For those who are seriously interested in purchasing the latest supplements in hard-core bulk, I highly recommend checking out Mass Quantities.

It is no longer questioned that there exist legal products that significantly enhance the muscle building process. That said, the supplement consumer should be aware that there are far more products available that don't work than those that do. A lot of ads you see in magazines and on the web make claims of unbelievable results. If they don't back it up, that's just what they are--unbelievable. Verify that what you're buying is all that it's cracked up to be. Look to see if they used a double-blind, placebo-controlled study at an outside party research institution. Be learly of test results that come from straight from the manufacturers own lab.

The high price and questionable worth of most supplements discourages a lot of people from investigating further, but if you search hard enough, particularly on the 'net, you can find reasonable prices on products that really do work.

This page is a brief listing of those supplments that I personally am convinced work. If you don't see a supplement here, I either haven't heard of it or I'm not sure of its efficacy. For more information see, Dr Jerry Connelly's Supplementat Page.

Androstenedione

Note that the text below is Copyright (C) Elite Fitness. You can't copy and paste it onto your site.

Think of one compound that will let you put on 10 lbs of muscle in three weeks while adding 20 lbs to your bench press. Now try and come up with a compound that will do that legally.

Androstenedione is a steroid hormone found in all animals (meat) as well as some plants (extracts). It is a metabolite of DHEA that serves as a direct precursor (one step removed) in the bio-synthesis of testosterone. In all mammals, androstenedione is produced in the gonads and adrenal glands. This oral form of androstenedione is metabolized in the liver to testosterone in conjunction with a zinc-dependent enzyme. Androstenedione, when taken orally, will increase blood levels of both androstenedione and testosterone. Secondly to this increase, effects are often seen such as increased energy, enhanced recovery and growth from exercise, heightened sexual arousal and function, as well as greater sense of well being.

According to the German Patent for androstenedione, 50 mg given orally to men raised plasma testosterone levels from 140% to 183% of normal. And 100 mg of oral androstenedione raised levels from 211% to 337% of normal. Blood levels start rising about 15 minutes after oral administration of androstenedione and stay elevated for around 3 hours. A peak in blood testosterone levels is seen around 1 to 1.5 hours after ingestion.

For the time being, androstenedione is perfectly legal for sale as a nutritional supplement. It is found naturally in meats as well as some plants. Like DHEA and pregnenolone, it is a key intermediate in the bio-synthesis of other biologically active steroid hormones. If androstenedione is taken as directed, and that is once a day prior to physical activity, the positive benefits can be had without any significant negative feedback response to your natural testosterone production. This is because the results last only a few hours and that is not enough time for the pituitary gland to respond. Because blood levels are raised during exercise, a time when blood flow to muscles is optimized and catabolic conditions prevail, your body's utilization of the testosterone is maximized. Androstenedione can also be taken throughout the day at constant intervals to maintain a consistently higher level of testosterone. This method, although a very effective way to use androstenedione, may increase the probability of decreased natural testosterone production.

Dan Duchaine, the world famous Steroid Guru, posted on the Elite Fitness Anabolic Discussion Board the following about androstenedione:

The unanswered question: is there a linear testosterone elevation with increasing dosages, or is the enzyme the limiting factor. I.E. At 100mg (oral), T is raised about 500ng/dl. Simple math predicts that 200mg would cause a 1000ng T increase. Ideally we'd like the biggest episode-like pulse, meaning, if it is a linear elevation, yes all 400mg right before the workout. But if 400mg elevates T only another 100ng, this is not a cost-effective dosing. These giant pulses might be the way to go because even though T declines significantly after 90 minutes, for a few days afterward, T does not fall to previous levels. So the higher the episode-like pulse, the higher residual T elevation.

Dan later restated the effective dosage in more simple terms:

Ideal dosing schedule is to use one episode-like dose (once-a-day), before the workout. Research shows that this dosing works better than multi-dosing throughout the day.

As with most things, there is still a lot of debate going on. Mass Quantities is sponsoring a study to determine the optimum androstenedione dosing method, but we're still collecting data as of this writing. Results will be posted on our web site when they come in.

I, personally, have gone on this compound and it is without question the most powerful legal supplement you can buy (with the possible exception of 19-Norandrostenedione). I gained about 7 lbs in three weeks taking it. Another individual wrote me to let me know that he had put on 17 lbs of muscle stacking androstenedione, norandrostenedione and tribulus over the course of just six weeks. Pretty impressive, I thought.

