Branched chain amino acids are vital for muscle growth and having them available in your system during a long workout is certainly beneficial because they help prevent muscle breakdown. They can also prevent soreness post workout and aid muscle repair and growth.
Fortunately we have decent BCAA supplements available and there are plenty of them! To help you choose this article will provided a rundown of the best BCAA supplements available in the UK.
Continue reading to learn about their many potential benefits as well as some of the top performers available on the market today.
Best BCAA Supplements: Quick Picks
| Image | Product | Score | Price |
|---|---|---|---|
Editor's Choice  | 9.5 | Check on Amazon | |
Best Value  | 8.8 | Check on Amazon | |
 | 8.6 | Check on Amazon | |
 | 8.5 | Check on Amazon | |
 | 9 | Check on Amazon | |
 |
| 9.1 | Check on Amazon |
 | Warrior Amino Blast BCAA Powder
| 9 | Check on Amazon |
 | Scitec Nutrition BCAA + Glutamine Xpress
| 9.3 | Check on Amazon |
Contents
A Detailed Look at the Best BCAAs in the UK
Now that we’ve had a chance to cover the benefits and particulars of BCAAs, let’s take a detailed look at the best best BCAA capsules, tablets and powder available on the market.
Mutant BCAA 9.7 offers a concentrated dose of 9.7 grams of BCAAs per scoop. With a 2:1:1 ratio of instantized BCAAs, you’ll be getting superior absorption.
An added Micronized Amino Acid Support Stack combined with a punch of magnesium will also help amplify protein synthesis.
Summary
Concentrated dose of optimal BCAA ratio with additional essential amino acids added for quicker absorption. It is certainly one of best BCAA powders and the flavours are awesome.
- Concentrated powder form
- Available in different sized packages
- Added essential amino acids
- Taste may not be suitable for everyone
Iron Labs Nutrition – BCAA Xtreme 120 High Strength with vitamin B6 uses a 2:1:1 ratio with the added energy boosting benefits of vitamin B6.
The small coated tablets make the four tablet serving size easy and convenient to ingest. For a very reasonable price you can get a month’s supply of 2400 mg of BCAAs per day.
Summary
Affordably priced product in a convenient tablet form, however, in order to get the optimal serving of BCAAs you’d have to double the recommended serving size.
- Convenient tablet form
- Affordable price per one-month supply
- BCAA ratio
- Tablets may be difficult to swallow for some
- Serving size is a bit low
Bulk Instant BCAA is instantised for easy mixing. The 2:1:1 ratio gives you 5 grams of BCAAs per serving with leucine coming in on the heavy side.
Summary
It mixes well and can be used throughout the day to deliver a dose of muscle-building amino acids. Our only criticism is the flavour as we have tasted better and is quite sweet.
- Easy dissolve powder
- Affordable price
- Taste not the best
Evlution Nutrition BCAA5000 Muscle Building Capsules do just that — build muscle.
With 5 grams of BCAA delivered in an easy to take capsule, getting the optimal 2:1:1 ratio to your working muscles is easier than ever.
Summary
Solid product at an affordable price if you don’t mind downing 8 capsules prior to your workouts.
- Convenient tablet form
- Optimal 5 grams per serving
- Affordable price
- One serving is 8 capsules
Olimp Labs BCAA Xplode Recovery and Energy Supplement Powder delivers 6000 mg of BCAAs per serving and gives you the option of six different flavours.
Not only do you get an adequate dose of BCAAs, glutamine and vitamin B6 also make an appearance to help prevent muscle fatigue and improve muscle recovery.
Summary
BCAA powders may not be for everyone but Olimp offers plenty of flavour options to suit most people’s taste. The higher price tag may deter some, but considering there are 50 servings per package, it’s not overly outrageous.
- 100 servings per smallest package option
- Six flavour options
- Three size options
- 2:1:1 ratio with added glutamine and vitamin B6
- Bigger price tag
- Taste/texture may not suit everyone
Warrior Amino Blast BCAA Powder will give your muscles the BCAAs and an additional amino acid complex they need to power through your workout and recovery afterwards.
With five flavours to choose from and added caffeine and green tea extract, you’ll have a tasty option to give you a pick-me-up anytime throughout the day.
Summary
Fabulous price for a product that delivers quality muscle building BCAAs plus a bonus Amino Acid Complex and Performance Complex to keep you on your game in and out of the gym.
- 2:1:1 ratio
- Added Amino Acid Complex
- Performance Complex that includes caffeine, green tea extract, and sodium bicarbonate
- Affordable price
- Five flavour options
- Vegan friendly
- Added caffeine may be too stimulating for intra-workout use
Scitec Nutrition BCAA + Glutamine Xpress Powder provides 5 grams in a 2:1:1 ratio plus an added dose of 5 g of glutamine and 300 mg of taurine to promote muscle recovery during and after high-intensity bouts in the gym.
Summary
A little higher priced than other options but with the added servings per container and the glutamine included in the mix, it’s well worth the price.
- 2:1:1 ratio
- Added glutamine and taurine
- 50 servings per container
- Reasonable price
- Only one flavour option
What are BCAAs?
BCAA’s, or Branched-Chain Amino Acids, are a group of three essential amino acids: leucine, isoleucine and valine. Before we dive in more deeply, let’s take a quick moment to review a little simple nutritional biochemistry.
