BCAAs – Why You Probably Don’t Need Them

I doubt a week goes by that you don’t see an ad for BCAAs.

Or maybe you see them recommended by people on Instagram to drink during training or to help recover.

And if you look at them on supplement lists, they’re one of the best sellers.

But the question is, do you need them?

Are they worth the money or a waste?

And is there any point where they are useful?

Let’s take a look.

Do You Need BCAAs?

The short answer would be – No.

But to expand on that a little, if you are consuming an adequate protein intake for your goals, then you won’t need them.

If you’re lifting weights or doing sports and already actively consuming a high protein diet, then BCAAs won’t provide any real benefit.

They’re better than nothing, but when it comes to reducing muscle soreness after exercise and improving recovery, then they’re not any better than protein.

And, if you already use Whey protein, then they’re all have sufficient quantities of BCAAs.

Is There A Use To Them?

There may be some benefits to using BCAAs when your glycogen depleted, but for the majority, your aim is performance and building muscle, strength or power.

So, in those situations, you’d be better off using carbs to support your training and performance.

A possible area they would be useful would be in you’re on a strict low calorie or low carb diet and are doing fasted cardio.

They may be useful to use then to support performance or endurance goals.

But again, it may be better or even cheaper to just use whey protein and have it before and after training.

Should You Buy Them?

I’d tend to advise you to lean more towards investing in Whey protein instead.

Whey will already have the entire spectrum of essential amino acids. Therefore, whey would support your muscle gains and recovery after training.

And again, if you’re consuming a well planned diet of carbs, high protein and hitting your calories, then there is less chance of your seeing any benefiting from adding BCAAs to your training supplementation.

So, eat well, hit your protein intake with food, and if needed, use whey protein to ensure you’ve all the essentials covered.

At the end of the day, you want to make sure you’re seeing a return for the effort you’re putting into the gym.

You want to see muscle repair and growth, not a hole appear in your wallet.

Hit they Whey more than the BCAAs.

Colm.