"Lactic Acid Is Not Muscles' Foe, It's Fuel." (link)
By GINA KOLATA, NY Times
Fitness & Nutrition Section
"The notion that lactic acid was bad took hold more than a century ago, said George A. Brooks, a professor in the department of integrative biology at the University of California, Berkeley. It stuck because it seemed to make so much sense.
""It's one of the classic mistakes in the history of science," Dr. Brooks said."
This article does a nice job of explaining the core science behind CRANK Forearm Fuel's formulation. In the 1970s, Dr. Brooks discovered that lactic acid was actually not a waste byproduct, but rather an available and efficient form of fuel that's used by muscles during extended efforts. "Lactic Acid" is actually a bit of a misnomer and an artifact of our previous misunderstanding of its role in the body's energy systems.
Lactic Acid is comprised of two things: a lactate molecule and two H+ (hydrogen ions). Lactate is the non-acid part of Lactic Acid, and it's lactate that the body uses for energy during exercise. H+ is the acid part of Lactic Acid, and H+ increases the acidity of surrounding tissue. It's the accumulation of H+ that's thought to cause the burn and "pump" we associate with Lactic Acid.
So how does this factor into CRANK Forearm Fuel? It's a long story, but here's the short version:
- During exercise, the body prefers using energy from lactate
- The body doesn't store lactate, and lactate only comes as a byproduct of converting your body's fat or sugar stores into energy. This also results in the production of acidic H+
- When the body uses lactate for energy, lactate "takes up" H+, thereby reducing acidity or "buffering"
Therefore, if the body has lactate available without having to first convert sugar and fat into energy (for example, if you were to drink CRANK Forearm Fuel before you started climbing), then it would:
- Increase the available amount of the form of energy that's preferred by working muscles
- Lower the amount of H+ produced by the body's conversion of fat and sugar into energy, thereby reduce the severity of muscle burn or pump caused by H+ accumulation
- Buffer existing H+ to reduce acidity caused by H+ accumulation
Now you understand the science behind why CRANK Forearm Fuel gives you "MORE PULL. LESS PUMP."