The building blocks of recovery.
Plain-language guides to amino acids, protein, and recovery nutrition, with an honest grade on the evidence behind every popular supplement.
Amino acids & derivatives
Ranked from strongest to earliest-stage evidence.
Beta-alanine
Raises muscle carnosine, a buffer against acid buildup during hard efforts.
Strong evidence
Creatine
The most researched sports supplement, built from three amino acids.
Strong evidence
Citrulline
Converted to arginine in the body, and studied for exercise performance.
Moderate evidence
Collagen peptides
Collagen broken into small peptides. Popular, but not a complete protein.
Moderate evidence
Leucine
The amino acid that acts as the main "on switch" for muscle protein building.
Moderate evidence
Arginine
A precursor to nitric oxide, though oral supplements are poorly absorbed for that purpose.
Limited evidenceGlutamine
The most abundant amino acid in the blood, often oversold for muscle recovery.
Limited evidenceGlycine
The simplest amino acid, a major part of collagen, and studied for sleep.
Limited evidenceHMB
A breakdown product of leucine, studied for preserving muscle.
Limited evidenceL-carnitine
Shuttles fat into mitochondria, though supplements rarely move the needle for fat loss.
Limited evidenceTyrosine
A building block for dopamine and norepinephrine, studied under acute stress.
Limited evidenceTaurine
Abundant in heart, muscle, and brain, and a recent focus of aging research.
Early researchStart here
Protein basics
How much, which kinds, and why total protein matters more than any single amino acid.
EAA vs BCAA
Why branched-chain amino acids alone fall short, and what complete protein provides.
Food peptides vs therapeutic peptides
Collagen peptides and BPC-157 share a word, not a category. Here's the difference.