Category: Post Cycle Therapy

Posted on by — Leave a comment

Protect® (Tamoxifen): Combatting Estrogen Dominance for Effective Fat Loss

By: M. G. Thibault

Hormones regulate many bodily functions in women, including sleep, stress, appetite, and libido, to name a few. It may be overwhelming to fully comprehend the hormone puzzle, and we are here to help you better understand how hormones work and how they can affect our bodies and health. Estrogen and progesterone are two of the most important hormones affecting women.

Estrogen is a female sex hormone and its primary function is to promote growth. It is especially important during puberty and pregnancy, and it plays a role in the menstrual cycle, bone strength, and fat distribution in the body.

Progesterone is a hormone secreted by the female reproductive system to regulate the uterine inner lining (endometrium), and plays an essential role in regulating the menstrual cycle and maintaining the early stages of pregnancy.

What is Estrogen Dominance?

Estrogen dominance occurs when there is an excess of estrogen in the body relative to other sex hormones. Estrogen dominance can cause abnormal menstruation (heavy/painful periods), fluid retention, headaches, decreased sex drive, bloating, mood swings, fatigue, anxiety & depression, breast tenderness, and hormonal weight gain. If you are experiencing some of these symptoms, excess estrogen is a big possibility. Let’s investigate further to know what’s causing this and how you can manage disproportionate levels of estrogen.

Factors Contributing to Estrogen Dominance

Insulin and cortisol imbalance: These two hormones regulate stress responses and blood sugar levels in the body, which can interfere with ovarian, thyroid, progesterone, testosterone, and sleep hormones.

Contraceptive Pills: The pill controls your hormones by preventing ovulation. However, if you do not ovulate, you do not produce progesterone, which can result in higher estrogen levels.

Poor liver function: estrogen is detoxified by the liver and then eliminated through the bowel. If our livers aren’t working properly and we’re not getting rid of the estrogen, it can lead to a buildup.

Weight gain: Because our fat cells can produce estrogen, the more fat we store, the higher our estrogen levels can rise.

Poor diet: To effectively metabolize estrogen, the body requires B vitamins, magnesium, zinc, omega-3 fatty acids, and protein. If you don’t get enough of these vitamins and minerals in your diet, your estrogen levels will rise.

Family genetics: Also play a role in estrogen production. Some women may produce too much estrogen without any negative symptoms, whereas others struggle greatly.

Chemical estrogens: ingested or absorbed through the skin, chemical estrogens such as BPA, pesticides, and beauty products can mimic our bodies’ own estrogen, causing levels to rise.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3222987/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2689796/
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/15050110/

Managing Estrogen Dominance:

Liver support: avoiding substances toxic to the liver, particularly alcohol, in order to efficiently metabolize estrogen and facilitate its elimination.

Reduce your stress levels: to help balance your cortisol levels.

Manage insulin levels: by eating a diet low in processed sugar and carbohydrates.

Avoid chemical estrogens: by using BPA-free plastics or alternatives, switching to natural brands for toiletries and cosmetics, and going organic to reduce pesticide exposure.

Lose weight: remember less fat = less estrogen production.

Supplementation: we recommend taking supplements to help restore balance between your estrogen and progesterone levels.

Protect® (Tamoxifen) in Reducing the Effects of Estrogen Dominance

We talked about the use of supplements to facilitate a healthy estrogen balance and one of the most effective products currently available is Protect® (Tamoxifen). Classed as a selective estrogen receptor modulator or SERM, it is a non-steroidal anti-estrogen drug developed in the 1960’s to prevent breast cancer. By blocking the effects of estrogen in the body, it stops the proliferative effects caused by the hormone in certain cancers. Although initially used to treat breast cancer patients, it has gained popularity among fitness people and bodybuilders as a fat loss agent. The benefits of using tamoxifen to burn fat with minimal muscle wastage has made it popular as a fat burning agent in both healthcare and the fitness industry.

While Protect® (Tamoxifen) doesn’t directly promote weight loss, it can prevent estrogen-induced weight gain. Tamoxifen can help minimize the amount of receptors available for estrogen binding. Because of this, you’ll be less likely to add weight and you’ll have a better chance of losing stubborn fat around problem areas like the stomach, hips, thighs and triceps.

Upon binding to estrogen receptors, tamoxifen blocks the action of estrogen and significantly reduces the accumulation of adipose tissues. This is extremely important because as we mentioned, fat gain can be caused by high levels of estrogen in the body. By binding with these receptors, Protect® effectively inhibits these effects.

In a ground-breaking study, published in The Journal of the American Medical Association, researchers found that tamoxifen was proven to increase muscle mass and reduce body fat percentage in both men and women. Furthermore, the use of tamoxifen
is associated with improved cardiovascular health, which helps increase blood flow and aids in recovery from strenuous exercise.

If you are concerned about safety, it is important to note that SERMs don’t actually eliminate the estrogenic compounds in the body, meaning the risk of low estrogen related problems are severely reduced. Protect® does not carry the risk of totally eliminating a women’s estrogen, opening her up to joint and reproductive issues as well as a greater risk of virilization

For dosing recommendations, the typical dose for breast cancer patients is around 20-40 mg a day. You don’t need to take that much. Off-label use of Protect® (Tamoxifen) as a fat shredding agent is 10-20 mg a day, which is equivalent to .5-1ml daily.

