Of all the workout supplements available today, probably none has been as well-researched as Branched-Chain Amino Acids (BCAAs). These little amino acids are the powerhouse supplements of muscle gain.
They have been shown to aid exercise endurance and intensity, stimulate protein synthesis and muscle gains, prevent muscle breakdown, and may even boost the immune system.
Think of them as a pre-workout, intra-workout and a post-workout all in one!
There are dozens of BCAA supplements, so which is the best and why? Here at Supplement Reviews UK, we wholeheartedly recommend Performance Lab® SPORT BCAA. We’ll come into the ‘why’ in more detail in a moment, but for now let’s just say that it has a super clean potent formula and comes from one of the most respected manufacturers in the business, Opti-Nutra.
First though…
Table of Contents
Why Choose a Branched-Chain Amino Acid Supplement?
Research courtesy of Performance Lab
Before you take a BCAA supplement, you should know what’s in it and why it works.
BCAAS include L-Leucine, L-Isoleucine and L-Valine. ‘Branched chain’ refers to their chemical structure.
The BCAAs in Performance Lab® SPORT BCAA come in an optimal 2:1:1 ratio of leucine, isoleucine and valine.
The Ingedients
L-Leucine
Widely considered the primary BCAA because it seems to deliver the most benefit, particularly when it comes to stimulating protein synthesis and building new muscles. Hence, it’s the amino acid with the largest dosage in Performance Lab® SPORT BCAA. L-Leucine has significant human clinical trials demonstrating its effectiveness, alone and mixed with other BCAAs. One such study, for instance, demonstrated how L-Leucine supplementation significantly enhanced strength in novice trainers over a 12-week period.
The 1,500mg included in Performance Lab® SPORT BCAA is an effective dosage.
L-Isoleucine
Our second BCAA, works slightly differently to L-Leucine in that it is more involved in the regulation of energy levels than the actual building of muscle. It helps to promote glucose uptake and its subsequent breakdown into energy, more so than any other amino acid.
Examine.com also claims that it ‘may have roles as an anti-catabolic agent (without promoting synthesis) similar to HMB’, meaning it protects muscles from being broken down. Another valuable ingredient and one which should work effectively at 750mg included in Performance Lab® SPORT BCAA.
L-Valine
Often, somewhat unfairly we think, described as the least important amino acid. True, it may not build muscle or protect muscle mass as well as the two amino acids above, but it works well in synergy with the others. Valine is associated more with helping to repair muscles as well as muscle coordination and helping the body to deal with stress. So, consider the first two amino acids as boosting performance levels, and L-Valine as helping to deal with the after-effects. Again, the 750mg in Performance Lab® SPORT BCAA is a generous dosage.
Why Choose Performance Lab® SPORT BCAA?
We love Performance Lab® SPORT BCAA for several reasons:
- Its simplicity. When many other manufacturers are excitedly mixing BCAAs into proprietary formulas or doing whatever they can to ‘jazz it up’, Performance Lab® SPORT BCAA is happy to stick with the basic formula. This doesn’t lose anything in our eyes. If anything, it ensures it maintains its core strength as one of the best muscle boosters around.
- Its dosages. The 2:1:1 ratio found in Performance Lab® SPORT BCAA mimics the ratio found in muscle tissue naturally, increasing its absorbency.
- Its Potency. Performance Lab® SPORT BCAA uses premium forms of its amino acids, fermented with Sunflower Lecithin. This makes the BCAAs highly bioavailable, ensuring quick uptake and absorbency.
- Its purity. As well as amino acids mimicking the ratios found in nature, the fermented form made from sunflowers is all-natural and as pure as you can get. Performance Lab® SPORT BCAA is also free of synthetic additives, GMO ingredients, banned substances, soy, gluten and allergens, and is vegan-friendly.
The BCAAs in Performance Lab® SPORT BCAA help to:
- Improve both anaerobic and aerobic training performance by optimising ATP energy production in the muscles
- Blocks the chemicals that cause fatigue during a workout, allowing you to train for longer
- Boost protein synthesis, helping to build muscles
- Simultaneously prevent muscle breakdown and thus help to maintain gains
- Tackle the build-up of acids which make muscles sore
- Improve the rate of muscle repair and recovery.
We Say…
As Performance Lab ® states, its SPORT BCAA supplement really does provide solid ‘foundational’ support for ‘muscle strength and development.’
It places its emphasis on purity and potency, selecting the perfect forms of its amino acids to boost bioavailability and making a point of replicating nature-found ratios in extremely pure forms.
That’s a lot of commitment for one supplement, and it’s one that we have found replicated throughout the Performance Lab® range.
For all of these reasons and more, Performance Lab® SPORT BCAA tops our search for the Best Branched-Chain Amino Acid to Buy in the UK in 2018 and 2019. We’re confident you can’t find a more natural, potent and clean BCAA supplement anywhere else.
