Confused about Glutamine...

[YellowJ]

Originally posted by Todd
What kinds of stress cause glutamine depletion?

"Research is showing that glutamine depletion caused by stress can be activated by something as minor as a common cold and the level of depletion increases with the severity of the disease. Patients undergoing surgery, burn victims, those suffering acute trauma, as well as HIV and cancer patients will all find their glutamine levels severely depleted by their condition.

Totally irrelevant, doesnt apply to bodybuilding.

Glutamine and it’s role in bodybuilding and exercise.
Intensive exercise will disrupt immune function, increase lactic acid and ammonium levels.

Define intensive. Glutamine levels in the body will only be depleted enough to need it from an outside source if you're involved in 6 or more days a week of intense weight training, combined with intense cardio.(1)
Now I dont know about you, but the novice, average bodybuilder doesnt do this. Hell, most of the pro's do not do this. This is simply not how we train.

High levels of ammonia can effect muscle function. Within the first five minutes of exercise glutamine levels will rise and catabolic hormones are released.

That hormone, this lackluster 'article' failed to mention, is cortisol and Vitamin C is shown to greatly suppress cortisol levels. Why not have a glass of orange juice with a scoop of whey it in?

Overtraining will result in less gains, but also higher disease rates, infections and a poor immune system, due to the heavy demands place on the energy reserves of the body. Higher levels of training result in higher stress demands on the body, which lead to a reduction in plasma glutamine levels. Too little glutamine results in muscle loss.

Umm....who intentially overtrains?? Hopefully no one. This was a poor, unresearched paragraph, thus making me not even want to read the remainder.

According to Ronald Klatz, MD, President of the Academy of Anti-Aging Medicine in Chicago, “Glutamine promotes the assimilation of nutrients, regulates protein synthesis, stimulates growth-hormone production and enhances the immune system.”

Only because its releasing effect of insulin. These are properties of basal insulin levels NOT glutamine. Glutamine has been shown to have effects of insulin release, only when glucose and protein (such as whey) are non existent. To eliminate both of these crucial macronutrients enough to need glutamine to spike pancreatic release of insulin would be pure ignorance.

Weightlifters and bodybuilders need to realize that glutamine is critical for muscle building because it is a nitrogen donor, meaning that it moves the nitrogen around in the body to where it is needed. Anyone that pushes the iron understands that a positive nitrogen balance is a necessary criteria in the effort to gain muscle mass.

Yes, thats why glutamine is the most abundant free form amino acid in the body. You will not use supplemented glutamine in a high caloric diet (bulking) or if your glutamine levels in the body are stable, see above, as its almost impossible to eliminate the bodies glutamine stores.

Entering the Krebs cycle as a non-carbohydrate source of energy, glutamine converts to glutamate and produces ATP which is an energy molecule. With adequate amounts of glutamine in the body through diet and/or supplementation, little or no muscle is broken down to provide glucose. And, remember, too little glutamine results in muscle atrophy. "

Oh god. Please tell me you dont stand by this? This is absolute horse****. Glutamine as an energy producer? Yes, only when the body is depleted in glucose and fat. Good luck starving yourself enough to accomplish this.

And in it’s capacity to protect the brain from ammonia toxicity

Thats actually glutamate, not gluamine.

glutamine is being researched with regard to it’s positive effects on neurodegenerative diseases.

So is creatine. And its much more advanced in this study.

As an energy provider to the brain, glutamine is a mood elevator, improves mental performance and helps with long and short term memory.

LMAO! Now you're going to tell me glutamine has the capability to release dopamine? Oh boy LoL... Id love to see the physiological process behind this

Glutamine research continues to produce additional benefits of this supplement on a daily basis. With the apparent lack of side effects, it is a supplement that all in the fitness industry should give serious consideration. "

Lack of side effects? Ya think? Since it occurs in large amounts in the body, I would hope it has no side effects. Lame.

I could spend all day showing you stuff like this that is NOT from any supplement company....but I don't have time...I have read up on what I need to know, what you think is what you think...like I said, everyone has their own opinion and sources for those opinions. ..cheers buddy!

