1/11/2016: My On Cycle Extras; What & Why:

[jimmyinkedup]

You know over the years I have gone through phases and one of the first I went through shortly after entering this lifestyle was my supplement phase. Basically it boils down to a period of time where I blew a ton of cash, on a ton of supplements, that the majority of didn’t do shit. In fact at one point I would say I was a total freaking sucker for any and everything that was a bodybuilding supplement. I spent WAY more than I would have had I just run an AAS cycle for sure and my results were significantly inferior of course!

That being said there are a few of these supplements that have stuck that I now run alongside my cycles or simply daily for general health purposes. That is the point of today’s blog. I am going to share the supplements I run, why I run them, and hopefully get some feedback from you guys as to your own personal additions when it comes to supplementation.

Luckily my “supplement phase” didn’t last long. Very quickly I realized that the ultimate “supplements” were AAS and those along with a good diet would provide my body with all I could want in order to grow and build muscle tissue. Along with this AAS use however, came certain side effects where some supplements have proven useful.

In addition to these supplements I use to address some of the adverse side effects of AAS, I also run some for general health purposes. There are even a couple I run, well, just because. Because I am not 100% certain they are doing a significant amount for my overall health but they are inexpensive enough & I know they aren’t hurting anything so I run them just in case. Today’s blog will cover them all.

1- A Multi vitamin. This one is a just in case supplement. By all accounts a good diet should meet all my vitamin and mineral needs but given the added stress of this lifestyle and the low cost of a Multi vitamin I don’t take the chance. I just take a generic, no iron, multi vitamin daily.

2- Vitamin D3. This one came on Dr’s orders. Upon getting blood work several years ago it was discovered that I fell into the the 90% category of all men that were low in vitamin d3. I take 5000 iu’s of D3 daily.

3- NAC, or N-ACETYL CYSTEINE , is another I take daily for general health purposes but actually started out using as an on cycle supplement only. I started using NAC on cycle at a dose of 1200mgs/day to keep my liver enzymes in check. NAC prevents AAS induced cholestasis. Cholestasis is a reduction in bile flow in the liver which results in increased liver cell apoptosis (death). By preventing this I found that I was able to keep my liver enzymes in check even on cycle which include some fairly hepatoxic orals. Upon researching NAC however, I found that it has some general health benefits that make it worth taking year round. NAC is broken down into glutathione in the body. Glutathione is one of the most powerful antioxidants there are. Oxidative stress, especially in a lifestyle such as ours, is a very real general health concern/issue. NAC at 600mgs/day provides me with a potent, effective, and overall inexpensive antioxidant.

4- Red Yeast Rice or RYR. Red yeast rice is a supplement I take on cycle which genuinely helps to keep my lipid profile in order. Red Yeast Rice is the naturally occurring source for a class of pharmaceuticals known as statins. Statins are prescribed regularly for people who have cholesterol issues. Taking Red Yeast Rice improves good cholesterol while decreasing bad cholesterol. There is, however, a caveat to this supplement. You see in the US big pharma put pressure on the FDA to regulate Red Yeast rice as it was found that rather than people going to their Dr to get a statin such as say Crestor prescribed they were simply taking the OTC supplement RYR (Red Yeast Rice). Well the FDA imposed upon the supplement industry a regulation that’s says that and RYR sold in the US must have all of the statins removed. Yup, that’s right, the very ingredient that makes the supplement worth taking in the first place must be removed in order to sell it in the US. Have to love big Pharma having the FDA in their back pocket! Anyway my point is that while it is highly unlikely that this is an enforceable regulation why take the chance? I get my RYR from an overseas source in powder form. You can find it on Ebay as well as via a general google search. If anyone is interested feel free to pm me and I will give you the source I use for my RYR which I KNOW works as I have blood work that shows a marked improvement from mid to end of cycle lipids from the simple addition of RYR to my regiment.

5- Next , and this is a big one, is Cialis. Or I should specify, low dose daily Cialis. This one has a host of benefits and I have incorporated it from an on cycle supplement to a daily use, on or off cycle supplement. I take Cialis at 3mg/day (this is a low dose, most need from 5-10mg). What does this do for me? Well it lowers my BP a good 15 points on the systolic and 5-10 points on the diastolic. This has made one of the most dangerous effects of aas use, High Blood Pressure, a manageable side effect. That alone would be enough to warrant its use IMO. The benefits don’t stop there however. As I am getting older I also found that the effects of a cycle on my prostate were becoming evident. Having to get up at night to piss, struggling to fully empty my bladder, straining at time to piss. All symptoms of an enlarged prostate. Low dose daily Cialis eliminates these effects completely for me. Now it should be said this is a supplementation that merely treats the symptomology of the prostate enlargement. It in no way prevents it and you should always pay close attention to your PSA in your blood work. I am comfortable treating the symptom in this case as when I am off cycle my PSA returns to within range numbers. If that were not the case I may very well be seeking other options to treat or protect the prostate. That , however, can be a bit of tricky situation as most prostate heath supplements work as anti-androgens and just how prostate selective this anti androgenic effect is in those supplements in an unknown.