Tribulus

According to W. N. Philips, author of the Sports Supplement Review Third Issue...

The compound has been widely used in Asia to enhance fertility. Laboratory animal studies show that it increases sperm production ... Two other studies performed on animals reported increased testosterone production and testicular maturation ... A study involving healthy individuals taking 750 mg/day of tribulus terrestris evaluated hormonal responses and revealed LH increased in males from 14.38 ml/U/ml to 24.75 ml/U/ml (that's a 72% increase). The free testosterone in males went from 60 ng/dl to 84.5 ng/dl (an increase of 41%) ... another study including over 200 male subjects suffering from impotence (often caused by low testosterone levels) showed that many (but not all) of the men experienced an increase in LH and testosterone as well as sperm production and mobility.

There is a lot of excitement right now that stacking Tribulus with DHEA will encourage an even more significant increase in testosterone production. Here's what Philips has to say...

Now, if you take DHEA by itself it may or may not get converted to testosterone by the body, but if you combine it with a supplement called tribulus terrestris, which may help increase the production of LH, you could end up with a synergistic effect. And, if you throw in another new supplement, which Muscle Media writer and bodybuilding guru Dan Duchaine told me about--something called androstenedione--you'll have, in my opinion, a potent "dietary-supplement" stack that produces mild steroid-like effects.

Typically, athletes take these three substances in a six week reverse pyramid style cycle to allow for full recovery of any possible testosterone production suppression.

Creatine Monohydrate

This is the best thing to come to the sport of bodybuilding since the weight belt.

At risk of going into too much detail, here is how creatine monohydrate works at the chemical level. Those familar with the Krebs cycle should be able to follow along. Your body uses a molecule called ATP as its most basic unit of energy. By breaking off a phosphate group from ATP and creating ADP, chemical energy is released that the body can use to tense a muscle cell. If a muscle runs out of ATP, it can no longer contract. Luckily, the body has a mechanism for reusing some of this ATP. Creatine phosphate is also stored in muscle cells and it can donate it's phosphate group to an ADP molecule to reform ATP. What does this mean? It means you have more energy to power muscular contractions.

So why not just inject ATP or creatine phosphate? Because those compounds do not make it through the digestive track intact. creatine monoydrate is most readily absorbed and used by your body. 5 to 20 grams a day will have a termendous affect on your muscle creatine phosphate levels.

The sharp reader will not that I left out how creatine monohydrate becomes creatine phophate. To put it simply: I don't really know.

Regardless of how and where that magic step takes place, this stuff works. In addition to making you significantly stronger (I added 20 lbs to my bench in 6 weeks), it also allows your muscles to retain higher concentrations of water. This has two effects. First, it makes your muscles look fuller and causes you to gain about five pounds--sort of an instant gratification. Second, it provides an environment that is more friendly towards protein synthesis in the muscle cell.

Now that you know what it does and how it works, here's how to take it. Creatine monohydrate comes in powder form. Don't get capsules, you'd end up popping 10 or 20 a day. Mix the powder with a fruit juice or some other high gylcemic carb beverage. Once it is mixed, you must drink it within fifteen minutes or the creatine monohydrate will break down into creatinine--an essentially useless compound. Avoid mixing it with citrus or any very cold drink. Citric acid, found in ornage and grapefruit juice for example, breaks the creatine monohydrate down into creatinine. Particularly cold drinks accelerate the natural decomposition rate of the creatine and also don't allow it to dissolve as well. It is essential that you fully dissolve the powder. Failure to do so invariably results in a mildly upset stomache and direhea.

The accepted dosage for creatine is 20 grams a day for five days to load it into your system and then 5 or 10 grams a day thereafter (depending on your weight) to maintain eleveated levels. It's a good idea to spread the dosage out over the course of the day into 3 to 5 gram servings. Twenty grams in one shot is asking for stomache trouble.

Creatine is best absorbed after a workout when your body is very insulin sensitive. Insulin is the molecule responsible for getting the creatine out of your blood stream and into your muscles. The high glycemic carb drink is recommended because it spikes insulin production and allows quicker and more complete absorbtion of the creatine.

Protein Supplements

The top dog in the protein wars is Whey Protein Concentrate (WPC) if you believe everything you read. Whey protein does have the highest Biological Value (94) of any protein in existence. Biological Value is a composite score based on how readily a protein source is absorbed and how complete it is as a protein (ie does it contain branced chain amino acids or BCAAs).