Indeed you could, but hopefully you will come at me with something better than this garbage. This was much to easy to rip apart. What supplement company threw this together? Too many holes in it brother.
Anyone can make an opioniated article, I dont want articles, I want facts, studies and sure you can find studies that sat glutamine works, I have some, but they're all at seriously high amounts that you or me couldnt afford on a regular basis, done on medical patients who have burns and auto-immune diseases, and can these studies be reproduced?? And who conducted them? This one was lackluster to say the least

[YellowJ]

Glutamine's effects on weight training stress

While the theorists still cling to the idea that since glutamine helps clinical stress, it might help with exercise stress, it‚s important to note that exercise stress has got nothin‚ on surgery, cancer, sepsis, burns, etc. For example, when compared with downhill running or weight lifting, urinary nitrogen loss is 15x (1400%) greater in minor surgery, 25x (2400%) greater in major surgery, and 33x (3200%) greater in sepsis. When it comes to the immune response, it‚s about 9x (800%) greater with surgery. When it comes to metabolic increase, it‚s 7x (600%) greater with burn injury, and when it comes to creatine kinase release; it‚s about 2x (100%) greater with surgery. As I said, exercise has got nothin‚ on real, clinical stress. It‚s like trying to compare the damage inflicted by a peashooter and that inflicted by a rocket launcher.

[Todd]

Look man, some of what was in that article was just part of the article...didn't say it all applied to bodybuilding, I was also just showing you some of it's other importances...that is all. Stop taking it all so serious....you might give yourself a cardiac arrest.....and then YOU may actually need this "USELESS" stuff to help ya out! LOL! Cheers!

[YellowJ]

Originally posted by Todd
Look man, some of what was in that article was just part of the article...didn't say it all applied to bodybuilding, I was also just showing you some of it's other importances...that is all. Stop taking it all so serious....you might give yourself a cardiac arrest.....and then YOU may actually need this "USELESS" stuff to help ya out! LOL! Cheers!

Sorry I take things seriously, its obvious you dont.

[Todd]

oh boy

[~ice~]

ok so uh, take glutamine or not ? lol

[Todd]

ice, you'll have to read up on what you can, and decide for yourself I suppose....some are for it, others against (obviously).....and the saga continues.....LOL!

[corpsedub]

ice..i recomend that you purchase a bottle..try it..if you see any gains then continue to take it..if not, dont. Personally i use it.

[KingFnKong]

I took Glutamine after workouts as a recovery suppliment and it did ABSOLUTLY NOTHING!!!!!!! and it just pissed me off that I was spending $89.95 on this tiny 500g useless thing. I probably went through 2 of them and gave up.
Its got on the label here "Glutamine may assist in the storage of carbohydrate as glycogen in the muscles and liver, and help to reduce lactic acid build-up.''
9 times out of 10, when ever you see the words 'may assist' it generally means that it doesnt actually do what it claims it does.
The body produces enough of this hormone anyway to do what it needs to with it. It doesnt need anymore just like you only need 4 teaspoons of creatine a day, anymore and the body just disregards it.
This C R A P is just a Fn rip off take my word for it. I dont lie.

ANyway have an Fn good day!

[Darrin]

I'd like to say hello to all the users of this forum. I've been checking out this site for about 2 mo.s now, on an almost daily basis, and can honestly say that I think it's great! Many people on it seem to be quite knowledgable and extremely willing to lend a helping hand, which is quite rare these days. Being a 'newbie' to this site, and to the bodybuilding sport (about 3 mo.s now), I decided that I can't go too wrong here and thought I'd just take the plunge and jump in.
Now about glutamine...I'd like to thank 'YellowJ' for researching and posting his numerous posts on this supplement. In fact, because of them, I decided at the last moment, NOT to use this expensive supplement. The benifits versus the cost, to me, seem to be minimal, especially for a beginning bodybuilder in good health and having a good dietary regimen.
Of course if you have the$'s and desperately need another 'edge', then fine...use it. But for now, until more conclusive research comes in, I for one, won't be using it.