Top 3 HMB Supplements (To Increase Muscle Mass)

Top 3 HMB Supplements
  • Written by: Garett Reid
  • CSCS
    Masters In Exercise Science
    NSCA CPT (Certified Personal Trainer)
  • Last Updated on August 3, 2023

Contents

Looking for the best HMB supplement to help you get massive gains?

You came to the right spot…

HMB is one of those “chemical” supplements with a very long and scientific name, beta-Hydroxy beta-methylbutyric acid (Now you see why we just call it HMB).

It tends to get overshadowed by the more well-known supplements like creatine, EAAs, and caffeine. However, HMB might be the most effective ergogenic aid that isn’t talked about nearly enough.

I’ve been a personal trainer for the last decade and hold my Masters In Exercise Science, so I know a thing or two about the science behind performance-enhancing supplements, like HMB.

In this article, you’re going to find the information you need to know about this powder:

  1. What is HMB
  2. How does it improve performance
  3. Proper dosing
  4. The 3 best HMB supplements


If You’re In A Rush… Here’s What You Need To Know

If you’re in a hurry, here are the top 3 HMB supplements that you should consider. However, be sure to come back when you can to read a more detailed explanation of what HMB is and why you should take it.

Bulk Supplements HMB – Best Overall Option

Double Wood HMB – Best For Capsules (Easier To Take)

 
  
 
Our Rating
Why I Love It
3rd Party Testing
Bulk Supplements HMB
Bulk Supplements HMB
Our Rating : Best Overall
Why I Love It : Simple, High-Quality, Most Cost-Effective, Delivers exactly what you need for less
3rd Party Testing: Yes
Double Wood HMB
Double Wood HMB
Our Rating : Best For Capsules
Why I Love It : Lesser known but awesome brand that offers full-line of supplements and herbs, Pill form for easy use, 3rd party test, COA & Lab results available on website
3rd Party Testing: Yes
Vitamonk HMB
Vitamonk HMB
Our Rating : Best Multi-Ingredient Option
Why I Love It : Capsules that deliver multiple effective ingredients such as HMB, beta-alanina, and sodium bicarbonate, Subscription service, 60-day money back guarantee, Cites their research from peer-reviewed articles
3rd Party Testing: Yes


Why You Should Trust Me

I’ve been working in this industry professionally for the past 10 years. This includes time working in the USA, as well as throughout Asia. Over this time, I have worked as a:

  • Personal Trainer
  • Strength & Conditioning Coach
  • Sports Performance Coach
  • Gym Owner
  • Sports Science/Fitness/Gym Consultant
  • Educator and Lecturer

Concerning my credentials, I currently hold:

  • Masters in Exercise Science (Fitness & Performance)
  • NSCA CSCS
  • CISSN
  • Sit as an Executive Council Member of the NSCA Strongman SIG

One of my areas of interest and expertise is the use of ergogenic aids and nutrition to improve performance. Ironically, there tends to be a lot of bad information supporting crappy supplements and not near enough promoting the ones that actually help.


Why HMB Is Great For Muscle Growth

While above I told you the full scientific name of HMB, I’m still going to assume that it did nothing to further explain what it is and its mechanisms.

HMB is a metabolite of the amino acid leucine. As you may know, out of all the EAAs, leucine is the primary amino acid for triggering muscle protein synthesis, making it vital for muscle growth. That alone should increase your interest.

However, leucine has also been found to significantly affect what’s known as muscle proteolysis, or muscle breakdown. In reality, leucine has antiproteolytic properties meaning it prevents muscle breakdown. When comparing the leucine dose required for maximum protein synthesis, researchers found that 10-20x the amount was required for maximal antiproteolytic effects. This led them to believe that a metabolite of leucine was likely to be the main cause for this.

They were right, and this metabolite responsible for mitigating muscle breakdown is HMB. Since this discovery, HMB’s use in athletics for improved performance has grown dramatically. Its primary ergogenic benefit comes from its ability to mitigate muscle breakdown, which in turn quickens recovery while also possibly improving muscle protein synthesis.


Top 3 HMB Supplements

HMB is quickly becoming more popular, which means there has been a rise in products on the market. Here are the top 3 HMB supplements to improve your recovery and get you training harder.


