3 replies to this topic

[experimenting]

Hey everyone. Been lurking on the forums for awhile and just wanted to detail my experiences and see what everyone thinks.

 

ALCAR

I've been taking this for approximately 9 months and the effects have been very beneficial. I take 500mg per day; supplier is Relentless Improvement. My energy levels have shot up. I no longer sleep in or take hours to wake up mentally-I'm alert from the time I get out of bed. I feel like I need less sleep and I've seen significant athletic benefits as well. I recover faster, and have substantially better endurance. I've also seen marked improvements to my body composition; I feel like I've gradually lost 5-10lbs of fat with no associated muscle loss (I exercise 3-4x a week and have seen some strength gains over this period). 500mg seems to be the right dose for me: I use 1000 when I need a little extra energy, but I can't sustain that or else I begin to have sleep disturbances. 1500+ and it's an overload, I either don't feel anything or it's counterproductive. 

 

The cognitive effects are interesting. I'm a lot more alert, but I also am prone to some bouts of anxiety, nothing too serious, and also find myself more distracted than before. On the plus side, I also find myself much more perceptive-I'm able to think more constructively and philosophically about my life etc., which if I have understood the forums correctly is a side effect of more choline in the brain (which ALCAR boosts). Overall, ALCAR has been of tremendous benefit and very little downside-I've taken it nonstop and don't really see the need for a break since this doesn't directly act on the brain. 

 

Piracetam

I used to use this off and on (1600-2400mg), with varying success. Sometimes it just "hits you" and you're an instant genius. Other times you're foggy. I tried troubleshooting with choline but overall this one was just very inconsistent for me. I also found that this damages my metabolism-I felt much more sluggish and tired in the gym, sweat more, and felt like my body composition suffered. Also this felt like a stimulant; at the end of the day or on weekends when I didn't take it I'd really crash. 

 

Noopept

I've used 10mg on maybe 7 occasions now. Hard to describe it-it lasts a lot longer than Piracetam but for me had a much more subtle effect, unlike the big peak of piracetam followed by the extreme fatigue. Once again had the same metabolic effects here. Granted I used it very sparingly but I could feel my reduced exercise performance (which was quite dramatic given the low dosages I used).

 

Uridine

Sorry Mr. Happy: I've tried this since Saturday (75mg TAU with B-complex and my usual ALCAR) and haven't liked it. I know it's early days but this one seemed to have odd physical consequences. Went to the gym to do my usual full-body workout (squats, dl's, ohp, row etc) and had almost no endurance-absolutely gasping for air and nearly stopped my workout. It almost seems to counterbalance the ALCAR. Cognitively, even after a few days, I notice the Zen-like focus but if these physical effects persist I don't want any of it. Also I've noticed it's a mild sedative and I really don't like that effect.

 

 

TL; DR: Great experiences with ALCAR, and even Piracetam at times (there were some incredible days). But question: has anyone else experienced the endurance/metabolic downsides of Piracetam, Noopept, Uridine? What might be causing it? And conversely, why do I feel so much stronger/more toned on ALCAR?

[KillazPullinThemTriggaz]

Thank you for posting - you've convinced me to try ALCAR and I do work out myself.

 

On Noopept, did you experience anything else? Fluent speech or easier thinking?

[experimenting]

Hey, yes you absolutely need to try out ALCAR if you're interested in upping exercise performance.

 

1) As I said before, it substantially improved my endurance. If I understand the literature, it improves mitochondrial efficiency and facilitates energy transfer, and I could feel the effects. I wonder if it's semi-permanent?

2) It did something more than endurance; I somehow feel a lot looser on it-more flexible, etc. It's a hard to describe feeling but it's noticeable.

 

These are not placebo effects. I started lifting about 1.5 years ago. Pre-ALCAR, I bulked to 192 lbs (lot of fat) and could deadlift 245 for 5 reps, for example. Post-ALCAR, I'm 172 and can deadlift 265 for 10 and quite frankly I've devoted a lot less time to training due to work and other life stressors. Same training regimen and diet.

 

 

My story in regards to the racetams and noopept is a bit complex. In fact I'd like to answer a question with a question: does anyone here suffer lasting effects from mild alcohol usage? I'm by no means a big drinker, but if I have a few cocktails I feel it for days and even weeks-I feel sluggish and depressed, it's like some switches have been turned off and I can't get them back on. I initially came on to this forum to try to correct this and stumbled upon the racetams and noopept, which do the trick. Long story short, if you don't have brain fog issues, I'm not sure I'd try noopept or even piracetam. noopept is more consistent, but the effect, which as you said comprises more fluent speech and some deeper thinking, just isn't worth the cost for me (the severely decreased cardio, fatigue, sleep disturbance-this acts on your brain directly, after all). And piracetam was just very hit-or-miss. 

[William Sterog]

You should try creatine, even at low doses (1500mg with breakfast) feels better than ALCAR to me.