6- This one is an ”on hand” supplement. UDCA. I don’t take this unless it is needed but I have it on hand for every cycle. If for some reason my NAC does not keep my liver enzymes within range (which is a rare occurrence) I have UDCA on hand to address this potential issue. Should my liver enzymes become elevated and out of range on cycle in spite of my NAC use I would then implement UDCA at a dose of 250-500mgs/day. Usually 14 days of this treatment will bring the liver enzymes right back down and in line. I continue taking the NAC this whole time and the one time I did in fact have to do this, once my liver enzymes were back in line the NAC at that point kept them there. Made me wonder why, that being the case, my enzymes elevated out of range in the first place but it was good to see that once they were back in check by taking the UDCA the NAC was able to keep them there. This also makes UDCA a very economical supplement. I get my UDCA in a bottle of 60 , 250mg caps. I had to do this one time for 2 weeks. That left me with like 45 caps, enough to do it 3 more times if necessary. That took one of my more expensive supplements, UDCA, and made it a very, very cheap one. Considering one bottle can treat this condition 4 times that makes it as cheap as hell.

7- This one is an odd ball one. In fact I only use it because I had it on hand and read a post by someone on a forum so I tried it for this purpose and it worked. I had picked up a KG of glutamine one time as I got it very cheap. Overall I think it is a pretty useless supplement as far as GH release or immune system function, the things it is marketed for. For that very reason it was simply sitting on shelf never getting used. One time I was reading in a forum where someone who gets heartburn really bad while running tren uses of all thing glutamine to resolve the issue. The justification was that tren is so anabolic that levels of glutamine in the stomach lining is so rapidly depleted that it causes heartburn. Blah blah blah. I have no idea if any of that is true. However with a little research I did find out that glutamine protects the muscosa that lines your gastrointestinal tract, it reduces inflammation, and prevents gastroesophageal reflux disease, a primary cause of heartburn. So this one was an oddball one that I happen to use for an “off label” use if you will and only because I have it but darn if it doesn’t work. 5-15g of glutamine in the am and at night before bed keeps me heartburn free while on cycle which is a damn godsend as I can get horrible heartburn when on cycle especially cycles which do include tren.

I think that pretty much wraps up my on cycle extras in the form of effective supplementation. I did not include my on cycle staples such as an AI or prami for cycle with a 19 nor. I don’t consider them supplements anyway and they are actually a part of the cycle in my mind. Id never run a cycle without an ai nor would I ever run a 19nor without prami on hand.

I have dabbled with many other supplements as well, supplements such as fish oil for example. What I have found for me is that I personally do ok getting my omeha3&6 EFA from Eggs, nuts and flax & chia seed as well. I just didn’t notice a difference in my blood work nor in the way I felt while taking fish oil do I no longer use it. For some it may be a god send, for me I just do not find it of benefit.

Oh there is one more supplement I should mention. Vitamin B12. I have to admit I am very inconsistent with its use. I have it on hand and in abundance so quite often when I am on cycle I do throw it in and I do use it. I really should be measuring my vit b levels via blood work and supplementing accordingly but I have to admit I have not. I am inconsistent with its use and am fairly certain I could do without it but since I do have so much of it I will continue to use it. Now when the stock of B12 I have is gone will I pick up more, That I do not know. Time will have to tell.

So how about you guys throw out there some of your supplements. What are your staples? I hope someone out there finds this blog of use and Id love to hear your opinion on cycle extras, please share away…..

[NACH3]

I like how you did this, Jimmy!

My daily supps are almost identical to yours with the exception of getting RYR! I need to get some to be an ed supp it's one I've put off and need to get! So thx lol...I take D3(2-3000iu daily), NAC(& I also keep UDCA on hand) daily cialis, multi vit, fish oil(but I'm wondering more and more about this supp)? In addition to you I take Magnesium Chelated(which helps/aids in digestion) probiotics(but haven't been but need to restart), B6, Zinc...

I've always wondered myself what other people took and if they take breaks? Do you, Jimmy? Ever do a sorta detox from everything? I've considered this many times but never asked lol

[DSS]

Another good insight Jimmy, thanks for the time again.

I'll have to look into the red yeast thing I've just bought some recently, hopefully being in the uk that hasn't been enforced here. Hopefully...

But with all good things the governments purse come first.

[jimmyinkedup]

I like how you did this, Jimmy! ......

