Add EAAs to Your Diet for Optimal Health: Are Eaas Worth it?

You may be wondering if Essential Amino Acids (EAAs) are really worth all the fuss. Do they really work? We get it. We’ve all seen the hype of various diet/health fads that often end up fizzling out. You definitely want to be sure you understand the ins and outs of EAAs and other supplements as you work to gain better health, stronger muscles, and a leaner physique. So let’s talk about the value EAAs play in helping you do just that! 

In the past, Branched Chain Amino Acids (BCAAs) were the rage. You’d find people at the gym chugging on their water bottles filled with BCAAs with the understanding they were key to maintaining a constant state of anabolism, helping them build the muscles they were working so hard to shape. However, continued research brought new understanding. While BCAAs are indeed helpful for increasing muscle protein synthesis (MPS), they cannot be effectively utilized in isolation—they need other EAAs for their impact to be realized. 

Amino Acids are the fundamental components of body protein that promote protein synthesis. As mentioned, some are considered “essential”. What sets them apart? They must be consumed—” added” to the body—in order to meet the body’s need for protein synthesis. Without them, the body cannot generate new cells or repair existing ones. Thus, EAAs must be obtained through our diet.

Still, need convincing? 

When trying to determine whether or not EAAs need to be part of your daily routine, consider these ways in which they help.

• Balancing mood and sleep
• Boosting results from exercise and athletic performance
• Preventing muscle atrophy (loss)
• Promoting weight loss 
• Helping with protein synthesis 
• Aiding with tissue repair
• Improving nutrient absorption 
• Lowering inflammation

Here’s a further breakdown of how EAA supplementation may be helpful for you.

When you are operating in a calorie deficit, your body will begin to seek fuels other than glucose for energy. Consuming EAAs can maximize your body’s synthetic protein response without dipping into your calorie “budget”. Those EAAs fuel your body to keep pushing through your routine.

If you are one of the many people who choose to limit or exclude meat from your diet, you’ll also benefit from EAA supplementation. Unfortunately, plant-based protein consumption offers inadequate and low-quality levels of protein for vegetarians and vegans. They simply do not contain all of the EAAs necessary to optimize muscle building. Combine that with a low-calorie diet during a fat-loss phase and you have a good chance of failing to provide your body with sufficient EAAs.

Another area where EAA supplementation is useful is fasting. Whether you’re avoiding eating just before training or following an intermittent fasting diet, taking EAAs during your fast may help you optimize your efforts. We’ve already discussed that EAAs help your body through MPS and that they have a minuscule impact on your calorie consumption, so we’ll let you put the rest of the equation together in regards to adding EAAs to your fasting routine!

Whatever your fitness and health goals are, there is no denying that supplements can get pricey. That’s why it’s important to know you are implementing the right supplements to achieve your goals in the best way possible. Essential Amino Acids are a high-quality protein source and give your body the fuel it needs to operate efficiently. If you’re going to start somewhere, start with EAAs!

Here are the nuts and bolts of it, to answer the question “Are EAA supplements really all they’re cracked up to be?”

Yes! 

1. Your body NEEDS EAAs to function properly and cannot make them without dietary intake.
2. Vegans/Vegetarians can boost their protein intake (and quality of) by consuming EAAs.
3. EAA Supplementation fuels your body while in a fasting state, without undermining your calorie cut.
4. If you are in a caloric deficit, it's more difficult to meet your EAA needs. Supplementing with I.AM.AMINO gives your body what it needs to help you hit your targets.

For more information on how I.AM.AMINO will help you reach your targets faster and minimize recovery times, check out our blog.