BCAA’s
Hey San Antonio,
I’m going to start writing articles geared toward my body transformation guide – I figure I can lay a good groundwork and eliminate questions that may come up before they arise.
The timing of the topic of body transformation is coincidental to this: I’m competing in the Lackland Bodybuilding Classic in 15 weeks (from tomorrow), so I get to apply my knowledge and put it to work! I’m extremely excited and can’t wait to get on stage on November 21.
Over my years of health and nutritional article writing and internet blogging, I’ve probably written more about branched chained amino acids than any other nutritional topic, and with good reason: they’re extremely important. If you click on the “Nutrition” link on the side, you’ll see a few of my protein/amino acid articles.
Quick rundown: Essential amino acids are the ones your body cannot make on it’s own and must be obtained from diet. These are the important ones and these are the absolute key to body transformation. Three of the most important are leucine, iso-leucine and valine (the branched chained amino acids, or BCAAs). Why are they so important? Simple – the key to body transformation (even before fat loss) is preserving the muscle we already have. Muscle = Higher Metabolic Rate. Higher metabolic rate = leaner you, because you’re burning more calories in everything you do. Ok, so how do the BCAAs have to do with this? When you exercise, your body will try to use these three aminos for energy, thus, breaking down muscle to obtain these. More importantly, the body CANNOT SYNTHESIZE PROTEIN WITHOUT EVERY AMINO ACID PRESENT!!! This is why it is important to consume whole proteins (and why protein from sources such as peanuts and bread aren’t very good sources because they are deficient in many essential aminos).
Many quality protein powders are enriched with extra BCAAs, but I prefer to take it a step further: muscle (for women and men, and this is for everyone that is serious about looking lean, toned, trim, or whatever you may call it) is extremely precious. So, I choose to supplement with additional amino acids. To add, the BCAAs are binded to other aminos in powders. In formulas like Xtend, they are free formed and are more readily absorbed into the bloodstream.
Amount depends on your size (of course), but timing is crucial. Consumption should be at times when muscle is vulnerable to metabolization: I drink them before and during cardio and also during and after weight training.
There’s so much more than just protein grams – you MUST be getting the right aminos!
Boyd Myers
Personal Trainer in San Antonio
Owner, San Antonio’s Top Personal Training Studio
16613 Huebner Rd (corner of Huebner and Bitters)
210.391.1454
