Supplement Spotlight: BCAA

Wanted to share info on BCAA’s AKA branch chain amino acids.

What exactly are amino acids?

Amino acids are essential for the synthesis of protein, enzymes, hormones, neurotransmitters, metabolic pathways, mental stabilization, and just about every function that is important to your body.

BCAA’s include: Leucine, Isoleucine, and Valine.

BCAA's support heavy research on improving energy production and muscle metabolism. They were also heavily promoted to the bodybuilding industry and caught on as the popular product.

BCAA’s are metabolized in your muscle, rather than in the liver. This means that BCAA’s, without any requirement for much digestion or “processing” at all, can be relied on as an actual energy source during exercise, and could therefore prevent muscle breakdown.

BCAA's are useful for anyone interested in improving physical performance, lowering fasting blood glucose, seeking to storage of carbohydrates, and an efficient recovery of muscle strength.

But using only the three BCAA’s it is a lot like fielding a baseball team with only a shortstop, pitcher, and catcher. They may very well be the three most important positions, but you certainly can’t expect to win any game without the rest of the team. This is typically why we recommend rotating a variety of protein sources versus sticking to 1-2.

Now does that mean we shouldn't use a protein powder?

No, you can still supplement with a protein powder, with whey being the king of protein powder sources as well as it containing amino acids necessary to maintain appetite satiety, enhance muscle repair/recovery, and overall decrease body composition. Ideally, we still want to incorporate a variety of grass fed animal based protein sources alongside the supplementation component.

How often? And what time of day?

1-3 scoops daily is sufficient. Be sure to avoid food coloring and Sucralose of course. If you are training early AM and typically don’t consume a meal; research supports a BCAA supplementation pre/peri(during) training promotes energy and prepares muscles for the workload to follow.