Posted on October 29, 2015 by Jenny Cromack

 

BCAA’s & benefits

You may have seen that motive8 now sell bottles of BCAA’s in our studios so what are BCAA’s and what are the benefits?
What are BCAA?

BCAA’s are Branched Chain Amino Acids contain 3 essential amino acids, Leucine, Isoleucine and Valine in the ratio of 2:1:1.

These BCAA’s are 3 of the nine essential amino acids that make up approximately 35% of muscle protein. These amino acids cannot be produced in the body so therefore must be supplied by your diet or supplements.

BCAAs are found in foods containing protein, with the highest concentrations found in beef, salmon, chicken, eggs and whey protein.
What do BCAA’s do?

BCAA’s unlike other amino acids are not metabolised in the stomach and are metabolised directly in the muscle. BCAA’s also contain vitamin B6 which help immune system functioning. glycogen and protein metabolism and help reduce tiredness and fatigue.

Reseach has shown that individuals who consume a threshold dose of essential amino acids that contain BCAAs with every meal have less visceral abdominal fat and more muscle mass.

BCAAs trigger protein synthesis and inhibit the breakdown of muscle cells.

BCAAs are often used during exercise as they play a significant role in muscle and energy production during exercise, so can be beneficial to training.

BCAA’s have been found to help reduce muscle soreness after intense muscle damaging exercise.

Is it worth taking BCAAs?

Based on research having a high BCAA and total protein intake will produce a greater increase in muscle with training.The great thing about the supplements is that they can be easily used during exercise to help reduce fatigue, increase recovery, reduce muscle soreness and help improve the use of fat for energy.

BCAA are suitable for active individuals before and after workouts. They contain no artificial colouring, preservatives, yeast, gluten , starch or lactose.
BCAA’s are ideal for anyone wanting to add more to their healthy diet and good training routine. To see the benefits you should also be eating good sources of protein and training hard in the gym.

Benefits of BCAA’s

1)Enhance muscle protein synthesis

BCAA’s trigger protein synthesis. A combination of BCAA’s and resistance exercise will allow for maximal protein synthesis as they both trigger the mTORC1 signalling pathway that is essential for muscle building.

2) BCAA’s minimise muscle loss during injury

If you have to take time off training due to injury you can minimise muscle loss by taking BCAA’s as they trigger protein synthesis even in the absence of exercise and help prevent fat gain when inactive.

3) Benefits for the over 35’s

For older people leucine intake with the other BCAAs is paramount. As you age creating a muscle building environment in the body is important but increasingly harder to do. After the age of 35 the activation of protein synthesis starts to decrease so taking BCAA’s can be beneficial.

4) Leucine

The BCAA leucine increases protein synthesis by 145% when you take it after a strength workout. Many people take leucine on its own, however if leucine intake is out of balance it can lead to an imbalance in blood amino acid levels and therefore reduce the anabolic response. A ratio of 4 to 1 of leucine to the other two BCAA’s is important for muscle development.

5) iIncrease fat burning and can increase fat loss

Research has shown that individual’s with higher BCAA consumption have less body fat, better body composition and more muscle.

Research suggests that leucine along with the other BCAAs is the magic recipe for leanness. Leucine increases energy expenditure and fat oxidisation. Greater fat mobilisation allows for a more flexible metabolism which combined with a good diet and training programme can enable fat loss.