Official Fitness, Nutrition and Supplement Discussion Thread

Breakfast: Oatmeal w/nonfat milk fats of either almonds or peanut butter w/ apple or banana

Snacks: greek yogurt, fruit, carrot juice, bowl of veggies, Odwalla Green machine w/whey protein blended

Lunch: Salad with 2 chicken fillets an a mix of random veggies, Brown rice w/6 egg whites, brown rice with tuna fried with random veggies

Snack: Greek yogurt, bagel, almonds, egg whites

Dinner: Brown rice w/veggies, curry chicken, roasted chicken

thoughts?

yeah i know all about the whey vs casein, i just figured it's a few hours since i last ate so it wouldn't hurt to get some immediate protein before hitting the sack (plus cottage cheese by itself tastes like shit), but i'll probably invest in some casein protein

i usually throw in avocados for my turkey burger or sandwiches, but i'll get some natural pb soon. any other recs for fats?

i was looking into BCAAs recently. have you heard anything about purple wraath?

10. BCAA's

Why you need it: These have been around for a while now. Mostly because of their anabolic and anti-catabolic properties. These properties have been questioned a lot recently and this has lead to their decreasing popularity in favour of new, hyped and expensive products despite the fact that they have had incredible effects for a lot of people. So I wanted to correct matters first. Who would claim that BCAA's are not anti-catabolic, needs to look in to the physiology of leucin, the first of the BCAA's. It's a precursor to the metabolite HMB which has been proven to illicit anti-catabolic responses by avoiding the burning of muscle-tissue in catabolic states. By virtue of that alone, but also the strong synergistic effect between leucin and its metabolite, that makes BCAA's very anti-catabolic. As for anabolic, let me remind you that amino acids are what all tissue is made from. Anabolic meaning that it promotes growth, I would say that alone proves it is anabolic. Moreover people often believe in the anabolic properties of non-essential amino acids. Non-essential amino acids on a healthy high-protein bulking cycle will be just that, non-essential. They are not needed. First of all there are plenty, and if there weren't the body can make more of them from essential amino acids. Those two factors combined makes it highly unlikely that a non-essential will be absorbed at all. They basically bypass the system and get excreted. Yet still a lot of bulking bodybuilders prefer to take glutamine or arganine over essential amino acids. Essentials however are always absorbed and used, if not directly then to manufacture non-essentials or metabolites. Of all 9 essentials, BCAA's (valine, leucin, iso-leucin) are most directly involved in muscle-tissue formation. That makes them probably the best choice for extra amino acid supplementation. Branched Chain amino acids are definitely not your first choice for supplementation, but as a proven staple in bodybuilding they should be prioritized over some of the newer, more expensive crap out there.

How it works: Amino acids make up proteins. Dietary proteins are storage for amino acids, but not all proteins contain the right balance of amino acids that we need. And we can't be choosy about food when bulking. An imbalance of non-essentials can be overcome, but to get the right amount of essentials you need to gear intake towards it. So it makes sense to get extra of the most anabolic of them. Basically they work the same as the aforementioned amino acid formulas. BCAA's are just targeted more specifically to an athlete.

How to use it: BCAA's are best used around training time to really make them worth the money. If you train in short intense sessions it makes sense to get a 5-10 grams with your post-workout meal shortly after your session to promote recovery and muscle-formation. If you are the type that loves endless hours of lifting followed by long cardio-sessions, you may be better off getting 5-15 grams prior to your training to avoid catabolic circumstance and promote recovery from such activities. This is also a good idea for multi-sport athletes. It can't hurt to get them both before and after a workout, but you'll find that this will soon become a very expensive hobby. There are better ways to spend your money.

There is no designated dosage, the bigger you are the more you need. What you do need to watch is the balance between the amino acids leucin, iso-leucine and valine which should be as close to 2-1-2 as possible. I know from experience that not many companies have such a mix, so as close to it is the best advice I can give.

i also use Xtend. Scivations a great brand and the watermelon flavor is tits.

That product sounds dope, how'd you use it, and how does it work?

scotty, you ever try dymatize whey? i'm debating between that or ON whey for a 10 lb bag (i go through the stuff pretty fast)

aight then.. You recommend watermelon? Orange sounds good.