Branch Chain Amino Acids good or bad?

nhacault
nhacault Posts: 6 Member
in Food and Nutrition
I currently take BCAA's, I cant decide if they are doing any good or not, or if they are actually causing me to gain weight. Does anyone else take them and have any opinion on BCAA's and if they are worth taking

Replies

  • EuroDriver12
    EuroDriver12 Posts: 805 Member
    if you are training hard... e.g. lifting weight 4-7times a week... then BCAA's are great, u dont get a like a "holy **** im super human" effect lol but it helps you preserve muscle and prevent catabolic effect during ur training and when in calorie deficit..

    just little extra if someone else will be reading into BCAA's... on the box and what you hear from alot of people is take BCAA's post training... that is partically correct.. but whats more important is taking BCAA's pre-workout! reason being when you are training and putting alot of strain on your muscles it is actually putting your body into a catabolic effect and builds up lactic acid real fast... if you have the BCAA's available they will help a bit... this is one of the reasons why people who take steroids get big so fast because during their training they dont go into a catabolic state... they can train for 3-4 hours a day if they want too n they will still have energy n wont be fatigue...
  • neanderthin
    neanderthin Posts: 10,142 Member
    BCAA's a great, but if your consuming enough protein from food and your fed pre and post workout the addition of BCAA's is pretty much not needed, according to the experts like Lyle Mcdonald an Alan Aragon, who i believe know their stuff pretty well.
  • nhacault
    nhacault Posts: 6 Member
    If you drink it and your not doing a day of weights could it cause weight gain?
  • neanderthin
    neanderthin Posts: 10,142 Member
    If you drink it and your not doing a day of weights could it cause weight gain?
    No. it takes days of continuous overconsumption of food before any body fat or muscle is added, so your safe. Not to be confused with water weight that will ebb and flo daily.
  • GizmoMech
    GizmoMech Posts: 2 Member
    you're gaining weight from Muscle Mass you are building during your training. BCAAs are helping you push yourself more during your training and will be helping your body build muscle when you eat protein within you 30 minutes after your workout and then 2 hours after that.
  • NeverCatchYourBreath
    NeverCatchYourBreath Posts: 197 Member
    BCAA supplements don't actually have scientific evidence to back them up. But go for it. You're not going to get fat taking it. You do know you get BCAA's from your normal diet because they're the building blocks of protein, right?

    Just drink plenty of water so you don't cause strain on your organs that have to filter all that protein.
  • _John_
    _John_ Posts: 8,645 Member
    essential...just not needed in supplement form...
  • FunkyTobias
    FunkyTobias Posts: 1,776 Member
    Complete waste of money.

    From Alan Aragon:
    Is it worthwhile to buy BCAA?

    No need to supp with BCAA unless you a) are insistent on maintaining a low-protein diet, or b) you enjoy wasting money. High-quality protein sources in your diet already contain roughly 18-25% BCAA.

    What happens if I’ll try to use BCAA on high protein diet?

    Unless you’re specifically planning on going on a low-protein diet, all it will do is either a) stimulate appetite, since BCAA has been successfully used for this purpose to treat anorexic patients, b) give your body a little bit of extra work in processing it & whatever flavoring & other compounds it might contain, c) add extra calories to your diet, or d) all of the previous. Don’t forget that if your diet has sufficient protein, it has sufficient BCAA; 18-25% of the high-quality protein in your diet is BCAA. I suppose you could take it for a placebo boost if you really want that.

    I always come up short on my protein even with a post-workout shake and now going to play with some IF (intermittent fasting). Can I take some BCAA before and after workout until I truly break my fast?

    If you’re coming up short on protein, I’d choose whey over BCAA. 1st off, whey is 25% BCAA. 2ndly, whey contains the rest of the EAAs. Third, whey is more satiating (BCAA has appetite-stimulatory properties). 4th, whey contains beneficial biofractions such as lactoferrin, immunoglobulins, lactoperoxidase, glycomacropeptide, and bovine serum albumin. All of these goodies are missing from isolated BCAA supps. I look at whey as “BCAA-Plus”. Why buy only part of the spectrum of benefits when you can get the whole thing for the same price or less?

    But an important question before bothering with supplementation is how much protein are you getting in total (relative to your bodyweight & your goals), & why you think it’s insufficient.

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