Whey protein powder. Creatine. Beta-alanine. There’s no shortage of supplements that claim to give you a muscle-building edge. But while some of those promises are backed up by science—and real-word results—others offer little-to-no benefits.
One of the latest additions to the supplement shelves: BCAAs, a term that stands for “branched chain amino acids.” (Amino acids, if you think back to your high school biology days, are molecules that combine to form proteins, which has earned them the nickname, “the building blocks of life.” But more on that in a minute.) Sounds cutting edge, right? Well, not exactly.
Although BCAAs has its fans—proponents say it can lead to muscle growth, strength gains, and fat loss—nutrition experts are a little less enthusiastic about the stuff.
There aren’t many—if any—real benefits to taking BCAAs, says Brian St. Pierre, M.S., R.D., the director of nutrition at Precision Nutrition. In fact, on the long list of muscle-building foods and supplements, BCAAs don’t come in anywhere near the top.
If you want to build muscle, you’re better off eating whole foods, protein powder, and even essential amino acid supplements (called EAAs, naturally), all of which are more likely to help you maximize the benefits of exercise, says St. Pierre.
Of course, there are some exceptions to the rule—and, if you don’t mind shelling out the cash, there’s no real harm in giving them a try. Here’s are the ABCs of BCAAs, including what you should know before you take the bulking supplement.
What Are BCAAs (Branched Chain Amino Acids)?
BCAAs, if you’ll recall, stands for “branched chain amino acids,” so named for their “branching” (rather than “linear”) structure. Amino acids are the building blocks of protein. Of the 20 total amino acids your body needs to function, there are 11 that it can produce on its own, and nine that it can’t. Those nine so-called “essential” amino acids must come from food.
Out of those essential amino acids, there’s a key trio that helps you maintain muscle: leucine, isoleucine, and valine. Leucine, in particular, is a muscle-building powerhouse. Those three amino acids are the same amino acids that you’ll find in any BCAA supplement on the shelf.
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What’s The Difference Between BCAAs and Protein?
A food is a “complete” protein if it contains all nine essential amino acids, including the BCAAs. Fish, chicken, eggs, beef, and even soy foods like tofu and edamame are all complete proteins. In fact, any animal protein (or protein powder) has the leucine, isoleucine, and valine you need—in doses that are actually doable.
BCAAs differ from protein in the sense that they only contain three amino acids: leucine, isoleucine, and valine.
Make no mistake though, those other 17 amino acids are important, too—which is why you shouldn’t focus too much on just consuming the BCAAs. “You need all 20 amino acids to build muscle,” says St. Pierre. “Leucine kickstarts the process, but all the other amino acids complete it.”
What Are The Benefits of BCAAs?
We hate to break it to you, but the benefits of BCAAs are probably miniscule, if any. Sure, that muscle-building trio of amino acids is a good thing, but it’s also found in lots of other foods and supplements—ones that aren’t missing all the other essential amino acids your body needs.
In other words, if you want to find leucine, isoleucine, and valine, you can find them in whole foods, or, if you don’t like protein-rich foods (or are mostly or fully plant-based), protein powder, says St. Pierre.
And if you don’t like protein powder? Even then, says St. Pierre, you’d be better off taking EAAs — which contains (you guessed it) all nine essential amino acids.
“The hierarchy would be whole food protein, protein powder, EAAs, then BCAAs,” says St. Pierre.
How Often Should You Take BCAAs?
You don’t have to get your BCAAs in a specific BCAAs supplement-form, but you should try to consume those nine essential amino acids—including leucine, isoleucine, and valine—every day.
To unlock the full effects of the muscle-building leucine, the latest research suggests consuming 2 to 3 grams a sitting, at least three times during the day. You’ll find that sweet spot of 2 to 3 grams leucine in 1 scoop of whey protein (of which about 25 percent is from BCAAs), 1 cup of cottage cheese, or 3 ounces of chicken breast.
So Do BCAAs Help You Build Muscle?
In supplement form, BCAAs are unlikely to help you build any more muscle (though taking them in reasonable doses certainly won’t harm you). That conclusion isn’t just theoretical: One study in the journal Amino Acids (yes, there’s actually a research journal named that) found that the additional supplementation of leucine, one of the BCAAs, taken before and during anaerobic running, did not improve exercise performance.
One likely reason for these non-results: BCAAs are already found in all the protein sources you’re already eating—chicken, fish, eggs, beef, whey or casein protein shakes—so consuming them in a supplement is just overkill.
If you’re taking in adequate protein, BCAAs are a waste of money, says protein researcher, Stuart Phillips, Ph.D., of McMaster University.
‘Adequate protein’ may be the key, however. Case in point: One study published in the Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition found that people who were following a calorie-restricted diet were better able to maintain lean body mass when supplementing with BCAAs compared to those who weren’t supplementing with BCAAs.
So, these study participants weren’t eating the recommended 2 to 3 grams of BCAAs per sitting in their low-calorie diet, but when they took BCAA supplements, it helped them retain muscle. And that’s hard to do when you’re trying to drastically slim down.
The final verdict? It’s not that BCAA supplements have no merit. You might want to take them if you’re not getting enough in your daily diet—though it would be better to get those added aminos from whole foods, protein powder, or EAAs.
But if you’re already eating 2 to 3 grams of leucine from food sources at least 3 times a day, you don’t need them.
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