Hey, this is Sean Nalewanyj of EliteImpactLabs.com.
And today, I want to discuss fish oil and its direct effects on muscle growth and recovery.
Fish oil's effects on overall health are very lengthy, from improving the cardiovascular
system, to the immune system, to blood pressure, cholesterol, brain function, et cetera.
But what have lot of people don't know is that fish oil actually has specific benefits
for those trying to build muscle and burn fat.
And here are the three main ways.
The first is that fish oil appears to increase muscle anabolism.
This was shown in a study at the Washington University, School of Medicine.
The link for that is in the description, and it showed that when a group of 25 to 45-year-olds,
were given 4grams of fish oil daily, the researchers found a notable increased in muscle protein
synthesis.
Protein synthesis is the process where cells combine individual amino acids to build complete
proteins.
And since proteins are the fundamental building blocks of muscle tissue, this is obviously
very important.
They also found an increase in the mTOR pathway, which is a key signaling pathway that controls
muscle cell growth.
The second is that fish oil appears to decrease muscle catabolism.
So, not only just fish oil will help you build new muscle tissue faster, but it also helps
you preserve your existing gains.
You know, your muscles are constantly undergoing a process of both anabolism, which is muscle
growth, and catabolism, which is muscle breakdown.
And your net muscle gains are determined by taking the total amount of anabolism, and
subtracting the total amount of catabolism.
So, if you minimize muscle catabolism, you maximize your overall muscle gains.
Fish oil appears to suppress muscle catabolism in two main ways.
The first is by lowering cortisol levels.
Cortisol is a powerful catabolic hormone that breaks down muscle tissue for you as energy.
And second is by decreasing the activity of what's called, "The ubiquitin-proteasome system."
You don't need to remember that.
But this system is the main cause of muscle breakdown, and is suppressed when EPA intake
increases.
And EPA is one of the two Omega-3 fatty acids that's found in fish oil.
And the third is that fish oil decreases inflammation.
Reducing inflammation after training sessions, helps you enhanced muscle recovery and overall
growth.
Not only there's a reduction in the inflation and improve muscle recovery, but it also has
beneficial effects on your joints and your connective tissues.
And since weight training places a lot of stress on those structures, fish oil appears
to be an important supplement in preventing injuries and managing existing training-induced
aches and pains.
So all in all, I'd say that those are three pretty solid reasons to make use of fish oil
for bodybuilding specific purposes.
In terms of specific dosages, you know, the main thing to keep in mind is that it's not
the overall amount of raw fish oil that's important, it's the specific amount of EPA
and DHA that matters.
Again, these are the two key Omega-3 fatty acids that are found in fish oil that produced
all of the benefits we just talked about.
While there's no absolute guideline in place, a good figure to shoot for is 3grams daily
of combined EPA and DHA, which will usually equate to around 4grams to 7grams of total
fish oil, depending on which specific part that you're using.
Now, there are a lot of very low grade fish oils out there, so you do need to make sure
that you choose your fish oil carefully.
If you want to remove the guess work, then you can check out EFA UltraPure.
And the link is in the description box for that.
EFA UltraPure contains 420ml of EPA, and 280ml of DHA per 1000ml of fish oil, which is far
more potent than most other popular fish oil brands.
It's also produced using molecular distillation, which removes toxins, PCB's and heavy metals
to below detectable limits for human consumption.
And the soft shells are also enteric-coated, which is an added bonus as it eliminates those
fish burps that you get with many other brands.
So, thanks for watching this video lesson.
Make sure to subscribe if you haven't already, and make sure to join the Elite Impact Lab's
Facebook page, where I do free supplement giveaways every Sunday night, talk to you
again soon with more free tips.