of cellular swelling is another powerful
performance-enhancer in betaine.
Betaine
Betaine (trimethylglycine) is a modified
amino acid consisting of a molecule of glycine
surrounded by three methyl groups. It’s
naturally occurring in human body and can
be found in a number of foods common in the
diet, including spinach, wheat and sugar beets
(from which its name is derived).
Betaine serves two important roles in
the body, as a methyl group donor and as
an osmolyte that regulates fluid balance.^23
First, betaine methylates homocysteine, a
compound capable of inducing oxidative
damage in endothelial tissue as well as
inflammatory cytokine expression via
oxidative stress. Because of these actions,
betaine supplementation may indirectly
enhance vasodilation and cellular swelling
during resistance training.
Following methylation, homocysteine is
converted into methionine, one of the amino
acids necessary for creatine synthesis in
the body.^24 In this way, betaine supports
endogenous creatine production and
subsequently better athletic performance
and muscle growth. In fact, studies have
shown that betaine supplementation leads
to increases in muscle mass in resistance-
trained men.^23
Betaine also increases intracellular water^25 ,
which as we stated a few times in this article
may enhance muscle growth by way of
stimulating muscle protein synthesis.
elec t roly tes
One last avenue by which an athlete
looking to maximize cellular hydration and
swelling is one that’s neglected in many
pre-workouts— electrolytes. Electrolytes
are essential minerals that help regulate
fluid balance in the body as well as muscle
function. Sodium often gets the lion’s share
of the credit when discussing electrolytes,
but there are two other equally important
electrolytes that deserve their own individual
time to shine: potassium and magnesium.
Potassium and magnesium are two vital
minerals that serve as “osmoprotectants”
when used alongside other prominent
cell-hydrating supplements, such as
betaine and creatine monohydrate. These
valuable electrolytes help preserve fluid
balance in muscle, leading to greater gains
in strength as well as increased muscle
protein synthesis. They also aid skeletal
muscle buffering, thereby improving
exercise performance, power and strength.
Finally, these two electrolytes also promote
vasodilation by increasing nitric oxide and
64 MD musculardevelopment.com July 2019
prostacyclin, leading to improved endothelial
function, greater blood flow and lower blood
pressure.26,27takeaway
Researchers continue to elucidate all of the
factors that contribute to muscle hypertrophy.
Until now, mechanical tension has been
viewed as the primary mechanism by which
an athlete grows bigger muscles. However, in
light of recent research, it appears that cellular
swelling may offer yet another effective
means for driving growth.
Is cellular swelling and metabolite training
superior to mechanical tension in terms of
greater muscle growth? That’s yet to be
fully teased out in the literature. However,
there definitely is something to be said
for incorporating higher volume work that
generates these metabolites and increases
cellular swelling to a greater degree than
doing heavy weight, low-volume work. AsRefeRences:- Schoenfeld BJ. The mechanisms of muscle
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potential mechanisms and applications for enhancing
hypertrophic adaptations. Strength & Conditioning Journal
2014;36(3):21-5. - Dankel SJ, Mattocks KT et al. Do metabolites that
are produced during resistance exercise enhance muscle
hypertrophy? European Journal of Applied Physiology
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Vasodilation and muscle pump contribution to immediate
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1996;271(4 Pt 2), H1697-701. https://doi.org/10.1152/
ajpheart.1996.271.4.H1697 - Stuehr D. Enzymes of the L-Arginine to Nitric Oxide
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October 2004, Pages 2748S-2751S. https://doi.org/10.1093/
jn/134.10.2748S - Grimble GK. Adverse gastrointestinal effects of
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MCO.0b013e32829fb38d - Pérez-Guisado J, Jakeman PM. Citrulline malate
enhances athletic anaerobic performance and relieves
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Research 2010;24(5):1215-22. - Wax B, Kavazis AN and Luckett W. Effects of
supplemental citrulline malate ingestion on blood
lactate, cardiovascular dynamics, and resistance
exercise performance in trained males. Journal of Dietary
Supplements 2016;13(3):269-82. - Wax B, Kavazis AN et al. Effects of supplemental
citrulline malate ingestion during repeated bouts of lower-
body exercise in advanced weightlifters. The Journal of
Strength & Conditioning Research 2015;29(3):786-92. - Hobson RM, Saunders B et al. Effects of beta-alanine
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Amino acids 2012;43(1):25-37. - Kern BD and Robinson TL. Effects of beta-alanine
supplementation on performance and body composition
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intracellular acidification on the relationship between cell
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such, when performing “metabolite training” or
training for the pump, it makes sense to utilize
the best pre- and post-workout nutrients that
improve your ability to tolerate higher work
volumes, thereby creating greater amounts of
metabolites and cellular swelling, with the end
goal of building bigger muscles.
Pre-workout supplements: Look for
products that contain beta-alanine, creatine
monohydrate and citrulline malate— all
identified to be among the best cellular
swelling supplements according to
researchers. These same nutrients are also
backed by numerous studies documenting
their respective ability to enhance athletic
performance and resistance to fatigue.
Post-workout supplements: Look for
products that contain creatine, betaine
anhydrous and leucine to fully activate
the mTOR pathway following training and
kickstart the muscle recovery and growth
process.SUPPLEMENTperformance