Optimum Nutrition Pro BCAA Review

The new Pro Series range of supplements from Optimum Nutrition has been a much anticipated release from the supplement giant. Designed to be utilised by the more avid trainer, the current Pro Series has a range of 5 supplements including a branched chain amino acid intra-workout supplement known as Pro BCAA.

Optimum Pro BCAA Highlights

• High quality intra-workout supplement
• 13g of Amino Acids
• 8g of Branched Chain Amino Acids (BCAAs)
• 5g of Glutamine
• Added PhytoBlend to combat Oxidative Stress
• Ideal for recovery, muscle building and intra-workout performance

Optimum Pro BCAA Ingredients & Dosage

ON’s Pro BCAA is as its name suggest, a branched chain amino acid (BCAA) supplement, which also includes a range of other amino acids including glutamine; the most abundant amino acid in the human body. Optimum’s Pro BCAA currently contains:

• Branched Chain Amino Acids (8g)
• Glutamine (5g)
• PhytoBlend (160mg) – This blend of ingredients includes Grape Seed Extract, Red Wine Grape Extract and Citrus Bioflavonoids

In total, there are 13g of amino acids with 1g of carbohydrates. The size of Pro BCAA is roughly 390g with 20 recommended servings of approximately 19.5g. Adding together all the other ingredients, there is still almost 5g worth of formula that is unaccounted for, however one would presume its for flavourings, sweeteners and ingredients to assist with mixability. For a limited time, the supplement will also be available in a smaller 4 serving size.

Optimum Pro BCAA Pros & Effectiveness

Branched chain amino acids (BCAAs) are vital for the more intense and avid trainer, who tend to utilise a lot of their stores with the volume of activity. Moreover, additional BCAAs during training can readily assist with the processes of muscle breakdown and muscle synthesis, tipping the scales slightly in favour of muscle synthesis thanks to BCAAs ability to act as an anti-catabolic and anabolic ingredient. Glutamine as previously mentioned is the most abundant amino acid in the body and with increasing intensities of exercise, greater amounts of glutamine are lost – leaving trainers in a immuno-compromised state. This is often why athletes and those who train often and intensely tend to be more susceptible to becoming sick. Glutamine supplementation can help to improve recovery times, but also ensure you stay healthy throughout the year. Exercise at increasing intensities tend to cause a rise in oxidative stress, which can result in decreased recovery ability and damage to the cells. The inclusion of the PhytoBlend and its antioxidant ingredients aid in preventing oxidative stress, which at high enough levels can result in fatigue.

Optimum Pro BCAA Cons

There are very few negatives with BCAA supplements. As long as they contain plenty of branched chain amino acids and other essential amino acids, then it’s considered a good supplement. Of course, BCAA supplements often tend to be slightly expensive and as they are so specialised, not every trainer needs to use them and definitely aren’t a replacement for a good protein powder. Almost 5g worth of non active ingredients seems to be a bit of a waste, and one wishes that Optimum Nutrition were able to utilise their rather large serving size better and include some additional recovery ingredients.

Optimum Pro BCAA Taste & Mixability

Optimum Nutrition’s Pro BCAA is a powdered supplement which has three confirmed flavours including Raspberry Lemonade, Fruit Punch and Unflavoured. Amino Energy, the last amino acid based supplement from Optimum was one of the best releases during 2013 and was an easy to mix and delicious amino pre-workout. No doubt, Pro BCAA will be able to taste just as good, considering there won’t be any bitter caffeine compounds in the formula.

Optimum Pro BCAA Verdict

There’s nothing new about Optimum’s new Pro BCAA and one could rattle off a range of other similar supplements. What sets Optimum Nutrition’s Pro BCAA apart from these other supplements however is their reputation for using the highest quality ingredients. So you know that the branched chain amino acids, glutamine and other ingredients you’re getting are going to be some of the purest and of the highest possible quality. As a non-essential supplement, knowing that you’re spending your hard earned money on quality ingredients that work, is why Pro BCAA is one of the better intra-workouts around.