Week 4 On The 5:2 Diet & BCAAs #5:2Diet #Weightloss #Diet #EatNutritious #GetHealthy

Last week I gave you a break from the diet stuff but I'm back to share. I lost a couple of pounds last week and another couple this week. I haven't been exercising and I wonder how big a difference it would make if I did. 

I want to find this out and will implement a plan to my days next week that would factor in some kind of exercise. The problem I'm having is that there isn't enough hours in the day as it is. But perhaps taking a ten or twenty minute break from my writing sessions to do a bit of exercise will be enough. I'll let you know next week.

I wanted to talk about BCAAs (Branched chain amino acid supplements. BCAA supplements contains three of the nine human essential amino acids--L-Leucine, L-Isoleucine, and L-Valine.

These are amino acids the body can't synthesize on its own so we need to get them through diet or supplements. Since they're metabolized within muscle tissue they allow a quick source of energy when the body needs it and prevents the body from cannibalizing itself on low calorie diets.  

I read that if you take Branch Chain Amino Acids while fasting they help to prevent muscle breakdown and also lessens hunger pangs. 

During calorie restricted diets there is a risk of muscle loss due to the body using muscle tissue for energy.

BCAAs are used by athletes and bodybuilders to help build muscle, therefore we can surmise that if BCAAs have such a positive effect on muscle growth it stands to reason that it can also preserve muscles during periods of intermittent fasting. 

I have started taking BCAAs and have noticed a difference in hunger pangs. Namely, I don't get them when I take the supplements. Since I haven't had chance to test the effectiveness of BCAAs for fat loss because I did zero exercise, I can't say it makes a difference. What I will keep an eye on is my muscle weight. This way I can see whether I'm losing fat and water or muscle also.

I'll try to keep you posted on my progress with BCAAs. If you know all about these supplements and wish to share, please leave a comments for me below.

Meanwhile here is my disclaimer!



Please note that this blog post is not intended as medical advice or as encouragement to use any of these or any other supplement I may have mentioned. These are my personal experiences, thoughts, decisions, actions and results that I am sharing with you. You should not take this as gospel, but do your own research if you are interested to discover more about BCAAs or any other product I may have mentioned. And always seek medical advice from your doctor before embarking on any new eating or exercise plan.