Supplement Stacking 101

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TweetSupplement Stacking 101

Ready to learn how to stack your supps for mass gain, strength improvement, testosterone boosting and fat loss? Class is in session.

When it comes to the school of bodybuilding, there are numerous subjects you must be knowledgeable about within your first couple of years of study. These include topics like Training 101: Basic Training Principles; Training 102: Advanced Training Techniques; Weider Training Principles Applied; Bodybuilding Nutrition 101: Bodybuilding Staple Foods; and Bodybuilding Nutrition 102: Workout Nutrition. As you advance in your bodybuilding studies, the subject of supplements becomes an important one for you to master.

You need to know which supplements are effective, and which ones work best together. The technical term for this is “stacking” and for those of you who aren’t Rhodes scholars in this area, we offer you the FLEX accredited course, Supplement Stacking 101. Learn it well and you’ll be on your way to graduating with advanced degree in bodybuilding!

Mass Stack

One of the first areas to cover in this course is stacking supplements for building mass. After all, bodybuilding is about muscle, and you first must build plenty of it to be a bodybuilder. The best mass stack doesn't just combine effective mass-gaining supplements; it combines effective mass-gaining supplements that are proven by research to work synergistically with one another. Using these four supplements does just that to guarantee muscle-mass gains.

Creatine

Of course, creatine is on the list. Hundreds of studies support its effectiveness for boosting muscle size and strength. Bottom line: with creatine, most guys can expect to gain a solid 10 pounds of muscle or more, and at least a 10% strength increase. For even greater mass gains with creatine, take it with beta-alanine (next on our list).

Beta-Alanine

This amino acid can significantly boost the muscle-building effects of creatine. Once inside the muscle cells, beta-alanine combines with the amino histidine to form carnosine. The amount of carnosine in muscle is associated with muscle strength and, apparently, muscle size. A study from the College of New Jersey (Ewing), found that subjects who took beta-alanine and creatine gained more muscle mass and lost more bodyfat than subjects taking just creatine.

Whey Protein

This is simply the best protein to take before and after workouts. It digests quickly, it's rich in branched-chain amino acids and its peptides boost blood flow. That's not to say that whey protein can't be even more effective — casein protein (see the next entry) enhances whey's muscle-building effects after workouts.

Casein Protein

Casein is the other major milk protein (it makes up about 80% of milk protein; whey makes up about 20%). Because they originate together, it makes sense that they work well when taken together. However, casein protein formerly wasn't recommended for use around workouts, due to its slow digestion rate. Research now shows that despite its rate of digestion, when casein protein is taken after workouts, it increases protein synthesis (the process that leads to muscle growth) as well as whey. In fact, when it's taken with whey immediately after workouts, it leads to greater gains in muscle mass than whey taken without casein. Baylor University (Waco, Texas) researchers made this discovery in a 10-week study using trained male lifters.

Stack Them Like This

Thirty minutes prior to workouts, make a shake that contains about 20 grams of whey protein, 3-5 g of creatine and 1-2 g of beta-alanine. Within 30 minutes after workouts, make another shake that contains 20-30 g of whey protein and 10-20 g of casein protein, along with 3-5 g of creatine and 1-2 g of beta-alanine.

Strength Stack

Strength is another key area of concern for the bodybuilder. But the amount of weight you can lift isn't just important for impressing your gym buddies. Being stronger allows you to place more mass-building overload on the muscles you are training every time you go to the gym.

Betaine

This supplement, known formally as trimethylglycine, is a metabolite of choline. Betaine has been around fora while, but it was used primarily for promoting health. Betaine can inhibit the production of homocysteine, an amino acid that is associated with a higher risk of cardiovascular disease. Preventing the body from forming homocysteine also encourages greater creative production in the body. This is why a few manufacturers add betaine to the creative they produce.

University of Connecticut (Storrs) researchers were the first to discover that betaine is an effective strength supplement. Under their watch, 12 trained men received either betaine or a placebo for two weeks while following a strength-training program. They reported at the 2007 annual meeting of the American College of Sports Medicine that when the subjects took betaine, their bench press strength was boosted by about 25%, while their power on the bench press increased by about 15%.

Taurine

This amino acid has been used as a supplement to boost muscle strength for a few years. Research shows that higher levels of taurine in muscle cells are associated with greater muscle strength and muscle endurance. Investigations have also demonstrated that when taurine in muscle fibers is decreased, as happens during exercise, so too is the strength of those muscle fibers. Little is known about how it enhances performance, except that increasing its levels in muscle somehow seems to boost muscular contractions, and this leads to greater muscle strength.

Wheat Germ

This innermost layer of the wheat kernel stores most of the protein, healthy fats, vitamins and minerals found in wheat. Yet, wheat germ is not just a great source of slow-digesting carbs for a preworkout meal. Its active ingredient octacosanol is an alcohol that makes up the main component of wax in plants. Research studies confirm that octacosanol supplements boost muscle strength and muscle endurance, as well as enhance I reaction time in athletes. Octacosanol increases the ability of the nerves that control muscle contractions to fire faster and more synchronously, which allows for faster and stronger muscle contractions and therefore greater muscle strength.

