[TheNinja]

Age: 30
Stats: 6'1" @ 183 lbs
BodyFat: I estimated 13%-14% bf (I really have no idea but from pictures posted on AM, people estimated 12-14%)
Body Type: Ecto (66%) / Meso (33%) - very thin growing up but have forced myself to gain muscle
Goals: Get bigger and stay lean enough

Goals Specific for this product cycle: Gain serious size and strength. I'm not too concerned with fat gain for 2 months. Also, to see if the Osteo-C can help with my shoulder pain. Nothing else has seemed to help and it tends to get worse when I'm on creatine or gain any weight.

Medical issues: none
Past Supplements: Some experience - multivitamin, creatine, whey protein, fish oils, IGF-2, Drive, RPM, Leviathan.
Current: Multi, Whey, omega3, BCAA
Diet: My goal is to take in 2800-3000 calories a day. My estimated "maintenance" is around 2200 b/c I have an office job.
Workout: Typically a 3 or 4 day split - chest/tris, back/bis, legs/shoulders, 4thday misc (more leg, abs, etc.)
Cardio: Will likely be minimal during this short bulk. Maybe 20 minutes 2x a week and/or a hike on the weekend, weather permitting.
Other: I'm just a regular guy but with good intensity and a good diet. I don't like to mix too many things b/c I like to see how certain supps affect me by themselves so I know what to buy again. I think this will be a good "real world" test for those people who are new to supps or for those who aren't looking to spend $300 a month to stack many items.
Dosage:
8 Neovar a day split into 2-3 times
6-9 Osteobolin-C split into 2-3 times (adjusted as needed)

"Normal" Diet:
Meal 1: 12oz skim milk, 1 scoop Whey, 1/2-1 cup oats, 1/2 tablespoon EVOO
Meal 2: 1 whole wheat bagel with natural peanut butter
Meal 3: Varies, but typically around 600 calories in a 40/40/20 split or as close as possible consisting of lean protein, whole grain, veggies.
Pre Workout: 12oz skim milk, 1 scoop Whey, 1/2-1 cup oats, 1/2 tablespoon EVOO
Post Workout Meal 4: 60-70g WMS (and/or mixture of dextrose/malto) plus some BCAA
Meal 5: Varies, but again typically around 600 calories in a 40/40/20 split or as close as possible consisting of lean protein, whole grain, veggies.
Before sleeping: 12oz skim milk, 1 scoop Whey, 1/4-1/2 cup oats, 1/2 tablespoon EVOO

Initial measurements - as close as I could get with a string and a tape measure :

COMING SOON

Pictures on Day 1 - Yes I flexed - I figure as long as I do the same pose for my after pics, it is fair

[TheNinja]

Day 2 (yesterday)
Workout - Chest/Tris :

Bench Press:
Top was only 5 @ 215

Incline Fly (superset to press) :
10-12 reps 3 sets

Skull Crusher to Narrow Grip:
3 sets

Overhead dumbell:

Pushups:
16
13


Diet: Normal (7 Neovar total)
Overall Feeling: I felt very good today. For not having worked out in about 3 weeks I got some great pumps today. I can't say it necessarily gives me extra energy or focus but that is not the intention here.
Notes: I have read some reviews where they have some stomach issues with Neovar. I have been sure to take it with food and so far no issues at all.

[TheNinja]

Day 3
Workout - Legs/Shoulders :

Squat:
Top was only 8 @ 205

Military Press:
Hit 7-8 reps consistently at 125 pounds which is decent considering all things

Leg Extension:
3 sets to 10-12 reps

Front / Side Raise alternating immediately followed by Military dumbell press...ouch
15 lbers 16 reps

Diet: Normal (7 Neovar total)
Overall Feeling: Ok, so it's hard to judge the weight, I'm off my top numbers, but again I haven't lifted for a while due to vacations and 1 other personal business item. I can say that again the pumps where very nice in the gym. Obvoiusly can't judge stength gains at this point.
Notes: No negative issues to speak of. In fact I think Neovar helps me better use my carbs. I actually have less upset stomach after large carb meal than I used to. I'll keep an eye on this.

[TheNinja]

sore today...ouch! perhaps I should have eased back into lifting......nah!

[TheNinja]

Day 6 (yesterday)
Workout - Back/Abs :

Bent over Barbell Row:
5 sets
Top was 10 @ 135

T-Bar row (45 lb bar stuffed into corner) :
5 sets
Top was 10 @ 100

Reverse Fly/Row combo:
3 sets

8 minute abs --- yes it's true...lol


Diet: Normal (8 Neovar total)
Overall Feeling: I felt very good today. I got a pretty decent back pump and my bent over rows seemed pretty strong considering I hadn't worked back in a while.
Notes: I don't know if any of the AN guys are reading this but I'm wondering if they've have other reports of people being hungry all lot more and getting far less bloating from the carbs. Many times I have a morning shake with oats and I get so bloated I'm not hungry until lunch. Now I'm seriously hungry every 2-3 hours. Maybe I'm just growing or something or maybe the Neovar is contributing.

