Recently, it has become fashionable to use products containing essential or non-essential amino acids, with athletes thinking how these products will rapidly accelerate the growth of muscle mass. It's as if this is the golden grail in the fitness world. However, muscle growth cannot be accelerated much naturally, the most important thing is to balanceis a combination of nutrients combined with stimulating hard training and adequate rest. Only in this way will you get continuous muscle growth, improved fitness and loss of excess fat stores.
It should be noted, however, that products containing these amino acids can work and are definitely worth taking in certain cases. Their primary purpose is to prevent the breakdown of muscle mass as it goes throughyou're going through a demanding diet or heavy workouts that your body isn't ready for.
What are EAAs?
EAA stands for essential amino acids. There are nine of these essential amino acids and they are primarily branched chain amino acids (known as BCAAs - Leucine, Isoleucine, Valine). Furthermore, in the complete EAA mixture we can also find the amino acids Lysine, Methionine, Phenylalanine, Threonine, Tryptophan and last but not least Histidine, which unfortunately is often forgotten and can be missing in products.
In order for your muscles to grow, you need to get a sufficient and balanced amount of allof all essential amino acids (non-essential amino acids can be created by the body itself). Of course, all of these amino acids are found in complete proteins such as meat, eggs, protein, dairy, etc. It is for this reason that there is no need at all for ordinary exercisers to get essential amino acids into the body artificially.
However, from my own perspective as a bodybuilding competitor, I find EAA products to be absolutely essential and can help anyone in their training.
The difference between EAAs and BCAAs
You all know the abbreviation BCAA. As I mentioned a moment ago, these are branched-chain essential amino acids, which have the purpose of protect muscle mass from breaking down during heavy training or even during a high calorie deficit.
EAAs contain these branched essential amino acids as well, but they are supplemented with all other essential amino acids, so together they form the so-called. It is therefore much more natural for the body to use EAAs compared to BCAAs. Not to mention that by taking EAAs you will ultimately get much better results, your muscles will regenerate and grow better.
Proper dosage and use of EAAs
I personally take EAAs during my workout, where I dissolve one whole dose in, for example, 800 ml of water and sip this drink lightly until the end of my workout.
Another alternative I would see in taking EAA before morning cardio, which I run fasted (I had no food before it). This will ensure that you don't lose any muscle during cardio and on the contrary maximize fat loss.
Another good option is to take EAAs at any time during the day to replenish amino acids into the body and promote post-workout recovery. But from my point of view, taking EAAs during training and before cardio is sufficient, nothing more is needed.
Reviews of the best EAA supplements
So that I don't just describe the benefits of EAA-containing products here and give you any specific recommendations, here'sI have prepared up to three products that I have tested on my own and about which I will give you a short review. Each of these three products is very different in its own way and none are exactly the same.
1. Nutriworks EAA
Ingredients
When looking at the ingredients, what caught my eye at first glance was the fact that this is not a complete EAA blend as there are only 8 essential amino acids. As usual, the amino acid Histidine is missing, which was a big disappointment. All the other amino acids are found here in high amounts and even l-citrulline is added to prevent muscle fatigue during training.
The product is further sweetened with pure fruit flavours, which are supplemented with steviol glycosides, which is nowadays consideredIt is considered to be the most gentle and natural sweetener that a manufacturer could use.
Taste and solubility
Unfortunately, there is no tropical fruit at all. After tasting it, all I could smell was an intense chemical tail and I have to say that during my workout, the flavour was not very pleasant. On the other hand, the longer I drank the final product, the more I got used to this aftertaste.
Natural is the unflavored pure version, which has an absolutely disgusting taste. When consumed, the taste is hard to describe, very bitter in places. It is intended for stronger and hardened individuals. Others should buy the flavoured version, as you will enjoy it considerably more.
Price
The manufacturer offers EAA only in one size and in a pack of 500 grams. For the pack you will pay a total of , which in conversion will cost you per dose.
The price of the product is absolutely adequate for a quality EAA, but since there is not a full spectrum of essential amino acids, we recommend you to look for alternatives below.
Where to buy NutriWorks EAA cheapest?
2. BiotechUSA EAA
Ingredients
Here I was satisfied at first glance, because I finally found a complete mixture of EAAs (i.e. all 9 essential amino acids in total) in the composition. These amino acids are also supplemented with one non-essential amino acid, in this case it is L-glutamine. It is contained in 25% of the product, so it is represented in large quantities, count on it.
