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Branched Chained Amino Acids (BCAA's) Explained

Arnold

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Branched Chained Amino Acids (BCAA's) Explained

Hard training deprives our body of nutrients. These include l-leucine, l-isoleucine, and l-valine – the three muscle-building amino acids commonly called BCAAs.

BCAAs are highly concentrated in the muscle tissue. So you’ll want to make sure you’re keeping your body fueled with BCAAs in order to keep the gains coming. Branched-chain amino acid (BCAA) supplements enjoy a strong reputation in the bodybuilding community for a good reason.

There’s plenty of research supporting the use of BCAAs for lean muscle building and anabolic recovery. Athletes all over the world use BCAAs to boost endurance and protect muscle from catabolism during hard training.

Difference Between Amino Acids and Branched Chained Amino Acids
Most people have a hard time differentiating between amino acids and branched chained amino acids. Both these supplements are processed uniquely by your body and have different effects on your physique. Understanding the difference between them can tell you when to take BCAA supplements.

As you probably already know, your muscles are made up of protein. Protein is further made up of amino acids which look like a pearl necklace. If you want to build muscle, you want this pearl necklace to get bigger so your body can make more protein. This process of converting amino acids into protein is known as protein synthesis.

The BCAAs are indispensable components in the aforementioned process of converting amino acids into protein. They act as the building blocks for building muscle. Each of the three branched chained amino acids plays a vital role in this process.

When you consume amino acids, they go directly to your liver. In the liver, they are either converted into fuel to be used as energy by your body or are passed for building and repairing muscle. Your muscles will only receive the amino acids if they’re not converted into energy.

BCAAs are treated differently. They are not sent to the liver and head straight to your muscles where the muscles use them as fuel or to build and repair themselves. This is the reason BCAAs have grown in popularity in the bodybuilding community.

Boosts Cellular Energy Production
National Bodybuilding Co. BCAAs work in tandem with vitamin B6 to ramp up your energy levels.

More specifically, BCAAs increase your cellular ATP production by optimizing mitochondria, which are your body’s power plants. As a result, your aerobic and anaerobic performance increases. You’ll notice you’re able to train harder for longer. [3]

Vitamin B6 further assists in this process, while also helping your body to convert fats and carbs into energy.

Reduces Muscle Catabolism
One of the most studied benefits of BCAAs is their ability to inhibit muscle inflammation and breakdown.

How do they do this? By recharging amino acid levels in your muscle tissue after being depleted during exercise. Studies show that individuals who take BCAA after training have less muscle soreness than those who don’t. [1]

Other research shows that BCAAs work by blocking enzymes that tell your body to start eating away its own muscle. [2]

Interestingly, hard and long workouts also deplete your glutamine levels. Low levels of this amino acid further compromise your muscle repair process, but also weaken the immune system. National Bodybuilding Co. Pro Contest BCAA packs 1,000mg of glutamine per serving to keep your stores replenished.

Extends Time to Exhaustion
One of the first effects you may notice from taking BCAAs is that you experience less fatigue. Research shows that people who take BCAAs during training experience 15% less fatigue than those who take a placebo. [4]

In one study, individuals were put through identical gym training sessions and measured how long they could train before exhaustion. One group took BCAA while the other got a placebo. As you could guess, the BCAA group trained for 17% longer before reaching exhaustion. [5]

BCAAs also tell the brain not to make too much serotonin, a chemical that contributes to fatigue.

Stimulates Anabolic Muscle Hypertrophy
How do BCAAs help muscle growth? It’s by ramping up the rate of muscle protein synthesis. It’s this effect of BCAAs that makes it an extremely important supplement for protecting muscle tissue during a calorie deficit. [6]

However, BCAAs are also reported to trigger enzymes that promote muscle building. As such, they’re not only effective for when you’re trying to preserve muscle on a cut, but also when you want to maximize gains on a bulk. [7]

Role of The Three Amino Acids
Why and when to take BCAA supplements has a lot to do with the role they play in bodybuilding. Apart from being effective at muscle growth, BCAAs help in delaying fatigue during your workouts, boost fat loss and supports strength and mental focus. Each of the three essential amino acids plays a specific role in the supplement.

Leucine
Leucine helps with protein synthesis and leads to muscle growth. Leucine is the main essential amino acid which starts the process of combining amino acids to produce muscle protein.

Leucine also boosts insulin levels which are an anabolic hormone which further stimulates protein synthesis. Furthermore, it boosts growth hormone which promoted muscle growth and reduces cortisol levels which break down muscle.

Isoleucine
It is a known fact protein synthesis can help fight body fat. BCAAs increase the protein synthesis in your body which in turn increases your energy expenditure so much that it helps in burning body fat.

Isoleucine activates special receptors known as PPAR which increase the fat burning process in your body and inhibit fat storage. When you supplement with isoleucine, your body starts using the stored fats as fuel.

Valine
The amino acid tryptophan is responsible for producing serotonin which signals to the brain that the body is fatigued. The BCAA valine actively competes with tryptophan for entry into the brain.

Consuming valine before a workout can delay fatigue and reduce the amount of tryptophan in your brain. This shows that BCAAs don’t only improve your body function, but also your mental capabilities. They help you stay sharper and improve your cognitive abilities.

Buy BCAA's Here!

References:
Coombes JS, McNaughton LR. Effects of branched-chain amino acid supplementation on serum creatine kinase and lactate dehydrogenase after prolonged exercise. J Sports Med Phys Fitness. 2000 Sep;40(3):240-6. PMID: 11125767.
Leahy DT, Pintauro SJ. Branched-chain amino Acid plus glucose supplement reduces exercise-induced delayed onset muscle soreness in college-age females. ISRN Nutr. 2013;2013:921972. Published 2013 Mar 17. doi:10.5402/2013/921972
Mittleman KD, Ricci MR, Bailey SP. Branched-chain amino acids prolong exercise during heat stress in men and women. Med Sci Sports Exerc. 1998 Jan;30(1):83-91. doi: 10.1097/00005768-199801000-00012. PMID: 9475648.
Blomstrand E, Hassmén P, Ek S, Ekblom B, Newsholme EA. Influence of ingesting a solution of branched-chain amino acids on perceived exertion during exercise. Acta Physiol Scand. 1997 Jan;159(1):41-9. doi: 10.1046/j.1365-201X.1997.547327000.x. PMID: 9124069.
Gualano AB, Bozza T, Lopes De Campos P, Roschel H, Dos Santos Costa A, Luiz Marquezi M, Benatti F, Herbert Lancha Junior A. Branched-chain amino acids supplementation enhances exercise capacity and lipid oxidation during endurance exercise after muscle glycogen depletion. J Sports Med Phys Fitness. 2011 Mar;51(1):82-8. PMID: 21297567.
Blomstrand E, Eliasson J, Karlsson HK, Köhnke R. Branched-chain amino acids activate key enzymes in protein synthesis after physical exercise. J Nutr. 2006 Jan;136(1 Suppl):269S-73S. doi: 10.1093/jn/136.1.269S. PMID: 16365096.
Mero A. Leucine supplementation and intensive training. Sports Med. 1999 Jun;27(6):347-58. doi: 10.2165/00007256-199927060-00001. PMID: 10418071.
 
I’ve been taking them off/on for many years. I honestly don’t notice a difference when taking compared to not taking them. In your best opinion, do you feel its worth the cost?
 
Good info. Crazy... I see so many people claiming BCAAs are a scam and do nothing.


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