On Wednesday I'm going to start up the Osteobolin-C in this log as well.

[TheNinja]

Day 7 (yesterday - Tuesday)
Workout - Chest :

Bench Press:
Top was only 7 @ 215 +2 reps from last time on pretty much every set

Incline Fly (superset to press) :
10-12 reps 3 sets @ 45 lbs

Pushups - incline, decline, normal type of combos and various sets.


Diet: Normal (8 Neovar total)
Overall Feeling: Felt a very nice pump in the gym. My muscles feel pretty hard and lean. Strength gains are coming along, I'll know more about where my strength is in the next 2 weeks as I get back into the swing of things.
Notes: If I had to use 2 words to describe Neovar so far I'd say "hungry" and "lean".

[TheNinja]

Day 8
Workout - Legs :

Squat:
Top was 8 @ 215 so +10 lbs over last time

Leg Extension
3 sets @ 10-12 reps

Good mornin'
3 sets @ 10-12 reps

Single leg Calf raise
3 sets @ 12 reps

Single leg squat
2 sets @ 8 reps

Diet: Normal (8 Neovar total)
Overall Feeling: I feel very good in the gym. I also seem to have a lot of energy. I don't know if I'm just getting better sleep or eating better or what, but it seems that I have a good amount of energy during the day and while working out, maybe it's all the carbs?
Notes: I really like this stuff so far. It is different than creatine monohydrate though. If I was on creatine mono I'd have gained 7 pounds of water weight by now. I haven't gain any with this. Whether that is a plus or minus, you decide for yourself.

[Lanbane]

Late, but subbed!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Good detail so far!

[TheNinja]

Day 9 (yesterday)
Workout - Shoulders :

Military Press:
5 sets - Hit 6-10 reps at 125 pounds which is decent considering all things.

Front / Side Raise alternating immediately followed by Military dumbell press...ouch
15 lbers 16 reps
30 lbs military dumbell

Shoulder Shrugs:
3 sets


Diet: Normal (8 Neovar total) (6 Osteobolin-C total)
Overall Feeling: I feel strong and tight overall. My should still hurts so I'm curious if anything will change now that I've started to ramp up the Osteo-C. I only had about 25 minutes to workout so I thought I'd hit shoulders hard and fast. I had a hard time lifting my arms up after that
Notes: At the time I'm writing this I'm hungry for a giant burrito or something with carbs - I put some pictures up in my OP as well. They aren't great as I had to take them myself, but better than nothing I guess.

btw - anyone know why my pics won't thumbnail?

[rms80]

Awesome detail bud!

[hman85]

Watchin!

[TheNinja]

Day 10 (Friday's workout)
Workout - Arms :

Bicep Curls with 45lb Barbell:
5 working sets
Top set was 105lbs at 8 reps

Alternating Dumbell:
3 sets

Various tricep exercises:


Diet: Normal (8 Neovar total) (7 Osteobolin-C total)
Overall Feeling: OK there was good and bad on this workout. The bad - every overhead / skullcrusher / etc tricep workout I tried to do it felt like a tendon in my left elbow would slide around to the wrong side of the point of my elbow. I got very little tricep work done b/c of it. Luckily I hit chest on 1 day and shoulders on a different day so I hit triceps then. I also only got about 8 sets of biceps in due to timeframe and a phone call I could not get out of.
The good - I was doing sets of 8rep at 105 pounds! My previous best was at the end of my IGF-2 log doing 9reps at 90 lbs. Yes, I double checked the weights and my form multiple times. It was insane!
Notes: So far so great! I feel good and have had no stomach or gas issues.

[TheNinja]

Day 13 (Monday's workout)
Workout - Chest :

Bench Press:
12 @ 185
8 @ 205
5 @ 225
5 @ 225
7 @ 215
10 @ 195

Incline Fly / Incline Press:
3 sets

Various pushups, incline, decline, standard, narrow, etc.

Diet: Normal (8 Neovar total) (7 Osteobolin-C total)
Overall Feeling: Chest felt great. Surprisingly though, the pumps are quite as noticeable as when I first started, but the strength and stability feels much better. I can really feel the muscle working and pulling tight when doing a lift. Up to 5 reps @ 225. My most was 5 @ 235 at the end of on IGF-2 log, I have a feeling that with 6 more weeks of this I should blow past that.
Notes: Still feeling good. My weight is holding pretty steady though, I might have gained about a pound. This is surprising considering I'm eating a TON more oatmeal than I did before. On the flip side I've cut out some sugar and crap (although not much).
I'm kicking the Osteo-C up to 8-9 a day as well.

