Does Fish Oil Help with Muscle Growth and Recovery?

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Fish oil for building muscles and recovery… 3 scientific case study which shows it works!!!

Let’s dig in 🙂

There are plenty of supplements out there which claims that they can help in muscle growth and recovery but that’s what companies claim!

I always try my best to look after some evidence which helps me out to make the right decisions and fish oil is one of the supplements which has always been an important part of my diet and supplementation.

does fish oil works

Somehow, I have ignored the very important benefits which fish oil can give if you are looking to optimize your results.

Hey, guys, it’s me Gympanzie and if you have any question regarding weight loss and building muscles join my Whatsapp Group by clicking here

You would have already read some of the amazing benefits of taking fish oil supplementation like lowering risks of heart disease, protection from type-2 diabetes, building healthy cells, maintaining brain & nerve function, Alzheimer’s, breast cancer, depression, ADHD, etc

But what about muscle growth and recovery…

There is already plenty of research on animals which have shown the proven benefits of fish oil in muscle regeneration and increased strength. [1]

I wanted to see whether it is the same in the case of humans that’s what we are going to explore in this article!

People have gained half kg of lean body mass and lost about the same amount of fat mass in a six-week-long study.

fish oil men bodybuilding

So, in this study people have gained half kg of lean body mass and lost about the same amount of fat mass in a six-week-long study.

This study was conducted by Gettysburg College in the US.

Study

The researchers wanted to know what is the effect on healthy people if they wanted to lose weight.

There were 44 human subjects in this study, where 22 of them were given a placebo consisting of safflower oil for six weeks.  They were marked as SO group.

And another 22 of them were given 4 grams of fish oil every day and were marked FO group (1 capsule contained 1 g of supplement)

One capsule contained 600 mg EPA & 200 mg DHA.

People took capsules with their meals; 2 with breakfast, and 2 with their evening meal.

Result

After 6 weeks no changes were seen in SO group. But the FO group gained half kg of lean body mass and lost about the same amount of fat mass. (Shown in fig. 1.a.)

FISH OIL RECOMMENDED DOSAGE FOR FAT LOSS AND BUILDING MUSCLE AT THE END OF THIS ARTICLE…

Fish Oil & Muscle Growth fig. 1.a.

Fi. 1.a

Another important thing which researchers believe is the reduction of cortisol level in the FO group (Cortisol is a stress hormone which breaks down muscle tissue and helps fat tissue to grow).

This pretty much explains the body recomposition effect.

Source:
J Int Soc Sports Nutr. 2010 Oct 8; 7: 31.

Fish oil supplementation helped gain women lean body mass by over 1.5 kg & lost just under 1.5 kg of body fat in a 12-week study.

Woman and fish oil

Another study conducted by Canadian nutritionists at the University of Guelph shows taking fish oil boosts calorie expenditure, burn fat combined with low-intensity exercise, and stimulates muscle growth.

Study

The researchers divided 24 healthy women into 2 groups (Age between 60 and 74).

One group was given 5 grams of fish oil for twelve weeks every day.

Out of which 2 g consisted of omega-3 fatty acids DHA and EPA.

The other group was given a placebo.

Result

Both the groups were examined multiple times in the laboratory during and at the end of the supplementation period.

Women’s body composition and their calorie expenditure were measured.

There was an increase in calorie expenditure when at rest and during low-intensity exercise [the women had to cycle for 30 minutes at a gentle pace] in women supplemented with fish oil.

2.a.1

fig. 2.a.2

Fig. 2.a. T1: after 0 weeks; T2: after 6 weeks; T3: after 12 weeks.

Women taking fish oil burned the same amount of fat as the women who were in the placebo group when at rest.

But the group of women who did a low-intensity exercise while taking the supplement burned more calories than the women in the placebo group.

During this experiment women who took the supplement lost just under 1.5 kg of body fat, which was not statistically significant.

But there was an increase in women’s lean body mass by over 1.5 kg and that was statistically significant. (Reference fig. 2. b.)

fig. 2.b.

Fig. 2.b.

Timed up and go test was also measured before and after the supplementation where the time it took for women to do this decreased, which shows that they have gain strength after taking the supplement.

(Timed Up & Go Test is a simple test to check how fast a person get up and sit down for a certain amount of time)

Conclusion

Researchers concluded that taking 5 grams of fish oil per day is difficult for many older adults, which may cause digestive issues or stomach discomfort.

“Determining the optimal dose of the supplement required to illicit [sic] the metabolic and physical benefits are needed.”

Source:
PLoS One. 2015 Dec 17;10(12):e0144828.

 

Fish oil supplementation helped gain men & women over 60 more muscle mass, strength and physical performance-enhancing effects in older adults in a 6 months study.

fish-oil-bodybuilding

The third study is from Washington University School of Medicine which was published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.

Where people over the age of 60 have gained a noticeable amount of muscle mass and strength after taking the supplement.

One important thing to observe is that the subjects did not undergo weight training.

Study

60-85 age men and women were divided into 2 groups.
Group one was given corn oil (placebo) for 6 months and the other group was given 4 capsules of fish oil daily.

You can get a similar amount by eating 200 to 400 grams of salmon, herring or sardines. The fish-oil group took a total of 1.86 g of EPA and 1.5 g of DHA via supplementation on a daily basis.

Subjects took two capsules with breakfast and another 2 with the evening meal.

Researchers used supplements manufactured by GlaxoSmithKline “Lovaza” which contained ethyl fatty acids. The supplement was provided by GlaxoSmithKline for free of charge where other costs were covered by the American government.

Results

During this study, there were no changes in the weight of the fish oil subjects, but what did change was the muscle size of the subjects.
On the other hand control group subjects, muscle weakened and even lost their muscle size during the period of the experiment.

White bars: after 3 months; grey bars: after 6 months (fig 3.a.)

fig. 3.a.

Fig. 3.a.

At the end of this study, a strength test was done between the controlled group and the supplement group.

Fish oil group gained more strength in their hands and were able to exert more pressure in closing springs in their hands.

Also, the total amount of kgs lifted by the supplement group also increased when doing chest presses, leg presses, leg extensions, and leg curls.

The present study shows that these effects actually result in more muscle mass, strength and physical performance-enhancing effects in older adults.

By the way, the subjects did no weight training in the start and in between of this experiment.

Conclusion

“Further studies are needed to check the long-term effect of n–3 PUFA therapy (fish oil supplementation) can sufficiently slow down the declines in muscle mass and function that normally occur in older adults to significantly delay or even prevent sarcopenia and a loss of physical independence or cure it in already sarcopenic persons”, the researchers wrote.

Source:
Am J Clin Nutr. 2015 Jul;102(1):115-22.

Fish Oil Recommended Daily Dosage

Supplement doses may vary according to your goals.

  • For general health, take 250mg of EPA and DHA combined daily which is the minimum dose and can be met via fish intake according to examine.com.
  • FDA recommends a total daily intake of EPA & DHA combined not more than 2 g [2]
  • Those who are looking to lower their triglycerides levels, the American Heart Association recommends 2–4 g/day of EPA & DHA in total under the care of a physician [3]
  • My daily dosage of EPA & DHA in total is 1g or 2 capsules with breakfast, where I am currently using WOW OMEGA FISH OIL

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