Lift Heavier, Do More Reps, Train More Often
You get better by training hard, but that’s only half the equation. Here’s how to fuel those tough workouts, recover quickly, and come back stronger.
Hypertrophy is a balancing act. To build muscle, you must work out hard enough to trigger tissue remodeling (turn on muscle growth), but not so hard that you exceed your ability to recover from the workout. If you don’t recover before the next workout, you're not going to make any progress. You might even regress. The same is true for strength-focused training.
Not many regular gym-goers run into this problem, though. Why? Look around the average gym: very few people are training hard enough to need to think about recovery. What are they gonna recover from? Half-hearted, unchallenging sets of easy exercises? Those folks can stop reading now. This isn’t for them.
In the most basic terms, recovery boils down to rest and nutrition. Train hard, push through the discomfort, and walk out of the gym wrecked (in a good way). Then, give your body what it needs to repair and come back better. Do that and you’ve mastered the balancing act.
Getting enough rest is up to you. The nutrition part is too, but science can help. Thanks to science, we know exactly what your body needs to train hard and recover fast, and it goes beyond eating some protein and getting adequate calories.
For those who deserve it, for whose workouts earn it, there’s Surge Workout Nutrition (Buy at Amazon), the epitome of everything we’ve learned about training nutrition and recovery.
Performance and Recovery Three Ways
There are three parts to Surge Workout Nutrition’s approach to not only facilitating recovery but also increasing work capacity during challenging workouts:
1. The Anaerobic Primer
Biotest combined four performance-enhancing agents in Surge Workout Nutrition to do the following:
- Increase skeletal muscle protein synthesis.
- Increase ATP production.
- Combat muscle oxidation.
- Jumpstart the recovery process after training.
- Boost anaerobic and aerobic performance during exercise, allowing you do to more reps and maintain strength, power, and endurance.
The four ingredients are:
- Beta-Alanine – Beta-alanine raises muscle carnosine concentrations by up to 58% in four weeks and 80% in ten weeks, thereby increasing the amount of work you can perform at high intensities.
- L-Leucine – Leucine is the key amino acid for muscle protein synthesis.
- Citrulline Malate – This compound reduces lactic acid and ammonia buildup, increases nitric oxide production, and increases regeneration of ATP.
- Malic Acid – This dicarboxylic acid plays a role as an intermediate in the citric acid cycle and increases peak power, total work, body composition, and even growth hormone levels.
2. The Hyperosmotic Glycogen Load
Cyclic dextrin or HBCD is a "functional carbohydrate" that does the following:
- It has very high solubility and low viscosity, enabling it to pull substrate-loaded fluids into muscle cells. It also has a very short gastric emptying time so the gut absorbs it quickly.
- Its low osmotic pressure (in comparison to drinks that don't contain it) results in less gastrointestinal discomfort while training.
- It elicits a small insulin surge, which promotes the transport of glucose and amino acids directly into muscle cells.
- Because of all that, it increases endurance and reduces RPE, or "rate of perceived exertion."
3. The Super-Hydration Catalyst
Hydration is the simple act of replacing water in the body, but it's a lot more complicated when it comes to rehydrating the body after training. Sweat isn't just water. When you lose it, you also lose electrolytes that carry the electrical impulses needed for muscle contractions and transmission of nerve impulses.
Sports drinks contain a couple of electrolytes, but unless you're just playing JV football, you need something more. Surge Workout Nutrition (Buy at Amazon) contains all the electrolytes needed for optimum human performance:
- Salt
- Sodium citrate
- Sodium phosphate dibasic
- Potassium bicarbonate
- Potassium phosphate dibasic
- Calcium citrate
- Magnesium citrate tribasic
Together, these electrolytes…
- Produce a hyperosmotic, super-hydrated working muscle.
- Accelerate rehydration, preventing poor exercise performance and premature fatigue, along with muscle cramps.
- Provide the precise ratio of electrolytes to maintain or restore acid-base balance, blood pressure, nerve conduction, muscle function, glucose transport, and glucose storage.
How to Use Surge Workout Nutrition
Simply mix the pre-flavored powder with water and begin sipping it 15 minutes before your workout. Drink the rest during and after. You can use one scoop or two, depending on the duration and intensity of your training. There’s no caffeine, so you can use it whenever you train.
What You’ll Notice
Your training will seem easier and less fatiguing. You’ll be able to train longer, harder, without crapping out. Muscle pumps will be more pronounced. Most will notice that they can knock out some extra reps or power through loads that used to crush them.
Recovery-wise, you’ll feel less soreness, and you’ll feel fully recovered and ready to hit it hard again during your next workout. And of course, muscle gains will come faster.
Just save it for those who need it. If you’re not training all that hard, just have a protein shake after your workout.
References
- Abe H. Role of histidine-related compounds as intracellular proton buffering constituents in vertebrate muscle. Biochemistry (Mosc). 2000 Jul;65(7):757-65.