[TheNinja]

Day 15
Workout - Legs/Shoulders :

Squat:
Bad news - on my 2nd warmup set I got a tweak in my right groin area. I couldn't even squat with 135lbs without it feeling like it might get worse, tear, or strain. I quit squats for the day rather than risk more serious injury.

Military Press:
12 @ 95
12 @ 105
10 @ 115
8 @ 125
6 @ 135
6 @ 135
8 @ 125

Leg Extension:
3 sets to 10-12 reps @ 125

Front / Side Raise alternating immediately followed by Military dumbell press...ouch
15 lbers 16 reps

Good mornings: again my groin area, more like the tendon that runs from crotch area to inner thigh was too tender, I didn't want to risk it.

Diet: Normal (8 Neovar total --- 8 Osteo-C total)
Overall Feeling: I was so pumped to smash weights on squats but alas I could not -- The great news, I did 135 on military press....with very little sore shoulder!! This is probably the first time in 9 months that I've been able to do that much repetitively without an aching and tight shoulder.
Notes: Also along the lines of Osteobolin-C, I played bass guitar for 2 hours on Saturday and another 2 hours on Sunday. Now normally this is very sore for me and my left shoulder aches...almost like tendonitis or bursitis or something. Last week it felt MUCH better. I'm playing guitar this weekend so I will monitor that as well. It seems the Osteo-C is helping though. Thanks AN

[TheNinja]

Day 19 (yesterday)
Workout - Cardio/Legs:

1 strenous 3 mile hike over some nice terrain and decent climbs (level 3.5 out of 5)
1 easy 1.75 mile hike in a nice trail (level 2 out of 5)


Diet: Normal (8 Neovar total --- 8 Osteo-C total)
Overall Feeling: Well the good news is no major lingering effects from the tight groin from Wednesday. Also I did not feel overly thirsty or sweaty. I find with Creatine Mono that I'd get crazy sweaty and thirsty. The Osteo-C seems to be helping somewhat. Still a sore shoulder. I may be beyond the power of cissus.
Notes: Follow up on the guitar. My should did not get sore while playing guitar again. I know the Osteo-C is helping with this. The biggest problem now is in the morning. When I wake up my shoulder is very sore and achy yet. I should check my sleeping position I guess.
Weight is holding at about 183 which is perplexing. I guess I need another 600calorie milk/oat/whey/evoo shake per day

[Lanbane]

You doin' ok over there Ninja?

[TheNinja]

Originally Posted by Lanbane

You doin' ok over there Ninja?

Ya man. So far so good. I've been splitting up the Neovar typically into 4 doses at 2 pills each. Is this an ok method or is 2 doses at 4 pills better?

I think I just need to eat more if I want my weight to go up b/c my lifts are going up which is awesome! I don't know if I just cleaned my diet up or if Banaba is a natural cutter/recomp. Typically I haven't been having a lot of carbs at night, but maybe while on Neovar I'll add another 50g or so of oats at night.

[TheNinja]

Day 20 (yesterday)
Workout - Back/Biceps :

Highlights:
Bent over Barbell Row:
Top set was 7 @ 150

T-Bar row (45 lb bar stuffed into corner) :
4 sets 7-8 reps @ 120

Bicep Barbell:
7 reps @ 95 pounds


Diet: Normal (8 Neovar total + 7 Osteobolin)
Overall Feeling: Strength right now is VERY good. It is actually different that some other things. I don't feel particualary large or "pumped". However when lifted it just feels like I have good strength and don't get tired as quickly. It's like I think I'm not going to be able to do that weight or number of reps and then my body surprises me and does it
Notes: Osteo-C seems to be helping while lifting. I've been on it for 13 days now. I won't say that it is "night and day" difference but I do notice that my shoulder is not as sore during the lifting sessions. It's still tight and achey in the morning though.

[TheNinja]

Day 21 (Yesterday's workout)
Workout - Chest :

Bench Press:
Top was 6 @ 225

Did a pyramid style for the workout
185, 195, 215, 225, 205, 190

Incline Fly / Incline Press:
3 super-sets

SkullCrushers to NarrowGrip:
3 sets @ 32.5 on each side of bar (don't know bar's weight)

Overhead Tricep Extension:
10 @ 60
10 @ 60

Pushups:
20
14


Diet: Normal (8 Neovar total) (7 Osteobolin-C total)
Overall Feeling: Well not a huge gain in weight or reps from last time. However I felt very good well lifting. I had some shoulder aches but not as bad as last week. I also felt like I had very good strength throughout the workout. In other words, my triceps actually were able to do some heavy tricep work instead of being dead from chest. Pumps were also very nice and very hard.
Notes: I'm not looking huge and I honestly don't feel all day "pumps" like I often due on Mono. However the strength in the gym and the hardness and leaness I feel is quite nice. My shoulder seems to be somewhat better as well. I really hope that continues to get better.

