Patrick no worries, you didn't sound "douchey". Now onto a long ass post. Your original post...
Quote:
Originally Posted by Patrick B
I'd love something that gave me real gains, but do not want any shitty side effects.
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This will be in regards to supplements. Diet is a whole conversation in itself.
You are already taking the few if any (creatine) that is backed some some sort of science. Taking BCAA may help. They have been proven useful. Beta- Alanine which is still under researched have been proven to help. Leucine is good for food uptake also. So, in a nutshell Amino Acids are good.
Some guys take a NO Supplement ( Nitric Oxide ) which is just the amino acid Arginine-alpha-keto-glutarate, or usually a cheaper and crappier form. Most of these "formulas" are loaded with stimulants and high doses of them so you get that "rush etc" there is some promising research in regards to NO products. Do a little research
http://www.bodybuilding.com/store/no2.html and
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nitric_oxide.
You said you wanted to take some supplements to "get real gains". There are really 4 routes to take here. Supplements. Pro-Hormones. Herbal. Steroids.
-You can take what I would consider "magazine supplements" you know the **** that increases your bench and gives you 10lbs in a month etc. All of this is junk. Non of it is backed by science, a lot of it is just crap combined with more crap, with a EXTREMELY small amount of the **** that actually works. No serious side effects here , but you wont get any because they arent really doing anything besides getting you bloated with crap.
--Withing this category there are also fat loss supplements. These are all just junk full of stimulants again...Also many of these contain diuretics (
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diuretic) these are no good. These supplements are junk junk and more junk.
What you have to be careful of now, is many companies pull bullshit on the label and put everything in a "formula" so many ingredients get downplayed. I.E. you may but supplement X because it has Y which is supposed to be good. But in the formula they say it's contained in the "blend or formula" but there's really on 5mcg of it...
Next we have herbal supplements. Some people think these work, some do not. Don't waste your money. Period. There is little or no science / studies backing the majority of it. Post about herbal test boosters
http://www.cigarasylum.com/vb/showpo...postcount=4147.
Next up are pro-hormones. Junk again. They are nothing more than steroids that have been manipulated in a lab somewhere, to avoid being banned by the FDA or other government agency. They get altered to the point where they become more harm than good. Also, many hormones give the body false signals and create unbalanced swings in testosterone produced if any. Pro-hormones say they help your body produce more testosterone, which doesn't work well. If work at all. Which cause more minor side effects than taking the real thing usually due to the uncontrollable swings in test, free test etc.
Finally steroids. These work. There are side effects. There is not much research in regards to these in practical Gym applications. There is a lot of hear say and media propaganda on them and how "terrible" they are. Bottom line is this, for what you would pay for the crap that is supposed to work like steroids do, you could just buy the damn real thing. It's illegal and a lot of people take them.
So I guess to sum everything up. You were looking for something to take to get gains but would not give you side effects. Anything that you take from the groups has it related side effects. The only way to have no side effects would be to train 100% natural. No drugs. Some side effects are worse than others. But the bottom line here is this. If you have a sound diet, and are training your balls. Then the choice is yours. But the best bang for your dollar will be the real thing. Hope this helps. I don't want to talk about the illegal side too much on the board here, with respect to the community and moderators. If you would like anymore info, please feel free to PM ME.