protein drink or amino acids?

markymarrkk

I'm wondering what would be better for muscle recovery, would free form amino acid pills do something similar to protein shakes, id like to avoid the calories

Egger29

A protein shake is more easily absorbed into the body after exercise. Anything in Pill form may not necessarily break down easily enough to absord into your body efficiently.

It's been proven that a small carb/protein mixed meal before and after exercise increases muscle cell growth and recovery quickly.

There are several protein mixes that are low carb, or if you want to go simple, Milk has been studied numerously as well as being an effective natural carb.protein mix.

musclebuilder

I'm wondering what would be better for muscle recovery, would free form amino acid pills do something similar to protein shakes, id like to avoid the calories

You can purchase BCAA in a free form powder which would probably give you a better bang for your buck then pill form. I use both a protein powder and a BCAA supplement. They both contribute to recovering from exercise. free form amino acids are taken up very rapidly while whey protein requires digestion so they don't have the same effect. I personally treat protein powder more as a meal/protein replacement. BCAA offer a readily available source of energy. Good for during your WO or directly pre..Also good for when you are dieting and trying to preserve muscle mass. Also good post WO alone or with some carbohydrates to begin to reverse the catabolic state you are in.. And they can be useful to fortify a meal if need be.