Add This Between Meals
How to Boost Muscle Growth Between Meals: The Power of Leucine
How to Boost Muscle Growth Between Meals: The Power of Leucine
When it comes to building muscle, most people focus only on what happens during their workouts or immediately after. But a great strategy to both preserve and promote muscle growth is to optimize what you’re doing between meals — and adding leucine to your supplement regimen can be a real game-changer.
Leucine, a branched-chain amino acid (BCAA), plays a crucial role in muscle health. It's known for two major benefits:
- Reducing muscle protein breakdown
- Stimulating muscle protein synthesis
Leucine acts as a key signal to the body, activating the mTOR pathway (mechanistic Target of Rapamycin), which is the primary driver of muscle protein synthesis (MPS). Simply put, without sufficient leucine, your body struggles to switch on the "build muscle" signal effectively.
Research supports this. Studies have shown that leucine supplementation can independently stimulate MPS even without a full meal. A 2006 study published in the American Journal of Physiology demonstrated that leucine ingestion alone could stimulate muscle protein synthesis comparably to a full meal containing all essential amino acids (1).
In another study from 2012 published in Nutrition & Metabolism, researchers found that small doses of leucine taken between meals could maintain a higher anabolic (muscle-building) environment throughout the day (2). This approach helps prevent the typical "muscle protein breakdown" that can happen during long gaps between meals.
How to Use Leucine Between Meals
It doesn’t take much. Just 2–3 grams of leucine between meals is enough to trigger the anabolic response. You can mix it into a small drink or even take it as a capsule form if you prefer.
Keep in mind:
- It’s most effective when taken between meals, not just with meals.
- Leucine can be taken alone or combined with other essential amino acids for even better results.
Final Thought
If you're serious about maximizing your muscle gains or preserving hard-earned muscle during dieting phases, adding leucine between meals is a simple, science-backed strategy that can make a noticeable difference.
Small tweaks like this can separate good results from great results.
References:
- Crozier, S. J., Kimball, S. R., Emmert, S. W., Anthony, J. C., & Jefferson, L. S. (2005). Oral leucine administration stimulates protein synthesis in rat skeletal muscle. American Journal of Physiology-Endocrinology and Metabolism, 288(3), E514–E520. https://doi.org/10.1152/ajpendo.00320.2004
- Pasiakos, S. M., McClung, H. L., McClung, J. P., Margolis, L. M., Andersen, N. E., Sauter, E. R., & Young, A. J. (2012). Leucine-enriched essential amino acid supplementation during moderate steady state exercise enhances postexercise muscle protein synthesis. Nutrition & Metabolism, 9, 47. https://doi.org/10.1186/1743-7075-9-47