- Ali A et al. The influence of carbohydrate-electrolyte ingestion on soccer skill performance. Med Sci Sports Exerc. 2007 Nov;39(11):1969-76.
- Bendahan D et al. Citrulline/malate promotes aerobic energy production in human exercising muscle. Br J Sports Med. 2002 Aug;36(4):282-9.
- Brouns F et al. The effect of different rehydration drinks on post-exercise electrolyte excretion in trained athletes. Int J Sports Med. 1998 Jan;19(1):56-60.
- Callis A et al. Activity of citrulline malate on acid-base balance and blood ammonia and amino acid levels. Arzneimittelforschung. 1991 Jun;41(6):660-3.
- Cribb PJ et al. Effects of supplement timing and resistance exercise on skeletal muscle hypertrophy. Med Sci Sports Exerc. 2006 Nov;38(11):1918-25.
- Crowe MJ et al. Effects of dietary leucine supplementation on exercise performance. Eur J Appl Physiol. 2006 Aug;97(6):664-72.
- Davis JM et al. Carbohydrate drinks delay fatigue during intermittent, high-intensity cycling in active men and women. Int J Sport Nutr. 1997 Dec;7(4):261-73.
- Derave W et al. beta-Alanine supplementation augments muscle carnosine content and attenuates fatigue during repeated isokinetic contraction bouts in trained sprinters. J Appl Physiol. 2007 Nov;103(5):1736-43.
- Drummond MJ et al. Leucine-enriched nutrients and the regulation of mammalian target of rapamycin signalling and human skeletal muscle protein synthesis. Curr Opin Clin Nutr Metab Care. 2008 May;11(3):222-6.
- Galloway SD. Dehydration, rehydration, and exercise in the heat: rehydration strategies for athletic competition. Can J Appl Physiol. 1999 Apr;24(2):188-200.
- Harris RC et al. The absorption of orally supplied beta-alanine and its effect on muscle carnosine synthesis in human vastus lateralis. Amino Acids. 2006 May;30(3):279-89.
- Hill CA et al. Influence of beta-alanine supplementation on skeletal muscle carnosine concentrations and high intensity cycling capacity. Amino Acids. 2007 Feb;32(2):225-33.
- Kamel KS et al. Treatment of hyponatremia: a quantitative analysis. Am J Kidney Dis. 1993 Apr;21(4):439-43.
- Meijer AJ et al. Amino acid signalling and the integration of metabolism. Biochem Biophys Res Commun. 2004 Jan 9;313(2):397-403.
- Mero A. Leucine supplementation and intensive training. Sports Med. 1999 Jun;27(6):347-58.
- Merson SJ et al. Rehydration with drinks differing in sodium concentration and recovery from moderate exercise-induced hypohydration in man. Eur J Appl Physiol. 2008 Jul;103(5):585-94.
- Mudambo SM et al. Body fluid shifts in soldiers after a jogging/walking exercise in the heat: effects of water and electrolyte solution on rehydration. Cent Afr J Med. 2001 Sep-Oct;47(9-10):220-5.
- Murray R. The effects of consuming carbohydrate-electrolyte beverages on gastric emptying and fluid absorption during and following exercise. Sports Med. Sep-Oct 1987;4(5):322-51.
- Hernandez HH. Protein sparing produced by proteins and amino acids. Nutr Rev. 1976 Jun;34(6):174-6.
- Rieu I et al. Leucine supplementation improves muscle protein synthesis in elderly men independently of hyperaminoacidaemia. J Physiol. 2006 Aug 15;575(Pt 1):305-15.
- Shirreffs SM et al. Rehydration and recovery of fluid balance after exercise. Exerc Sport Sci Rev. 2000 Jan;28(1):27-32.
- Stipanuk MH. Leucine and protein synthesis: mTOR and beyond. Nutr Rev. 2007 Mar;65(3):122-9.
- Stout JR et al. Effects of beta-alanine supplementation on the onset of neuromuscular fatigue and ventilatory threshold in women. Amino Acids. 2007;32(3):381-6.
- Sugiura K et al. Effect of carbohydrate ingestion on sprint performance following continuous and intermittent exercise. Med Sci Sports Exerc. 1998 Nov;30(11):1624-30.
- Suzuki Y et al. High level of skeletal muscle carnosine contributes to the latter half of exercise performance during 30-s maximal cycle ergometer sprinting. Jpn J Physiol. 2002 Apr;52(2):199-205.
- Welsh RS et al. Carbohydrates and physical/mental performance during intermittent exercise to fatigue. Med Sci Sports Exerc. 2002 Apr;34(4):723-31.
- Winnick JJ et al. Carbohydrate feedings during team sport exercise preserve physical and CNS function. Med Sci Sports Exerc. 2005 Feb;37(2):306-15.
- Yuill KA et al. The administration of an oral carbohydrate-containing fluid prior to major elective upper-gastrointestinal surgery preserves skeletal muscle mass postoperatively–a randomized clinical trial. Clin Nutr. 2005 Feb;24(1):32-7.