L-carnitine eagers athletes and women who want to reduce the fat and slightly improve waist and figure. Bodybuilders, however, are still divided when talking about the topic if L-carnitine is valid as compound useful in building muscle mass and shaping the body. Scientists from Iran are bringing new evidence that the use of 2 g of L-carnitine daily translates into increasing the number of reps in the training series. His observations are described in the Journal of Nutrition & Exercise Biochemistry”, which further drew the conclusion that L-carnitine could also be useful for building muscle mass.
Research
The study involved 24 young men, with minimum-to-none training experience. They were divided into two groups of 12 people, where one group received a placebo, while the other group received a 2g of L-carnitine supplements per day (1 capsule with 1 g of the L-carnitine as the addition to the breakfast meal, and the second one just after dinner). It should be noted that athletes trained with the same intensity (70-85%), the same training and diet plan in a similar manner.
Results
Both groups have lost fat and gained muscle mass, but comparing those values, scientists have noticed that they are not statistically significant. However, there was a significant impact on the number of repetitions in the series. The group receiving L-carnitine to increase the number of repetitions in the bench press, bench leg press. Interestingly, in the Wingate test people taking L-carnitine showed increased anaerobic strength and increased average power and peak power.
Conclusions
L-carnitine possesses a strong antioxidant activity. It increases glutathione levels, demonstrating neutralizing oxidizing agents. Moreover, the faster the body copes with the accumulated lactic acid and allows the muscles to quickly restore full efficiency. Indirectly L-carnitine may, therefore, result in increased muscle mass due to stronger stimuli, resulting from weight training and more repetitions.