We all have some specific physical goals in mind. To get healthier, increase our endurance, maximise our strength gains, and make it easier to recover after intense sets. But the unfortunate reality is that most of us need a bit of a boost in order to reach our inherent potential.
We live stressful lives, our diet is not always ideal for our body’s metabolic requirements, and let’s face it, keeping up with a daily routine marked by exercise and precise caloric intake is often quite difficult. So, we often need to resort to supplementation. And is there a better supplement out there than L-glutamine?
L-glutamine is what we call a non-essential amino acid, as we can get it from the food we eat but it’s also produced by the human body. Typically, our reserves of glutamine are enough to secure an ample energy boost for day-to-day activities.
Glutamine is a power source for our body’s immune system; it can protect your digestive system from external threats and it has a crucial role in the metabolic processes that your body relies on. Yet, even if it’s the most abundant amino acid produced by the body, its production is also finite, and you can run out of glutamine in periods of intense stress, injury, or illness.
Why Invest in L-Glutamine Supplements?
Nothing can boost your body’s immune system and increase your life expectancy more than regular exercise. It’s the best thing you can do for yourself, and it can be quite rewarding once you start noticing visible changes to your physique. But exercise and our modern way of living don’t always match 1/1.
Are you trying to combine a precise exercise routine with the free time you have after work? Do you often deal with muscle soreness, excessive fatigue and pain after the gym? Then, maybe you should consider investing in some supplements. Modern L-glutamine supplements are often recommended for after-gym recovery, as there is some evidence out there that suggests they can help with muscle soreness, reduce muscle fibre breakdown during caloric deficit, and also support glycogen replenishment.
Glutamine doesn’t have the same muscle-building benefits as creatine, for example. That said, it’s useful for fatigue management, it can provide support to the intestinal barrier, as cell linings in the intestine use glutamine as a primary fuel source, and there is also evidence that L-glutamine supplements, in the right dosage, can kickstart the immune system, and help with illness recovery.
Who Should Take Glutamine?
Most healthy people, with a proper intake of proteins and a regular sleep schedule, benefit from blood-present glutamine values that make supplementation not unnecessary, but rather less likely to produce significant results. But we live quite stressful lives, our diet is not always great, and for some, like me, glutamine is not necessarily a recommendation but rather an essential amino acid for preserving the strength of our immune system.
Glutamine, as I have mentioned previously, is the most important fuel source for the lining of our intestinal cells. Therefore, if you suffer from chronic digestive issues, such as IBD/IBS, and you occasionally have flare-ups that are hard to manage, glutamine supplements could increase your digestive resilience, restore intestinal barrier integrity, and also make it easier to recover after gut irritation.
I, for example, suffer from Ulcerative Colitis, and glutamine supplements for me are equivalent to fewer flare-ups and less pain or bloating when my symptoms become noticeable. But glutamine is useful even for people who are, otherwise, perfectly healthy.
A Significant Help for Post-Workout Recovery
One of my best friends is currently training for her first marathon. She was always a keen runner; we went jogging once in a while, and she is, all things considered, one of the most physically fit persons I know. But, around two months ago, she started to have some issues that, at a second glance, have likely been influenced by her training regimen. She started to have cold after cold, she struggled with some really weird digestive issues, and her muscle recovery after training started to slow down. The more she trained, the worse she felt, and it really put a dent in her marathon ambitions.
That was until she invested in some L-glutamine supplements. Long-duration training can temporarily impact the body’s immune function, lead to gut permeability, and also increase the natural breakdown of muscle fibres. Intensive exercise is a huge stress on our bodies, and it can impact our ability to produce glutamine.
In her case, supplementation with glutamine stopped the frequent colds she was experiencing, reduced the impact of the gastrointestinal problems that were bothering her, and also changed how her body reacted during recovery periods. Not everyone will react the same to glutamine, that’s true. But for specific scenarios and for particular needs, glutamine supplements can be a real God-send.
Does It Work for Weight Loss?
It can work, but not directly. Glutamine is useful for people on aggressive diets, as caloric deficit can make recovery after exercise worse and also increase muscle breakdown. Glutamine doesn’t significantly impact the body’s metabolic rate, nor is it a fat burner. However, it can preserve the integrity of muscle fibres while dieting, it has a direct effect on gut health in some people, and there are also studies out there that associate glutamine with improved insulin sensitivity.
Glutamine can protect against inflammation, which is often linked to chronic ailments, including obesity. Multiple studies have found a direct link between glutamine supplements and improvements in the composition of the gut microbiome. So, yes, while not directly aiding with weight loss, it can have a proactive impact on the gut microbiology and thus contribute to cellular resistance during periods of dieting.
For some people, glutamine is a miracle amino acid that has a deep impact on energy levels and recovery. For others, the effects are more subdued. However, what is certain is that glutamine supplements are 100% safe, and that the impact of glutamine in the human body is pretty much always a positive one.
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