BCAA’s are Branched Chain Amino Acids consisting of 3 essential amino acids leucine, iso-leucine, and valine. They are considered essential amino acids because human beings cannot survive unless these amino acids are present in the diet. Together they comprise approximately 1/3 of human muscle tissue. Studies have shown that BCAA's help to stimulate protein synthesis and inhibit its breakdown, so BCAA's have powerful anabolic and anti-catabolic effects on the body.
PhD Nutrition BCAA’s, the exciting first product in their brand new “Recovery range” have been designed to the specific 2:1:1 ratio required to optimise the effects of Leucine, the most important of the three BCAA’s.
PhD BCAA’s are vital to protein synthesis (the ability to build muscle) and also vital in reducing muscle damage. Vitally, when we workout strenuously with weights, we oxidise amino acids (use them to fuel our training). BCAA oxidisation is rapidly promoted by exercise, so when we train hard, we use BCAA’s. If we do not replace or keep topping these BCAA’s up before, during and after exercise, we run the risk of increasing muscle damage indicators Creatine Kinease (CK) and lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) and missing the opportunity of recovering in the optimum time. Slow recovery means slow progression, fast recovery equals faster progression, it’s a simple equation.
Managing workout muscular stress and recovery
One of the reasons athletes fail to increase lean muscle size is down to their inability to manage workout stress and recovery. Studies show that intense training increases the presence of muscle damage indicators (CK and LDH). With high plasma concentrations of CK and LDH, we cannot recovery quickly and effectively (if we can’t recover, we can’t build muscle, get quicker, stronger or more powerful).
BCAA supplementation before and after exercise has beneficial effects for decreasing exercise-induced muscle damage and promoting muscle-protein synthesis; this suggests the possibility that BCAAs are a useful supplement in relation to exercise and sports. For those who do not want to use PhD BCAA’s during their workout, simply split the total amount of BCAA capsules used per training session, for your body weight, into two portions. Example: 80-100KG athletes use 8 capsules prior to working out (in the manner recommended) and the remaining 7 capsules after working out (in the manner recommended). Great to use before workouts with PhD Wired, during workouts with PhD Battery+/-3 and post workout with Synergy-ISO-7.