Our #1 Rated HMB Supplement: Bulk Supplements (Best Overall)

Best HMB Supplements
Features
Our rating
Features
  • Multiple 3rd party testing certifications
  • Well known brand with consistently high ratings from thousands of users
  • Most cost-effective (about 0.08/g)
  • Subscription service for any more affordable pricing
Our Rating
Our# 1 HMB Supplements
4.9 out of 5

If you’re looking for the best HMB supplement, this one from Bulk Supplements is the one you want.

They are 3rd party certified for quality, tons of amazing reviews, and are affordable as it gets.

Bulk Supplements HMB reviews

They were one of the first brands to start the minimal style of marketing and packaging, and gym-goers like myself love it.

By skipping the flamboyant ads and packaging usually seen in the supplement industry, Bulk Supplements chose to save that money, focus on a quality product, and pass the savings down to the customer.

To me, this is an absolute win.

This means that Bulk Supplements has some of the cheapest HMB supplements on the market without sacrificing quality.

Bulk Supplements HMB

Still, they have a wide range of quantities, allowing you to save even more by buying bulk. At the time of writing, they have bags from 100g all the way to 5kg in stock.

More importantly, bulk supplements have multiple 3rd party testing certifications and outside labs testing.

Pros

  • Multiple 3rd party testing certifications
  • Well known brand with consistently high ratings from thousands of users
  • Most cost-effective (about 0.08/g)
  • Subscription service for any more affordable pricing

Cons

  • Only powder (some may find capsules more convenient)

Verdict

I love Bulk Supplements. In my mind, they are what sports nutrition should be about. Simplicity, science-backed, high-quality, and affordable prices. In an industry where marketing, gimmicks, and pure crap are everywhere, Bulk Supplements stand out and show that none is needed to succeed. If you’re looking for the best HMB supplement at an affordable price, this is the one you want.


Our #2 Rated HMB Supplement: Double Wood (Best For Capsules)

Best HMB Supplements
Features
Our rating
Features
  • 3rd party tested
  • Certificate of analysis and lab results posted on the website
  • Capsule form
  • Easy to bring with you for those you workout after work
Our Rating
Our# 2 HMB Supplements
4.7 out of 5

Double Wood is a bit less known, but offers a massive array of various supplements from carnitine to mushroom extract. It also produces a high-quality HMB product that you should definitely check out.

Double Wood HMB

Their product has third-party testing, so you can be sure it’s pure and comes with easy-to-swallow capsules (0.5g/capsule).

If you have questions, they post their certificate of analysis and third-party test results right on their page to examine the quality of your batch.

Another plus is all of their products are produced in the USA and come with GMP (Good Manufacturing Practice) stamp of approval.

While they do have a subscription service that knocks off 15% of the cost, they are still quite a bit more expensive than Bulk Supplements at approximately $0.16-$0.14 per gram, depending on if you get a subscription.

However, the capsules make them easy to take or even bring with you.

This is important after workouts as studies have shown that taking HMB before working out can produce optimal results (More on dosing below).

Therefore, that extra cost may be worth it for some.

Pros

  • 3rd party tested
  • Certificate of analysis and lab results posted on the website
  • Capsule form
  • Easy to bring with you for those you workout after work

Cons

  • A bit more expensive

Verdict

If you work out after work and don’t want to deal with powders, Double Wood HMB is perfect as you can easily just bring it with you. While they are more expensive than other brands, a 40-day supply (3g/day) still costs $17-20.


Our #3 HMB Supplement: Vitamonk (Best Multi-Ingredient Option)

Best HMB Supplements
Features
Our rating
Features
  • Subscription Service for a more cost-effective price
  • “One-Stop-Shop” pill as it offers multiple high-quality ingredients
  • Produced and tested in the USA
  • GMP certified (Good Manufacturing Practices)
Our Rating
Our# 3 HMB Supplements
4.5 out of 5

Vitamonk is unique on this list as their HMB supplement is actually a multi-ingredient product. In fact, it offers quite a bit. The bottle comes with 180 capsules of which each consists of:

  • Sodium Bicarbonate- 27mg
  • Beta-Alanine- 1000mg
  • HMB- 1000mg
  • Taurine- 500mg
  • L-Carnitine- 500mg
  • Cordyceps Sinensis-500mg
  • Siberian Ginseng Root- 400mg

That’s a lot, and better yet, it includes other very effective supplements such as beta-alanine (link BA article). Therefore, this multi-ingredient product from Vitamonk is perfect for those who want to stack HMB with other supplements.

