Amino acids
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They are needed to generate protein, which is the main building material of all tissues in our body, including muscles. It is often difficult to get the right amount of amino acids for muscles and their growth from a regular diet.
In sports nutrition, amino acids are currently represented by a large number of products based on various amino acids with a diverse spectrum of action: 
- BCAAs that include leucine have a direct effect on protein synthesis
- Glutamine promotes muscle growth, prevents muscle breakdown, and supports the body's protective functions
- Arginine increases nitric oxide synthesis and increases blood flow
- Ornithine helps produce insulin and growth hormone
- Carnitine is involved in the transport of fatty acids and energy production
- Taurine promotes muscle growth and reduces fatigue
- Tyrosine improves cognitive function and helps relieve stress
- Beta-alanine is involved in the production of carnosine
- Histidine promotes tissue growth and repair
- Cysteine promotes the formation of collagen
- Citrulline removes ammonia and lactic acid, participates in the production of arginine
- Amino acid complexes are products that serve as the source of a wide range of amino acids in the most accessible and easily digestible form.
This variety makes it possible to choose and buy the best amino acid supplements for yourself, taking into account your goals.
In the human body, amino acids perform many important functions. For athletes and bodybuilders, the most valuable is the ability of amino acids to restore muscle tissue, as well as, to promote the growth and development of muscles as a building material. That's why amino acids have become major players in sports supplements and are generating huge interest among bodybuilders.
Amino acids are the building blocks of muscle tissues.
Any protein consists of amino acids. The human body circulates a large number of these organic compounds, each of which performs a number of important functions in the body. For athletes, the most important feature is the growth of muscles and other tissues, as well as the formation of hormones and neurotransmitters.
That is why the key to every athlete's success in gaining muscle mass is to constantly maintain a supply of essential amino acids in the body.
Any house should have a solid foundation, and our body should have a rich amino acid supply.
A necessary condition for building new muscle tissue is the anabolic state of the body, an important aspect of which is a full amino acid recharge. Thanks to the constant influx of amino acids, the body is able to build new tissues and prevent the destruction of existing ones.
Essential amino acids for muscle growth
There are 22 known amino acids involved in protein synthesis. Nine of them are essential since they are not synthesized by our body and must be supplied from the outside with food rich in proteins or with food additives. The rest is synthesized from the remaining 11 non-essential amino acids.
In addition, some amino acids are conditionally interchangeable, since they become interchangeable only under certain conditions. This category includes those amino acids that our body synthesizes in small quantities. For a person who has a sedentary lifestyle, this amount can meet the needs of the body, but for people who play sports and have an active lifestyle, the supply of conditionally essential amino acids is quickly exhausted, so it is very important to renew them.
Essential amino acids such as histidine, isoleucine, leucine, valine, lysine, methionine, phenylalanine, threonine, and tryptophan perform a number of important functions related to the metabolic processes in our body.
During various physical activities that are stressful for our body, there is a need for increased content of amino acids to ensure better results and improve recovery abilities. They are often called sports amino acids.
It is therefore essential to ensure that the body receives enough amino acids from food, and sports of amino acids from supplements, which are marketed in abundance: BCAA, glutamine, arginine, carnitine, ornithine, taurine, tyrosine, beta-alanine, histidine, cysteine, citrulline, and amino acid complexes.
Key sports amino acids
Due to a large number of amino acids, there are many amino-containing products on the sports nutrition market. In order not to get lost in this variety, here are the main products and their brief characteristics:
- Three branched-chain BCAA amino acids: leucine, isoleucine, and valine are the main anabolic amino acids responsible for protein synthesis, assimilation, and transport. Learn more about BCAA.
- Glutamine is the most common amino acid in the human body, which is one of the conditionally substituted amino acids. Glutamine makes up about two-thirds of the total amount of amino acids found in muscle. The main functions include maintaining the immune system, restoring muscle tissue, and stimulating protein anabolism.
- Arginine is an amino acid responsible for the production of nitric oxide (NO), helping to expand blood vessels and accelerate blood flow, increasing the speed of transport of oxygen and nutrients necessary for muscle growth.
- An amino acid complex is a mixture of amino acids containing essential amino acids, including BCAAs, conditionally essential, and non-essential amino acids. Amino acid complexes are usually presented in two types: in liquid form (liquid amino acid complexes), and in the form of capsules or tablets.
- Taurine is the second most abundant amino acid in human muscle after glutamine. Taurine, similar to creatine, can expand muscle cells, helping to contain water molecules. By increasing the volume of cells and increasing the level of hydration, taurine promotes the acceleration of protein synthesis.
- Carnitine is an amino acid that helps burn fat cells by transporting them and activating them as an energy source during intense and aerobic exercise. This is the safest way to lose weight.
- Tyrosine is an amino acid that serves as a precursor to dopamine, norepinephrine, and epinephrine (mediators of nerve impulse conduction). As a result of muscle fatigue, their level decreases. Tyrosine is able to raise its level to a normal value and, therefore, overcome the feeling of fatigue, preventing overtraining athletes.