apiewithhoboliftingaroma

The Hulk - I get this exact thing you're talking about. Everytime I take a break and then do anything involving running, I get that. Feels exactly like sore muscles after a hard session (or too hard of a session?), but according to the pic it's the achilles.
i never thought anything of it, but this pic has me worried, don't want a snapped achilles.

Fadi

Hulk and Api,

Beta alanine is great for your workout due to the way it boosts another essential ingredient that loves nothing more than to munch on the hydrogen ions caused by your muscle contractions. It boosts a molecule composed of the amino acids histidine and alanine called carnosine, or as I like to call it, the “HI muncher". OK, so why is that important you ask? It's because when the HI level raise, something in the muscles drops; that something is the pH level. The acidity in the muscle rises which goes toward slowing your workout down, endurance and intensity wise.

Carnosine thanks to B-alanine, goes on to restore the pH to its normal levels and hence enables Hulk to blast through his 400m run. And since every single workout counts toward the bigger goal of being freaky and /or speedy, then one can not afford to have a lousy rep let alone a set or a whole workout/run.

Dosages: take 4 gms spread out throughout the day. Take (out of these 4g), 1g mixed in your favourite juice about 1 hour before your run.

Hulk, there are more supplements that would really help blast off your run times but I have not talked much about supplements on this forum…yet. Are you interested? And by the way, I was not joking when I told you it’s a secret; in the sense that you would not share it with a fellow runner lest he gain the edge on you, (I’m being very serious here)!

http://www.betaalanine.info/


Fadi.

__________________
Squat 200kg, FSquat 195kg, C&J 160kg, PC 140kg, MP 90kg.

apiewithhoboliftingaroma

definitely post more about supplements, Fadi.

If you've tried it and it worked and you have other supporting material to show you weren't just a lucky one-off, then I think a lot of people on this forum would be interested in hearing your advice.

Fadi

Okay, here's some copy and paste on Beta Alanine and yes Api, this is one of the "real deal team".

Beta-Alanine: The Sleeper-Supplement of the Last Decade

by:
Victor Lasato

When a truly great movie, book, or video game slips by the critics and masses only to be ‘rediscovered’ years later and given credit for its greatness and contribution to said media, it becomes known as a ‘sleeper hit’. If any dietary supplement falls into this category, ß-alanine is it. First discovered in the early 1900’s as a component of carnosine (carnosine is ß-alanyly-L-histidine), ß-alanine and histidine are the two components of carnosine. Carnosine as it turns out, is extremely abundant in skeletal muscle and brain tissue. Does carnosine have nootropic and/or anti-aging effects? It appears so, however that’s an article unto itself. We’ll stick to performance-enhancement for now. Over the past decade, ß-alanine has turned up in certain supplements, but in nowhere near an adequate dose. EAS was one of the first to use the compound, in ‘Phosphagen Elite’, however a daily serving only contains 1.6 grams. Once the great Pat Arnold opened the Pandora’s Box of pro-hormones and pro-steroids, ß-alanine research was put on the back burner; at least in the supplement industry.

So why not just take carnosine? I’m sure you’ve seen it available in ‘sterile liquid’ vials, so maybe it gets broken down by stomach acid or the liver? Nope. Carnosine, whether swallowed, injected, applied transdermally or via rectal suppository, breaks down into ß-alanine and histidine, which then reform into carnosine; kind of like Voltron, only for your muscles. Histidine is already present in abundance within skeletal muscles, so it is ß-alanine that acts as the rate-limiting factor in carnosine conversion.

So what exactly does carnosine do for muscular size, performance, strength, and body composition anyway? Carnosine is very effective at buffering the Hydrogen ions responsible for producing the lactic acid burn we all have a love/hate relationship with. Less burn equals more, harder workouts with seemingly no added effort. Some people are saying ß-Alanine is ‘the next creatine’. This statement is ludicrous for several reasons: 1) ‘the next creatine’ is synonymous with ‘scam’. 2) Creatine only increases anaerobic capacity and ATP stores, carnosine increases ATP stores, and buffers lactic acid- improving all muscular aspects of sports performance (as opposed to CNS aspects). 3) The slightest bit of dehydration and creatine can hinder athletic performance through cramping. However those of you who hit the gym for cosmetic reasons, keep taking that creatine, as ß-alanine won’t cause the water-retention seen with creatine, at least not to the same degree.

