Why Should You Take BCAA’S Pre-Workout? Tonya’s Go To

When clients are interested in the personal training services we offer at Energy Fitness we offer a Free Consult, that is after we tell them how we work with clients and the investment in our programs. Now we don’t just ask willy nilly questions. We get down to business with a systemized approach that includes very specific questions we about your fitness history, injuries, nutrition, sleep, motivation and goals along with medications or supplements. It’s no accident that we get results for our clients.

When the top person at Energy Fitness (me/owner) is an exercise scientist, nutrition coach and massage therapist it’s just what we do and our culture to teach clients and staff tips and tricks to safely and effectively get YOU results.

You may hear now and then or see on social media different supplements, pills or potions marketed as
pre-workout and wonder if it’s just wasting your money or are there some that your body actually can benefit from.

I’m here to tell you that Energy Fitness has been recommending three workout success supplements for the the past 22 years and counting. We wouldn’t recommend what we don’t take ourselves for the basics!

Protein shakes (plant based – we have our own custom formula)
L-Glutamine (as needed)
and
Branched-Chain Amino Acids (BCAAs)
(leucine, isoleucine, and valine) are nutritionally essential in that they cannot be synthesized endogenously by humans and must be supplied by diet.

For this post let’s discuss the need and benefits for taking BCAA’s (branched chain amino acids) pre-workout or during long bouts of exercise to fuel the body. By consuming BCAA protein supplements before a workout you aim to delay fatigue, increase muscle growth, reduce soreness and fatigue and provide extra energy reserves for your muscles. By taking BCAAs after a workout your body receives support to repair, rebuild, and refresh muscles so you can feel less sore the next day.

BCAA’s are also found in a variety of food sources, including meat, eggs, and dairy products.

BCAAs are essential amino acids. The body cannot make them, so a person needs to get BCAAs from their diet or as supplements. Research suggests that taking BCAA supplements may improve muscle mass and performance and may reduce muscle damage from exercise. BCAAs may also benefit people with liver disease.

BCAAs are effective intra and post-workout supplements. This means that you should be consuming BCAAs immediately or during your gym session or immediately after. This is because BCAAs are effective in helping to build and repair muscle damaged from intense sessions.

BCAAs effects peak about 30 to 60 minutes post consumption. This is why I take before workouts or before and during long hikes or other long cardio sessions.

The BCAA leucine activates a certain pathway in the body that stimulates muscle protein synthesis, which is the process of making muscle

The BCAA Isoleucine is critical in physiological functions of the whole body, such as growth, immunity, protein metabolism, fatty acid metabolism and glucose transportation. Isoleucine can improve the immune system, including immune organs, cells and reactive substances.

The BCAA Valine helps stimulate muscle growth and regeneration and is involved in energy production.

Be aware that most supplement companies have you take 4 capsules as a serving. We recommend just having 2 before workouts as your protein shake you will be having post workout will likely contain more amino acids to aid in recovery as well.

My eldest son, former tennis player and now doing weight lifting for the summer before college jumped on the BCAA band wagon several years ago when he took a few capsules before a workout and felt great. He forgot the next workout and noticed a big difference in the amount of energy he had and his recovery. I pack on trips, hikes and have a supply both at work and home to support my workouts as part of my nutrition is a science belief system.

This is how much we believe in the power of BCAA’s. Energy Fitness standard semi-private personal training packages of 4.5 – 12 months include one bottle of BCAA’s to get clients going in the right direction right out of the gate. You will notice when you forgot to take. They do not have stimulants in them as I’m pretty much caffeine free aside from my home brewed Komboucha I drink daily which is only 4 ounces and mostly brewed out.

Our favorite brands in order are as follows:

Here’s a link to make it easier on you to order: Just Create a Full Script Account (Life Extension & Pure Encapsulations only avail on Full Script)

Now Sports – available onsite or find online on your own

Life Extension               Pure Encapsulations

Are thinking, why don’t I just get the powder? Don’t as they typically add artificial sweetener because if they didn’t it would taste like BC powder, very bitter. The artificial sweeteners can cause little micro tears in your intestinal lining causing you to not absorb nutrients or worse get leaky gut syndrome.

Here’s a link to make it easier on you to order: Just Create a Full Script Account

Let US keep you accountable with my over 30 years as a fitness professional  getting thousands of individuals feeling and looking great? No excuses as we’ve got onsite and online to keep you accountable to YOUR GOALS.

Energy Fitness is a Boutique Fitness Studio by appointment onsite  & online personal training/nutrition coaching via zoom. Onsite, we serve the Greenville/Travelers Rest, South Carolina area. We aren’t a gym.

We work with clients ages 40-70  that are busy executives, biz owners, working parents and retired active individuals. We work around injuries & use your time effectively with our 30 min. Semi-Private Sessions.

Check out our ONSITE facility in Greenville, South Carolina (Travelers Rest area) where most of our clients personal train with us twice weekly. Video tour 2000 sf facility. We also have ONLINE Via zoom twice weekly.

Our packages include functional movement screening and other helpful items so we can assess your starting point and see the quality of how your body moves. Our standard packages last anywhere from 4.5 months to 12 months (because honestly you know it’s gonna take more than an intro program to get you to where you want to be!). You can always find out more about all of our options by contacting us for a consult via phone and or/in person.

Invest in yourself!

Get started by CLICKING HERE IF YOU WANT A FREE ONSITE or VIRTUAL FITNESS CONSULT (VALUE $87) or one of our other services listed above. Just give me a call or text at 901-466-6242 and we can chat about your goals and tell you about our programs.

If you haven’t had a functional movement assessment with a professional observe the way you move different joints and movements with your hips, shoulders, wrists and spine then how do you know you are doing the most effective strength training, flexibility or cardio program? Hire someone like me to get you on track with a program to help you reduce current pain, eliminate pain, improve your current program or enhance your athletic performance.