Scivation Xtend Review: Best BCAA for Muscle Growth and Recovery
The most crucial element to gaining muscle is recovery. One way to ensure that happens is by taking branched-chain amino acids (BCAAs) during training.
In this post, I’m going to give you a full rundown of my personal favorite BCAA supplement, Scivation Xtend.
But I’m not just going to give you another Xtend review. I’m also going to do deeper into how this specific BCAA product can help you recover faster, as well as other supplements I stack with Xtend for more gains.
What Does Scivation Xtend Do For You?
Scivation Xtend is primarily a branched-chain amino acid (BCAA) supplement but also has some extras.
Glutamine and Citrulline Malate are both added, which are somewhat standard with a lot of BCAA supplements. There’s also a hefty dose of Vitamin B6 and electrolytes in Xtend.
The addition of glutamine was one of the things that attracted to try Xtend. I had taken regular glutamine powder before and it always had a tremendous impact on my recovery.
Most other BCAA supplements to not include this (and I get that, hence glutamine is not part of the branched chain aminos). But it’s a nice ingredient to include because glutamine + BCAAs are a powerful combination for muscle growth and recovery.
So you already see that it’s more than just branched-chain aminos. It’s made for both recovery and muscle energy during your workouts (I’ll talk more about muscle energy later!).
Let’s go over some of the benefits of taking Xtend BCAAs…
Benefits of Xtend BCAA
- Gives you more sustainable energy during workouts
- The added glutamine helps speed up muscle recovery
- Ratio of the 3 branched chain aminos are appropriately dosed
- Higher dose of BCAAs than most other BCAA supplements
- The added electrolytes keep you hydrated during long workouts
Does Xtend Really Work for Recovery?
The core purpose of taking BCAAs is recovery. Or more specifically, muscle recovery from your workouts.
When you train hard, you break down your muscles. The only way to make them grow is to allow them to recover. This is important for bodybuilders or anyone whose goal is to make gains.
Obviously food and rest play more important roles here than any supplement. So do you really need to take BCAAs…do they really work for recovery?
As Alina Petre points out in her article BCAA Benefits: A Review of Branched-Chain Amino Acids on Healthline.com, branched-chain amino acids are mostly broken down in your muscles, not your liver. She goes on to explain how your body uses BCAAs build muscle protein, produce energy, and reduce fatigue.
So yes, taking BCAAs during your workouts can indeed help you recover faster, and more adequately.
And if you’re training with heavyweights, which I assume you do since you’re on my site, then I’ll go as far to say that BCAAs should be one of your main supplements.
Now the caveat here is how much BCAAs do you need to boost recovery and for it to really matter. And more importantly, what ratio is needed. I’ll cover that when we get to the ingredients below.
Where to Buy Xtend BCAAs
You can buy Scivation Xtend on Amazon for pretty cheap. I recommend getting the 90 serving container (that’s far more cost effective).
Be consistent with taking it during your workouts! You’ll notice a huge difference!
Click the button below to order!
Scivation Xtend Ingredients Breakdown
Earlier I went over some additional ingredients in Xtend. The most important part of any BCAA formula is:
- Ratio of branched-chain aminos
- Total amount of BCAAs
Most experts recommend a 2:1:1 ratio of branched-chain amino acids. And this has been proven countless times to be effective. Here’s how your BCAA formula should look, and you’ll notice this ratio in Scivation Xtend below in the label:
- Leucine: 2
- Isoleucine: 1
- Valine: 1
Secondly, the overall amount of BCAAs needs to be adequate for it to be effective. Xtend gives you a total of 7 grams of branched-chain amino acids. Throw in glutamine, and you have a total of 9.5 grams of overall amino acids.
This is way more, gram per dollar than other BCAA supplements. And I personally have found Xtend to work best for me, which you’ll read more about below is my Xtend review.
Now let’s take a closer look at the label. I’ll also include the amounts of each ingredient.
Ingredient | Amount |
---|---|
L-Leucine | 3500 mg |
L-Glutamine | 2500 mg |
L-Isoleucine | 1750 mg |
L-Valine | 1750 mg |
Electrolyte Blend | 1140 mg |
Citrulline Malate | 1000 mg |
Scivation Xtend also contains Vitamin B6, sodium, and potassium.
My Scivation Xtend Review
The main benefit I get from taking Xtend BCAAs is sustainable muscle energy during my workouts. I mentioned this term earlier, so let me expand…
Sustainable muscle energy means you don’t get fatigued as fast. My workouts tend to be on the side of higher volume, so being able to last longer is important.
It’s simple:
- Workouts with Xtend > I can train longer, pumping out more sets and reps
- Workouts without Xtend > Still get a good workout, but I fatigue and burn out faster
Also, my recovery time is better with Xtend, and it does help reduce workout soreness (although we sometimes embrace feeling sore because we know we did something!).
Pros
- Gives you sustainable muscle energy
- Helps you pump out more sets and reps
- Gives you that extra edge to lift heavier weights
- I don’t get fatigued as fast
- Recovery time is noticeable faster
- I don’t care about taste, but every flavor taste pretty good – especially blue raspberry and watermelon
- Reasonable price – I always get the 90 serving container
Cons
- If you do shorter workouts, BCAAs, in general, may not be necessary
I had to dig for something negative to say about Scivation Xtend. That ‘con’ I listed really isn’t a negative thing. And even most bodybuilders’ short workouts are more than what a normal person would do.
On that note, Scivation Xtend is definitely for those like us to are serious about the gym and want to pack on muscle.
But for someone who isn’t serious about building muscle, I wouldn’t recommend taking Xtend, or really any supplements other than a multivitamin to maintain health.
Best Times to Take Xtend
There are 3x that are best to take Scivation Xtend, and of course, they’re all around your workout times:
- Before you workout
- During your workout
- Immediately after your workout
If you want to reduce the cost and only take it 2x, then go with:
- Before you workout
- During your workout
You’ll get enough protein and amino acids with your post-workout shake.
If you can only take 1 serving daily (usually this is due to budget constraints), then just take Xtend during your workout.
Xtend Video Review
Supplements to Stack with Xtend BCAAs
Here’s the part of my Xtend review that most supplement reviews fail to mention. What do you stack Xtend with?
Here’s a very basic supplement stack that includes Xtend:
- Whey protein powder (especially for my post-workout shake)
- Multivitamins (Animal Pak)
- ZMA before bed)
- Pre-workout that specializes in mental focus like 4 Gauge
- Xtend BCAAs
You can also read more about my supplement stack below – both stacks include Scivation Xtend:
For Mass Gains: Best Bodybuilding Supplement for Gaining Mass
For Getting Cut: Best Supplement Stack for Getting Ripped and Cut
Buy Xtend from Amazon
Add Scivation Xtend to your muscle building supplement stack and start making better gains!
You can order Xtend from Amazon and if you’re a Prime member, you’ll have it in just 2 days.
Click below to order now (get the 90 serving container…it’s more cost-effective)
Why You Should Consider Taking Scivation Xtend
Is Scivation Xtend BCAAs for you? It is if…
- You’re a bodybuilder or powerlifter
- You train hard, heavy, and intense
- You want to optimize your ability to gain muscle
- You’re consistent with your training
By being on my site and reading this far, I assume all of the above is you! It’s probably not for those who are casual about their workouts.
Train with Passion,
Jason