.........I've always wondered myself what other people took and if they take breaks? Do you, Jimmy? Ever do a sorta detox from everything? I've considered this many times but never asked lol

Thanks Brother! Much appreciated man!
No I never really intentionally take a beak from my staple supps. There haven been scenarios where I have forgotten them for several days etc but I will tell you the cia is not one I like to forget at all. Its ok for a day missing it but after that I actually feel a tad bit different not taking it. Dont know if it is the BP or what but I def notice when I miss it for more than a day. The others I could skip a week or month and never miss a beat, prob not notice a thing different. The thing is by the time we feel something it is often too late you know what I mean man!

[PersuAsian]

Great post Jimmy! I take a lot of the same things as you right now. RYR, D3, Cialis, DIM and a multi. RYR has been great for my cholesterol, but in some other forum someone told me that the active ingredient is no longer in these supplements. From what I read after that it seems to be true. It was the only thing that I added to my daily supps though and it shows in the numbers, so something in it is working. I tried the Niacin route but that just makes me too uncomfortable.

[NACH3]

Thanks Brother! Much appreciated man!
No I never really intentionally take a beak from my staple supps. There haven been scenarios where I have forgotten them for several days etc but I will tell you the cia is not one I like to forget at all. Its ok for a day missing it but after that I actually feel a tad bit different not taking it. Dont know if it is the BP or what but I def notice when I miss it for more than a day. The others I could skip a week or month and never miss a beat, prob not notice a thing different. The thing is by the time we feel something it is often too late you know what I mean man!

This is true.

I actually feel a difference without the Cialis as well! Any more than 2 days and I feel 'off' I'm not sure if that's the correct word but yes off would be it...

[Bio-Active]

This is true. I actually feel a difference without the Cialis as well! Any more than 2 days and I feel 'off' I'm not sure if that's the correct word but yes off would be it...

I can't run cialis anymore. Makes me to stuffed up. Makes the hips and lower back ache too

[jimmyinkedup]

I can't run cialis anymore. Makes me to stuffed up. Makes the hips and lower back ache too

Many complain about these exact issues man. Im telling you try it at just 3mg/day. You will be surprised that it actually does something at that dose and has zero sides.
Just a thought if your open to trying it again Jimbo!

[Bio-Active]

Many complain about these exact issues man. Im telling you try it at just 3mg/day. You will be surprised that it actually does something at that dose and has zero sides. Just a thought if your open to trying it again Jimbo!

lol I'll try it. It's the being stuffy that bothers me the most

[jimmyinkedup]

lol I'll try it. It's the being stuffy that bothers me the most

Viagra does that to me to the point of I dont ever use it all anymore either.

[NACH3]

I can't run cialis anymore. Makes me to stuffed up. Makes the hips and lower back ache too

Every so often I'll get the hip/low back glute ache... I've been complaining about becoming stuffed up lately, at night only after I take it actually... Was not aware of this side(is a PITA)

[Bio-Active]

Viagra does that to me to the point of I dont ever use it all anymore either.

yeah I hate being stuffed up like that. Makes you feel like you are suffocating

[kelkel]

My protocol is very similar and has been for multiple years now. Only ones I don't use is the multi and glutamine. I also use Slo-Niacin. Some other interesting points that this stuff can do in addition to what Jimmy mentioned:

Slo-Niacin increases HDL. Basically by reducing its catabolism.
RYR can have a very positive impact on your LDL cholesterol without side effects.
NAC can help raise HDL on top of all the positives mentioned
Cialis - if you can't get it look into arginine to reduce BP and improve blood flow. It works.

[GirlyGymRat]

Finding this thread interesting.

NAC. I only run during cycle; one or twice a year. Hmmm. I missed that this is for daily use. :/

[elastica]

With supplementing D3 it's really important to consider intake of vitamin K, an important co-factor of D3. It directs the body to deposit calcium into bones and away from soft tissues and blood vessels. Vitamin A along with D3 can prevent any possible toxicity issues from unopposed D3, cod liver oil is great as it contains both. Magnesium and fish oil are other important cofactors of D3. D3/K2/chelated mag and some form of omegas are a staple for me.

I love NAC for its glutathione boosting potential, it works best when paired with vitamin C. I also like undenatured whey and glutamine to help provide substrates for the liver to manufacture glutathione.

[NACH3]

With supplementing D3 it's really important to consider intake of vitamin K, an important co-factor of D3. It directs the body to deposit calcium into bones and away from soft tissues and blood vessels. Vitamin A along with D3 can prevent any possible toxicity issues from unopposed D3, cod liver oil is great as it contains both. Magnesium and fish oil are other important cofactors of D3. D3/K2/chelated mag and some form of omegas are a staple for me.

