Clara Brooks

Clara Brooks

What I actually take, and what I do not.

I coach people through training, stress, energy and sleep. This is the short list that survived four years of me trying things and dropping most of them.

See what I takeWhy you can trust this list

Written by @ClaraBrooksjz

Clara Brooks running on an outdoor track at sunrise
6:40am, before the heat

About me

I am not a doctor. I am a coach who sorted out her own week and now helps other people sort out theirs.

Most people who come to me are not broken. They are running on four hours of hard days and no easy ones. Wired at 11pm, flat at 3pm, sore from a session they did not need to make that hard.

So we start with the week, not the pill. When you train and when you actually rest. What you eat after a hard session. What time you wake, when you stop drinking coffee, whether you got outside before noon.

Sleep is usually where it shows up first, because it is the thing that breaks loudest. It is rarely the only thing we fix.

Then, and only then, do we talk about anything on this page.

Clara Brooks smiling while stretching on a running track in the morning
Coaching since
2019
Wake time
6:15, weekends too
Hard sessions
Two a week, no more
Last coffee
11am

My story

Four years of training hard, recovering badly, and buying things that did nothing.

I was running six days a week and treating rest like a character flaw. Every session was a hard session. I was tired in a way that coffee stopped touching, and by night I was too wired to sleep.

I bought a lot of things in that period. Sprays, gummies, a blend with fourteen ingredients on the label and no dose next to any of them. Most of it did nothing and I kept buying anyway, because doing something felt better than doing nothing.

What actually moved it was dull. Two easy runs for every hard one. Real food after training instead of three hours of nothing. Same wake time on weekends. Coffee done by eleven. Phone charging in the kitchen.

Once that was in place a few small things started to help at the edges. Magnesium most nights. Ashwagandha through heavy training blocks. Theanine on the days my head will not settle.

That is the whole list. It is short because most of what I tried did not make it.

I stopped chasing one more session and started earning the one I had.

A few mornings

  • Clara Brooks running on an outdoor track at sunrise
    6:40am, before the heat
  • Clara Brooks stretching on a running track
    The warm up I used to skip
  • Clara Brooks holding a lunge stretch on the track
    Ten minutes, every session
  • Clara Brooks stretching beside the track
    Easy day, on purpose
  • Clara Brooks sitting on the track in early morning light
    Rest counts as training

How this list is put together

You should be suspicious of pages like this. Here is exactly how mine works.

  • Nobody paid to be here

    No brand has ever paid me for a slot on this page. I have turned down the ones who asked.

  • I earn a commission, and you pay nothing extra

    If you buy through a link here, Amazon pays me a small cut. The price is the same as if you had searched it yourself.

  • Single ingredients, with the dose on the label

    No proprietary blends. If I cannot tell you how many milligrams of the active thing you are getting, it does not go on the list.

  • Nothing that papers over a bad week

    No stimulants, no fat burners, no pre-workout. If you need a powder to get through the session, the session is wrong.

  • I tell you when to skip it

    Most people do not need a supplement. They need an easier Tuesday, more food after training and an earlier last coffee. I would rather say that than sell you something.

Before the shelf

These six things matter more than anything below them.

None of this is about sleep alone. It is how the whole week holds together. I still mess these up, but when they are in place the supplements actually do something.

  • Two hard days, not five

    Everything else is easy enough to hold a conversation. This is the single change that fixes most people.

  • Eat after you train

    Protein and real carbs within an hour. Half the tiredness people bring me is a food problem wearing a sleep costume.

  • Walk every day

    Thirty minutes, outside, no session attached. It does more for stress than anything I could sell you.

  • Same wake time

    Weekends included. My body trusts the rhythm more than any capsule.

  • Last coffee by 11am

    I love coffee. It just has to be done early enough to clear by night.

  • Phone out of the bedroom

    It charges in the kitchen. Scrolling is not a willpower problem, it is a distance problem.

Clara Brooks

Clara Brooks · Coach

What I actually take

Everything below is something I have taken myself for at least a month. Filter by what you are trying to fix, not by what it is made of. Start with one and give it two weeks.

18 productsLast reviewed: August 2026All taken by me for a month or more

If something is not here, it is usually because I tried it and it did nothing for me.

EverythingBest rated

18 things, each one I have taken myself.

What I tried and stopped

Some things are popular. That does not mean they worked for me.

  • Melatonin

    Made me groggy at 3mg and did not keep me asleep. I stopped relying on it.

  • Pre-workout

    It got me through sessions I should not have been doing. Fixing the training plan worked better.

  • Proprietary blends

    Fourteen ingredients, no doses listed. I could not tell what was helping or hurting.

  • BCAAs

    If you are eating enough protein they are an expensive way to flavour water.

  • Valerian root

    Gave me weird dreams and a foggy morning. Not worth it for me.

  • Magnesium oxide

    Cheap and common, but my stomach did not agree with it. Glycinate and citrate worked better.

Your body is not mine. But I want you to know I am not listing everything under the sun.

If a supplement is not here, there is usually a reason. I would rather leave money on the table than list something I do not actually use.

Questions I get

The same few things people ask before they buy.

Who do you actually coach?
Mostly people with jobs and a training habit. Runners, lifters, a few parents getting back into it. The common thread is that they are doing too much of the hard stuff and not enough of the boring stuff.
Do you take all of these every day?
No. Most days it is just magnesium. Ashwagandha is for heavy training blocks. Theanine is for the days my head will not settle. The list is longer than my routine.
Is this only for people with sleep problems?
No. Sleep is where my own story started, but the shelf is filtered by what things support: stress, recovery, focus, the daily basics. Pick the one that matches your week.
What if I am on medication?
Talk to your prescriber first. Magnesium and ashwagandha can interact with some meds. I am a coach, not a pharmacist, and I would rather you asked.
Which one should I start with?
Magnesium glycinate, one capsule, two weeks. And before that: two hard sessions a week, food after training, a daily walk. Those move more than anything in a bottle.
Why Amazon links?
Because that is where most people already shop. If you buy through the link I earn a small commission. The price is the same either way.

Before you buy anything

If you take one thing from this page, take this. A supplement is the smallest lever in the room.

Easier easy days, food after you train, a walk outside, the same wake time, your phone out of reach. Those beat anything on this list. I am not being modest. I tried it in the other order and lost four years.

If you are on medication, or pregnant, or something feels off, talk to your doctor before you add anything. I am a coach, not a clinician, and I would rather you asked someone qualified.

Before you buy

As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. Every product link on this page is an affiliate link, which means I may receive a commission if you buy — at no extra cost to you.

This page is for general information only. Nothing here is medical advice, and none of these products are intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease. Talk to a licensed practitioner before starting any new supplement, especially if you are pregnant, nursing, taking medication, or managing a health condition.