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Issue #171

Contents

Editorial
by Juan Carlos Lopez

20 Questions with Cover Model Brett Scott

Pictorials
Brett Scott, Monica Rubio, Panida Promsook, Jacqueline Gomez & Lena Paternoster

Branched Chain Amino Acids
by Tina Jo Orban

Video Interview with Cover Model Brett Scott

 

Branched Chain Amino Acids; The Three Super-Aminos by Tina Jo Orban

Intensive training without proper nutrition leads to fatigue, poor muscle gain, possible muscle loss and even illness.
There is a lot to cover in proper nutrition. But for the focus of this article concerning muscle gain and repair—I would like to examine three essential amino acids. Let us get started though, first with RDA (recommended daily allowances).
I am well aware that most body-builders are leery of governmental RDA’s. First off, we should understand that The Food and Nutrition Boards continuously publishes research and updates according to The National Academies of Sciences Engineering Medicine and disseminates information regarding RDA’s. They refer to this as DRI Dietary Reference Intakes. DRI’s are nutrient recommendation that are established by Food and Nutrition Board  of the Institute of Medicine ,  and National Academy of Sciences. That said, here is what  they say: "Adults should get 45 percent to 65 percent of their calories from carbohydrates, 20 percent to 35 percent from fat, and 10 to 35 percent from protein”. (*Adult is someone that has no medical or metabolic disorders that would require a specialized diet, and has stopped growing). That looks like this:
45%-65% Carbohydrate
20-35% Fat
10-35% Protein
This is a simple calculation. For example let us say an average man’s diet is 2000 Kcals (calorlies). Simply multiply 65% x 2000 which is 1,300 calories from carbs. And so on.
I am sure you all just cringed. We like to see 45%-50% carbs. 30-35% protein and 15%  20% fats. There is the popular Ketogenic diet. The breakdown for a keto diet looks something like the following: 5-10% of calories coming from carbs, 25-30% of calories coming from protein and 65-70% of calories coming from fat! (I am sure there are some keto-body builders out there).
Of course we could get into the different type of fats (monos polys, saturates and trans) and the quality of those and the nutritional value BEYOND just the 9 KILOCALORIES that ALL FATS have! Or we could get into the differences in TYPES of carbs— complex vs. simple (brown rice versus a cracker) etc… But I hope the reader has a basic understanding of the QUALITY of those macronutrients, beyond just the calories they each yield. *(Protein 4 kcal per gram/ carbs 4kcal per gram/ alcohol 7kcal per gram/ fat 9kcal per gram).
Of the above diets I personally use and think THIS IS GREAT for athletes and bodybuilders:
45%-50% carbohydrates
30-35% protein
15% < 20% fats
But I digress, the focus of this article is protein and more specifically I want to delve down deep into amino acids. And how they are needed to build your lean athletic body. There are 20 amino acids we need. Nine are essential (these must come from our diet). I specifically want to focus on branched chain amino acids (BCAA’s). You all know them. The triumvirate of amino acids, I will call them. What is so special about these three? And what are they?
Quick recap on protein. Protein including all the protein in you comes from the protein you eat. It breaks down in your stomach and is digested in your intestines back to its essential components: amino acids. Then they are transported around via your bloodstream to rebuild your own proteins everything from blood cells (like hemoglobin) to immune cells (leukocytes) to muscle-cells (actin, myosin proteins). There are 20 amino acids we need. (More aminos exist we just don’t use). Nine are essential (which means we must get them from our food). Eleven we manufacture in our own bodies as described formerly.  The NINE essentials are: histidine, isoleucine, leucine, lysine, methionine phenylalanine, threonine, tryptophan and valine. And guess what the three superstar BCAA’s are in the above list. They are leucine, isoleucine and valine. What is so special about these? They are broken down in the muscle tissue rather than the liver. Studies have shown that they are very important post surgery and muscle damage (for repair and growth). The way bodybuilders train (and other hardcore athletes) it is imperative you have these amino acids in your diet.
As aforementioned amino acids are the building blocks of protein. Every amino acid has the same basic structure with a special side chain. Without getting into a chemistry lesson—the side chains give amino acids unique properties.
Of these nine essential amino acids, three of them have a side chain called a “branched chain.” These are BCAAs. Luecine, Isoleucine and Valine. Leucine is considered a vital amino acid for protein synthesis and promotes the growth and the recovery of muscle and bone tissues, as well as the production of the growth hormone.  Isoleucine is shown to increase endurance and to help heal muscle tissue. It has been used for decades by athletes and body-builders. It is used post strenuous physical activity. Valine is the last of the super amino trio but not the least.
Valine is an important amino taken up by muscle tissue in metabolic energy production. What? Basically valine is a needed amino in muscular energy. Valine like the other two BCAA’s (leucine and isoleucine) are taken up in the muscle tissue as opposed to the liver like most other aminos.
What’s so Great About a Branched Chain?
These 3 amino acids became famous because they are processed in muscle tissue and have been definitively shown to have anabolic effects. Multiple studies have concluded similar results. In a 2006 study by Blomstrand, Eliasson and Karlson, they demonstrated the rate of recovery increased with BCAA’s as did protein synthesis (i.e., muscle building and repair post endurance event). This was big news in 2006. And 14 years later we still need these aminos! I realize that there are NINE essential aminos we need. Yep, you should get all these essentials in your diet. Meat, dairy, eggs and fish has you covered. (And vegetarians go for legumes, seaweed quinoa, nuts seeds—*this article does not cover vegetarian diets).   
Now for natural food sources of our ‘Three Musketeers’ the critical BCAA’s:  Good sources of Leucine: fish, chicken, beef, dairy, eggs. Isoluecine sources are found in eggssoy protein, seaweed, turkey, chicken, lamb, cheese, and fish. Lastly, here are some food sources of valine:  dairy, soy, cheese, peanuts, mushrooms, whole grains, and vegetables. There are also plenty of supplement companies that sell BCAA’s.  Now get out there and train, but don’t forget its only part of your success in building lean mass.

1 The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine has a history of examining the       nation’s nutritional well-being and providing sound…guidance to policy makers.
2 Source Amino Acids guide 14 Feb. 2020 < https://aminoacidsguide.com/Leu.html>
3 Source Amino Acids guid 13 Feb. 2020. <https://aminoacidsguide.com/Ile.html>
4 Healthline “A Review of Branched Chain Amino Acids  13 Feb. 2020 < https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/bcaa#section2>
5 Researcgate abstract June 2007. “Amino acids in the seaweeds as an alternate source of protein for animal feed”
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/
268449200_Amino_acids_in_the_seaweeds_
as_an_alternate_source_of_protein_for_animal_feed

 

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