Stack Them Like This

Add 1,000- 1,500 milligrams of betaine, 1-3 g of taurine and about 1/2 cup of wheat germ to your preworkout protein shake (taken within 30 minutes prior to training). Add 1,000-1,500 mg of betaine and 1-3 g of taurine to your postworkout protein shake (taken within 30 minutes after training).

Testosterone Stack

If there is one hormone every bodybuilder needs to be in tune with, it's testosterone. That's because testosterone enhances strength, muscle mass and leanness. Therefore, knowing how to keep your levels maximal is critical for your bodybuilding success. Use this supplement stack for optimal levels of testosterone.

Eurycoma Longifolia Jack

Also known as Tongkat Ali , this rainforest plant has been used for centuries as a medicinal herb. It enhances testosterone levels through different mechanisms. One mechanism involves the freeing up of testosterone from sexhormone-binding globulin, a protein that carries testosterone in the blood and prevents it from entering muscle cells, where it can stimulate growth. Another way that eurycoma works is by stimulating the Leydig cells of the testes to directly increase testosterone production. Research confirms that eurycoma can lower SHBG by about 30%, and increase testosterone levels by almost 20%. It has also been shown to enhance muscle growth and strength greater than a placebo.

Forskolin

What was once known just as a fat burner is now known for its potent testosterone-boosting effects. Forskolin is the active ingredient from the herb Coleusforskoh1d. It works as both a fat burner and a testosterone booster due to the fact that it activates the enzyme adenylate cyclase. Activating this enzyme ramps up testosterone production by the testes, as research confirms in a 2005 study from the University of Kansas (Lawrence).

Carnitine

Another supplement that was known as just a popular fat burner, but now is known for its ability to enhance the action of testosterone, is carnitine. Thanks to a few studies performed by University of Connecticut (Storrs) researchers, we now know that supplementing with carnitine can augment the anabolic properties of testosterone. Subjects taking carnitine had higher levels of androgen receptors in muscle cells. Testosterone binds to these receptors to instigate muscle growth. The higher the number of androgen receptors in a muscle cell, the greater the muscle cell's potential for growth. Carnitine works synergistically with the other two test boosters — they raise testosterone levels, and carnitine allows more of that testosterone to do its work in the muscle.

Stack Them Like This

Consume 100-300 mg of eurycoma with breakfast, 30-60 minutes before workouts, and before bed. Look for Coleus forskohlii standardized to provide 20-50 mg of forskolin and supplement with it two or three times per day. For carnitine, take 1.5-3 g with breakfast, with your preworkout and postworkout shakes and your nighttime meal. Cycle eurycoma and forskolin for eight weeks, then take two to four weeks off before repeating. Carnitine can be consumed without cycling.

Ripped Stack

Bodybuilding is about mass, but it's not all about mass. You need to keep your bodyfat low to show off your hard-earned mass. Knowing how to stack effective fat burners to get the most burn for your buck is critical for staying big and lean. Stacking these three fat-torching supplements will keep the fat off and the muscle on.

Evodiamine

This extract from the Evodia rutaecarpa fruit works to burn bodyfat through a number of mechanisms. First, it stimulates specific receptors in the central nervous system that boost metabolic rate. Brand new research from Chubu University (Kasugai, Japan) shows that evodiamine can prevent fat gain in rats by enhancing uncoupling proteins, which work to maintain an elevated metabolism. Second, evodiamine reduces No, you do not n: hunger and slows You can combine digestion, which can even stack a keeps you feeling fuller longer and leads to a slow, even release of glucose into the bloodstream. This helps to prevent insulin spikes, which can bump up fat storage.

Green Tea

This is one of the hottest fat-burning supplements on the market today because research confirms that it is very effective for boosting metabolic rate and, therefore, fat loss. The active ingredients in green tea are the polyphenols known as catechins, which have antioxidant as well as fat-burning effects. The main catechin that helps green tea burn fat is epigallocatechin gallate. This catechin inhibits the enzyme that breaks down norepinephrine. This neurohormone is involved in regulating metabolic rate and fat burning.

Caffeine

The world's most popular drug is not just a morning eye opener, it's also an effective fat burner. The main way that caffeine boosts fat loss is by binding to fat cells, which in turn, enhances the removal of fat and inhibits the storage of fat. In other words, caffeine helps to get more fat out of fat cells and into circulation, where it can travel to tissues, such as muscle cells, to be burned for fuel.

Stack Them Like This

Green tea extract and caffeine are readily available as supplements; evodiamine is another matter. The good news is that numerous fat-burner supplements stack the three. Look for one that supplies about 30-50 mg of evodiamine, 250-500 mg of green tea extract standardized for EGCG and 100-400 mg of caffeine per dose. Take it two or three times per day before meals, such as in the morning and early afternoon. One dose should be taken within an hour of workouts, as long as your training sessions aren't too close to bedtime.

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