In this article, I have included information about some supplements needed for bodybuilders.

Supplements

Bodyworkers often use side drugs and powders because they do not find these proteins enough or because they only want to get proteins from the food. These, if tightly controlled by health departments, have almost no side effects other than weight gain and some other protein excess diseases (such as gout). Therefore, they should definitely be taken under the control of a dietitian.

We can create the following table of these promoters:

Unflavored Dry Gelatin: 86 grams of protein per 100 grams

Egg White Powder: 82 grams of protein per 100 grams

Soy Protein Isolate: 81 grams of protein per 100 grams

Wheat Gluten: 75 grams of protein per 100 grams

Low Fat Soy Flour: 47 grams of protein per 100 grams

Skim Milk Powder: 36 grams of protein per 100 grams

What should be noted here is that excess protein has a weight-bearing effect, except for diseases. Because proteins can start to be stored by being converted into fats (this biochemical pathway only comes into play at extreme protein doses). Therefore, the caloric value of these foods is also very important. If the work is exaggerated for the purpose of getting protein, fat will begin and the purpose will deviate.

In addition to these, let’s take a look at the most common supplements as food supplements below.

Creatine

Creatine monohydrate is known as the supplement that is legally available in many countries and has the most effect on muscle growth. To date, no significant side effects or complaints have been observed with the use of this supplement in adults (especially in liver and kidney function). In most studies to date, an increase in muscle size and strength has been observed as a result of adding creatine to strength training. In many of these studies, 1–2 kilograms of mass gain was observed as a result of 20 grams of creatine taken for 4–28 days (this high rate is known as the “loading phase”).[84] After loading, the same muscle mass could be maintained for 30 days with only 2 grams of creatine per day. It has also been shown in the same study that a loading phase may not be needed; because a 20% increase in muscle, creatine was achieved by supplementing with 3 grams of creatine for 28 days.

Beta-Alanine (BA or β-alanine)

Another supplement that is becoming increasingly popular among muscle builders is beta-alanine. Beta-alanine, which enters the blood after digestion, is taken up by skeletal muscles and converted to carnosine. Carnosine is a pH balancer and is particularly important in the anabolic processes involved in exercise such as jogging and muscle building. A 64.2% increase in carnosine levels was observed with 6.4 grams of beta-alanine supplementation daily for 4 weeks. After 4–10 weeks of beta-alanine supplementation, knee extension torque increased by around 6%. In addition, thanks to this supplement, it is possible to increase the workload and extend the time to reach fatigue during high-intensity cardio. In addition, during strength training, the resistance of the muscles to fatigue increases, the lean mass is increased by an average of 1 kilogram, and a remarkable decrease is experienced in the perception of weight.

In contrast, some studies have failed to show that beta-alanine has an effect on performance. In a related meta-analysis, it was observed that beta-alanine supplementation significantly increased exercise capacity and exercise performance improved during 60–240 seconds and above 240 seconds exercises. However, it should be noted that there is limited research on the effects of long-term use of this supplement.

Beta-hydroxy-beta-methylbutyrate (HMB)

HMB, a leucine metabolite, increases muscle protein catabolism and muscle protein synthesis. The health impact of HMB supplements has been extensively studied and no adverse effects on liver enzymes, kidney function, cholesterol, white blood cells, hemoglobin or blood sugar have been identified.

Branched Chain Amino Acids (BCAA)

Branched-chain amino acids make up 14–18% of our skeletal muscle proteins and are perhaps the most heavily consumed supplement by experts trying to build muscle naturally. Among such amino acids, especially leucine is very popular because it can trigger protein synthesis in equal amounts with that obtained from the mixture of all amino acids. However, consuming leucine alone may cause depletion of other amino acids such as plasma valine and isoleucine, so these three should generally be taken together. The upper limit for adult males is 550 milligrams per mass per day.

It has been observed that taking BCAA supplements at rest or after exercise can increase skeletal muscle protein synthesis, decrease muscle protein degradation, or cause both at the same time. As we mentioned above, the main Consuming BCAA-fortified products between meals can increase protein synthesis. However, these generally result from animal experiments and the effects on humans (especially long-term) need to be investigated further.

Arginine

One of the supplements taken by the muscle-builder before training is the arginine supplement taken during exercise to increase blood flow to the muscles, increase protein synthesis and increase exercise performance. However, the amount of data showing that this supplement actually works is negligible. For example, in one study, 7 grams of arginine supplementation was given to healthy young men, but no significant change was observed in blood flow to the muscles. In another study, the same trial was performed with 10 grams of supplementation, but no improvement in blood flow or protein synthesis was observed. In addition, since arginine is a non-essential amino acid and it has been shown that only essential amino acids are sufficient to trigger protein synthesis, there is no need for this supplement. Finally, the effect of arginine on exercise performance is highly controversial, and studies in this area give conflicting results.

Citrulline Malate (CitM)

Another supplement that has recently become popular among muscle builders is citrulline malate (CitM). However, the effect of this compound on healthy people has been little studied. According to CitM advocates, citrulline is important to the urinary cycle and helps clear ammonia; malate is used in the tricarboxylic acid cycle and reduces lactic acid accumulation; citrulline can be converted to arginine. However, the amount of evidence showing these is negligible and we have just mentioned the invalidity of the last argument, arginine.

In some studies, it has been shown that CitM supplementation increases phosphocreatine production by 20%, reduces fatigue, improves exercise performance, reduces muscle soreness and increases muscle mass. However, other studies either failed to show any effect or CitM supplementation

Glutamine

Among the non-essential amino acids, glutamine is the most common and is often consumed through supplementation. It is known that glutamine supplements are healthy for adults as long as they are below 14 grams per day. However, the number of studies showing that glutamine supplementation is healthy in athletes is very few. It has not been shown that short-term glutamine supplementation improves exercise performance, helps to balance the pH, and improves the defense system or muscle soreness.

Studies examining the long-term effects of glutamine often examine many other factors together, and therefore glutamine may be associated with improvements in the improvements demonstrated by these studies. In a long-term study examining the effect of glutamine alone, no significant change was observed in muscle size, muscle strength or muscle protein degradation. Glutamine may be beneficial for individuals who have problems with intestinal health or stress.

Caffeine

Caffeine is probably the most commonly consumed supplement before a workout. Many studies have shown that caffeine improves performance, especially before resistance training, jogging and strength training. However, the effect of caffeine There are also studies showing that it is not effective or may have a harmful effect. In most of the studies showing that caffeine has a beneficial effect, this benefit occurs in large doses such as 5–6 milligrams per kilogram. However, this level is within the limits of the “safe caffeine” dose. In addition, regular caffeine consumption may cause a decrease in ergogenic effects.

Translated from evrimagaci.com ()

This article is an excerpt from by Karl Liebermann | Jun, 2022 | Medium