Branched Chain Aminos, Arginine and Glutamine Speed Recovery During Heavy Training
Tuesday April 25, 2006
As a bodybuilder gets more advanced and pushes the bodybuilding training envelope even more, recovery becomes a big concern. In a recent study published at the American Society for Nutrition (Ohtani, Masaru, Sugita, Masaaki, Maruyama, Kimiaki Amino Acid Mixture Improves Training Efficiency in Athletes J. Nutr. Feb 2006 136: 538S-543), Japanese researchers found that a mixture of branched chain amino acids, arginine and glutamine supplementation prevents muscle damage. This is a good thing as by limiting the amount of muscle breakdown during training one can recover quicker and thus achieve faster muscle growth.
Lately I have been experimenting with a pre-workout formula called Nitrobolic Extreme from Vyotech Nutritionals and this formula provides me with different forms of Arginine, Glutamine and even Creatine. I also take this with a serving of Prolab BCAAs 45 minutes before the workout, in addition to a supplement called 5-Tetra (from Epic Nutrition) which serves to increase the levels of ATP (fuel that the muscles use to contract) in the muscle. As a result, I can tell you that I have been less sore, recover quicker and my strength is through the roof.
It is good to see when science in the lab yields results that are in accordance with what one sees at the gym as then you know that you are not experiencing a placebo effect.
Lately I have been experimenting with a pre-workout formula called Nitrobolic Extreme from Vyotech Nutritionals and this formula provides me with different forms of Arginine, Glutamine and even Creatine. I also take this with a serving of Prolab BCAAs 45 minutes before the workout, in addition to a supplement called 5-Tetra (from Epic Nutrition) which serves to increase the levels of ATP (fuel that the muscles use to contract) in the muscle. As a result, I can tell you that I have been less sore, recover quicker and my strength is through the roof.
It is good to see when science in the lab yields results that are in accordance with what one sees at the gym as then you know that you are not experiencing a placebo effect.
Comments
I read the study, and they didn’t seem to record any information on what their subjects were eating. Therefore, if the subjects were consuming a low/medium protein diet, the addition of BCCA’s, glutamine, and arginine to their diet might have effects that would not be seen in people already consuming a high protein diet. There are plenty of those amino acids in meats, whey, and dairy, which are usually very much consumed in a typical bodybuilder’s diet.
I agree with your statement regarding the fact that if the people were not eating a high protein diet the effects seen in the study may just be attributed to that. However, there are other studies that corroborate the fact that taking BCAAs and Glutamine before and after the workout does increase athletic performance, protein synthesis and aid in recovery.
While I agree that there are plenty of amino acids in all proteins, the benefits of BCAA loading, for instance, can only be accomplished when one takes those aminos on an empty stomach. As far as L-Glutamine, one can get it from cottage cheese. However, if for example one is dieting for a bodybuilding show, then L-Glutamine powder supplementation makes more sense as one needs between 15-30 grams of glutamine for maximum muscle retention under the extreme dieting and training circumstances. It would not be practical to try to get that from food alone. Regarding Arginine I was not a big fan of it until I tried it and noticed the difference in muscle fullness and vascularity. You cannot get the amount of arginine needed from food to get this effect and also in order for it to work it has to be taken on an empty stomach for better absorption.
Thanks for your comment!
This is a statement from Lee Labarada:
Using a supplement containing the amino acid glutamine, along with the branched chain amino acids leucine, isoleucine, and valine can help bring catabolism to a grinding halt and get the body into a muscle building (anabolic) state. Glutamine can lower cortisol levels, a muscle wasting hormone that tends to rise while sleeping and training. Branched chain amino acids (BCAA) –especially leucine- have been shown to be anabolic. Leucine actually increases the body’s ability to build muscle. Taking glutamine and branched chain amino acids upon waking with breakfast and after training, are important steps if you are trying to build lean muscle. You should take 5-10 grams of a high quality glutamine powder supplement, along with 5-10 grams of branched chain amino acids with breakfast.
After training, take a 60 gram dose of high quality whey protein isolate to jump start your recuperation.
Intense exercise and other physical challenges such as illness quickly deplete our stores of glutamine; and when glutamine supplies are low body wide, the muscles will be called upon first to support the more vital metabolic functions. Without directly reinforcing your body with supplements, intense exercise can put a you in a critical state of deficit that can take weeks of complete rest to recover from. With glutamine supplements you can avoid this state of physical emergency and continue refueling your muscles, allowing you to train at a challenging pace. And if this isn’t enough, the benefits don’t stop here. Glutamine plays a vital role in the building of new muscle and increasing muscle volume. It is commonly taken as glutamine powder, pills or capsules.