SuppVersity - Nutrition and Exercise Science for Everyone

How do youthful+ (probably slightly above range) levels of testosterone affect muscle size, strength, and morphology as we age? That's more or less what the authors of a recent study wanted to know when they injected aging rats with testosterone propionate and observed if/how this would affect aging in the presence or absence of resistance training. Yes, I know, this is only a rodent study, and no one can tell for sure if similar effects will be observed in human beings... I know. What you can be sure about, however, is that an identical study is not  going to be conducted with human subjects. So, all smartasses who don't give a damn about rodent studies and are unwilling to or unable to take them for what they are - basic physiological studies for hypothesis formation - please stop reading here. Since you have not stopped reading, yet, I guess you will be interested in what the researchers from the São Judas Tadeu University and the São Paulo State University did to anal...

Pre-bed protein (meal or shake) is always a good idea, no matter if you're young or old, if you work out in the PM or not - you don't want to miss the increased overnight protein synthesis. Gaining muscle over night? No news! You will probably remember the two previous articles on "pre-bed protein ingestion", i.e. "12-Week Study: 25g Bed-Time Protein Almost Doubles Size & Increases Strength Gains" ( read it ) and "3.2kg of Lean Mass Over Night W/ 40g of Slow Digesting Protein 30min Before Bed!? Over One Year, a Positive Nitrogen Balance and +20% FSR Could Make It Happen!" ( read it ), but still! With this being the first study to show that even (on average) 71-year-olds can "build muscle overnight" with nothing but 40g of casein being ingested ~30 minutes before they went to bed, it is probably the most impressive of the previously referenced studies. High-protein diets are much safer than pseudo-experts say, but there are thi...

It does not necessarily have to be supplemental micellar casein. Quark, for example, is an excellent casein source you can use in "smoothies". As a SuppVersity reader you are well aware of the interactions between casein micelles and the low and high pH milieu of the intestinal tract. They clump and form a mass that is significantly harder to digest than the easily digestible albumin proteins from whey. As discussed in previous articles you can use this property of casein to your advantage , an advantage that makes the combination of whey and casein protein so efficient in terms of its ability to (a) boost protein synthesis (that's what the whey fraction will do) and (b) sustain the elevated protein synthesis (this is what the slowly digesting casein micelles will do). You can learn more about protein intake at the SuppVersity Protein Timing DOES Matter! 5x More Than the FDA Allows! Protein requ. of athletes High EAA protein for fat loss Fast v...

Oxytocin as fat loss adjuvant? We are not there, yet, but maybe in 5 years. Classically, oxytocin has been regarded as a polypeptide hormone, produced by the posterior lobe of the pituitary gland, that stimulates contraction of the smooth muscle of the uterus. In fact, oxytocin is yet far more, the mammalian neurohypophysial hormone that is produced in the supraoptic and paraventricular nuclei of the hypothalamus by nerve axons, and stored in the posterior pituitary gland, acts as an important neuromodulator in the brain and plays an important role in the neuroanatomy of intimacy, specifically in sexual reproduction of both sexes. Over the last decades scientists have begun to investigate oxytocin's role in various behaviors, including orgasm, social recognition, pair bonding, anxiety, and maternal behaviors, the direct effects of oxytocin on muscle, bone, adipose tissue and metabolism, on the other hand, have been discovered only recently. OT drops as you age. Learn how t...

Creatine, the anti-wheelchair supplement? If you are still looking for reasons to start taking or keep taking creatine monohydrate, I suggest you go on reading. Researchers from the Cardiff and Worcester Universities in the United Kingdom have recently conducted an extensive review of the literature to elucidate whether resistance training and creatine supplementation have an additive effect on muscle structure and function or can older adults receive the same degree of benefit by just partaking in one of these protocols? Their results are, as the headline of today's SuppVersity article suggests, quite intriguing to say the least. You can learn more about creatine at the SuppVersity Creatine Doubles 'Ur GainZ! Creatine, DHT & Broscience Creatine Better After Workout ALA + Creatine = Max Uptake? Creatine Blunts Fat Loss? Build 'Ur Own Buffered Creatine You will be aware that the gym is where the anti-sarcopenic (=anti-age-induced muscle lo...