Amino acids

Amino acids are the building blocks of protein and muscle tissue. All the physical processes related to sport – energy expenditure, recovery, muscle growth, fat burning and even brain function – depend on amino acids. No wonder amino acids have become one of the hottest supplements among bodybuilders.

What are amino acids?

There are thought to be 23 amino acids and, as already mentioned, they are the building blocks of protein. According to the accepted classification, 9 of them are essential (EAAs), which the body gets from food or supplements. The rest are non-essential (NEAAs) and are synthesized by the body itself as needed from other amino acids (EAAs). You don’t usually think much about amino acids when you sink your teeth into a chicken breast, but it is precisely their balance, especially the ratio of EAAs to NEAAs, that determines how valuable a protein source is for building muscle tissue.

Protein quality depends not only on the carbohydrates and fats that enter the body together with the protein, but certainly also on the amino acids (both EAAs and NEAAs), such as the BCAAs (L-leucine, isoleucine, valine). Although the amount of EAAs has to outweigh NEAAs, the latter are still important, because the body synthesizes them too slowly to allow maximal muscle growth. Even if an amino acid source has a perfect composition, another important factor comes into play – the extent to which the amino acids actually reach the tissues. This in turn raises the question of digestion, absorption and bioavailability.

What is bioavailability?

Eating quality food is the most common way to get amino acids. They are especially abundant in high-protein foods such as lean meat and fat-free dairy products. Some fruit and vegetables also contain them in considerable amounts. So why pay extra to buy amino acids as a supplement? The answer lies in bioavailability. Bioavailability determines in what amounts amino acids are actually used and fulfill their main purpose.

Two nutrients can have completely identical amino acid profiles and yet be completely different in bioavailability. The surest way to absorb amino acids is to take them as a supplement. An amino acid without bonds can raise its level in the body considerably within 15 minutes, creating very good conditions for metabolism. So, for example, taking BCAAs before, during and after a workout prevents (mental) fatigue, provides energy and also prevents muscle catabolism.

Science has reached the point where amino acids taken as a supplement, especially EAAs in the form of BCAAs, are much more bioavailable than those obtained from food. Absorption time matters because, as we know, in the couple of hours after a workout there is a so-called open-door window, when muscle fibers soak up everything they can. The amino acids from a protein drink only get absorbed into the body about 3 hours after drinking it, that is, at a time when that high receptiveness is no longer there. But if you add amino acids separately to the protein drink right away, they can create very good conditions for metabolism within 15 minutes.

Pure amino acids

Amino acids as a supplement don’t need to be digested, since they have no chemical bonds with other molecules, and so they move quickly from the stomach to the intestine, from where they are absorbed into the bloodstream. Amino acids are processed by the liver, which usually uses up the amino acids we eat. But when you take 4 grams of fast-absorbing amino acids, this exceeds the liver’s capacity to use them, and they go straight to the tissues that need them. For bodybuilders it is important that amino acids reach the muscle tissue, which would at the same time speed up the recovery process.

But how does the theory work in practice? In the 90s, an experiment was carried out with the Bulgarian national weightlifting team, in which the men were also given amino acids in supplement form. The results were better than expected – strength numbers rose, and so did muscle mass. Since then, many famous bodybuilders have used amino acids as a supplement, led by Dorian Yates.

Amino acids and energy

There are many misconceptions about boosting muscle contraction and training intensity with energy-providing products. In fact, carbohydrates don’t play a big role in strength training. The main energy still comes from creatine triphosphate (ATP) and, when that supply runs out (after about 3 seconds), from creatine phosphate (CP). CP extends the duration of maximal effort to 10 seconds. CP, however, consists of three amino acids: arginine, methionine, glycine. To keep ATP/CP levels high, as much arginine, methionine and glycine as possible has to reach the bloodstream. So amino acids taken together with creatine monohydrate provide a lot of the extra energy you need.

Amino acids reduce catabolism

During hard training, the human body has a tendency to start using muscle tissue for energy. This kind of muscle catabolism causes severe muscle soreness, muscle spasms and can also lead to injuries. This process, hated by bodybuilders, is gluconeogenesis, which means producing glucose from non-carbohydrate sources. One part of this process is called the glucose-alanine cycle. There, BCAAs are torn out of the muscles, converted into alanine, transported to the liver and processed into glucose.

If you take BCAAs as a supplement, the body doesn’t have to break down muscle tissue to get extra energy. Recent studies at the University of Guelph in Canada showed that taking BCAAs during and after training significantly reduces the muscle damage caused during training. Although the testosterone-raising property previously attributed to amino acids does not exist, they are still very useful to bodybuilders.

You can find a wide selection of amino acids here.

Author: Mikk-Alvar Olle

Source: Health Board – dietary supplements.

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