I realize this thread is old as shit but it bothered me that people with no background in biology are trying to answer based off their bio-science.
I’m a cell and developmental biology major graduating in a couple months and moving on to a PhD program. Biochemistry is the core of my program and I can definitively tell you that amino acids are metabolized for energy.
Every amino acid has different metabolic pathways but I’m fairly certain all of them can be used for energy, including BCAAs. Leucine is a BCAA… Through a series of enzymes Leucine becomes acetyl-coA which is the same thing glucose becomes to enter the Citric acid cycle. The Citric acid cycle creates the NADH needed for the electron transport chain and ATP production.
You can look up the metabolism of each amino acid and you’ll find that there is some way to utilize it for energy.
As for other supplements… Fish oil is a fat, count it as such. Protein is protein, no matter the form. People were right to say try it out and adjust as necessary but a good starting point should take all macros into consideration.
Damn I haven’t posted here in a while. Jiggersaw and others, you’re all right. Everyone is right whether they count the bcaas as protein or not.
Here’s how I see it. Of course the body can use whatever is available for energy metabolism. The body will find a way to survive. The point of the matter is how you calculate them into a contest prep. If you are constantly spiking your body with bcaas and trying to maintain a calorie deficit than that’s counterproductive. If you use them intra workout (although eaas are better) or at another single serving than that’s ok because youre not spiking your body constantly with a nutrient. When prepping, especially towards the end, youre essentially starving yourself to force your body to burn fat so of course its gonna use anything you give it as a fuel source. However, in any type of caloric surplus i think it’s very pointless to count minutae like bcaas or tiny amounts of fat from fish oil. Also my way earlier point about them not being a calorie has to do with the fact that someone could not survive on drinking bcaas alone (which is back to it lacking the all of the essential aminos) IF they arent consuming anything else. They’re essential for a reason, we need all of them not just the branch chains. BTW sorry for sounding like an arrogant prick in my earlier posts, I was a lot younger and cockier.
A similar question. For those of us who are Intermittent Fasters and train in a fasted state, early AM, and use BCAAs during the workout, do the BCAAs break the fast?