Glutamine is a non-essential amino acid, simply meaning that your body can produce it. While you can consume glutamine from food sources like milk protein, meats, etc., the body mainly relies on the consumption of gluatamic acid (glutamate) and having it convert into glutamine. The conversion happens in the liver where glutamate combines with ammonia.

A diet that is healthy can supply the body with the capability to produce anywhere between 3.5 and 8 grams a day. It becomes and is the most abundant amino acid in the blood and muscle tissue. You can find it present in at least some levels in all organs of the body aiding in their function.

Glutamine is particularly important in the overall immune system and function of the gastrointestinal. If you’re not getting enough glutamine, you can always add more to your diet with glutamine supplements.

Everywhere I look I’m seeing bad advice when it comes to post workout nutrition for bodybuilders and weight trainers. So I’m going to explain what I consider to be the best combination of supplements for post workout.

A simple protein shake is NOT enough. Here’s what I recommend:

Read the rest of this post…

Wanna gain weight?

If you want to gain weight you might have considered weight gain supplements. Weight gainers are awesome for raw weight gain, especially for skinny guys…known as “hard gainers”. Most weight gain shakes have a massive amount of calories coming from protein and complex carbs. Ideal for weight gain.

But I think there’s a better way to use supplements to gain weight. Instead of buying a weight gain supplement, you buy the ingredients individually and build your own shakes! Here’s why I think it’s a better way of doing things…

1. Saves you cash.
   Weight gain supplements may be cheap as an overall product, but buying whey protein, complex carbs and simple carbs is less expensive than you think. Whey protein is the main expense, but carb supplements are actually really cheap!
2. You choose the dosage.
   When you just take a weight gain supplement you’re stuck with the same ratio of protein/carbs every time. When you buy separate products, you can adjust the dosage to suit your needs.

So what should you buy instead of a weight gain shake? Essentially you’ll get whey protein and complex carbs (maltodextrin). But you can add other products like creatine and glutamine etc. So my advice, build your own, and build more muscle!

One of the most common questions I see getting asked on forums around the web is “what does glutamine do?”. Bodybuilders have used glutamine for years, and now athletes from all sporting disciplines are starting to use glutamine. Not only that, doctors now realize the positive effects glutamine has on the immune system and are prescribing it to elderly patients. Let’s have a look at what it is and what it does…

What is Glutamine?

Glutamine is an amino acid. Amino acids are the building blocks to protein. Glutamine is not just any amino acid, it is the most abundant amino acid in our body - and highly concentrated in our muscles. Glutamine has recently been re-classified as a conditionally essential amino acid. This means that while the body can make glutamine, there are times when the body’s need for glutamine is greater than its ability to produce glutamine.

What does Glutamine do?

Studies have shown that glutamine supplementation can do the following:

• Increase Protein synthesis (which leads to increased muscle mass)
• Increase nitrogen retention
• Decrease muscle breakdown
• Decrease recovery time needed after a workout
• Enhance immune functions

So whether you want to build muscle or just stay healthy, glutamine can help you.

Welcome to the new Supplements Explained website & blog.

Supplements Explained was created to try and take some of the confusion out of bodybuilding and fitness supplements. Our aim is to post quality information, news and product reviews to educate our readers. Educated people make the right choices and reach their goals.

Stay tuned for coming updates!