Gymgoers often obsess over protein, carbs, and fats, but overlook the little dietary details that make a significant difference to their progress.

Take, for example, magnesium.

Magnesium helps your body produce energy, ensures your muscles contract as they should, and controls inflammation. Fall short, and workouts feel harder, recovery slows, and soreness lingers longer.

That’s bad news for weightlifters because magnesium deficiency is common, and lifting weights increases your needs.

Sedentary folks need around 300-to-400 mg per day to avoid deficiency. But if you lift weights, your needs increase by around 10-to-20%.

Hitting that target through diet alone is tough.

Magnesium-rich foods like nuts, seeds, and spinach aren’t staples in most diets. On top of that, modern farming has stripped fruits and vegetables of their natural magnesium, and food processing removes up to 80% of what’s left.

That’s where supplementation helps.

A review published in the International Journal of Molecular Sciences showed that magnesium supplements improve strength, reduce inflammation, accelerate recovery, and limit muscle breakdown. 

Another review published in Nutrients reported similar findings—magnesium supplementation improves strength and power and reduces fatigue by helping your body use energy more efficiently during exercise.

Other research shows supplementing with magnesium may also boost testosterone and improve sleep—two things that make building muscle easier.

In short, getting enough magnesium isn’t a bonus for muscle building—it’s a near necessity.

There are many magnesium supplements on the market, but for a type that’s better absorbed than the most common forms, such as magnesium oxide, magnesium chloride, or magnesium taurate, try Legion’s Sucrosomial® magnesium.

Legion’s Sucrosomial® magnesium provides 150 mg per serving—enough to hit the RDA and potentially enjoy the benefits of higher intake for most people.

Scientific References +