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The correct way to use HMB supplements...

For anyone wanting to gain 20 or 30 pounds of muscle in a hurry, the process can often seem painfully and frustratingly slow. Some people gain muscle very quickly. Others, however, make little or no progress at all. That's one of the reasons products such as HMB supplements — which promise to make muscle growth faster and easier — have become so popular.

HMB supplements

HMB is short for beta-hydroxy-beta-methylbutyrate. Small amounts are found in certain foods such as catfish and alfalfa. Although HMB supplements have only become popular since the mid 1990's, the role of HMB in cholesterol metabolism has been studied for several decades. Scientists in the 1950's discovered that HMB (then known as 3-hydroxyisovaleric acid) plays a role in the synthesis of cholesterol.

HMB supplements were first developed to help farmers raise leaner cattle and other farm animals. Specifically, HMB improves growth and immune function in animals, such as chicken and sheep. Some research shows it also reduces subcutaneous fat (that's the fat stored directly under the skin) in steers.

The recent interest in HMB started when Dr. Steve Nissen — the owner of several use patents on HMB — began researching the amino acid leucine (pronounced loo-seen) and how it affects muscle growth.

Nissen and his colleagues discovered that it was a compound called alpha-ketoisocaproate (known simply as KIC) that was active in animals. However, Nissen felt that something further down the metabolic pathway might be responsible for the effects that were being attributed to KIC. After testing many different compounds, HMB was the one that was most active.

Leucine is an essential amino acid. Your body can't make it by itself, so you need get it from your diet. However, only a small amount (roughly five percent) of the leucine you eat is converted into HMB. For the production of HMB to reach gram quantities per day, you'll need 20-50 grams of leucine. Consequently, getting enough HMB from your diet alone is virtually impossible. That's why using a HMB supplement is really the only way to get enough of it to match the doses used in the research.

Muscle growth

To understand how HMB supplements are supposed to work, it's important to know a little more about the process of muscle growth.

Your muscles are in a constant state of change. New proteins are being made, while old ones are broken down, or degraded. Skin goes through the same process. Old skin dies off, and your body synthesizes new skin to take its place.

To build muscle, the rate at which proteins are being made has to be greater than the rate at which they're being broken down. Think of it in business terms. For a company to be in profit, for example, income must be greater than expenses. In much the same way, for muscles to grow, protein synthesis must be greater than protein breakdown.

When you train with weights, you stimulate protein synthesis. However, protein breakdown is also increased. HMB supplements are supposed to limit the amount of protein breakdown that takes place following exercise. This, in turn, should lead to greater muscle growth. It's a little like a business cutting costs in order to increase profit.

Although many popular supplements have little or no evidence...

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