When it comes to building muscle and shredding fat, gym-goers often find themselves preoccupied with trivial matters that have little bearing on the big picture.
It's not uncommon to see beginners focusing their time on iso-lateral BOSU ball lunges rather than basic barbell squats. It should be quite clear that the squats are going to build a much better set of legs in much less time.
Now don't get me wrong, you should always be looking for ways to fine tune your diet, training and supplementation. However, it's wise to consider that most things in life are not distributed evenly.
Sadly, many people find themselves veering off the beaten path far too often when it comes to their training, diet and supplementation. You must understand that there is diminishing marginal benefits the further away you stray from proven training methods, supplement ingredients and dietary protocols. This is to say that you will be spending lots of time, money and effort on protocols that don't really make much difference in the end — things that barely contribute to your long-term goals.
As far as food choices go, the majority of trainees can stand to benefit by emphasizing micronutrient-rich foods like fruits, vegetables, lean animal proteins, whole-grain carbohydrates and healthy fat sources like various nuts and oils. These don't have to be your only food sources, but they will likely benefit your health and performance should you have them in your diet.
It is also important to ingest sufficient dietary fiber, micronutrients and essential fatty acids. These maintain intestinal integrity, assist with mineral balance, heart health and improve blood lipids. If you choose to supplement with a multi-vitamin or Omega-3s that's fine as well.
The lesson here is that 80% of your results will come from 20% of your inputs — so focus on what matters.