Muscles aren’t just a guy thing! Women even need muscle…and ladies, while you may not want muscles as big as men (or maybe you do), I think most women can agree that it seems like everything on the market is geared towards helping men build muscle, not women!Appropriate to the vast differences in female and male physiology, the ability to develop and supply muscle to the looseness of life will be a little more difficult for women. So, in that case, what are the best muscle building supplements for women?
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Best muscle building Supplements for women
Before we dive into supplements, it is important to first recap some important differences in female and male physiology that will play an important role in the ability to build muscle. Even more information can be found in the Fitness course for women.
1. Men have more circulating testosterone compared to women.
On average, men have 300 to 1000 ng/dL of testosterone, while women have average levels of 15 to 70 ng/dL. Testosterone is a highly anabolic hormone and is the primary hormone responsible for increasing lean mass and strength. Appropriate to this difference, men on average have 8.4% more lean mass compared to women. BUT procrastination… what about estrogen? Yes, women have higher estrogen levels and estrogen is an anabolic hormone. However, its role in stimulating muscle protein synthesis is not as high as that of testosterone. See also foods to increase testosterone!
2. Women have menstrual cycles!
The presence of the period means constant fluctuations in hormones throughout the month, and the timing of your cycle can affect your ability to build muscle. The menstrual cycle is commonly divided into two main phases: the follicular and luteal phases. The follicular period is commonly referred to as the “hormone-dead period,” while the luteal period is the “hormone-enriched period.
During the “hormone enrollment period”, the hormones estrogen and progesterone are at their most stationary, and progesterone replaces estrogen. Progesterone is extremely catabolic and hinders the formation of lean tissue. On the other hand, as women age and enter menopause, muscle mass and strength decline rapidly with declining estrogen levels (we do not see a significant decline in muscle and strength in aging men).
Before highlighting some of the best muscle building supplements for women, it should be noted that these supplements do not favor one nature over another (which is why they are even the best muscle building supplements for men). However, depending on your existence or the period of your menstrual cycle, it may be more important to include these supplements in your diet.
Protein to Supplements for women
Protein is going to be every woman’s best friend! Stopping protein intake will be the dean driver for supplying or building muscle, especially during the luteal period of the menstrual cycle. Remember we mentioned that progesterone is a catabolic hormone? That means your body is more likely to break down muscle and it will be harder to build muscle.
Therefore, it is important to emphasize a healthy protein intake during this time. Protein intake is especially important as we age! After 50-55 springs, it becomes much more difficult to build and supply lean tissue (how fun is menopause?). Protein intake should be between 1.2 and 2.2 g/kg/day – lower ranges for maintenance and higher ranges for building!
Whey protein powders will give you the best muscle building response compared to plant-based options. However, the goal is to make sure that your 30 g protein serving has at least 2-3 g of leucine. Leucine is the main amino acid in stimulating muscle protein synthesis.
When is the best time to dose protein as a woman? Ideally, protein intake should be spaced out every 3-4 hours, and within 30 minutes to an hour after the check-up is best (especially in that period of hormone inscription)!
Creatine – one of Supplements for women
Creatine is a combination of of amino acids that logically exist in your muscle and can logically be consumed through red meat. Supplements for Women exhibit lower endogenous 70-80% creatine stores compared to men due to the small amount of lean tissue (and often because women do not eat as many meat products as men). Creatine is known primarily for its ability to significantly increase lean mass and strength. Generically, it is recommended to consume doses of 5-10 g/day to fully saturate the reserves and test for increases in muscle mass.
To date there is not much research to discern specific doses of nature, however, it is suggested that doses higher than 0.3 g/kg/day during menopause are needed to see muscle development.
Suitable for the constant changes in hormones during the period, childbearing, postpartum and menopause, creatine supplementation can be extremely helpful. It is postulated that during the luteal period or for women with low estrogen levels, creatine can compensate for decreases in muscle protein synthesis.
On the other hand, creatine stores are significantly reduced during impairment and low creatine stores have been linked to low birth weight and premature delivery. Creatine dosing during impairment may not only help with muscle maintenance, but even with fetal development.
The main reason many women avoid creatine use is the fear of weight gain that is often associated with the convenient supplementation of increased cellular hydration. However, many studies have shown that women can test increases in strength, power and strong performance without marked changes in body weight; men have been found to experience rapid weight gain more often than men when taking the supplement.
Contemporary evidence suggests that dosing strategies for women and men may be the same, with doses of 5 to 10 g/day per day.
Fish fat – Supplements for women
While omega-3 fatty acids are widely known to be anti-inflammatory, attention has recently been focused on their ability to assist at the molecular level in muscle protein synthesis.
While more research is admittedly needed, some studies have suggested that increases in muscle mass were more pronounced in women who performed resistance exercise when taking doses of omega-3 fatty acids.
Vitamin D – Supplements for women
Vitamin D is not only necessary for bones! Vitamin D plays an important role in reducing oxidative stress and supporting mitochondrial function. Vitamin D deficiency is often linked to decreased oxygen consumption rates and mitochondrial disruption, which in turn disrupts muscle protein synthesis pathways.
A study that evaluated vitamin D status in BMI classes between men and women found that, on average, women had lower vitamin D levels.
For women who spend the dean part of their time indoors or during the winter months, it pays to add vitamin D supplements to your routine to help keep up with all your hard work at the ballpark!
Arginine – Supplements for women
Arginine is a conditionally essential amino acid that plays an important role in muscle protein synthesis, creatine and nitric oxide synthesis and the stimulation of growth hormone secretion. While admittedly there is currently no evidence on nature-specific dosing, it is currently suggested that doses of 3-9 g/day may promote improvements in athletic performance.
Ladies, your muscle even matters! If admissible supplementation to improve muscle mass and strength is similar between the sexes, certain supplements may be more important for improving skeletal muscle mass if you are a woman (especially during various stages of life).
While women on average have admittedly less muscle mass compared to men, the ability to develop and supply muscle can be easily achieved with the consumption of a protein-enriched diet and an adequate intake of essential vitamins and minerals are good as Supplements for women.