Conclusion

If you want to burn body fat and get ripped more efficiently, give tamoxifen a try. This drug blocks the effects of excessive estrogen in your body, and exerts a direct effect on your body’s ability to lose stubborn body fat while preserving lean muscle mass. Protect® (Tamoxifen)  is fairly safe since it allows women to enjoy the physique benefits of a reduced estrogenic load without actually removing the estrogen, which is then free to perform other body functions.

https://www.elitesarms.com/products/elite-sarms-protect-tamoxifen-20mg-ml
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4669751/
https://ajp.amjpathol.org/article/S0002-9440(17)30780-0/fulltext

Posted on by — Leave a comment

Post Cycle Therapy: Why is it Crucial to Your Muscle-building Regimen?

ES EDM BLOG 72655df0 ceae 4014 90db a2b9ca3e3f6b

What is Post Cycle Therapy (PCT)

You just finished your Sarms bulking cycle, and you’re feeling great now that you’ve made some of the best gains you ever had in your life. Now your target is to maintain your lean gains. In this Blog we discuss the best protocol for keeping your gains Post-cycle.

Post-cycle therapy or PCT.

Some may not be aware of the importance of PCT in between bulking or cutting cycles, but it should be an imperative part of your regimen especially if you’re really serious about your body building/body transformation goals.

Who should take PCT and Why

If you’re an avid fitness lover, you’re no stranger to powerful supplements like SARMs, or the old school – Anabolics. Whether you belong to either of these two or you are using both, reading this article may help you with bridging the gains or losses you made during cycle so you can continue to move forward even after you’ve finished a cycle.

Anabolics and PCT

There’s nothing more dangerous when it comes to supplements like anabolic steroids. They can offer Massive gains and strength but these benefits are far outweighed by the risks.

It’s not only the adverse effects you may get during a course of steroids but also the unpleasant repercussions you’re faced with after you finish your cycle. This is where post cycle therapy comes in.

When you take Anabolics, you’re pumping the body full of huge amounts of artificial testosterone in addition to your natural androgens, to amplify muscle growth, strength and body composition. Because there’s an unnaturally high amount of testosterone circulating in the body, the negative feedback loop will firstly shut down your body’s natural production of testosterone, and then convert the rest into estrogen. We all know that too much estrogen in the body, particularly in males result in:

  • Decrease in Muscle Mass – you end up losing your gains
  • Low libido – you can have little or no sex drive
  • Gynecomastia – you can get ‘Man Boobs’ and sensitive nipples
  • Increased Fat around the Abdomen – kiss your chiselled abs goodbye
  • Mood Swings – you can have girl tantrums too. Or cry watching romance movies with your partner ; )The Takeaway: Have a PCT protocol in place if you do decide to attempt any Anabolic cycle or a Sarms cycle longer than 12 weeks.

SARMs and PCT

If you’re taking SARMs you also know by now that it is much safer because of its selectivity to the androgen receptors of muscles, bones and connective tissues. Meaning it will not affect your heart, liver, or prostate; and it doesn’t shutdown your testosterone. Which begs the question, why would you still need a PCT when you’re supplementing with SARMs?

Because of Sarms high affinity to selective androgen receptors, SARMs displaces your natural testosterone that are supposed to attach to your muscles and bones. This results in 2 things: 1. Your body’s ability to gain lean muscle mass and strength increases (a SARMs effect)

2. Your natural testosterone remains circulating in the blood, which can lead to a suppression of testosterone via the minor negative feedback reaction for natural testosterone increasing in the body.

Now, it takes a longer amount of time for your endogenous testosterone to build up in your circulation to cause a mild suppression or when the brain detects it enough to start converting the testosterone to estrogen.

I want to emphasize that everyone’s biology is created differently thus, your body’s response to different supplements will vary to another reaction. Others can do away without using a PCT when they supplement with SARMs. But some may be more sensitive to their own test levels that a small increase in the blood requires a PCT.

Benefits of Post Cycle Therapy

An Effective PCT after a bulking cycle works to complete the following:

  • Blocks Estrogen
  • Detoxifies the Liver
  • Maintains muscle gains and lower body fat levels
  • Promotes and sustains Natural Test levels
    Types of PCTs


Selective Estrogen Receptor Modulators or SERMs work to block estrogen receptors in the hypothalamus, which stimulates LH/FSH production and stimulates testicular testosterone production. In males with a mild suppression in testosterone, the administration of Tamoxifen, 20 mg/day for 10 days is perfect to rebalancing the body. In a study of normal males, Tamoxifen stimulated a moderate increase in luteinizing hormone (LH), follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH), testosterone, and estradiol levels. Studies also show patients with lower FSH levels had a significantly higher increase in sperm count and concentration when Tamoxifen daily.

https://www.elitesarms.com/products/elite-sarms-protect-tamoxifen-20mg-ml

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/640052

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/1938185

Aromatase inhibitors or AI‘s is another component of a reliable Post cycle regimen. Arimistane is an Aromatase Inhibitor and works by blocking the Aromatase enzyme responsible for converting testosterone into estrogen. A daily dosage of 25 mg allows you to balance hormone levels while normalizing your testosterone secretion.

Some studies actually call Arimistane as a suicide aromatase inhibitor (AI) because it permanently binds to the aromatase enzyme and prevents any estrogen rebound. By blocking excess estrogen, you cans dodge nasty symptoms that come with it such as gynecomastia, toxic fat gain, mood swings, and water retention.

Furthermore, it has also been shown to reduce cortisol, raise LH (luteinizing hormone), and increase testosterone levels to help with results during and post-cycle.

https://www.drugs.com/drug-class/aromatase-inhibitors.html

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/14513432/