Branched-chain amino acids, the "fitness supplement", revealed(1)

In the world of exercise and fitness, there are many people who take "fitness supplements" such as protein powder and BCAA's. We are already familiar with protein powder, but today we will take you through the mystery of this "fitness supplement".

1 What is BCAA?

Is it useful for our body?

BCAA is a complex of three amino acids (leucine, isoleucine and valine), which are all essential amino acids that cannot be synthesised by the body and can only be taken from food. Amino acids are the basic units that make up proteins, substances that are essential to our bodies. In simple terms, they are the substances used to synthesise muscle.

Now that we know what BCAA's are, what are the benefits of eating them for our bodies? In fact, the benefits are numerous and very tempting.

(1) Anti-fatigue effects

Branched-chain amino acids have an anti-central fatigue (also known as brain fatigue) and anti-muscle fatigue effect, which is the most important and useful point of branched-chain amino acids.

Many of you have experienced brain fatigue, a feeling that is commonly referred to as the body being able to keep up but the brain not being able to, and it happens all the time. Central fatigue is actually very common and supplementation with branched-chain amino acids can delay and alleviate central fatigue.

Fatigue from exercise is actually a very complex thing, and branched-chain amino acid supplementation mainly accelerates the recovery and removal of a series of substances in the body after exercise (free radical removal, blood lactate removal, glycogen recovery, etc.); branched-chain amino acids can reduce and postpone delayed muscle soreness (the soreness that occurs in the body after working out for a period of time, all of you have experienced the feeling of muscle soreness, right? The soreness! It can be very painful to sit or stand).

The increased fatigue resistance of the body not only ensures the quality of training, but also helps to improve athletic ability and performance, as well as promoting recovery from fatigue and avoiding sports injuries. The benefits are still numerous!

(2) Provides energy for the body in times of emergency

In addition to being an important component of protein in the body, branched-chain amino acids also help to synthesise our muscles, which can also be broken down in peripheral tissues such as muscles to produce energy through oxidation (in layman's terms, when the body is running out of energy or running out of energy, for example, branched-chain amino acids come into play to provide our body with energy in time for us to continue running). This is a very important benefit when energy is running out.

(3) Promotes muscle synthesis

Long endurance exercise (marathons are particularly typical of this type of exercise) is particularly prone to muscle loss, and supplementation with branched-chain amino acids promotes protein synthesis (protein synthesis can be understood as muscle synthesis), which helps muscle recovery and reduces the degree of muscle damage.

2 What is the choice of branched-chain amino acid ratio?

There are now many brands selling branched chain amino acids on the market, and those who have bought them should know that there is a problem with the ratio of branched chain amino acids, which ranges from 2:1:1 to 10:1:1. It's actually the ratio of leucine:isoleucine:valine. And which is the best? It really depends on what the main purpose of the supplement is.

Leucine plays the most important role in muscle growth. Studies have shown that those who add extra leucine to their post-training protein and carbohydrate supplementation have a more significant muscle protein synthesis process. Although leucine is good, the primary role of branched chain amino acids is anti-fatigue, so the recommended ratio is: leucine: isoleucine: valine = 2:1:1 product. This ratio will bring out the effects of the branched chain amino acids better.