BCseacow83 vs AndroHard by IML: Sponsored Log

[BCseacow83]

ANDRO HARD

Powered by R-DHEA & EPI-DHEA
Ingredients
(per capsule)
​

• 3α-hydroxy-5α-androstan-17-one (R-DHEA) – 100mg​
• 3b-Hydroxy-5a-androstan-17-one (Epi-DHEA) – 50mg​
• 6,7-dihydroxybergamottin (45%) – 25mg​
• Piperine (black pepper) – 10mg​

R-DHEA
R-DHEA is known as “Reduced DHEA” because it is a 5a-reduced metabolite of DHEA. It’s more commonly referred to as Androsterone. This naturally occurring hormone cannot convert to testosterone, but instead converts to the dihydrotestosterone (DHT). Similar to testosterone, DHT is responsible for masculine traits such as aggression, sex drive, and physical strength. However, because DHT cannot convert to estrogen, it also helps reduce fat storage and water retention, making it an excellent steroid for increasing muscular hardness and vascularity.

Strength gains may also be noticeable with R-DHEA due to its strong androgenic effect which will activate the central nervous system and increase muscular power.This will increase explosive power with minimal body weight increase. The increased aggression is typically a welcomed benefit, which manifests as increased confidence and an “alpha male” feeling in sexual and social activities. The strong androgenic action from R-DHEA may also help support libido and erection hardness. This makes R-DHEA useful to help counter the sexually suppressive effects from other steroids. The powerful androgenic effect will also block estrogenic effects, and help prevent (and reverse) “gyno”.


Epi-DHEA
Epi-DHEA was first discovered in the early 1930’s. It isn’t the most potent androgenic compound but it is a metabolite of DHEA. Epi-DHEA is a popular cutting pro hormone. With this you can expect dry, lean muscle gains, and also an increase in vascularity and sex drive. Compared to other pro hormones available, Epi-DHEA is more mild. But, there are some acute stimulant effects, so if you wanted to take your dose as a ‘pre workout’, you can.
Fortunately, Epi-DHEA doesn’t aromatize to estrogen so it doesn’t cause many of the estrogen-related side effects that other compounds can cause. It’s often used for weight loss and cutting because it can increase muscle growth while decreasing fat storage. It’ll improve libido, strength, and enhance muscle hardness all around.


Suggested Use
As a dietary supplement take two (1) capsule in the AM and two (1) capsule in the PM. Do not exceed 2 capsules daily and do not use for more than 12 weeks.

Plan
Two caps a day for 60 days.
One cap pre-workout in the AM and the second dose will be taken in the afternoon, not at night. I have issues with sleep quality and prefer to have nothing hormonal at night.

Stats
41 year old Male
(well in one week I will be, 41 that is, always been a male)
5'11" "officially"
more like 5'10" these days due to injuries and compression
Weight: 210-215lbs depending on day of week
(minimum eating day with some time limited feeding vs day I stuff my face with reckless abandon followed by instant regret and shame, so much shame.)

Goals
I will be following a "Milosesqe" strategy of "fat-loss days or periods" and "anabolic days/phases." The endpoint goal is a leaner overall physique with, at minimum, the same strength and muscle. So the food will be low, protein exempt always, on cardio days or any off days. Food will be "pushed" a little harder on lifting days.

Essentially my days of pushing all the time for more weight and mass are unfortunately in the rearview mirror. I will not say never but between older injuries(nothing major) and the inflammation/arthritis issues I have been dealing with the most effective means of training to gain muscle are no longer an option. I have no doubt that were I to train the way I did in my 20's I would suffer a catastrophic injury. I always had good form, did not bounce or swing, but even good form breaks down 1-2% when training to failure. This is not a big issue for most but even the slightest deviation for me results in an injury.

TLDR: Recomp lol


It has been a LONG TIME since I ran a log so if you guys are not seeing something let me know, anything I am overlooking let me know. Thank you to @Prince and @WesleyInman for the opportunity to test IML AndroHard and the chance to force myself to have some accountability. This has been a real challenge this last year. I started last year with a "couch to Ultra-Marathon" in 8 weeks with no prior running experience and it was amazing what I was able to do on my 40th Bday. Since then I have had ZERO concrete goal and it's easy to get nowhere when training is uncomfortable(joint/tendon/ligament wise) and you can't train the most effective way and the way you enjoyed, easy to bitch out and flounder, and flounder I have.