Dosing Protocols

One study administered ß-alanine in 10, 20, and 40 mg/kg doses to humans, and found not only that less than 5% was excreted in urine, but in the above dose ranges, increases in muscle carnosine stores were 42.1, 64.2 and 65.8%, respectively. In addition, workout volume increased by 13% after four weeks, and 16.2% after 10 weeks. So for a 100kg athlete, 4g per day is plenty. The ß-alanine in this study was administered orally, eliminating the need for transdermals or injections. There’s still some debate as to the best method of timing your dose. The renowned ß-alanine researcher Dr. Jeff Stout, PhD recommends that non-time released ß-alanine should be taken between four and eight times a day for optimal effect. However, ‘real world’ feedback, in addition to dozens of human studies on strength, endurance, strength/endurance, and power/endurance athletes show increases in muscular strength, size, workout volume, and general work capacity of all three types of muscle fibers without any special delivery system. However, as the jury is still out on dose timing (though not the dose itself), tweaking doses to fit your personal schedule might not be a bad idea.

In terms of ß-alanine products available, sadly, few are effective. Bulk powder allows you to take as much as you want, while gambling on purity and having to choke down powder or waste time capping. There are some noteworthy exceptions. At ~$50 per 45 day supply, Controlled Labs’ ‘Purple Wraath’ [SIC] has a decent dose of ß-alanine combined with citrulline malate and some other noteworthy and most likely synergistic ingredients in adequate doses. Biotest just introduced their ‘time-released’ (though no word on what time-release process they use) ß-alanine product, “Beta-7” available through the T-Nation store for $47.99, although it hasn’t been released to retailers at the time this article was submitted for publication. Beta-7 contains roughly 400mg extra ß-alanine per capsule (not per serving). Last but definitely not least in terms of carnosine-boosting products worth mentioning, Athletic Edge Nutrition (AEN) offers a high-quality, cost-effective product in their newest release, “IntraXcell” at ~$30 for a month’s supply. IntraXcell contains 4 grams of ß-alanine per serving, in addition to N-acetyl-cystine and alpha lipoic acid to scavenge the extra free-radicals produced from the extra muscular output

Summing It All Up

ß-alanine is sure to become THE next big supplement. It goes beyond creatine, so there can be no comparison. The only logical reason for stacking the two is for cosmetic purposes (ß-alanine won’t get you ‘hyooooge’). By itself, ß-alanine can be used by all athletes. It boosts anaerobic capacity much like creatine, replaces the aerobic-boosting capacity of citrulline malate, and eliminates the need for endurance athletes to use buffering compounds such as baking soda or Potassium citrate. Just when you think it won’t get any better, studies and initial feedback have demonstrated ß-alanine to have potent body re-composition and fat burning effects. And the only real side effect is a tingling/flushing sensation known as paraesthesia, and isn’t nearly as bad as taking too much niacin.

Next month: ß-Alanine’s possible nootropic and life-extension effects. Have a better idea? P.M. me at the Mind & Muscle Forums under the screen name: Viator

References
1. C.A. Hill, Et. Al. “Influence of beta-alanine supplementation on skeletal muscle carnosine concentrations and high intensity cycling capacity.” Amino Acids. July 28 2006. PMID: 16868650.
2. RC Harris, Et. Al. “The absorption of orally supplied beta-alanine and its effect on muscle carnosine synthesis in human vastus lateralis.” Amino Acids. May 30 2006. PMID: 16554972.
3. T. Nagasawa Et. Al. “In vitro and in vivo inhibition of muscle lipid and protein oxidation by carnosine.” Molecular and Cellular Biochemistry. September 2001. PMID: 11716361.
4. Luoma, TC. “Introducing Biotest’s Beta-7, an Interview With Dr. Jeff Stout, PhD.”

In the zany world of sports supplements, there are the ‘real deal’ supplements like creatine and the essential amino acids, and then a list of pretenders like bull testes, ferulic acid, and god-knows-what else. I’d like to introduce you to perhaps the ‘latest’ in a short line of ‘real deal’ supplements. What is it? Sugar plus water? Ha! Nice try. It’s, drumroll please…Beta-Alanine!

So how does beta-alanine work? By buffering the build-up of what us science types call ‘hydrogen ions’ or H+.

