Less and less energy is available through ingestion as you move up the food chain. This is known as Trophic Level Transfer Efficiency. Eating plant-based matter is as close as we can get to ingesting the full, raw energy of the sun. If you're devoted to HITT, you owe this energy to your workout.
In the gym, you know your branched amino acids are working protein synthesis magic on your musculature. You can feel it! But you hesitate to talk about it. There is always the scary possibility the listener will ask what a branched amino acid is. “An amino acid with branches and stuff” is not technically incorrect, but the subject could use a little more exploration.