I will update with nutrition and other supplements that I always take. Out of respect for the sponsor ship of this log I will NOT be naming any of the manufacturers of other supplements I take. There will not be any other hormonals or natural anabolics. Anything I will be taking has been used for years.


​

 

[BCseacow83]

RESERVED

 

[kisaj]

Never tried this orally, but transdermal is one of my favorite products ever.

 

[xxaleksi]

Running this too, doing 4 caps a day.

 

[Prince]

Nice!

 

[kjscatch]

Following. Have fun!

 

[SSJ4GOD]

Following

 

[LeanEngineer]

In on this!

 

[BCseacow83]

UPDATE

So very unusual week. We have been hit with three snow storms so PLENTY of shoveling(six times to be exact) so that took training time but I do it by hand so it's really great training. If you have ever done it you know what I mean. Ten years ago I would have still lifted but at almost 41, with some other issues, I just wont recover, it sucks as I want to. I experienced ZERO soreness after doing this which is not the norm. Seeing as how we are only one week in here I normally would not attribute anything to a hormonal this quickly(rare exceptions such as pump or fullness can show this quick) but reduced soreness is not something that needs to build, IMO, so I do think AndroHard has helped.

My dog suffered a stroke and we have spent multiple days taking him to PT this week. Unfortunately the closest PT place is one hour and ten minutes away with their latest appointments at 4:00pm. So this requires closing our store early and leaving 2 hours prior to apt. to account for weather and travel. He has not totally regained the use of his back legs, still looks like a new born Bambi with spaghetti noodles for hind legs but he is improving. Not bad for 13.5 years old!

So regular training schedule out the window. Did cardio(bike) and LOT'S of shoveling. Despite this I look better that the week prior. What vascularity I have is more pronounced and there are some poking through that were not there last week. Next week is sub zero but NO snow and no PT apts so regular work resumes. I also turn 41 on monday so Operation Stop Falling Apart iniates!

As far as "feeling" anything, nothing so far. I see this as a POSITIVE. As I have aged most things that I feel...............just feel like crap. Hard stims, crap. Anything cannabis related, crap. Alcohol, crap. DS/PH, crap. I used to LOVE all these things. So for me a Neutral feeling is ideal.

We are celebrating my b-day on Sunday with my Sister, brother in law, and their three kids at this place:

Because I am a child, lol. We don't have human kids so it's fun to see them enjoy themselves and I could care less where my party is if everyone has fun. This place donates all profits to a food pantry and is locally owned. After we play we will eat at a locally owned diner. We were going to see disney on ice but with the direction that rudderless ship of a company has been traveling I am NOT spending a dime on them till they pull their heads out of their rears. Monday starts my cut(slight change of plan) as we are heading down south in about two months so time to get in gear(pun unintended lol.)​

 

[BCseacow83]

Update

Training is going well this week. I am getting some baseline "max outs" for reps on certain exercises to asses the change over the course of the log. I am also going to up 3 caps a day vs the 2 I was doing.

Mood:
Neutral, no change.

Pumps:
Slight increase during training vs normal.

Appetite :
Neutral, no change.

General Physique effects:
same hardness as end of week one, I do think 3 caps/day will further increase this.

Sleep:
Neutral. I always struggle with getting enough full sleep cycles and enough deep sleep. 6-7.5 hours is no problem but some nights the deep sleep is as low as 30 minutes with 1-2 full sleep cycles. Good nights are 4+ cycles with 2+ hours of deep. The difference in how I feel is night and day. So far AndroHard has caused NO CHANGE which is PERFECT as most hormonals have a negative effect.

Overall Energy:
Neutral, no change.

Libido:
positive, nothing drastic but there is an IMPROVEMENT which is a HUGE plus as almost all hormonals are negative for me.

Overall Wellness:
Mild improvement, I will take this for sure. I would be perfectly happy with neutral as most hormonals make me feel like toxic, even with low doses and within a week or two. Since this does not I am VERY HAPPY as I have another option in a category that I have almost none left.


So far, so good. We are days away from the usual "tipping point" when I run anything hornmonal above my TRT. Right around two weeks, as stated above, I feel like trash and bail as whats the point at 41 if you don't feel at least decent. To be clear I will ride this out no matter what but I don't think I will have any issues based on what the compound is, non-methylated and not regarded as "harsh" or "toxic."

If I am NOT posting things you would like to see/know PLEASE ASK. It has been a LONG time since I have logged so I welcome feedback.