This sounds very good, but it turns out the the Biological Value rating isn't the best indicator of how well a human body can break down and use a protein. The standard the food industry has already settled on for humans is the Protein Digestibility Corrected Amino Acid Score (PDCAAS). It's not as easy to market as BV because the name is so long, but if you're not livestock this is the metric you should be concerned with.

It turns out that soy protein actually scores has the highest PDCAAS. It has more glutamine than whey, it improves kidney and thyroid function, it's an anti-estrogen, it lower bad cholesterol and raises good cholesterol... the list goes on. I use soy protein.

Any protein will get you what you need, the issue is whether or not you want the extra fat and carbs associated with a WPC product. Whey protein isolates are great protein products, but they're almost impossible to find because they're a lot more expensive than WPC powders and therefor harder to sell.

Drinking a protein shake after a workout and another before bed aids in the recovery process. To read more about what I have to say on the subject of protein, visit the nutrition page. An exceptionally good article on the benefits of soy protein over whey protein concentrates is in a back issue of Hulkster's E-mail Newsletter.

Vitamins

The best arguments for taking vitamins can be summed up in two sentences. First, a bodybuilder generally has a pretty restricted diet and so he or she is probably not getting all the nutrients necessary for growth from food alone. Second, they're really cheap. There's a good article that goes into some detail on vitamins as the relate to bodybuilding is available on at courtesy of Muscle Media 2000.

It's beleived that Vitamin E enhances creatine absorbtion and Vitamin C is thought to play some role in maintaining a healthy immune system. I take both of these in addition to a multi-vitamin each day. Be warned that taking too much of a fat-soluble vitamin E or D has serious health implications. These fat-soluble vitamins stay in your body much longer than a water-soluble vitamin like C.

Flax Seed Oil

There are so many health benefits to supplementing omega-3 fatty acids like of which flax seed oil is recognized as the best source that I hesitate to go into it. It's widely believed that flax seed oil improves high cholesterol levels, prevents strokes and heart attacks, lowers abnormally high blood pressure, relieves arthritis, possibly prevents cancer, improves the health of skin and hair, strengthens the immune systems ability to fight viral, bacterial and fungal infections, and speeds the fat burning process.

I recommend researching this on your own and discovering for yourself why flax seed oil is sometimes called "bodybuilding's best kept secret". Run a search for "Essential Fatty Acids" at Alta Vista and see what you come up with.

Phosphatidylserine

This substance looks very promising. I first learned about it in an article from PEAK Training Journal and became really interested from there. In a placebo controlled study, 800mg a day of phosphatidylserine (PS) lowered post-workout coritsol levels by 25%. That's pretty significant. For those who don't know, cortisol is the body's stress hormone and it is cheifly responsible for breaking down muscle tissue after a workout. It's believed that by lessening the amount of muscle catabolism after a workout, the net muscle gains can be increased. In fact, this is very much how anabolic steroids work.

PS is currently being marketed to both bodybuilders and the longevity crowd. Beware, however! The 500mg capsules that are on the market contain only 100mg of PS. Unless you can afford to take 8 of these a day, you're probably wasting your money.

HMB

If you've read all the hype put out by EAS and Muscle Media 200 about this substance then you can see why it's on a lot of bodybuilder's wish lists. Supposedly, HMB prevents muscle breakdown after a workout through some unknown mechanism. The often cited, double-blind, placebo-controlled study done at the University of Iowa is the basis for much of this excitement. Subjects in the group that received 3 grams of HMB per day gained, on average, 300% more strength and 55% more lean mass than those in the control group. This doesn't really tell us a lot... if the control group added 1 lbs to their bench then the group on HMB added 3 lbs. Big deal.

Bill Philips, president of EAS, has been the cheif promoter of HMB. Not surprisingly, he also sells it. In spite of his obviously biased slant on this substance, he probably knows more about it than anyone else.

Unfortunately, a month supply of HMB will set you back $60 if you buy through EAS. This may not be the case for much longer, however. MTI owns what's called a "use patent" on HMB which they have licensed to EAS. This use patent prohibits any other reseller from marketing HMB as a product that promotes nitrogen retention. It does not, however, prohibit anyone else from selling it.

The first hand accounts that I've heard have been overwhelmingly ho-hum. Only one person claimed that it really did anything for them. Several others seemed to think it was a waste of money. I haven't been on it myself so I can't make a final judgement call, but suffice to say that I am not sold.