Blonyx Beta Alanine
The basics:
What is beta-alanine?
Beta-alanine is a non-essential amino acid and modified version of the amino acid alanine. In the body, beta-alanine is combined with histidine to make carnosine, a natural lactic acid buffer found in the muscle. The amount of carnosine in the muscle is thought to be limited by the amount of beta-alanine in the diet.
How does beta-alanine work?
High intensity training causes a build-up of lactic acid in the muscle and blood (thought to be why you feel muscle “burn”). The result is a loss of power that eventually leads to fatigue. Supplementing with beta-alanine increases the muscle levels of canosine, which soaks up lactic acid slowing the onset of fatigue.
How will beta-alanine help me achieve my athletic goals?
When taking beta-alanine daily you’ll quickly (within the first 2 weeks) start noticing that you can train at a slightly higher intensity. One well known athlete stated that taking it feels like you have “a third lung”.
After about a month of use you’ll notice that you can maintain your sprints for longer and can go those few extra reps. Your performance will improve as will the quality of your training.
Beta-alanine has a side-effect
Supplementing with beta-alanine can cause a mild skin-tingling sensation called paresthesia. It’s a harmless side effect, but can be a little unnerving at first. Paresthesia can be reduced by taking beta-alanine with food or at a lower dosage. Most people find that taking beta-alanine consistently will cause the paresthesia effects to be reduced or eliminated over time.
Beta-alanine is often used (incorrectly) as a pre-workout ingredient. One of the reasons is that paresthesia can feel a bit like a surge of energy.
What type of athlete is beta-alanine for?
Beta alanine is ideal for athletes who require quick bursts of energy to perform. If you’re sprinting short distances, say on the soccer pitch, regularly work to fatigue, like in a CrossFit gym, or need the legs for those punchy, thigh-burning climbs on your bike, beta-alanine is for you. Recent research also suggests that it is more effective in older athletes as muscle carnosine levels decrease with age.
What type of athlete is beta-alanine NOT for?
Beta-alanine will have limited effect in athletes focused on max power output training, such as in weightlifting. Its benefit to longer distance endurance athletes is also questionable, however research is indicating that it could increase lactate threshold. In this study it improved 10K run time for example.
What the research shows:
BETA-Alanine enhances rowing performance at shorter distances (500-2000m) (2)
Taking BETA-Alanine extends time to exhaustion when training at high intensity for short bouts (up to 5 mins) (6, 7)
BETA-Alanine can increase power output when doing high intensity interval training like Airdyne sprints (7)
When doing strength based training, BETA-Alanine increases the volume of training (number of reps), an athlete is capable of achieving (8)
BETA-Alanine may also be an antioxidant and have other health benefits (9)
Athlete types that will benefit from beta-alanine:
CrossFitters
Climbers
Mountain bikers
Athletes who do sprint interval training
Shorter distance athletes (sprint cyclists, runners and rowers)
Sports athletes who do a lot of sprint bursts
Soccer, hockey, basketball and football players
How Much Beta Alanine Do You Need?
Beta alanine is used in the body to make carnosine, a natural lactic acid buffer
We get about 1g/d beta alanine from eating foods like meat and fish
Research shows that you need an additional 6g/d beta alanine to improve performance
Our manufacturing facilities are GMP certified. We are also registered with Health Canada
The facilities we use to manufacture are NSF for sport certified
Our products are free from banned substances
Research References:
We are committed to science
We don’t sell products based on demand or hype like pre-workouts or BCAAs. Instead, we meticulously pour over research as it’s published, only using an ingredient when we are convinced there is enough evidence it works to improve or support human performance.
We also meticulously test our finished products ensuring they meet label claims and regulations and are free from banned substances.
Click to learn more about our commitments to the athletes we serve.
1. Trexler et al. (2015): The official position paper of the International Society of Sports Nutrition on beta-alanine. beta-alanine is one of the few supplements considered to be both safe and effective by the societyRead the research
2. Baguet et al. (2010): 7 weeks of beta-alanine supplementation improved 2,000m row time in trained rowersRead the research
3. Hill et al. (2007): 13 males improved their total work done on a cycling capacity test after 4-10 weeks of beta-alanine supplementation, vs. a placebo.Read the research
4. Sale et al. (2011): Beta-alanine supplementation increased cycling capacity vs. placebo in 20 men.Read the research
5. Danaher et al. (2014): Beta-alanine increased cycling work capacity after 6 weeks of supplementation.Read the research
6. Ghiasvand et al. (2012): Beta-alanine increased time to exhaustion in endurance athletes doing an incremental cycling test.Read the research
7. Stout et al. (2006): Beta-alanine prolonged time to exhaustion after 28 days of supplementation.Read the research
8. Hoffman et al (2008): Bench press training volume was increased in soldiers who took beta-alanine for a three week period.Read the research
9. Hipkiss et al. (2013): Beta-alanine and carnosine have a number of potential health benefits in humans.Read the research