For instance, have you ever felt that nasty burn at the end of a 400 meter sprint? Or at the last rep of leg extensions? That is a build up of H+. Because acidic buildup occurs in all types of activity, in all muscle fiber types, and beta-alanine can buffer it, it makes sense that by supplementing with beta-alanine, your workouts become better, more intense, with the end result you being bigger, faster, and stronger.

Beta-alanine is used to make something called carnosine. It is actually carnosine, in your muscles, that acts as a buffer. Carnosine is a dipeptide (i.e. two amino acids bound together) found primarily in fast-twitch muscle. With higher carnosine levels in muscle, however, you prevent the drop in pH. With H+ buffered, you continue to squeeze out reps, continue to run at a high intensity, or you simply lift heavier weights for more reps.

Dr. Jeff Stout, one of the leading researchers in the field of sports supplements, recently tested the effects of beta-alanine. He examined the effects of beta-alanine supplementation on physical working capacity at fatigue threshold (PWCFT) in untrained young men. Subjects consumed either 1.6g of beta-alanine or sugar placebo four times per day for six days, then 3.2 grams per day for 22 days. What happened? The results revealed a significantly greater increase in PWCFT of 14.5%. Or in plain English. That’s better performance!! A greater work capacity must equal more reps and more sets in a given workout. There are other studies coming out on this new cool amino acid. Meanwhile, you ought to give it a shot and see what it does for you.

According to Dr. Stout, "it appears the most effective way to take beta-alanine is to ingest six grams daily, in divided 4 to 8 doses, for at least two weeks to see its first effect." The minimal dose seems to be in the 3 gram range. But why take it in divided dose throughout the day? One, there is a slight flushing / tingling effect with high doses (at or greater than 1.6 grams) called paraesthesia. This is resolved by taking smaller doses 8 times per day instead of 4 or by mixing it with food. Most people, however, are not bothered by paraesthesia. The second reason for taking multiple doses it to ensure a constant presence of beta-alanine which helps drive it into the muscle cell were it synthesizes into carnosine.

So there you have it. Add beta-alanine to your list of ‘must have’ supplements.

Special thanks to my good friend and colleague, Dr. Jeff Stout, University of Oklahoma, for edifying me on beta-alanine.


Fadi.

__________________
Squat 200kg, FSquat 195kg, C&J 160kg, PC 140kg, MP 90kg.

The Hulk

I will try this Beta Alanine.

However, after reading some studies I am not sure what to expect.
Hopefully it will work for me, but the following trials show no improvement on 400m sprint times:

Racing Weight - Beta-Alanine Fails to Improve Sprint Performance

Beta-Alanine. The Facts. Research

These are the first 2 articles I read, maybe there are other articles and real tests which show positive results?


Fadi, apart from the Beta Alanine, are there any other essential suppliments which can help performance?
I imagine that if I stack a few together, I must get some positive result from the compounding effects of multiple supplements?

Many thanks.
Adrian

Fadi

Creatine at 2.5g a day mixed in with about 20g of WMS taken immediately after your workouts or first thing in the morning on days off. I take Volu Gro by Nutrex in the fruit punch flavour, (since I'm extremely fussy when it comes to taste). Work with these two supplements for a month and then compare your before and after performances Adrian. Both of these supplements work on the cellular level where the mitochondria is and that says it all really.

PS: Adrian, for every one study that would show you a non positive result with these two supplements, there’d be a hundred that would…

I’m not a supplement kind of athlete and never have been, so to mention the above is a huge statement even for me.

Fadi.

__________________
Squat 200kg, FSquat 195kg, C&J 160kg, PC 140kg, MP 90kg.

The Hulk

Thanks Fadi,

Will do this.
The times will tell.

Thanks
Adrian

Fadi

Go ahead and tell us in detail since it has been Thank you.


Fadi.

__________________
Squat 200kg, FSquat 195kg, C&J 160kg, PC 140kg, MP 90kg.

dave

To the guy with the long name and an achilles problem, have a look at your calf flexibility. Low flexibility is a precursor for achilles tendon problems among many other ankle and feet problems.

apiewithhoboliftingaroma

If you meant me, dave - I've looked into that before. Thanks for the heads up though.

Turns out my calf flexibility is fine and I have no achilles tendon problems.

I guess I didn't explain properly. When I have time off from running (not weights) and then I go for a run, I get sore the next day in an area just under my calves. It's than I always thought the achilles was, but according to that pic, it has this area labelled as the achilles.

I guess I was really questioning the accuracy of the pic.