Medical research has made great strides over the course of the last decade, especially when it comes to sports nutrition. As such, there are basically three types of energy that the human body can use as fuel. One of these is carbohydrates, in the form of simple, such as fruit, or complex, such as grains. The second is fat, which is what most people try to train their body to use so they can lose weight and stay in shape. This occurs over the course of long exercise in a specific heart rate zone, which is an issue beyond the scope of this article. The third is to use protein, more specifically branch chain amino acids (BCAA’s).
The term branch chain amino acid is a term relegated to three of the eight amino acids. The name refers to the branch-like structure of Leucine, Isoleucine, and Valine, which are essential to the human body. Oddly enough, over 30% of the human body is made up of these important nutrients. The reason that BCAA supplementation is so important is that for those that seek not to use muscle as a fuel source, supplementing with BCAA’s can feed your body so that it doesn’t eat your own tissue. Sure, you might actually lose weight overall, but the goal is to lose body fat and not muscle. Since muscles burns more calories than other tissue, it is important to keep as much of it as possible.
BCAA’s are consumed by the muscle in a different way than most nutrients. Leucine is one of the most easily digested BCAA’s and helps to not only protect muscle tissue, but also enables your body to produce growth hormone, which is an important hormone for regulating cell growth and recovery.
Isoleucine is used to help with blood sugar levels, and as a result helps to stabilize your energy throughout the day. It also helps with recovery after long workouts and leads to enhanced endurance and therefore is a popular among athletes. Lastly, Isoleucine is used in hemoglobin, which is the protein found in red blood cells.
Valine is used to facilitate muscle metabolism and creates a nitrogen balanced environment within the human body. You can use this branch chain amino to treat liver disease, gallbladder disease, and obviously amino deficiency.
Since BCAA’s are so crucial for the proper functioning of muscle tissue, they are very popular with endurance athletes, body builders, and others looking to simply stay healthy. The best way to get your necessary supply of branch chain amino acids is by supplementation. Post-workout is one of the most important times to fuel your body with aminos because it feeds them directly to your starving muscles. Although there are several protein blends that contain a generous portion of branch chain amino acids, you might be better off purchasing a BCAA supplement too.
BCAA supplements come in both pill and powder form, which means you can find them in whatever form suits you best. Pill form is obviously the quickest and easiest way to get them, but there are some fantastic supplements in powder form that can be mixed in a drink or sprinkled on top of food. Even if you are not an athlete, BCAA’s can help you regulate energy levels to promote weight loss; not of muscle, but of the fat you are looking to get rid of. You can also use them to supply your body with the nutrients it needs to heal from difficult injuries. You really can’t go wrong with branch chain amino acids supplementation. Your best bet for saving money is to find a reputable brand online and buying in bulk. You’ll pay more at a local nutrition store.
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