I love NAC for its glutathione boosting potential, it works best when paired with vitamin C. I also like undenatured whey and glutamine to help provide substrates for the liver to manufacture glutathione.

Mag Chelated is great! It's an ed staple for me along with calcium/D3(combined in one)... Along with everything else I use(stated above) it's great in aiding digestion(mag Chelated)...

[Firefighter33]

Thank you Jimmy.
You and Austinite have changed my cycling knowledge. I learned a lot about of extra cycle compounds. NAC, DIM and other great compounds helped me to carry on cycles more effective.
It's very interesting your point about tadalafilo (Cialis), I'll use it to reduce my prostate size.
A hug from Argentina.

[mike198]

I've been taking vitamin d3 for 3 months and have noticed my sleep has been great. Also, my immune system is solid: no colds and winter is almost over. Unfortunately, my blood pressure was going through the roof and I had awful anxiety. I later learned that d3 uses up magnesium, and I was experiencing sides of magnesium deficiency. I started taking 2500 mg chelated magnesium and that fixed the anxiety and BP. I also dropped the d3 for a few days. Then I was hit with insomnia, which I can only attribute to magnesium being too high, so I added some calcium since mag uses up calcium. Anyways, I think my electrolytes are now all messed up. I took 4000 IU's d3 today with ~600 mg mag. What ratios do you guys use for d3/cal/mag?

[bartman314]

just noticed this... thanks! i need to get some intl ryr, rest is on hand. for joints i also do 5-10 g msm

[elastica]

It's best to break the mag doses up, separating them by 3-4 hours and 200 mg or less at a time. We can only absorb so much at once, excess puts stress on the kidneys. Even better is to use mag oil transdermally, it is more bioavailable than oral and the body will take up only what it needs.

If your diet is balanced and includes dairy, nuts, seeds, leafy greens, or fortified grains you probably don't need to add supplemental calcium.

I keep my maintenance D3 around 5K-6K iu's daily unless my blood levels drop to a lower range. A few 100 mg MG tablets spaced over the day if I remember, but I also use mag oil and take a few epsom salt soaks a week. D3 can also be stimulating for some people so usually best to take before late afternoon.

[NACH3]

just noticed this... thanks! i need to get some intl ryr, rest is on hand. for joints i also do 5-10 g msm

Hey Bartman,

You ever get the 3 in 1 - glucosamine/condroiten/& MSM? I've used that for my shoulder gotta get more - as I've heard it takes a good 4-6wks to be most optimal?! I also, need to get that RYR!

[45lb]

The best thing I've ever taken for my joints, besides Glucosamine & Chondroitin, has been UPS Labs SuperCissus. That has helped me tremendously.

[mike198]

It's best to break the mag doses up, separating them by 3-4 hours and 200 mg or less at a time. We can only absorb so much at once, excess puts stress on the kidneys. Even better is to use mag oil transdermally, it is more bioavailable than oral and the body will take up only what it needs. If your diet is balanced and includes dairy, nuts, seeds, leafy greens, or fortified grains you probably don't need to add supplemental calcium. I keep my maintenance D3 around 5K-6K iu's daily unless my blood levels drop to a lower range. A few 100 mg MG tablets spaced over the day if I remember, but I also use mag oil and take a few epsom salt soaks a week. D3 can also be stimulating for some people so usually best to take before late afternoon.

Thanks for the tips. Which transdermal mag do you use?

[elastica]

"Life-Flo" is a popular brand and worked well for me. You can get it in an 8 oz spray bottle on Amazon. I currently use the Swanson brand by the half gallon. Cheaper that way and works the same as the Life-Flo. You can also get Mag Chloride flakes and make the mag oil. If the straight mag oil stings or causes any irritation it can be diluted with distilled water. After it's been dried to the skin you can rewet it and it will absorb some more, or wipe away any salt residue so the skin doesn't get to dry or irritated.

[mike198]

"Life-Flo" is a popular brand and worked well for me. You can get it in an 8 oz spray bottle on Amazon. I currently use the Swanson brand by the half gallon. Cheaper that way and works the same as the Life-Flo. You can also get Mag Chloride flakes and make the mag oil. If the straight mag oil stings or causes any irritation it can be diluted with distilled water. After it's been dried to the skin you can rewet it and it will absorb some more, or wipe away any salt residue so the skin doesn't get to dry or irritated.

Ok thanks. I'll get it. I lowered my current MG intake to 400-600 mg day. I definitely think I was taking too much.

[Moonjumper]

I'm a nobody but I enjoyed the write-up. My Doc recommended glutamine exactly for the purpose you discovered Jimmy. I've been on a prescription for Nexium for nearly a decade. As long as I use glutamine at about the exact same dose you do I don't have to take Nexium much at all.