Review protocol for BCAA on EIMD

<b>Background</b>Unfamiliar exercises can cause a high level of exercise-induced muscle damage (EIMD), particularly those that involve eccentric contractions. It is believed that the attenuation in muscular contractility caused by EIMD may compromise the quality of training, and thus appropriate recovery interventions need to be considered to minimise the level of EIMD. More recently, oral supplementation of branched-chain amino acid (BCAA) has been reported to alleviate the signs and symptoms of EIMD, and therefore accelerate recovery following strenuous training sessions. However, several studies have also reported no benefit of BCAA supplementation for EIMD recovery, with conflicting findings possibly due to variation in study designs. A systematic exploration of the literature that addresses these methodological limitations may provide the overall benefit of BCAA supplementation for recovery, although a thorough investigation has yet to be conducted. Thus, the purpose of this systematic review and meta-analysis will collate findings from various studies that have reported on the effects of BCAA supplementation on markers of EIMD.