BCAA's and Multi-Vitamins??

[Rod Farva]

I've been taking AST for most of my things includint their multi-pro 32X. I'm not observant enough to tell you how great it works but this is what it contains:

Amount per serving:

Vitamin A (as Vitamin A Acetate) 10 000 iu
Vitamin C (as Ascorbic Acid) 200 mg
Vitamin D (as Vitamin D3) 400 iu
Vitamin E (as dl-Alpha Tocopheryis) 60 iu
Vitamin K 25 mcg
Thiamin 30 mg
Riboflavin 30 mg
Niacin (as Niacinamide) 30 mg
Vitamin B6 30 mg
Folic Acid 400 mcg
Vitamin B12 30 mcg
Biotin 60 mcg
Pantothenic Acid 30 mg
Calcium (as Di-Calcium Phosphate) 75 mg
Iron (as Ferrous Fumarate) 18 mg
Phosphorus (as Di-Calcium Phosphate) 45 mg
Iodene (as Potassium Iodene) 150 mcg
Magnesium (as Magnesium Oxide) 100 mg
Zinc (as Zinc Chelate) 30 mg
Selenium (as Selenium Chelate) 25 mcg
Copper (as Copper Chelate) 2 mg
Manganese (as Manganese Sulphate) 5 mg
Chromium (as Chromium Chelate) 25 mcg
Molybdenum (as Molybdenum Chelate) 25 mcg
Chloride (as Potassium Chloride) 36 mg
Potassium (as Potassium Chloride) 40 mg
Silicon 30 mg
Tin (as Tin Chelate) 10 mcg
Vanadium (as Vanadium Chelate) 10 mcg
Boron (as Boron Chelate) 150 mcg
Nickel (as Nickel Chelate) 25 mcg

Other ingredients
Croscarmellose Sodium, Magnesium Stearate, Microcrystalline Cellulose


Is this worth it? Do I have to take 1 in the AM and 1 in the PM after my workout or is 1/day enough?

[Rod Farva]

As for BCAA's, I take AST's protein VP2 and this is what they say about the topic:

Most BCAA supplements are free form and when you factor in the amount needed to be considered effective they are outrageously expensive. Now to the rescue. VP2 Whey Isolate is a approximately 25 to 30 percent BCAAs. One serving of VP2 contains about 6 to 8 grams of peptide bound BCAAs.

That's the short version. If they're not trying to sell me BCAA's seperately then I have to assume that their VP2 actually does contain sufficient quantities. The long answer they give is as follows:

Q: I have heard a lot of good things about branch chain amino acids (BCAAs). If they are so important to muscle growth and recovery why don’t you recommend them?

A: There seems to be more documented research on BCAA supplementation than any other amino acid(s). BCAAs are the amino acids leucine, isoleucine and valine. They are 3 of the eight amino acids that fall into the essential category. That is, they can not be made by the body, and must be part of your diet. Research has demonstrated they do enhance protein synthesis, a positive nitrogen balance and help prevent muscle breakdown. All the good things needed to increases muscle and recovery after training. I have always been a big fan of BCAA supplementation. Especially when taken within that nutritional ‘window of opportunity’ that occurs directly after hard training. The time where the introduction of certain nutrients actually enhances muscle building mechanisms. However, I think too many people tend to use supplements haphazardly and inefficiently. They do not have a clear rational to why they are using a particular supplement.

Research on BCAA supplementation during exercise does show they increase mental alertness and reduce mental fatigue. In the blood stream BCAAs compete with tryptophan (the tranquilizing amino acid). Tryptophan is the direct precursor to the neuro- transmitter serotonin. This depresses the central nervous system and produces symptoms of fatigue. When you exercise intensely, the ratio of tryptophan to BCAA is altered in favor of increases in tryptophan. This itself makes you fatigued. Several studies with various types of athletes confirm that reasonable does (7-9gms) of BCAAs do reduce mental fatigue and increase mental alertness during their respective events (Bloomstrand et al 1991). Therefore if you are using BCAAs for this purpose, I would highly recommend them. However if your answer for BCAA supplementation is to enhance recovery and muscle growth then there are far better, more potent and cost effective methods that achieve this.

A premium quality whey isolate like VP2 has now made individual amino acid supplementation obsolete. If you are looking for an effective BCAA supplement, over 50% of whey proteins' fraction profile is peptide bound BCAAs. BCAAs are shown to be absorbed far more effectively in this peptide-bound form (Grimble et al.1986). VP2 is completely hydrolyzed (cleaved) into unique, very small peptide chains. These particular whey protein peptides are shown to be absorbed the more effectively than any other protein chain. They are so low in molecular weight they utilize different cellular pathways. (Silk 1980).

Therefore the combination of whey protein’s naturally high concentration of BCAAs and the incredibly absorption kinetics of VP2 is a potent one. Extremely large amounts of BCAAs are transported directly to the muscle, and in a far greater amounts than any free form supplement could provide. This ensures potent anabolic effects from your supplementation.

Once in the body, most BCAA supplements go directly towards glutamine/glutamate formation. (Neu 1996) A part from the large concentration of BCAAs, whey protein’s amino acid profile is already rich in peptide bound glutamate. This amino acid is also shown to be absorbed far more effectively in peptide-bound form (Silk 1980).

One scoop of VP2 provides 25gms of an entire spectrum of the amino acids essential for muscle growth and, they are in optimal (naturally occurring) ratios. VP2 whey isolate also presents these amino acids to the body in the most easily assimilated form. To try to use the same amount of free form BCAAs week in, week out would not produce half the muscle building benefits and be twice as expensive.