[TheNinja]

Day 23
Workout - Shoulders / Arms:

Some Highlights:

Military Press:
12 @ 95
12 @ 115
8 @ 135
7 @ 135
8 @ 125
12 @ 115

Bicep/Tricep workout:


Diet: Normal (8 Neovar total --- 8 Osteo-C total)
Overall Feeling: Felt very good again today. Good energy and good strength. Military press is probably my hardest exercise to gain any strenght, but again I did make some gains this week. Plus less shoulder pain than normal. I'm happy.
Notes: Good stuff. So far, for lean gain, Neovar is great!

[TheNinja]

Day 25-27 (Saturday-Today)
Workout - Legs / Cardio:

Not your normal workout

So I took a group of Jr.High kids up into the mountain for tubing down the snow. It was at about 7000 feet elevation and basically consisted of walking up a huge hill and then picking one of 12 or so tube "lanes" to fly down on
Needless to say it was a pretty good leg workout climbing hills all day and a good cardio day as well. Trudging through snow is not an easy task, but it is a very fun one.




Diet: Messed up - I was a chaperone at a camp all weekend where they served certain meals at certain times. I was unable to take my Neovar or Osteo-C b/c they seem to give me gas/bloating if I don't take with certain foods or if I take it with greasy foods.
Overall Feeling: I felt good. Actually my shoulder is a little sore, but it could be just from all day activity of carry innertubes and driving and such.
Notes: More wonderful news - I felt pretty bad last night (Sunday) so went to bed early. I woke up around 6am, ran to the bathroom and was on and off the toilet for the next 2 hours. I think I lost probably 3 pounds of water/waste (sorry if that's a little graphic). I'm in the process of trying to re-hydrate but this really sucks as I'm missing more doses and missing food. I weighed 182.5 after all that so if properly hydrated I'd be around 184-185 so up roughly 2 pounds from starting weight.

[TheNinja]

Summary of roughly 4 weeks of Noevar (plus Osteobolin-C added after 1 week)

Notice: I am wrapping this log up earlier than expected for certain reasons and AN is aware of it. It might become known later as to why

Highlights:
Personal Best on Bicep Barbell Curls 8 @ 105lbs!
Strong shoulder feeling with far less soreness and pain

Weight: ~183 to ~184 = Kind of interesting. I ate like 3 cups more oats than normal and didn't gain any fat.
Composition: I know I did not gain any water weight or extra fat from this even while eating more carbs than normal.


Pros:
Neovar:
Very strong lean feeling and decent pumps overall
Very good strength and excellent endurance while lifting! There would be times where I"m thinking "ok, I'll shoot for 6 but might not get it"...and all of a sudden my muscles are pushing for 8 reps.
The contents of Neovar really helped my ability to take in the carbs and not gain weight or become too bloated. It also made me hungry every 2-3 hours which is a good thing for me as I have a hard time remember to eat enough during the day.

Osteobolin-C:
After about 8-10 days I started to feel some decent relief of pain in my shoulder. It seemed to soften up my tendons/joints a little and also help with some anti-inflamation.
I had a couple of shoulder and chest workouts that were nearly pain free, which I haven't had in years!


Cons:
One of the products would give me some stomach issues (I think it was the Neovar) if I ate fried or greasy food. I would get really gassy from it. Now this might actually be a pro b/c it basically forced me to avoid fried and greasy good which I shouldn't have anyway
The Neovar will make you hungry all the time so that might be a con if you are trying to lose weight.


Recommendations: With Creatine Monohydrate I would typically gain at least 8 pounds in 2 weeks. The water retention makes you look big but imo at the cost of definition. Also if I retain too much water it seems to pinch my nerves/tendons sometimes making shoulder pain worse and sometimes tingy fingers.
Neovar with it's CEE and banaba really will give you that lean look and help you use the carbs you are eating to feed your muscles.
I would recommend Neovar and Osteobolin-C.
Osteo-C is good any time of year cutting or bulking.
I think Neovar would be a PERFECT spring/summer creatine supplement b/c you get great strength and good pumps but you looked ripped on it b/c of no excess water weight. I would personally use it for cutting or recomp.

[Lanbane]