Touted as two of the best products for maximizing muscle and strength gains, creatine and BCAAs are a duo that you frequently see in any bodybuilder or athlete's supplement stack—they're basically non-negotiable staples.
And there's no doubt that they're great.
But while they're both highly effective as individual supplements, can mixing them maximize your results?
Continue reading to find out!
Key Takeaways
- Mixing creatine with BCAA can be beneficial for muscle building and recovery.
- BCAAs aid in muscle protein synthesis, reduce muscle protein breakdown, and decrease muscle soreness, while creatine boosts energy availability and enhances workout performance.
- Together, they support lean muscle mass and help manage delayed onset muscle soreness.
- Based on available research, there's nothing to indicate that mixing BCAAs and creatine is unsafe or will cause adverse effects.
BCAA and Creatine: The Basics
They're two of the most common supplements around and found in hundreds of products, but what exactly are they, and what do they do?
Related Post: BCAA vs Creatine: Which Should You Take?
Branched Chain Amino Acids (BCAAs)
BCAAs are a group of 3 essential amino acids—leucine, isoleucine, and valine. These must be supplied through diet or supplementation because they cannot be synthesized in the body, hence why they're called 'essential.'
Role in Muscle Protein Synthesis
The hype around the BCAAs is mainly attributed to just one amino acid: leucine. This is because leucine plays a major role in muscle protein synthesis.
Here's the gist of what you need to know about BCAAs:
Muscle protein is constantly in a state of turnover, meaning that muscle proteins are always being broken down, recycled, and synthesized to replace old, worn out, or dysfunctional proteins(1). This process helps decrease muscle soreness and manage muscle protein breakdown.
But for muscle protein synthesis (MPS) to occur, the body requires all nine essential amino acids to be present, along with the eleven non-essential amino acids, in adequate amounts.
Importance of Leucine
The major reason you see BCAAs in most athlete's supplement stack is because, like we said, of those nine essential amino acids, leucine plays the most important role in muscle protein synthesis(1).
While leucine is widely available in food sources, taking a concentrated dose of it in something like BCAA or EAA supplements means you're getting a pure dose of the essential amino acids, which theoretically should mean greater availability to support muscle building, muscle growth, and recovery directly.
Benefits for Muscle Soreness and Damage
Another reason BCAA supplements are so popular among athletes is because of their ability to help mitigate the effects of post-exercise muscle soreness and the extent of muscle damage incurred during training.
They do this by reducing levels of certain markers of muscle damage, namely creatine kinase (CK) and lactate dehydrogenase (LDH)(2, 3). This aids in managing delayed onset muscle soreness and muscle protein breakdown.
Related Post: Best Amino Acids for Muscle Growth
Creatine
"But creatine makes me puffy" is something you'll hear many people say who don't actually know what the benefits of adding creatine to your stack are.
Enhancing Muscle Growth and Performance
Yes, sometimes creatine can cause water retention in muscles, but it's an incredibly useful supplement for boosting muscle growth and performance, leading to increased lean muscle mass.
Creatine is a molecule naturally produced in the body from the amino acids glycine, arginine, and methionine, but it's also formed endogenously from foods you eat containing those specific amino acids, meat being one of the most concentrated sources.
Role in Energy Availability and ATP Regeneration
Creatine’s also one of the most popular and widely used ergogenic aids because of its ability to increase intramuscular phosphocreatine (PCr) concentrations and thus enhance work capacity.
Specifically, it plays a vital role in energy availability and the regeneration of ATP—the form of energy your body uses to fuel biological processes.
The primary metabolic role of creatine is to combine with phosphate to form PCr through various enzymatic reactions. During energy production, adenosine triphosphate (ATP) is degraded into adenosine diphosphate (ADP) and an inorganic phosphate molecule (Pi).
This process provides energy to fuel metabolic activities. The free energy that is released from the hydrolysis of phosphocreatine is used as a buffer during the resynthesis of ATP. This entire process helps to ensure energy availability to power maximal effort anaerobic activities(4).
Essentially, the function of creatine is to assist in the regeneration of ATP. In fast-twitch skeletal muscles, there is normally a large reserve of phosphocreatine available for immediate regeneration of ATP during high-intensity, short-duration work(5).
Supplementation Benefits
As intense activity increases, phosphocreatine levels decrease. As a result, energy availability declines because of a lack of ATP regeneration needed to meet high-intensity exercise demands.
So, the logic here is that supplementing with exogenous creatine helps to ensure adequate substrate for ATP regeneration. More substrate equates to longer work and more muscle growth.
Related Post: Creatine Before or After Workout: When Should You Take It?
Related Post: How Long Does It Take For Creatine To Kick In?
Should You Mix Creatine and BCAAs?
Generally speaking, creatine and BCAAs are often taken as sole supplements. Occasionally, you'll see them added to pre- or post-workout supplements. But the real question remains -should creatine and BCAAs be taken together?
There's an art to timing your supplements. And the same principle applies with BCAAs and creatine. Typically, people take BCAAs intra-workout or post-workout and creatine pre-workout, but does it work to mix them?
Based on available research, there's nothing to indicate that mixing BCAAs and creatine is unsafe or will cause adverse effects.
