The marketing of bodybuilding supplements is so effective that many people mistakenly believe they can be used for all types of workout programs. The vast amount of conflicting information and overlapping terminology in health literature doesn’t help this matter either.

Much like finding the right-fitting financial goals, proper assessment and doing your homework can prevent you from investing wrongly in bodybuilding supplements. Understanding and addressing the distinction between bodybuilding and other types of training can help you determine if supplements are right for you, or when you may need them, if at all.

So first lets get some terms right. The Build Muscle and Gain Weight Fast Guide explains that, ‘œBodybuilding training puts the emphasis on physique improvements with any increased physical conditioning being a pleasant side effect.’

Lots of people going to the gym aren’t doing bodybuilding training. I’d say many people who workout are doing strength training (improving muscle capability and muscle building) or fitness training (targeting overall fitness, which includes cardiovascular and muscle strength, flexibility and core stability).

eMedicineHealth has a good rule of thumb for supplements and non-bodybuilders: ‘œGenerally, supplementation is probably best left to competitive athletes who are monitored and supervised by coaches and nutritionists. The rest of us do well with regular exercise and adherence to good dietary habits.’

For non-bodybuilders seeking to gain lean muscle, the right proportions of carbohydrates, protein and fat and a boost in calories may be all you need. These Nutrition Tips for Strength Training from About.com are a good starting point to see if your diet is meeting the needs of your workout.

If it’s muscle mass that you want more than overall fitness, you need to follow a bodybuilding program and diet, and there’s a fair chance you may benefit from supplements if used correctly. The Build Muscle and Gain Weight Fast Guide again explains, ‘œ[Muscle building supplements] are those whose primary purpose is not to provide calories but rather to augment a part of the muscle building process.

“[B]efore considering any muscle supplements you should be consistently consuming a solid weight gain diet. If you aren’t doing this, the only thing any muscle supplements will give you is expensive urine. Skip the middle-man and just flush your money directly down the toilet.

‘œMuscle supplements can’t help your body build muscle when you aren’t giving it the necessary raw materials to do so. That’s like hiring a brick-layer and expecting him to build you a house without any bricks.’

For a sample of a bodybuilding diet, check out this How to Build a Bodybuilding Diet from About.com. And if you’re convinced that supplements will plug in nutritional gaps in your diet, then you may want to review Bodybuilding Supplementation Basics also at About.com.

In short, determine if you prefer bodybuilding, strength or fitness training (or some other specialized training) before you select your diet, then consider whether supplements are necessary. If I must put it in financial terms for the point to register, consider it this way — If you’re already on track with your retirement goals, why put your money in riskier investments unless you’re looking for an excess of money? Strangely, supplements work like riskier investments in a similar way, just with muscle instead.