Cortisol : What it is, how AAS influences it and how to control it
Hey Bros'
I wanted to lay out this thread to bring all the cortisol facts into one place. There are a few great threads in AR i will refer to. I want to cover what cortisol is and what is does, what causes elevated levels including how AAS messes with our natural cortisol levels, and what we can do to control it. Ill list some meds that ive dug up on the net and the boards. So, here goes :
Cortisol : what is it and what does it do?
Cortisol is the stress hormone. It plays vital roles in our bodies. It is a powerful anti-inflamitory. Cortisol is secreted when we feel stress, both emotional and physical. It helps us cope. It is a response to fight or flight. When elevated for short periods of time like it is supposed to, it is harmless. Cortisol may suppress testosterone, and vice versa.
Short-term cortisol exposure (seconds to minutes, as you might experience from moderate levels of exercise) causes :
* glycogen breakdown
* increased blood sugar
* fat tissue breakdown
* elevated blood pressure
* improved cardiovascular dynamics (i.e., stronger heart contractions, etc.).
Each of the above factors is a "good" thing while you are exercising--but you want these metabolic parameters to return to baseline levels after exercising.
Chronic cortisol exposure (hours to days to weeks, as you might experience from overtraining, psychological stressors, excessive dieting or too little sleep) causes:
* increase appetite, especially carb craving
* increased blood sugar
* accelerated muscle tissue breakdown
* accelerated connective tissue breakdown (bones, tendons, ligaments, cartilage, skin)
* suppressed immune system function
* increased fat storage, especially trunkal fat (associated with diabetes, heart disease, cancer)
The "moral" of the story is that cortisol is neither "bad" nor "good"--the length of your exposure is what matters. During chronic cortisol exposure, we "shift" or "up" from cortisol being a fat-loss stimulus to it being a signal for fat-gain and muscle loss. Furthermore, it can disrupt numerous body systems.
***thnx RonnietheBull***
Cortisol : Why would your levels be elevated?
People who dont sleep enough, dont eat a balanced diet (cortisol will break down muscle if you dont feed yourself enough protiens) or are experiencing stressfull situations on a daily basis may have prolonged elevated cortisol levels. If your natural, workouts that go to long at high intesity will raise levels. Keeping wrkouts to about an hour helps. More specifically to us, using AAS blocks the effects of cortisol. This in turn ups the production of cortisol and increases receptor sites. Thus, when a cycle is ended, the receptors are freed, and boom, your instantly catabolic, and very much so. It is MOST important to us to control cortisol levels in PCT, right at the end of a cycle. It is not to much of a worry while cycling. This alone should be enough to get your attention. A cortisol spike may make you restless, sleepless and anxious.
Cortisol : What we can do to control it.
The simplist way to control cortisol levels are a balanced diet, moderate excerisize and good sleeping patterns. If you are working out natural, be sure not to overtrain.
On cycle, it is not much a problem. Just eat right, train hard and rest. Like I mentioned above, cortisol is greatly affected by AAS use. It is a major part of the post cycle crash. This is where we should be most concerned.
I will be sure to use some type of cortisol remedy in my next PCT. It should be started as your last ester runs out of your body. One testimony from DemirSteel is he uses RU-486 to fight cortisol in PCT. Some bros have told me cutting cortisol in PCT really helped keep gains. Clenbuterol is said to help, with its anti-catabolic properties, and is a popular choice because of its fat burning ability. It is what i will use in PCT along with my anti-e's.
Cortisol : Remedies we can use.
Here are some meds or natural suppliments that ive found :
-Mirtazapine (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/q...&dopt=Abstract)
--May make you feel like a zombie, reported to me that messes with mood.
-Clenbuterol (http://forums.steroid.com/showthread.php?t=148950)
-Relacore (natural suppliment) (http://<br />
http://www.fitnessone...roducts_id/410)
-Relacore is also in Lean Xtreme by designersupps.com (http://designersupps.com/static_site/leanxtreme.php)
-- this one was reported to me to work really well, and i think its natural.
-Phosphatidylserine (Cytodyne) (http://www.nicemuscle.com/cytodyne-82088.htm)
-- an ingredient in some suppliments i have never used. reported to me to work well from a female member.
-RU-486 (http://www.feminist.org/action/action120f.htm)
--do research if you plan on using this drug. It is the abortion pill, and i have limited knowledge on it.
Summary
Well, to sum up, cortisol is bad for us when elevated, and coming off a cycle does this. While on cycle, no biggie, as its actions are blocked by AAS. When going natural, eat right, sleep right, DONT overtrain (like 1 hour is the most in a day). I will most certainly be using a cortisol rememdy when i come off cycle. As usual, this thread is open to suggestions, other remedies, and real life experiences fighting cortisol, especially in PCT. Feel free to add your knowledge! Later bro's, im friggen worn out...
~DB~
