I have a supplement review for you all today! Yay!
Okay, we all know what BCAAs are.. Branched Chain Amino Acids -The building blocks of muscle (we're keeping it simple around here today). The BCAAs are those essential aminos that the body doesn't provide us with. Benefits of BCAA supplementation include reduced soreness (DOMS!!), protein synthesis, reducing the rate of muscle breakdown, maximize fat loss (yeah, baby.. ), and a host of other benefits!
(see these articles for more details:
http://www.charlespoliquin.com/ArticlesMultimedia/Articles/Article/654/The_Benefits_of_BCAAs_10_Quick_Tips_and_Detailed_R.aspx
http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/bcaas-the-many-benefits-of-amino-acids.html )
Anyways, back to the supplement at hand.. Check the pic below...
Both are by Top Secret Nutrition (TSN) The Pill form on the left and the powdered drink form on the right. This review is about the DRINK. I've used both actually. Before the drink was available, I was popping open the pills, and mixing with crystal light and Cardio Igniter (by TSN) to drink during my morning fasted cardio, to prevent muscle breakdown. But... the folks at TSN have solved my problem! The BCAA Hyperblend is BCAA/Energy drink that is berry flavored and loaded with BCAAs and other ingredients to make it a sexy pre/intra workout energy drink. Yes, I said sexy. -_-
Besides the BCAAs, the drink mix includes a 3:1:1 ratio of leucine,
isoleucine and valine, Ursolic Acid,
Brassinolide and caffeine [(150mg) to provide energy and enhance the
anabolic and muscle protein synthesis stimulating effect of BCAA], Astravar (you don't know about Astravar??) and BioPerine to help
enhance the absorption of the ingredients. Here's a pic of the label for your viewing pleasure:
Okay... so I bet you wanna know how it tastes. Honestly, in the realm of pre-workout drinks, this isn't half bad. I'm not the biggest fan of berry flavored drinks as I prefer fruit punch or lemonade varieties. But alone it tastes heck of a lot better than regular BCAA powder. I added my trusty crystal light lemonade packet and took it to the gym for a test drive on my morning cardio. I can say I drank most of it during the first 15 minutes. Terrible, I know. But it is a welcomed addition to the rotation.
Here's a hint.. drinking BCAAs during your fasted cardio helps with hunger! Yes.. it helps with the ravenous hunger that can come after doing the cardio.. :-) So, this drink mix is PERFECT for that! I plan to use to it whenever I do fasted cardio... The weekends because during the week.. yeah.. I'm not about that life..
Until next review..
x0x0
