The Effects of Branched Chain Amino Acid and Nutrient Supplementation on Exercise-Induced Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness in College Females

Supplementation with branched chain amino acids (BCAAs) has been used to stimulate muscle protein synthesis following exercise. The purpose of this study was to determine if supplementation with BCAAs in combination with glucose would reduce exercise-induced delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS). Using a double-blind crossover design, 20 subjects (11 females, 9 males) were randomly assigned to either BCAA (n=10) or placebo (n=10) groups. Subjects performed a squatting exercise to elicit DOMS and rated their muscle soreness every 24 hours for four days following exercise while continuing to consume the BCAA or placebo. Following a three-week recovery period, subjects returned and received the alternate BCAA or placebo treatment, repeating the same exercise and DOMS rating protocol for the next four days. BCAA supplementation in female subjects resulted in a significant decrease in DOMS versus placebo at 24 hours following exercise (p = 0.018). No significant effect of BCAA supplementation versus placebo was noted in male subjects, nor when male and female results were analyzed together. This gender difference may be related to dose per body weight differences between male and female subjects.