SuppVersity - Nutrition and Exercise Science for Everyone

Synephrine, arginine, citrulline - Which pre-workout ensures that you're "on fire"? As I pointed out previously , my initial idea to cherry pick only the most interesting study results that were presented in form of of poster presentations at the Twelfth International Society of Sports Nutrition (ISSN) Conference and Expo in 2015 didn't work out. The number of interesting studies is is simply too much for a single SuppVersity  article to discuss them all. Accordingly, I am now posting the 2nd serving of what is going to be a multi-part series of articles with brief discussions of the most significant results of the >20 studies and short references to those that didn't make the SuppVersity  cut in this, previous and future installments of this series for one reason or another. Read more about ISSN and other studies at the SuppVersity Vitargo, Red Bull, Creatine & More | ISSN'15 #1 Pump Supps & Synephrine & X | ISSN'15 #2 Hi...

From a physiological perspective NO is not primarily there to make you look vascular and pumped, boys. If you've read the headline and are asking yourselves "Why on earth would I even want to spend money on cosmetic pump?", you probably need a reminder of the multiple important functions nitric oxide (NO) serves in your body: (1) With their ability to relax the musculature of your blood vessels to increase the blood flow through your veins, normal NO levels are required to guarantee optimal blood flow to every body part; (2) since this includes your sexual organs, normal NO levels are also a prerequisite for normal / optimal sexual function; (3) having enough NO is also required to keep your immune defenses up, because the white blood cells need it in their fight against intruders; and if heart disease, sexual dysfunction and immune health are all things you don't care about (4) you may be interested to hear that your brain and metabolic health critically depend o...

It turns out, the biceps may even benefit from higher rep, lower weight training. You probably remember my Facebook post about Brad Schoenfeld's then unpublished study which proves that you can  gain muscle using low(er) weights, as well. Now, that the study has eventually been published, it would appear to be about time to take a closer look at the procedure and results in order to determine how relevant, the finding Schoenfeld, Peterson, Ogborn, Contreras and Sommez present in their not yet printed, but peer-reviewed and accepted paper in the Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research. The purpose of the study, and that should be obvious considering what I already gave away, was to compare the effect of low- versus high-load resistance training (RT) on muscular adaptations in well-trained subjects. According to the results of this study you better  periodize  to benefit from high & low loads! 30% More on the Big Three: Squat, DL, BP! Block Periodiz...

If you want other to see your pump, you got to be ripped. If not, why care about reductions in BMR? If you remember my posts about the first generation, arginine-based pre-workout products you will be aware that the only pump they produced was the word "pump" in their name or product description. The reason was and still is simple. The mere provision of l-arginine, which is a precursor to nitric oxide does not lead to an increase in nitric oxide production. Why? Well, think of a building a house: Just buying some concrete won't make you a proud home owner, either ;-) The bad thing: Arginine didn't work. The good thing: This means it didn't decrease your BMR, either Against that background it's quite astonishing that arginine and citrulline based pre-workout products have dominated the top-seller lists of the big supplement vendors for decades. A fact that's probably partly due to other potential benefits of these amino acids, of which one - you a...

I've heard rumors about people who get pumped, just to look pumped ;-) I guess many of you will already have read Brad J. Schoenfeld's and Bret Contreras' latest review on "the pump"? I know for sure that Jakob read it, because he messaged me on December 29 that is was available for download over at the website of the Strength and Conditioning Journal . What he could not know, though was that I had already downloaded and read the article, when Brad and Bret, who are unquestionable two of the go-to resources for everyone who wants to learn something about the science of "getting big, lean and strong" posted the link on Facebook on December 28 ( go to the original post). This link will take you to a downloadable ~2000 word paper in the conclusion of which you will find the following statement: "[...] it is likely that exercise centered on achieving a “pump” through higher repetition sets combined with shorter rest periods also provides a poten...

A single Triple Whopper or about six whole steaks, what do you chose to get >75% of the 2g/sodium per day the feds are telling you you should maximally consume on a daily basis? Today I felt kind of bored with covering only the latest studies. So I dug up one from 1999 that deals with the effects of dietary salt restriction on endothelial vasodilation (increased blood flow in the arteries) and insulin sensitivity by Ross D. Feldman and Nancy D. Schmidt. Yeah, the study is 14 years old, but when you've read today's SuppVersity article you'll probably still have learned something new - at least about "common wisdom". If you also listen to the SuppVersity Science Round-Up on the Super Human Radio Network , you should be aware that very different rules apply with respect to salt consumption for athletes and physical culturists on a whole foods diet and the average sedentary inhabitant of the Western obesity belt (check out past episodes of the Science Round-U...

If it does not make you as swole as the colorful ad promised it must not be working, right? The jury was not even any longer "out there" for glycerol, but a recent study makes you rethink, whether you just have to look in the right place to see the benefits. Another of the "odd" Thursdays without an update from "Your's Truly" Adelfo Cerame . And since there is holiday today, over here, I even thought there would not be a SuppVersity Science Round Up today. But hey, you are lucky you (and Carl) got to work, so you can tune in live at 1PM EST, or even better, start listening live at 1PM in order not to miss the Strength and Hypertrophy Round Table ! As far the  topics for today's installment of the SuppVersity Science Round Up are concerned, you are actually only a couple of lines away from reading about one that's on the list:  The effects of glycerol on exercise performance. I don't have to tell you though that this is not everyth...