Bcaa's? Supplements? Are they really necessary?
Livhere
Posts: 141 Member
How important are supplements when it comes to working out? And, what kind of supplements should I be adding in to my workouts? I'm a 27 year-old, female, my goal is to lose weight while also trying to define my muscles. Right now, the only supplement I take is a women's multivitamin.
I've heard of Creatine & Bcaa's, but don't know what they are or what they do exactly?
I've heard of Creatine & Bcaa's, but don't know what they are or what they do exactly?
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Replies
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That's a big point of debate. Some people swear by them, other people say it's a placebo.
Some research say it's the best thing since sliced bread, other papers say it's completely unnecessary and ultimately have no impact on either weight loss or hypertrophy.
What they are:
BCAAs are Branch Chain Amino Acids (Leucine, Isoleucine and Valine) - They are 3 of 9 essential amino acids. They are called essential amino acids because the body cannot make them, so you must get them through food.
The 3 work together.
THe point of them, from a body building standpoint, is that they can be used as building blocks for protein synthesis in the muscle and regulate blood sugar.
Leucine i thought to be the one responsible for muscle growth, Isoleucine and Valine are thought to be the ones that regulate sugar and energy as a side effect.
Those claims, however, seem to be unsubstantiated.
They are also very easy to find in food.
Whether they work or not, it's impossible for anyone to tell you because even science can't tell for sure, BUT, I work train with competition bodybuilders, one of them has qualified to the Arnold Classic next year and they take BCAAs like they're M&Ms.
CREATINE - Is a chemical compound found in the muscles and in the brain. (Thou, in much smaller quantities in the brain - I remember reading it's a 95 to 5% ration between muscle and brain)
Your body makes Creatine from Amino-Acids (glycine and arginine if I am not mistaken)
Science seems to indicate that creating has the ability to increase muscle mass, strength and exercise performance.
It's also being used to protect against Neuro-degenerative diseases (Thou the correlation has not yet been proven)
Just like BCAAs, my body building pals drink creatine like it's gatorade. They swear by it as well.
There's an interview with a Harvard scientist name David Sinclair on the Joe Rogan experience. He talks about longevity research and he's not a big fan of BCAAs.
It's worth watching. (Free on youtube).
I hope this helps you... I don't use any supplement, but i have in the past and stopped because i haven't felt any difference.
Progress was the same and when i stopped, i noticed no drop in strength or resistance.
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Thank you very much for all the information! I will open a tab now for the interview!0
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Examine.com is a great science-based resource to investigate supplements. I have no first-hand experience, but previous threads on the two supplements you mentioned seemed to lean towards - BCAAs are a waste, especially if you are eating a reasonable amount of protein, and creatine can be useful.
No supplements are "necessary" unless you have had blood work done showing some kind of deficiency that needs to be corrected. At best they are insurance or a possible small extra credit.4 -
BCAA are an incomplete protein and are useless. Adequate overall protein and possibly Creatine can be helpful for some. There is a thread here somewhere about most useful supplements you may be able to find with a search. Some research on BCAA.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/27175106
https://jissn.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12970-017-0184-9
https://jissn.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12970-016-0128-93 -
BCAAs are necessary, and you should get them from food (including milk) not from supplements.
Creatine is the real deal. It's in red meat, fish, and poultry. I'm a vegetation and respond well to supplementation, a lot of people who eat meat don't respond at all to supplements, probably because they get it from their diet.
Here's a rule of thumb: food is better than supplements, almost any supplement can be gotten from food instead. Why? Our bodies only evolved to be able to use things that were available to us, and we mostly get these kinds of chemicals from eating.6 -
Thank you all for the info. I will check out those links! I have health issues which is why I take Women's One-A-Day multivitamin to help with vitamins I may fall short on. I'm a vegetarian as well & have been doing fine with the supplement I've got.
I asked about the supplements because it would seem every fitness site i'm on or person I see talk about fitness on youtube all say that these supplements like Bcaa's and creatine are crucially important and then go on list the ones they use in liquid or powder form.0 -
Thank you all for the info. I will check out those links! I have health issues which is why I take Women's One-A-Day multivitamin to help with vitamins I may fall short on. I'm a vegetarian as well & have been doing fine with the supplement I've got.
I asked about the supplements because it would seem every fitness site i'm on or person I see talk about fitness on youtube all say that these supplements like Bcaa's and creatine are crucially important and then go on list the ones they use in liquid or powder form.
Personally, I verify from an objective source any info i get from someone who has a vested interest in selling me something or is sponsored by someone who does.2 -
Thank you all for the info. I will check out those links! I have health issues which is why I take Women's One-A-Day multivitamin to help with vitamins I may fall short on. I'm a vegetarian as well & have been doing fine with the supplement I've got.
