Magnesium is a useful mineral that your body needs for tons of functions, including the support of your muscles. Specifically, magnesium helps you easily perform activities like flexing your biceps or tightening your glutes. Magnesium also assists with muscle relaxation.
Magnesium supplements come in several forms, often combined with other compounds. But even if you only took magnesium on its own, you’d still be doing your muscles a favor. A 2022 study in the Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research revealed that after taking 350 milligrams of magnesium for 10 days, participants felt less post-exercise muscle soreness and higher self-reported muscular performance. Similarly, a 2017 review in Nutrients suggested that taking magnesium could enhance workout performance by potentially lessening lactate buildup (the cause of delayed onset muscle soreness) and improving muscle functionality.
With that said, if you’re looking to achieve better strength-training results, you may want to go with magnesium glycinate, a combination of magnesium and glycine.
Two substances that give an advantage to your muscles
Without enough magnesium in your system, you’d have trouble recovering fully after a tough gym session. But with sufficient magnesium, your muscles can get the assist they need for recovery, which is essential to getting stronger. And the mineral’s inherent muscle-building benefits may be amplified when you add glycine into the mix by taking a magnesium glycinate supplement.
Glycine is an amino acid that promotes the “bulking up” capabilities of muscles. It also assists in keeping connective tissues from weakening; after all, it’s one of the primary ingredients in collagen. A 2022 study published in the Annals of Medicine and Surgery showed that collagen is supportive of the structural integrity and function of tissues.
Another upside to glycine is that it has been known to promote better sleep as well. When you can improve your sleep quality, you’re giving your muscles one of the simplest ways to recover after a hard workout.
Reasons to reach for magnesium glycinate
Research supports the idea that magnesium glycinate may be the right choice if stronger, more relaxed muscles and better sleep are among your healthy living goals.
According to a 2015 article in Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Clinics of North America, magnesium glycinate could be useful as an agent to alleviate muscle cramping and other muscular discomfort. (Read about some unexpected foods that can help you prevent muscle cramps.) For some people, between 200 milligrams and 400 milligrams would be the ideal daily dose; others may be able to tolerate higher doses. The same recommended dosage may result in some benefits for people with asthma; magnesium glycinate is specifically noted as a form of magnesium supplementation that is unlikely to cause diarrhea, per a 2018 article in Integrative Medicine (Fourth Edition).
As you would when starting any supplement, consider talking with your doctor before beginning a regimen of magnesium glycinate. Though usually well-tolerated and safe for consumption, magnesium can sometimes interfere with the effectiveness of medications.
