Branch Chain Amino Acids

Hi friends!

When you first start a healthy/lifting lifestyle, you'll stumble across the use of supplements. What are they?
By definition, a supplement is anything that supplements what you aren't getting from your diet. So for example, if you are having a hard time getting enough protein in your diet, protein powder (a supplement) would be beneficial.

A supplement you may not have heard of is BCAAs, or branch chain amino acids. I know you're probably thinking "...wha??" so let me explain!

Protein, one of the main macro-nutrients, is made up of 20 amino acids; amino acids are the building blocks of protein. Now some of these amino acids are non essential, meaning your body produces them on it's own; however some are essential, meaning that because you're body does not produce it, you must intake it from an outside source: protein! Protein also is what constructs and makes up muscle in your body; hence, if you're trying to build muscle, you want to have a pretty good intake of protein.

Of the essential amino acids, there are three that help the most with muscle synthesis, growth, and strength and size: leucine, isoleucine, and valine. These three amino acids are what make up BCAAs!

Now you may think that if your protein intake is high enough, there's no point in taking BCAAs because you're already getting it from your protein - and this is true. However, BCAAs are not digested the same as protein. When you ingest protein, it must go through the digestive system in your body before it can use the amino acids. BCAAs do not to be "digested" though because they are free-floating - meaning, the moment you ingest them, your body can put them right to use.

Because of the way they are processed in your body, the best time to take BCAAs is during your workout - this way your body has a source of aminos almost the same time it is being torn apart from your weight lifting :)

I personally am a big fan of BCAAs and have included them in my supplementation for a long time - not only for the extra insurance of aminos for my muscles, but it motivates me to drink more fluids during my workout. I also notice I experience less soreness if I consistently take BCAAs.

Now for the fun part - which BCAAs should I get?? Two things to keep in mind when looking at BCAAs supplements are
1) The amount of BCAAs in the product. If it's anything less than 5 g, then it's a waste of money.
2) Flavor/taste. You're going to be drinking these for a long time, so you have to like it!

Here are some BCAAs that I've used before and would recommend:

Gaspari Nutrition Aminolast (5 g BCAA)

BSN Amino X (about 5-7 g BCAA)

Modern BCAA+ (7.5 g BCAA)

Optimum Nutrition Pro BCAA (8 g BCAA per 2 scoop)

Cellucor Alpha Amino (5 g BCAA)

These are the ones I'm currently using and I LOVE them. The lemon-lime flavor tastes just like Gatorade.

BE CAREFUL. A lot of companies try to sell "amino blends" as BCAAs. Remember, by definition, only Leucine, Isoleucine, and Valine are considered BCAAs, so while it's nice that some will add glutamine (which helps with recovery) or other aminos, make sure they are considered separate from the BCAAs.

Here's an example with the Alpha Amino:

See how the BCAAs are in their own category, and then non BCAA aminos are in another? You can see that are 5 g of BCAAs and 2.5 g of other aminos.

So there you have it! You can now pick your own BCAAs like a pro. Share any fun flavors you find! :)