Beta-alanine supplements are popular in the world of athletes and fitness enthusiasts thanks to benefits like increased performance power. Research has shown that they improve athletic performance and strength, which explains why many athletes use them. This guide explores more about beta-alanine supplements.
Beta-alanine compound
Essentially beta-alanine is one of the non-essential amino acids in the body, which means it does not help synthesize proteins like the essential amino acids. Instead, beta-alanine combines with histidine to produce carnosine found in your skeletal muscles. The role of carnosine is to reduce muscle acidity during a workout allowing you to perform for longer.
How it works
In the process of working out, your body transforms glucose into energy. As you continue to perform, the muscles break down glucose into lactic acid, and it then turns into lactate which produces hydrogen ions. The hydrogen ions impact the PH in your muscles, making them acidic.
The muscle acidity prevents glucose breakdown, reducing your muscles’ ability to contract hence fatigue. But this is where carnosine comes in. It serves as a buffer against muscle acidity, especially during high-intensity exercises allowing you to perform for longer before fatigue sets in.
Therefore the more carnosine you have in your muscles, the better your performance is. Naturally, your body’s histidine levels are usually higher than beta-alanine, limiting the production of carnosine. A Beta-alanine supplement can elevate carnosine levels by 80%, reducing overall fatigue during high-intensity exercises.
Beta-alanine increases time to exhaustion
According to studies, beta-alanine increases time to exhaustion, which helps you work out for longer periods than you are used to. In one study, cyclists were given four weeks of beta-alanine supplements and increased their overall workout by 13% and 16.2% by 10weeks. On the same note, 20 men in a study increased their time to exhaustion by 14% after a month of taking beta-alanine supplements.
Beta-alanine mainly boosts shorter duration exercises.
According to research, muscle acidosis, which occurs during training, limits the period of high-intensity exercise. A study revealed that six weeks of beta-alanine supplementation increased time to exhaustion by 19% during high-intensity interval training.
In a different study, 18rowers who used beta-alanine for seven weeks were 4.3seconds faster than the placebo group in a 6minute 2000meter race. Therefore beta-alanine supplementation boosts performance during high intensity and short duration workouts lasting one to several minutes.
More benefits
In resistance, training beta-alanine boosts training volume by reducing fatigue. It is also said to increase muscle endurance in older adults. Generally, it reduces fatigue resulting in more exercise capacity and muscle endurance.
Other studies suggest that beta-alanine supplementation benefits body composition, although the evidence is mixed. Increasing the training volume increases lean muscle mass.
Overall beta-alanine increases carnosine levels, which provides many benefits to your body. Some studies have shown that carnosine is an antioxidant; hence it has antiaging and immune enhancing features. As an antioxidant, it works against free radicals and reduces oxidative stress, which helps fight the aging process.
THE PUNCHLINE
Beta-alanine supplements increase carnosine which enhances athletic performance by reducing fatigue during high-intensity exercises.