While few studies are looking at the impact of combining BCAAs and creatine, there are several available that look at the efficacy of performance blends containing both creatine and BCAAs.
One study published in the Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition examined the effects of a pre-workout supplement containing BCAAs, creatine, and caffeine combined with three weeks of high-intensity interval training (HIIT) on aerobic and anaerobic running performance, training volume, and body composition(6).
Results showed that when combined with HIIT, the supplement was effective for improving aerobic performance, total workout volume, and lean body mass.
Another similar study looked at the acute hormonal and performance responses to resistance exercise with and without consumption of an amino acid/creatine/energy supplement(7).
Eight men performed a resistance-exercise protocol 20 minutes after consuming a supplement comprising essential amino acids, creatine, taurine, caffeine, and glucuronolactone or a maltodextrin placebo.
Results showed modest improvements in high-intensity endurance with the consumption of the supplements.
Neither of these studies suggests any adverse effects associated with the consumption of amino acids and creatine, nor any decreases in performance.
Best Pre-Workout to Complement Creatine: Pre Lab Pro®
There are other sports nutrition supplements that may accelerate creatine results. Pre Lab Pro® is one of them.
Pre Lab Pro® is a pre-workout formula with moderate caffeine plus nootropics and amino acids that balance energy with calm control.
It's the ideal pre-workout for any sport nutrition regimen that includes creatine. Pre Lab Pro works in tandem with creatine, helping to boost athletic performance and ultimate gains via separate -- but complementary -- pathways.
Final Thoughts
BCAAs and creatine's actions are quite different—the former supports muscle protein synthesis and repair, while the latter functions mainly to increase work capacity by enhancing fuel substrate availability.
Logically, it makes sense that the two supplements would feed off each other; creatine enhances work capacity, while the BCAAs supply the substrate needed to enhance growth and repair. However, there's little evidence available to support this theory.
But based on available research, combining the two in the same supplement or separately may enhance the results achieved through your training with no negative side effects.
And unlike many other fitness supplements loaded with synthetic colors, flavors, additives, and other toxic compounds, the entire Performance Lab lineup is 100% vegan-friendly, clean, and third-party tested to guarantee efficacy.
No fillers, no artificial colors or flavors, and absolutely no garbage ingredients. Just pure products that produce pure results.
FAQs
Q. Can I mix BCAA and creatine in the same drink?
A. Yes, you can mix BCAA and creatine in the same drink. Many athletes and fitness enthusiasts do this to conveniently consume both supplements at the same time, which can be especially useful during workouts to support muscle building and recovery.
Q. Are there any side effects of mixing BCAA and creatine?
A. Both BCAA and creatine are generally safe for most people when taken at recommended dosages. However, some individuals might experience minor side effects like bloating or gastrointestinal discomfort from creatine. It’s always best to start with a lower dose to assess your tolerance.
Q. Do I need to cycle off creatine or BCAA?
A. There is no need to cycle off BCAA as they are amino acids your body needs. For creatine, while some people choose to cycle off periodically, current research suggests it’s safe to take continuously. However, taking a break occasionally might be beneficial for some individuals.
Q. Can mixing BCAA and creatine help in building lean muscle mass?
A. Yes, mixing BCAA and creatine can support building lean muscle mass. BCAAs aid in muscle recovery and synthesis, while creatine provides the necessary energy for high-intensity workouts, both of which contribute to increased lean muscle mass over time.
- RR Wolfe. Branched-chain amino acids and muscle protein synthesis in humans: myth or reality? J Int Soc Sports Nutr. 2017; 14: 30.
- G Howatson, M Hoad, S Goodall, J Tallent, PG Bell, DN French. Exercise-induced muscle damage is reduced in resistance-trained males by branched chain amino acids: a randomized, double-blind, placebo controlled study. J Int Soc Sports Nutr. 2012 Jul; 9: 20.
- JS Coombes, LR McNaughton. Effects of branched-chain amino acid supplementation on serum creatine kinase and lactate dehydrogenase after prolonged exercise. J Sports Med Phys Fitness. 2000 Sep; 40(3): 240-6.
- RB Kreider, DS Kalman, J Antonio, et al. International Society of Sports Nutrition position stand: safety and efficacy of creatine supplementation in exercise, sport, and medicine. J Int Soc Sports Nutr. 2017 Jun; 14(18).
- Wyss M, Kaddurah-Daouk R. Creatine and creatinine metabolism. Physiol Rev. 2000 Jul;80(3):1107-213. doi: 10.1152/physrev.2000.80.3.1107. PMID: 10893433.
- AE Smith, DH Fukuda, KL Kendall, JR Stout. The effects of a pre-workout supplement containing caffeine, creatine, and amino acids during three weeks of high-intensity exercise on aerobic and anaerobic performance. J Int Soc Sports Nutr. 2010;7:10.
- NA Ratamess, JR Hoffman, R Ross, M Shanklin, AD Faigenbaum, J Kang. Effects of an amino acid/creatine energy supplement on the acute hormonal response to resistance exercise. Int J Sport Nutr Exerc Metab. 2007;17(6):608-623.
