Carb Supplements
January 27, 2009
Carb drinks and powdered carb supplements like Waxy Maize have become popular over the last few years. They’re used by athletes as a means to enhance the amount of fuel (in the form of ATP) which is used to power intense workouts. Carbohydrates are the only nutrient whose stored energy can be used to generate ATP anaerobically. In vigorous exercise such as bodybuilding, most of the energy for ATP re-synthesis must come from stored glycogen and blood glucose. Carbohydrate-based supplements can help your body build glycogen stores back up after they have been depleted by heavy exercise. They can also increase the amount of glucose readily available in the blood, which can be used for fuel while working out. We recommend carbohydrate supplements for athletes as a way to increase caloric consumption, especially in a gaining phase or if the athlete is an ectomorph. We also recommend carb supplements like Vitargo and Waxy Maize stacked with Hydrolyzed Whey Protein Isolate as a post-workout recovery drink to help restore muscle and liver glycogen. This combination also spikes insulin levels which helps reduce cortisol production.
Optimum Nutrition Releases … A New Flavour?
July 15, 2008
By Scott Welch
It seems every time I turn around, Chicago based Optimum Nutrition (www.OptimumNutrition.com) has another new product being launched! Last month it was Salmon Oil capsules, this month it’s a Rocky Road flavour of their post-workout powder “RECOVERY 2:1:1”. Common guys – who cares about a new flavour? Give bodybuilders a revolutionary new ingredient that nobody else has. Give us the next Creatine! Okay, okay, I’m just busting your chops because you’re the top 5 largest supplement company in the industry and I want you to discover a new ingredient that turns the industry upside down!
QUALITY AT A LOW PRICE?
The Optimum line is a top-notch product line and the price is unbeatable. At this year’s Arnold Classic, I spoke with Jay Jacobsen who heads up their marketing at Optimum and I was really impressed with his knowledge level. They are certainly not near the top of the supplement industry by fluke. But in my books, what sets them apart from most of the others is the fact that they are one of the few companies that own their own manufacturing plant and distribution company. Most companies rely on large distribution companies like Europa Sports (www.EuropaSports.com) and Boss (http://www.bossonline.net/index.html) to sell their products to the to the thousands of stores and gyms in America. But distribution companies mark the product price up to cover their costs (and so they should), which makes your supplements cost more, by the time they reach the store. (Hey, that rhymes doesn’t it?). Anyway! Optimum cuts this step out for the most part with their own trucks, sales force, and warehousing. This is just one difference that allows them to sell great products at a lower price than some other companies. In Canada however, Optimum uses a top-notch distribution company called “Upper49th” (www.Upper49th.com) to sell their supplements and they do a terrific job from what I’ve seen.
RECOVERY 2:1:1
Hey in my books, it’s not the best name for a supplement (for the same reason I covered with my last BIOTEST post.) In terms of the formula though, it looks pretty good. In ON’s words, RECOVERY 2:1:1 is based on:
“…the latest science demonstrating that blending different types of carbs and proteins maximizes absorption and leads to better results than the use of larger amounts of any single type.”
BLENDING DIFFERENT PROTEINS
I agree that there are advantages to blending different types of proteins with each other, especially faster digesting proteins (like whey) with slower proteins (like casein). If there are high levels of the faster digesting proteins to keep you in an anabolic state until the slower digesting proteins break down into their constituent amino acids, you are in good shape. Otherwise, your body may slide into a catabolic state. ”Help my muscle mass is falling and I cannot get it back up!” High levels of these fast-digesting proteins (i.e. whey protein) are especially important after a workout when muscle tissue is damaged.
BLENDING DIFFERENT TYPES OF CARBS
In concept, this makes sense and I agree with it. Waxy Maize is one such carb, as is Vitargo, dextrose, maltodextrin (a.k.a. glucose polymers) and a newer carb popping into a few new post-workout supplements called Trehalose. One such post-workout powder to include this is “ANABOLIC WINDOW” by Nutrabolics (www.Nutrabolics.com). But let’s not take the spotlight off “RECOVERY 2:1:1” now! There are two other carbs in the formula that I agree with adding in small amounts like Optimum has done – they are: Sucrose & Fructose. To start with, Sucrose (a.k.a. table sugar) is a disaccharide, which means it’s made of two sugar molecules attached to each other. One of these is glucose (a.k.a. Dextrose or D-glucose) the other is Fructose (a.k.a. Levulose). One reason many companies include Fructose in their formula (especially protein bars) is because it’s sweater than most other carbs which helps with flavouring while keeping the calories down. But it’s also added from a physiological side, as it can help raise liver glycogen levels more efficiently than other carbohydrates. After a workout muscle glycogen will be low of course, but liver glycogen may also be low. Adding a bit of fructose and sucrose after your workout will help boost liver glycogen.
THE RECOVERY 2:1:1 FORMULA
The formula delivers BCAAs in the ideal 2:1:1 (Leucine:Isoleucine:Valine) ratio needed for anabolism, 35 g of a blend of slow and fast-acting proteins and 70 grams of carbohydrates from multiple source like waxy maize. As I’ve been saying for a few years now, Vitargo, Waxy Maize, and newer forms of Waxy Maize are going to be really hot when competitive bodybuilders catch on to this trend and other supplement companies start adding it to their products. And BSN thinks so also as they’ve just launched their version of Waxy Maize product to be consumed during your workout called VOLUMAIZE (www.volumaizemf.com).