How Nitric Oxide Supplements Work
We’ve heard of them, maybe even used them, however more often than not are never quite sure how nitric oxide supplements work. Or whether they hold any real benefits. Many a true body builder and fitness addict loves the feeling of the ‘pump’ in the gym when continually reaching failure on every set, most notoriously Arnie himself. Does it have any real benefits? Probably more than you realise, and it can have a very big positive and mental affect for some that can really help motivation in the gym. It also improves the flow of blood into your muscle that in turn helps recuperation and nutrition.
Nitric oxide (abbreviated as NO) exists as a signalling molecule in mammals that is involved in muscle contraction and other physiological processes. Being a neurotransmitter, it instructs your muscles when to contract, then when to relax. When your internal organs require more blood, NO gives the signal for it to happen. Therefore, if your limbs require more blood to allow for movement or for warmth, your brain will then signal the blood vessels in the limbs to release NO. It can also help you digest food, if you have just eaten a large meal, NO delivers more blood to your stomach to allow for better digestion. Overall, it controls blood pressure throughout your whole body, delivering more blood when you exercise, and then reducing the flow when at rest.
Exactly how do nitric oxide supplements work? When used as a pre workout supplement, NO can help improve blood flow, and therefore oxygen delivery and glucose uptake. This obvious would improve exercise performance by allowing oxygen into the cell encouraging the burning of fuels for energy, meaning the effect of NO can lead to improved aerobic performance. Studies have also shown increased NO levels can increase muscle fibre growth and testosterone levels, as well as insulin levels and creatine retention in muscle. It can also improve muscle velocity and muscle power over and above your bodies naturally produced NO levels. This is what leads to the feeling of a more complete muscle pump, which in turn makes your muscles feel like they have worked even harder.
Over the years, nitric oxide has been included in many pre workout supplements to help users experience the feeling of the pump and has now become a very popular pre workout choice. The majority of people who have used nitric oxide do experience an enhanced muscle pump.
When trying a new supplement for the first time you need to be using it over a sustained period to really see the benefits and determine its usefulness, on top of this it is not always easy to conclude whether the product is having any real effect or not as other factors such as diet and nutrition could be contributing. The advantages NO supplements have are that the effects are experienced short term, hence you should either notice or not notice a difference during you first workout post consumption. A number of gym goers are very sceptical about NO supplements, nonetheless after using for a couple of training sessions you should be able to determine whether the product is worth continuing.