BCAA (Extend) miracle supp for strength/body composition

[1HP]

I've been a heavy supp-whore for years now. I actually have no clue anymore which supps were really effective and which weren't because I've taken dozens same time, I've made nice gains sure, also had some big fallbacks (light depressions/long lasting lethargy/illness etc). Best I've ever been was 220 Lb @ just below 10% BF, taking in 5000 Kcals a day. Stats roughly 2 months ago, 01/08/08: Length 6 feet, weight 198 Lb, BF 15%.

I decided I needed a reset, lots of ups and downs, lots of money spend on supps and some evil stuff, I was doing something wrong.

I adjusted my diet to absolutely standard, no supplements at all apart from 2 whey shakes ED.

Starting diet: 1850 cals, 150 gr Prot, 160 gr Carb, 65 gr Fat.
Coming from 2 whey shakes+milk, wholegrain bread + cheese, chicken breast, vegetables/fruit. 5 meals ED, Dinks: water & coffee.

Training:
Mo:
Squat 3x10
SLDL 3x10
Bench Press 3x10

Wo:
Squat 3x10
Clean&Press 3x10

Fri:
Squat 3x10
Deadlift 5x5
Pushups/Pullups 3 sets max reps


I really liked it this way, had nice and steady gains for weeks, focus on squats, increases every week, not every training, sometimes I would do a 220LB squat on monday, wednesday I would make it till 200LB, and then Friday 225LB. Gained strength while losing fat.

2 weeks ago I found an unused bottle of Extend while cleaning up my house (moving soon) and decided to add that to the mix. I removed 1 whey shake from my diet:

New diet: 1600 cals, 120 gr Prot, 145 gr Carb, 60 gr Fat.
+ 10 scoops Extend

Supplement Facts

Serving Size: 2 Scoops (11.5 grams)
Servings per Container: 90

Amount Per Serving % Daily Value
Vitamin B6 (as Pyroxidine HCI) 10mg 167%
L-Leucine 3.5g **
L-Glutamine 2.5g **
L-Isoleucine 1.75g **
L-Valine 1.75g **
Citruline Malate 1g **

So that would equate to 35g BCAA, 12.5g Glutamine, 5g Citruline Malate.

I have no idea how many cals that adds to my diet, 200 or so??

I just put 2 scoops at a time in a shaker, add water and use it as my drink. Spread out over the day. On training days I take 4 scoops just before training and 1 or 2 after.

Well anyway, since then my workouts have been amazing, I now add weight every single time, I even changed reps for squats from 3x10 to 4x10. Fat loss has accelerated quite a bit. This **** really works wonders!!! I've not been sore in the morning since then either..

I'm now at: weight 189 Lb, BF 12%. So I lost 9 Lb/3% BF in 7 weeks and gained significant strength, half of those results are from the last 2 weeks since replacing 1 whey shake with 10 scoops extend. My waistline is down 1.2 inch, my arms are up 0.2 inch, did not take any other measurements but my legs look thicker ;-)

I do not take any other supplements, only thing I've added is 6 fishoil caps a day starting this monday.

I really am amazed how I can keep adding weight to the bar on such a low calorie (and low protein ;-) diet), keep losing fat.

Ofcourse my goals have changed, I'm now mainly looking into getting stronger, not larger and to feel good, both mentally and phsyically. And it's better then ever now! :-)

[1HP]

Just got back from working out and again strength gains.

As a test I repeated Last Saturdays training which was:

Deadlift: 5x180, 5x220, 5x265, 1x330, 1x350
Squat: 10x180, 10x220, 10x240, 10x265

Today:
Deadlift: 5x180, 5x220, 5x265, 2x330, 1x360
Squat: 10x180, 10x220, 10x240, 10x275

Monday I only did Squats 10x180, 10x220, 10x240, 10x270

I simply keep adding 5-10 lbs each training, also increasing deadlift in 5 days with 10 lbs is not standard for me, I normally need 1 week to be able to deadlift my max at that time again.

