Vitamins don’t get enough recognition when it comes to muscle growth and recovery. But what most people don’t realize is that Vitamins are equally helpful in building muscles and improving performance just like proteins or creatine.
Vitamins are the unsung heroes that help to build the metabolic pathways upon which muscles achieve optimum efficiency. However, there are several vitamins, and the body needs them to complete its functions. Deficiency in any one of them could lead to reduced performance, growth, and health concerns.
To narrow down the options for you, here are five vitamins that prove vital in growth and muscle recovery.
Vitamin D
Vitamin D is one of the most important vitamins in muscle growth and recovery. Nicknamed “the sunshine vitamin” Vitamin D plays an essential role in supporting bone strength and protein synthesis.
Vitamin D is also present in foods like fatty fish, egg yolk, and beef liver. But, it’s hard to get enough of it from foods. As little as 30 minutes of exposure to the sun is enough to get you the daily requirement of Vitamin D.
If you live in an area without much sun, you can use supplements. It’s advised to use Vitamin D together with Vitamin K2. This pairing is crucial to your bone health. Vitamin D maximizes the body’s ability to absorb calcium while Vitamin K2 redirects the mineral to bone development.
Vitamin C
Vitamin C is unmistakable. It’s best known for building immunity against infections and improving antioxidants in the body.
Most parents make sure their children take Vitamin C to avoid colds and other common infections. But Vitamin C's prowess goes beyond building a strong immune system. It's critical when you're growing muscles or recovering, whether from an injury or a heavy workout.
Research shows that pretreatment with Vitamin C can help to delay and reduce muscle soreness. It's an extraordinary revelation. Even though this vitamin doesn't help build muscles directly, it allows you to hit the gym longer without the after-effects of muscle soreness.
Luckily, you might not need to take Vitamin C supplements. It’s abundant in citrus fruits like oranges and tangerines and also in tomatoes. Leafy greens like kale also have a healthy dose of vitamin C in them.
Vitamin B12
Vitamin B12 is one of the 8 B-vitamins. Riboflavin (as it’s also called) occurs naturally in grains, dairy products, and plants.
Its main role in muscle growth is breaking down proteins, carbohydrates, and fats. Basically, Vitamin B12 keeps the body energized and fueled for the day’s activities by converting carbohydrates into Adenosine Triphosphate (ATP).
Riboflavin has the task of keeping the muscles and the skin healthy. B12 is a must-have vitamin if you're looking to build muscle and stay fit. It's vital in providing the muscles with energy so you can flex them.
Vitamin E
Vitamin E is a powerful antioxidant, and has been and still is a part of the regimen for most bodybuilders. Its precise role in muscle growth became clear recently.
Without Vitamin E, the plasma membrane, which helps to keep cells intact would be a mess. This vitamin keeps the cells from spilling their contents out by keeping the plasma membrane happy and healthy.
Without it, the plasma membrane cannot control what goes in and out of the cell efficiently and would ultimately fail. Considering muscle cells tear their membranes from regular use, lack of Vitamin E would greatly increase recovery and healing times and render muscle growth a tedious and painful process.
Other than muscle health, Vitamin E also assists in maintaining healthy skin. It helps to slow down aging by eliminating free radicals. You can enjoy these and other benefits of this vitamin by making corn, soybean, nuts, sunflower seeds, and green leafy vegetables a significant part of your diet.
Vitamin B3
The B-class of vitamins is every bodybuilder’s favorite vitamins. To close out the list of five of the best vitamins for muscle growth and recovery is Niacin, better known as Vitamin B3.
Like its cousin Riboflavin, Niacin is critical in fueling the body. It metabolizes the proteins and fats used to power the body.
In the bodybuilding circles, a Niacin Flush (caused by an overdose of Niacin) is highly in demand. An overdose of Niacin doesn’t have any adverse effects. But it dilates small blood vessels allowing the delivery of more nutrients and oxygen to the muscles, which translates to unrivaled performance. The only challenge is that the results last for a short period.
Conclusion
Successful muscle growth and recovery is the result of a multi-pronged approach. Pumping and lifting weights is not enough. Muscles need the right foods and nutrients to spur growth and keep them healthy.
Although there is no shortage of vitamins to choose from, if your primary goal is to grow or help muscles with recovery or both, knowing which vitamins to pair with other performance enhancement supplements like Anavar is important. Also, according to article cannabis is also linked with muscle growth and recovery you can buy it online through online stores like high supplies.
If you need to grow your muscles and speed up recovery time for whatever reasons, then these are some of the essential vitamins. Make sure you incorporate them in your diet regularly, and you will notice results in no time.