Grow More Muscle and Decrease Breakdown With Glutamine

Glutamine for muscle gains?

L-Glutamine is a non-essential amino acid that comprises 60 per cent of the amino acid pool. It also helps metabolism amino acids and assists with your immune function.

In total, there are 20 amino acids, of which 9 are essential:

So you can see where glutamine fits in!

Cell integrity and function is also part of glutamine's job description.

Yes, we can get a lot of glutamine from food, but after hard training (and particularly endurance events), this is when glutamine can be helpful to help grow and preserve our muscle tissue.

Moreover, during dieting periods where lots of glutamine is being oxidised, supplementation might be helpful. Getting enough glutamine is also important for brain health, as it is a precursor of the neurotransmitter amino acids.

So how much glutamine do you need?

Intakes of ∼20–30 g seem safe for healthy adult humans. No harm was reported in a study whereby athletes consumed 28 g glutamine every day for 14 days.

Doses of up to 0.65 g/kg body mass of glutamine have been found to be tolerated by subjects, and this didn't result in abnormal plasma ammonia (too much gas and nitrogen) levels.

It's critical we point out that if you're getting enough protein in your diet during a "bulking" phase, then you won't need glutamine at this point. However, when you're undertaking periods of intense training in a calorie deficit, this might be where glutamine can come in.

Glutamine has also been found to assist patients suffering from irritable bowel syndrome (IBS).

This study placed adults with the disease on 5 grams of glutamine three times a day (or placebo) for 8 weeks.

The subjects reported a better score on the Irritable Bowel Syndrome Severity Scoring System and better daily bowel movement frequency.

Other research has found that glutamine may play a role in heart health. Researchers say this is by:

"serving as a substrate for the synthesis of DNA, ATP, proteins, and lipids, glutamine drives critical processes in vascular cells..."

The bottom line is that glutamine might assist with muscle growth and recovery after intense training and calorie deficit periods (particularly when dieting). It plays an important role in heart, brain, and muscle tissue health. It can also assist those suffering from irritable bowel syndrome. Aim for ∼20–30 g for the potential benefits!