In the 7 weeks mentioned above the first 5 weeks my strength gains were:
Squat from 180 to 225
Deadlift from 310 to 330

The last 2 weeks on extent:
Squat from 225 to 275
Deadlift from 330 to 360

I don't know what it is that is exactly causing this, I gained more in 2 weeks then in the 5 weeks before. I'm guessing I'm simply fully recovered again each workout which allows me to increase weights every single workout.

Now I'm not near what I used to lift when I was at my strongest but still, the acceleration in gains on extend while eating below maintenance and on low protein simply baffles me...

[Inarius]

I love xtend.
What flavor are you using?

[1HP]

I love xtend.
What flavor are you using?

Watermelon. It tastes allright only a little chemical aftertaste like diet coke.

[Inarius]

Same here. I am mixing mine with Orange Juice and WMS with 3 caps of Neovar after workout. It's delicious.

[RoidRageX10]

Same here. I am mixing mine with Orange Juice and WMS with 3 caps of Neovar after workout. It's delicious.

Your not supposed to drink orange juice while taking creatine. You will have terrible stomach aches!!

[Inarius]

Your not supposed to drink orange juice while taking creatine. You will have terrible stomach aches!!

lol really? Been doing this for two weeks now without any problems at all..... It's actually a great combo with the WMS and Neovar.

[1HP]

lol really? Been doing this for two weeks now without any problems at all..... It's actually a great combo with the WMS and Neovar.

Iron stomach lol

[Inarius]

Iron stomach lol

Lol....
Wanna tell me why it should hurt my stomach?

[RoidRageX10]

Apparentley, orange juice is very acidic and you dont want to mix it with creatine.

[papagunz]

Apparentley, orange juice is very acidic and you dont want to mix it with creatine.

More acidic than the hydrochloric acid in your stomach...?

[Inarius]

Apparentley, orange juice is very acidic and you dont want to mix it with creatine.

where did u hear this at?
I am googling it now

[Inarius]

http://www.trulyhuge.com/creatinemonohydrateL14.html

Creatine is not destroyed in warm water. It should be solved in warm water! Creatine degrades at 303 degrees Celsius. Orange juice or other sources of citric acids will not degrade creatine into creatinine. If this were the case, creatine would never survive in our stomach which is much more acidic than citric acid. However, these juices will only deliver a medium insulin spike, for the best effect go for dextrose.

Any fast-acting carbohydrate source is the ideal choice, but almost any carbohydrate substance is a substantial step up from water. Basically, improving the transport of creatine monohydrate to its ultimate destination, the muscle cells, is dependent on the availability of insulin in the bloodstream. Insulin is released when the body senses large amounts of glucose (the broken-down form of carbohydrates) in the blood. It is then the job of insulin to transport the glucose into cells. Insulin however doesn't just take the glucose; it drives protein, fats, and other substances into the cells as well. And this includes creatine.

Since it's the presence of glucose that stimulates the insulin, you'll need carbohydrates mixed with your creatine. With many of Nutricraze's creatine products, this is already included. But with plain-old creatine monohydrate powder, you want to use the fastest acting carbohydrate source - the one that will release the most insulin. The best is probably grape juice, followed by orange juice (grapefruit and apple juice are a little slow). Basically, look for anything with a high simple sugar content, which includes sports drinks. A lot of fat and protein may slow down the insulin response to an extent. So if you're taking creatine post-workout, take it immediately with carbohydrates and wait 45-60 minutes before eating a large, protein-rich meal.

[Inarius]

looks like there were rumors about 3 years ago that this is bad for you.... but not so much any more.

[1HP]

I used to mix bulk CEE with orange juice, only thing to mask the ultrasharp taste a bit, never had any trouble from it. Now CEE never really worked for me, I hope it's not because of the ornage juice LOL.

P.S. nice DUKE sig

[Inarius]

1hp sorry for the thread hijack

[1HP]

1hp sorry for the thread hijack

np

[Inarius]

its all yours now
please continue. lol

[papagunz]

More acidic than the hydrochloric acid in your stomach...?

This was a joke, but it came off a bit snide, so a pre-emptive apology man.

But my point still stands.

[RoidRageX10]

Alright nevermind then.

BTW, congrats on the recomp / strength gains! That is the whole point about this thread. lol