POST WORKOUT MEAL:
300g Jasmine Rice
100g yellow lentils
100g chicken breast
150g lean ground beef / ground turkey 50/50 blend
Soy sauce 20g
Siracha (I use three different ones blended) 10g each
Sweet baby Rays no sugar added BBQ 20g

​

 

[akboom87]

Good looking meal! You just spacing out the 3 caps throughout the day I’m assuming? Also dosing empty stomach, any issues if you are? Good looking log so far man!

 

[BCseacow83]

Good looking meal! You just spacing out the 3 caps throughout the day I’m assuming? Also dosing empty stomach, any issues if you are? Good looking log so far man!

I take almost everything on an empty stomach. Exceptions are things like D3/K2 and b-complex, multi-vit/min. Mainly for absorption purposes but the b-complex is one of the only things that will upset my stomach if taken empty.

I am spacing the caps out. I take one about an hour pretraining on lifting days(normal AM dose anyways) and dose two about an hour postworkout. Then early afternoon. If I find my sleep effected at all I might go two pre and one with lunch.

 

[LeanEngineer]

Update

Training is going well this week. I am getting some baseline "max outs" for reps on certain exercises to asses the change over the course of the log. I am also going to up 3 caps a day vs the 2 I was doing.

Mood:
Neutral, no change.

Pumps:
Slight increase during training vs normal.

Appetite :
Neutral, no change.

General Physique effects:
same hardness as end of week one, I do think 3 caps/day will further increase this.

Sleep:
Neutral. I always struggle with getting enough full sleep cycles and enough deep sleep. 6-7.5 hours is no problem but some nights the deep sleep is as low as 30 minutes with 1-2 full sleep cycles. Good nights are 4+ cycles with 2+ hours of deep. The difference in how I feel is night and day. So far AndroHard has caused NO CHANGE which is PERFECT as most hormonals have a negative effect.

Overall Energy:
Neutral, no change.

Libido:
positive, nothing drastic but there is an IMPROVEMENT which is a HUGE plus as almost all hormonals are negative for me.

Overall Wellness:
Mild improvement, I will take this for sure. I would be perfectly happy with neutral as most hormonals make me feel like toxic, even with low doses and within a week or two. Since this does not I am VERY HAPPY as I have another option in a category that I have almost none left.


So far, so good. We are days away from the usual "tipping point" when I run anything hornmonal above my TRT. Right around two weeks, as stated above, I feel like trash and bail as whats the point at 41 if you don't feel at least decent. To be clear I will ride this out no matter what but I don't think I will have any issues based on what the compound is, non-methylated and not regarded as "harsh" or "toxic."

If I am NOT posting things you would like to see/know PLEASE ASK. It has been a LONG time since I have logged so I welcome feedback.

POST WORKOUT MEAL:
300g Jasmine Rice
100g yellow lentils
100g chicken breast
150g lean ground beef / ground turkey 50/50 blend
Soy sauce 20g
Siracha (I use three different ones blended) 10g each
Sweet baby Rays no sugar added BBQ 20g


View attachment 239630

​

Good clean looking meal for sure! I actually like eating out of the glass tupperware.

 

[BCseacow83]

Off Day Today
Very poor sleep, as almost always happens on a training da

Good clean looking meal for sure! I actually like eating out of the glass tupperware.

I eat every single meal at home out of that thing with that same spoon. The spoon is a big as I can accommodate without really triggering my TMJ lol. I do opt for a smaller size dish when the food gets less as it help psychologically to see a "full plate." The one in the pic is almost too small, lol, and its the casserole dish size. Clean food takes up alot of space.

 

[LeanEngineer]

Clean food takes up alot of space.

Agreed. It's crazy how calorie dense some junk food is and then compared with clean food

 

[BCseacow83]

UPDATE

No negative effects noted. This is a MAJOR plus for me as generally, as I noted above, the two week mark is usually when the wheels come off for me on every cycle I have attempted over the last three years. A general sense of malaise generally sets in and an overall toxic feeling. I am having ZERO of this.

Vascularity has increased, and really had in week one. It has not increased any further from the increase observed in week one but after the initial increase I generally see it takes loosing more bodyfat to further increase vascularity, this takes time. Not everyone gets immediate effects from hormones, hence the popular theory of having to wait weeks for things to "kick in." Now actual muscle tissue gain does take time but I always see almost immediate effects in the first week and sometimes the first day even(usually takes something very potent like M1A to see it same day.) Now I'm not saying I go from fatty to Paul Dillet(look him up kids) in a couple days but my forearms and bicep vein were more pronounced within the first week of taking AndroHard.