I asked about the supplements because it would seem every fitness site i'm on or person I see talk about fitness on youtube all say that these supplements like Bcaa's and creatine are crucially important and then go on list the ones they use in liquid or powder form.
And a lot of those sites have affiliate links to buy these amazing supplements.
If this stuff really was that important, you wouldn't learn about it through YouTube.5 -
Thanks again for the information guys! 😊0
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Thank you all for the info. I will check out those links! I have health issues which is why I take Women's One-A-Day multivitamin to help with vitamins I may fall short on. I'm a vegetarian as well & have been doing fine with the supplement I've got.
I asked about the supplements because it would seem every fitness site i'm on or person I see talk about fitness on youtube all say that these supplements like Bcaa's and creatine are crucially important and then go on list the ones they use in liquid or powder form.
A lot of that is either ego posturing or attempts at marketing. In addition to what others have said, supplements are especially pointless for beginners. By focusing on consistent workout frequency, proper form, and the appropriate intensity a beginning can often see 100% improvement in a few months. Contrast that with the 1%-2% you *might* realize using any supplement.
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Creatine monohydrate is well studied and safe to take at a dosing of about 5g per day. No loading is required, nor is cycling on and off it. It's used to increase the availability of ATP (the fuel for muscular contraction) to muscle tissues. It's cheap enough (USD 20 for a year's supply) that I recommend everyone who's into weight training at least try it to see if help them get an additional repetition or two. Over time this can make a difference.
BCAAs I'm of two minds. I don't put a lot of stock in them on the daily stack, but I've found in my hydration half-gallon they seem to help make a lifting session feel a lot less like work - and I've tried the tank with both BCAA and without to see a difference. This you only need on lifting days, and personally I use it only in the gym.4 -
Supplements are just that - supplements. They are beneficial when they supplement something you are deficient in. If you're not deficient, they are just excessive and amount to nothing more than expensive pee. If you are deficient, then they can be beneficial for overall health, performance, and progress/results (depending on what the nutrient/supplement is).
Vitamins/minerals can be supplemented if and when you know what your diet is otherwise deficient in.
In most cases, there is rarely a need to use anything other than a protein supplement (and even that can be more for convenience than actual need) and maybe caffeine.3 -
The only thing I use are bcaas- after a work out I would hurt for days. Now after workouts I drink a scoop and feel amazing, it’s energizing and makes the pain less noticeable.2
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I'd say the only 2 supplements you should take are creatine and a good pre-workout with caffeine in it.
Creatine is proven to increase blood flow to the muscles, more blood, more workout and quicker recovery.
Caffeine is proven to stimulate you to do more reps, more reps, more gains.
If I've one piece of advice, is eat clean and well. No processed foods and eat a large variety of food, that way you'll stay healthy inside.
I've take most supplements, and I can say that the best improvements and gains I've made have been when my nutrition has been spot on, and taking creatine and a caffeine pre-workout.
I also take a multivitamin supplement, just because I'm 49 and want to stay healthy.1 -
IamSimonIam wrote: »I'd say the only 2 supplements you should take are creatine and a good pre-workout with caffeine in it.
Creatine is proven to increase blood flow to the muscles, more blood, more workout and quicker recovery.
Caffeine is proven to stimulate you to do more reps, more reps, more gains.
If I've one piece of advice, is eat clean and well. No processed foods and eat a large variety of food, that way you'll stay healthy inside.
I've take most supplements, and I can say that the best improvements and gains I've made have been when my nutrition has been spot on, and taking creatine and a caffeine pre-workout.
I also take a multivitamin supplement, just because I'm 49 and want to stay healthy.
I don't disagree that creatine and caffeine can both be useful supplements for bodybuilding but that's not how either of them work.
There's also no reason to avoid processed foods as long as nutrition goals are met (all foods are processed to some degree or another).6 -
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Thank you all for the info. I will check out those links! I have health issues which is why I take Women's One-A-Day multivitamin to help with vitamins I may fall short on. I'm a vegetarian as well & have been doing fine with the supplement I've got.
I asked about the supplements because it would seem every fitness site i'm on or person I see talk about fitness on youtube all say that these supplements like Bcaa's and creatine are crucially important and then go on list the ones they use in liquid or powder form.
You would say the same if you sold them for a living
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Assuming you are getting a decent amount of protein in your diet, BCAA's are worthless unless you just really enjoy spending money to have neat-o flavored water.2
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Why would water go down hard? My plain old water goes down just fine.2
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