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