There are also unspecified flavours used in the product (probably artificial flavours) and sucralose is used as a sweetener. This is a safe, very common sweetener that is used in almost everything these days.
Taste
The Kiwi-Lime flavour was a big disappointment. Within the first sip, there was a chemical tail that was accompanied by a sour undertone. I honestly only tried the flavor once because it was so bad that it just made me sick to my stomach during my workout, so I don't recommend it to anyone. I haven't tested other flavours yet unfortunately.
Evaluation
You can get BiotechUSA EAA in a 350g pack for , where one dose will cost you a total of . At first glance it may seem that BiotechUSA EAAs are cheaper than others, but they are note overlook the fact that these EAAs are 25% L-glutamine, which has nothing to do here. It is for this reason that the product is cheaper and the essential amino acid content is less.
So BiotechUSA EAAs are not a bad choice at all, but you have to choose the right flavor. But let's take a look at the third and best possible alternative.
Where to buy BiotechUSA EAAs cheapest?
3. Mutant PVL GEAAR
Ingredients
GEEAr has a lot of ingredients in its composition. We can find a complete blend of EAAs of all 9 amino acids, which are also supplemented witha small dose of L-Arginine, which helps the amino acids get into the blood more efficiently. For better absorption there is also added black pepper extract, the so-called Bioperine, which improves the absorption of nutrients by up to 25%.
In addition, there is also a quality blend of a total of seven electrolytes, which is a big plus for hard-working muscles. We lose electrolytes mostly through sweating during training, and this is a great way to replenish them.
Last but not least, as an added bonus, we also find the addition of magnesium in a high quality chelated form, the addition of coconut water for hydration and also the addition of sea salt to maximise muscle pump.
EAAs are sweetened with natural flavourings. Natural colorants like beta carotene or beetroot are used. The main sweetener used here is non-toxic sucralose, which is supplemented with natural steviol glycosides.
Taste
I foundthe flavour of Tiger's Blood very interesting as it is a blend of melon, coconut, strawberry and raspberry flavours. I have to say that I couldn't 100% identify any of these ingredients here, however, the final taste wasn't bad at all, quite the opposite in fact. The flavor is not overly sweet nor is it overly strong, so for consumption during a workout it's absolutely ideal.
Review
The Mutant gEAAr supplement is sold in a 378g pack for . In this case, one dose will cost you a total of . Out of all three products tested, I think this one comes out the best value for money because it contains much more than just a complex blend of essential amino acids. You also get an awesome blend of seven electrolytes, a mixture of absorption promoting substances and much more.
Where to buy Mutant gEEAr cheapest?
Final review and recommendations
Is it worth investing in EAA products? As I outlined in the introduction itself, it all depends on what you expect from the product. It depends on your goals, your diet and your lifestyle.
Simply put, for the casual exerciser, both EAA and BCAA are a completely unnecessary purchase. These supplements do work, but only in a certain way. On the other hand, for professional athletes or competitors, it is a great product that will help in both recovery and muscle growth.
And if I had to pick a winner out of the three EAA supplements tested, it would definitely be GEEAR by Mutant PVL. For the price, it really is a quality and nutritionally packed product that I was very pleasantly surprised with.
Previous parts:
- Citrulline under the microscope: proper dosage, effects and our experience
- Joint Nutrition Under Scrutiny: Benefits, Dosage and Personal Experience
- Glutamine under the microscope: proper dosage, effects and our experience
- BCAAs under the microscope: Benefits, proper dosage and side effects
- Whey Protein Under the Spotlight: Manufacturing processes, protein separations and benefits
- Creatine under the microscope: Synthesis, benefits, dosage and side effects
- Pre-workouts under the microscope: Uses, active ingredients and negative effects
- Omega 3 under the microscope: Proper dosage and health benefits
- Magnesium under the microscope: Benefits, dosage and its best forms
- Carnitine under the microscope: Does it really work? Is it an effective fat burner?
- Vitamin D3 under the microscope: Benefits, correct dosage and best form
Why can you trust us?
Bodybuilding competitor, editor of the online magazine SvětFitness.cz, member of the Police of the Czech Republic. These are all words you could use to describe me. But most of all I consider myself a bodybuilder, bodybuilding is a life path for me, a life dream.
I've been working out in the gym since I was 14 years old, the beginnings were very difficult and I've heard a lot of thingsI did it wrong at first, I prepared myself, I ate myself and I also invented my own workouts, all for many years. As time went on, I improved my knowledge of nutrition, training and supplementation, tried what worked best for me and kept finding out new information.