Training wise I have noticed a significant absence of soreness. Prior to this log training was taking a backseat. I was still getting some training in every week but no where near full throttle. So usually when you come back from, lets call it a "de-load" lol, soreness is increased mildly to severe. The first week I wrote it off after upper body days but when leg day +1 had next to zero soreness I was amazed. I could still tell I trained but it was that fullness/tightness I normally have +2or+3 days post training. I have never really experienced reduced soreness from anything PED related, so this is pretty cool.


Bodyweight has stayed static at 215 the first 16 days. I'm going to reduce intake via significantly less total carbs(this is mainly due to unrelated pain issues I am having and this always helps.)

Post Workout Meal:
6 whole eggs
2 scoops "animal based" protein
1 scoop whey blend
1 scoop pea isolate
240ml whole milk
30ml sugar free syrup
I slowly cook this and flip once in frying pan. It's a rough take on "protein crepes."
I swear it tasted better than it looks lol.
This picture is half of the above but I eat the whole thing:

Other Supplements
Creatine 5g
EAA 30g
Glutamine 20g
Collagen 40g
Vit D/K2
Numerous joint products
Curcumin
CoQ10
Krill
Methyl Folate
TRT 150mg/wk via 50mg M/W/F (Been on this for 15 years plus)


​

 

[LeanEngineer]

I slowly cook this and flip once in frying pan. It's a rough take on "protein crepes."
I swear it tasted better than it looks lol.

Looks like throw up but I'll take your word and may have to give it a try

 

[BCseacow83]

Update Day 22:
I have been following a keto diet(Sunday was NOT Lol) since last Wednesday. Down a few lbs already, as is to be expected when loosing the fluid.
BW: 208-212

I was finally able to get back out and run today. Did a SLOW, SLOW, SLOW 5k. First run since December 8, 2023. Hormonals can be a double edged sword with endurance activities and especially running IME. The issue is PUMPS. Those great pumps you get while training on certain compounds can be a complete negative when running anything more than a sprint. I had no such issues with AndroHard. I was hoping this was the case, as I also do well with epiandro solo when running.

Pumps during resistance training are still there but not as strong as something like a 1-dhea or anything methylated. I also did not see the 3+lbs of glycogen that some compounds deliver in week 1. I see this as a positive as there are plenty of options out there if you simply want to blow up like a tick. AndroHard on the other hand would be ideal for:

WEIGHT RESTRICTED ATHLETES
Want something to improve recovery?
Want something to increase strength( currently up about 5% for reps on main lifts vs week one?)
Something that supports training drive?
Do you want something that would NOT restrict athletic movement while doing the above?
Well then AndroHard would suit you well(assuming non-tested athlete.)

​

 

[BCseacow83]

UPDATE

BW: 215(post "carb-up" day.)

Cruising along pretty well. Only real change to report is the level of soreness. I had previously reported that I was experiencing reduced soreness post weight training. That has continued. I am still having little to no soreness post lifting. The change has been the level of soreness I have POST RUNNING. I did two 5k's last week and both times I was wrecked. Now it has been a while since I regularly ran so I was expecting soreness. I was HOPING the AndroHard would have helped but no dice. Now this is not a knock on the product as AndroHard IS reducing my post lifting soreness, which is what most will be using this for. I just wanted to report the difference.

Joints are feeling a little dry so I am dropping back to 2 caps/day to see if it abides or it's just all the garbage I ate yesterday causing the inflammation.

Made some "keto/lowcarb" McGriddles
8 whole eggs
75ml whole milk
1 scoop plant protein
1 scoop whey blend brand A
1 scoop whey blend brand B
1 scoop "animal based" protein
1 lb local stores ground breakfast sausage
Sugar free syrup as needed

Cook the sausage, drain, then add to the rest of mix. Cook as you would pancakes, only flip once.​

 

[BCseacow83]

Update:
Sorry for the long "intermission." My wife had surgery, which went perfectly, but I CHOOSE to use the day off as an excuse to eat like a fool. Nothing but carbs, pasta, popcorn, pizza, ice cream, and cookies. Total asshole eating. One day turned into two and so on. Well of course this SKYROCKETED my inflammation and, I kid you not, my back went out and has been spasming for almost a week now. I managed to get two runs in during this time but my back combined with my continued issues with De Quervain tenosynovitis have kept my out of the weight, until TODAY!!!