Amino acids are used for vital processes in the body and make up DNA, build muscle and synthesize hormones and neurotransmitters. The body requires 20 amino acids to function properly. Eleven of these are produced by the body and are considered nonessential. The other nine, known as essential, cannot be made by the body and need to be supplied by the diet in the form of food or supplements.
Out of the nine essential amino acids the body demands, only three are classified as a BCAA.
So, what makes an essential amino acid a BCAA? The simple answer is their chemical structure. Their unique chemical structure enables them to skip the regular digestive process and become immediately available to the muscles. This ability makes them very useful in the strength training recovery process, or even after being ill or injured.
What Are the Benefits of Taking BCAA Supplements?
Aside from being quickly and easily digested, there are several other benefits of supplementing with BCAAs; all of which can improve your sports nutrition and give you an edge on your training.
Increase Muscle Growth
Of all the potential benefits, increased muscle growth is generally at the top of the list.
BCAAs, particularly leucine, have a positive effect on protein metabolism by increasing the rate of protein synthesis and decreasing the rate of protein breakdown. This likely occurs when leucine activates a certain pathway in the body which stimulates protein synthesis.
In fact, one study found a 22% increase in muscle protein synthesis after the post-workout ingestion of BCAAs compared to the ingestion of a placebo.
While this number is impressive, it is about 50% less than the increase in muscle protein synthesis observed when all of the essential amino acids (EAAs) were ingested post exercise.
Decrease Muscle Soreness
Post workout muscle soreness is a common side effect of strength training. While it’s not detrimental, it can result in reduced strength and power output — particularly delayed onset muscle soreness, or DOMS.
Supplementing with BCAAs may help alleviate this soreness, especially when taken prior to your workout.
Ingesting them before exercise has been shown to reduce muscle protein breakdown during exercise. This seems to be due to the increase in arterial levels of BCAA, allowing the body to preserve more of the muscle.
A second study found that BCAAs taken before intense resistance exercise reduced the amount of muscle damage while also accelerating recovery.
Using a DOMS-inducing squat workout, researchers gave half of the participants BCAAs and the other half a placebo. Those who were given the BCAAs had considerably lower levels of muscle soreness and muscle fatigue two days after the workout than the placebo group.
By reducing levels of intramuscular creatine kinase and lactate dehydrogenase (both indicators of muscle damage), BCAA supplementation has also proved effective for reducing muscle damage during prolonged endurance exercise.
Reduce Muscle Wasting
With age, most people experience some amount of muscle loss. This is known as sarcopenia and it can be very detrimental to your independence and longevity. The good news is, if you’re resistance training on a regular basis, you’re already counteracting the effects of age-related muscle loss. However, muscle wasting can also occur due to illness and/or injury when training may be difficult or impossible.
Fortunately, studies have shown that supplementing with BCAAs can minimize muscle wasting whether it’s due to age, illness or physical incapacity.
What’s the Best Ratio?
If you’ve looked at BCAA supplements, you’ve likely noticed they come in several different ratios. So, which ratio is the best? The most important aspect to consider is the leucine content. Leucine acts like a match to a fire — the fire being muscle protein synthesis, which ultimately leads to muscle growth.
No matter which BCAA supplement you choose, leucine needs to be in the highest quantity when compared to isoleucine and valine. With this in mind, you may think taking only leucine would be the right call when, in fact, it’s not. Researchers found that subjects who ingested all three BCAAs had significantly higher protein synthesis than those who ingested only leucine.
During intense exercise, valine has been shown to decrease fatigue. This allows your muscles to continue to contract with greater force for a longer amount of time and you to squeeze out more reps during your workout.
Let’s not forget isoleucine, which also plays a major role in getting shredded — particularly when it comes to fat loss. A study performed on wrestlers found that those who consumed BCAA supplementation while following a low-calorie diet lost significantly more abdominal fat than those using a placebo while on a low-calorie diet.
While it is most critical for leucine to be present for optimal muscle protein synthesis to occur, isoleucine and valine are also an essential part of the picture. For this reason, a 2:1:1 ratio seems to be the ideal ratio for maximum benefits to occur.
How Much Do You Take?
While it may be tempting to pound the BCAAs, overdoing it isn’t going to make you pack on more muscle mass. Because your body can only process so much at one time, stick to 5 to 10 grams per serving.
If you want to take more than this per day, simply space out your servings. For example, drink 5 to 10 grams before your workout and another 5 to 10 after.
When Do You Take Them?
Timing when you take bcaa tablets or powder will help you get the most out of them. Is it better to take them before or after your workout? While there isn’t much science out on the subject, one study did examine the difference. Researchers found that taking the BCAAs prior to a workout resulted in less DOMs and exercise-induced muscle damage than taking the supplement after the workout.
Circulating levels of BCAA have been shown to peak around 30 minutes after ingestion, which means you should plan on chugging them about 30 minutes before your workout.
It should be noted that some research has found that daily consumption of BCAA may be necessary to thwart off muscle damage in the long run. If your goal is to gain mass, take 5-10 grams first thing in the morning to help minimize the muscle breakdown that occurs when the body enters a fasted state.
Conclusion
There are many effective and affordable BCAA supplements on the market, several with an added boost.
Whether you’re looking purely for BCAAs or some with a little something extra, there are ample options available at very reasonable prices.
