather an idea of sort of what we need, but we don’t really know exactly what we need in order to best succeed. Break that plateau.

It wasn’t until just a few months ago that I even really knew the answers. As a trainer and nutritionist, that hurt my pride that I couldn’t answer that. But now I can. I can help my clients that I have now, I can help people who may shoot me a message over social media after seeing one of my training posts. I can help new clients coming in. I can help you.

Let that change for a better you, get that progress going again, today. Seriously.