Then why wasn't the mantle of the "Steroid Guru", Dan Duchaine, lined up with bodybuilding trophies? Where were all his national titles and Mr Universe medals?
There should be no "either/or", when it comes to supplements vs. food. If you can reasonably afford both, then use both, especially if you have a stressful job in which sitting down to eat extra meals is difficult.
Taking a couple of Myoplex shakes while you're at work (during meetings and such, while everyone else is guzzling coffee and soda) will definitely help get your protein levels up. Protein powders work great, but not if you take them sparsely. And, we all know what creatine can do, as far as boosting strength goes.
As far as the pros go, they use supplements, too. Remember when MET-Rx hit the scene. IFBB pros and top NPC amateurs were raving about the stuff. Of course, after reading a few articles, particularly ones like "Probing the Pros" from MuscleMag in the mid-90s. It turned out that these guys ingest the stuff as if it's Kool-Aid, drinking 8 to 10 MET-Rx shakes per day.
Last time I checked 8 MET-Rx shakes totaled about 2000 calories and nearly 300 grams of protein. Combine that with a high-quality and quantity diet (and some anabolics) and it's little wonder why these guys are as massive as they are.
Three or four solid meals, combined with three to four liquid ones, can help just many folks get on path to size and strength.
Why debate between food and supplements? Use them both to reach your goals.
Diet and supplementation are even more critical for folks who aren't using anabolics.