Trained chest with some lower back(hypers) and abs(cable crunches) and finished with BFR band superset of tricep pushdowns with cable hammer rope curls. I generally alternate between calves and lower back/abs. So next lifting session, regardless of what I train, I will add in calves. Then the next session is lower back and abs, and so on. The session went well and despite the disaster last week(been back on track diet wise since monday) my strength felt really good. One of those days where you just feel "ON."

I have maintained the two caps a day and, for me, this feels like the best dose. More dried me out a touch too much. Now if one was running something like IML's 4-andro topical or their Gear I think you could push the dose higher without feeling "dry." I personally only use 10mg/day of test cyp so there is zero water issues related to test or "androgen wetness." Combine this with a keto/carnivore esque eating and I am already "dry" so three caps was too much for me.​

 

[LeanEngineer]

but I CHOOSE to use the day off as an excuse to eat like a fool. Nothing but carbs, pasta, popcorn, pizza, ice cream, and cookies.

I usually do a cheat meal and go ham on saturday nights and then Sunday morning try to do a longer than normal cardio session to balance it out

 

[BCseacow83]

UPDATE

I did NOT do my normal Sunday "refeed" aka pigfest. I decided to stick to the keto/carnivore plan and "cheats" will still be keto/carnivore based. There will be some carbs as nuts and seeds are in the mix and when you eat a stupid amount of those the carbs add up. I DO think a carb based refeed is more advantageous BUT I simply hurt more when I eat like that. I might attempt to include some fruit or maybe a tuber here or there as I proceed, BUT until I get my back and wrist in proper form I will not.

Back Issues
So the pain spasms were on a different level Sunday night and the beginning of the week. I had stopped taking a direct magnesium supplement a couple months ago as even the glycinate form was causing loose stools. It was not a problem until I went full on fool during that binge week. Whenever I eat absolute garbage it really does seem to leech nutrients out of me. I was in so much pain I decided to "risk" the magnesium. Started with 100mg(elemental) via glycinate. I DID not have any bathroom issues. I proceeded to consume 25 of these tablets over the next 36 hours. Slowly the back started to loosen and STILL no bathroom issues. Back is 80% better now and continuing to improve. I have dialed the magnesium back as I was starting to show "signs" of getting more than needed. lol

Soreness
I have increased the volume in my training and the absence of soreness is NO MORE. My chest session in particular very productive soreness wise.​

 

[BCseacow83]

Final Thoughts

Stats at Start
41 year old Male
(well in one week I will be, 41 that is, always been a male)
5'11" "officially"
more like 5'10" these days due to injuries and compression
Weight: 210-215lbs depending on day of week
(minimum eating day with some time limited feeding vs day I stuff my face with reckless abandon followed by instant regret and shame, so much shame.)

Stats at Finish
Weight: 205 on "low days" and 209 on post "high day/refeed"
Change: 1-10lbs decrease

Goals
The goal was recomp and that has absolutely been achieved. Fat is down(plenty to go lol) and strength/muscle increased very moderately.

Mood
Mostly neutral but at times there was a touch of "dulling" or "calming," effect. Very subtle but nothing like regular epiandro. This is one of the few hormonals I can take at night with ZERO sleep disruption. That can be a good thing or a bad thing depending on goals and how you utilize the product. Is this a "pre-workout" "pre-event" product, something to double up on prior to a powerlifting event? No, not in my opinion. It CERTAINLY could be used while training for such events but there is no acute benefit to loading up on R-andro a hour before a max that I noticed.

Strength
Increased, moderately but it was a short run and anyone who has been training for decades is not adding 100's to lifts in such a time frame. Strength DID increase DESPITE lower food intake, and a less than ideal training schedule. If this product shines in such an environment it would be very effective in a surplus.

Overall Impressions
Solid product for the following goals: strength, lean mass preservation, moderate increases in lean muscle.
If you are looking for a product to add 15lbs of bodyweight in 4-6 weeks this is not the right choice. If you are looking for a product to stack with something wet or solo with a focus on quality improvements to ones physique while maintaining bodyweight or increasing moderately this is a good choice. I would love to see what AndroHard would do combined with a higher dose of epiandro and something wet like 4-andro would lead to............


Thank you to Iron Mag Labs and @Prince and @WesleyInman for the opportunity to run AndroHard!​

 

[xxaleksi]

Good review, I had the calming, slightly dulled feeling too. It’s from androsterone’s gaba agonism. Increasing caffeine intake helps…