Abstract
Purpose: This study investigated the effects of branch chain amino acid (BCAA) supplementation on attenuating fatigue-induced decrements in exercise and motor-skill performance in Australian Football players.
Methods: Sub-elite players (n=15) were recruited from local football clubs and provided written informed consent. The players undertook 5 testing sessions separated by 7 days. The first two sessions involved familiarisation of subjects with the reactive agility test (RAT) and reactive motor skills test (RMST). Players performed the 20 m shuttle run and 20 m sprint test and assessed for height, mass and sum of skinfolds. Session three was a control trial where subjects received a standardized meal 3 h before testing. Players ingested a 600 ml carbohydrate drink, and then completed a pre-exercise RMST and RAT, followed by a 30 min of fatiguing exercise protocol and post-exercise testing. Session 4 and 5 were identical to session 3 except the athletes ingested (using a double blinded randomized crossover design) a tryptophan/serotonin depleting or loading BCAA mixture prior to the standardized meal. Blood samples were taken for analysis of plasma amino acid concentrations.
Results: Mean overall repetition time of the RAT after fatiguing exercise was moderately improved by -5.2±3.4% (mean±90% confidence limits; effect size [ES] -0.45±0.28) in the depleting trial compared with the control. The depleting and loading supplements had a divergent effect on mean repetition time after fatiguing exercise in RMST: depleting serotonin resulted in a small improvement (-3.0±2.7% ES -0.25±0.21) in contrast to the small decrement (2.4±2.7% ES 0.20±0.21) after ingestion of loading mixture compared to the control trial. Serotonin depletion elicited a moderate improvement in RMST repetition time after fatiguing exercise compared to loading (-5.3±4.3%, ES -0.43±0.33). Skill performance after exercise was moderately improved (∼8%) after exercise in both depleting and loading trials compared the control.
Conclusions: High dose serotonin depleting BCAA supplementation 3 h prior to intermittent high intensity exercise substantially improved reactive agility and motor skill performance in Australian Football players.Supported by Australian Institute of Sport Grant 995147
Methods: Sub-elite players (n=15) were recruited from local football clubs and provided written informed consent. The players undertook 5 testing sessions separated by 7 days. The first two sessions involved familiarisation of subjects with the reactive agility test (RAT) and reactive motor skills test (RMST). Players performed the 20 m shuttle run and 20 m sprint test and assessed for height, mass and sum of skinfolds. Session three was a control trial where subjects received a standardized meal 3 h before testing. Players ingested a 600 ml carbohydrate drink, and then completed a pre-exercise RMST and RAT, followed by a 30 min of fatiguing exercise protocol and post-exercise testing. Session 4 and 5 were identical to session 3 except the athletes ingested (using a double blinded randomized crossover design) a tryptophan/serotonin depleting or loading BCAA mixture prior to the standardized meal. Blood samples were taken for analysis of plasma amino acid concentrations.
Results: Mean overall repetition time of the RAT after fatiguing exercise was moderately improved by -5.2±3.4% (mean±90% confidence limits; effect size [ES] -0.45±0.28) in the depleting trial compared with the control. The depleting and loading supplements had a divergent effect on mean repetition time after fatiguing exercise in RMST: depleting serotonin resulted in a small improvement (-3.0±2.7% ES -0.25±0.21) in contrast to the small decrement (2.4±2.7% ES 0.20±0.21) after ingestion of loading mixture compared to the control trial. Serotonin depletion elicited a moderate improvement in RMST repetition time after fatiguing exercise compared to loading (-5.3±4.3%, ES -0.43±0.33). Skill performance after exercise was moderately improved (∼8%) after exercise in both depleting and loading trials compared the control.
Conclusions: High dose serotonin depleting BCAA supplementation 3 h prior to intermittent high intensity exercise substantially improved reactive agility and motor skill performance in Australian Football players.Supported by Australian Institute of Sport Grant 995147
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Article number | 2864 |
| Pages (from-to) | 777 |
| Number of pages | 1 |
| Journal | Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise |
| Volume | 42 |
| Issue number | 5 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - May 2010 |
| Event | 57th Annual Meeting of the American-College-Sports-Medicine/Inaugural World Congress on Exercise is Medicine - Baltimore, Moldova, Republic of Duration: 5 Jun 2010 → … |