With Vitamonk, you can be sure you’re consuming a high-quality product as their formula is produced and tested in the USA. One aspect that I like about Vitamonk’s option is that they list the scientific information and citations with hyperlinks. I can confirm that all of their sources are from trusted, peer-reviewed sites.

Pros

  • Subscription Service for a more cost-effective price
  • “One-Stop-Shop” pill as it offers multiple high-quality ingredients
  • Produced and tested in the USA
  • GMP certified (Good Manufacturing Practices)
  • 60-day money-back guarantee

Cons

  • More expensive if all you want is HMB

Verdict

Vitamonk is an excellent choice for those who plan on taking multiple supplements in one. Still, the price is going to be lower. However, the price is obviously higher than HMB-only products, so if that’s all you care about, go with one of the products above.


Proper Dosing Of HMB

HMB is a bit different from other supplements in that it seems to have both acute and chronic mechanisms attributed to its benefits. This means that seemingly both the timing and duration of HMB supplementation can affect its ergogenic benefits.

In terms of timing, it seems that the two forms, HMB-CA and HMB-FA, have different actions. For HMB-CA, you should take 3g a minimum of 60 minutes before intense exercise. However, because of its uptake, you will need to take 3g of HMB-CA 2-hours before training if you take it with glucose.

On the other hand, HMB-FA is faster and may have a more significant effect, requiring less time to separate consumption and training. Therefore, 3g of HMB-FA should be consumed 30-60 minutes before training.

For a chronic beneficial effect, you should consume 3g of HMB daily (regardless of form). Other than your training days, studies show that dividing this into three equal servings throughout the day could be beneficial.

This simply means consuming 1g for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.


What One Do You Want?

Whenever someone asks me what brand to buy, I almost exclusively say Bulk Supplements simply because that’s what I use most of the time. It wouldn’t make much sense for me to suggest something other than what I’m using, would it? But seriously, as mentioned, I love the brand and everything they stand for.

Still, the others are excellent choices, but I would choose the Double Wood HMB over the VitaMonk This is simply because I don’t want to get “stuck” with having to take supplements I may not usually take just because I want one or two of the ingredients found in their pill.

However, you may be different, and it could make sense.

Regardless of what you choose, I can almost guarantee (there’s always outliers!) that including HMB into your regime will provide benefits as long as you know what to expect. And after reading this article, you should!


Still Unsure Which Option Is Best For You? Here’s The Recap, Based On Our Testing & Research

  • Bulk Supplements HMB: This is the best overall option. It is simple, high-quality, cost-effective, and delivers exactly what you need for less.
  • Double Wood HMB: This is the best option for capsules (easier to take). Double Wood is a lesser-known but awesome brand that offers a full line of supplements and herbs. The pill form is easy to use and they offer 3rd party testing, COA & Lab results available on their website.
  • Vitamonk HMB: This is the best multi-ingredient option. The capsules deliver multiple effective ingredients such as HMB, beta-alanine, and sodium bicarbonate. They offer a subscription service, a 60-day money-back guarantee, and cite their research from peer-reviewed articles.

Garett Reid

Garett Reid has his Masters in Exercise Science (Liberty University) and carries NSCA CSCS and CISSN certifications. He also currently sits as an Executive Council Member for the NSCA Strongman SIG. Garett has been working in the strength and conditioning industry for over 10 years which includes 8 years working throughout Asia (China, Thailand). For the past 2.5 years he has been working as a freelance strength & conditioning writer.

Like what you read? We would love a share :)

  • Written by: Garett Reid
  • CSCS
    Masters In Exercise Science
    NSCA CPT (Certified Personal Trainer)
  • Last Updated on August 3, 2023

Check out our other great content