During contest preparation total daily insulin release decreases due to
a decrease in calorie intake. As a result there is a corresponding decrease in blood glucose levels that predicts these low insulin periods. As a rule CH administration during a period in which a glucometer reading of below 65 exists results in a significant increase in fat expenditure. Many have followed this practice and followed with cardio sessions to heighten the effect. Interesting, huh? It has been a wise choice to keep glucose tabs nearby incase hypoglycemia sets in. (It would have been really embarrassing to pass-out on a tread mill and have it toss a beast to the carpet) PGF-2/IGF-1: Obviously IGF-1 was both anabolic and anti-catabolic. However when paired or stacked with PGF-2, a synergistic response was realized. The combination was perfect for symmetry adjustments during pre-contest diets simply because both were some-what site-specific in action. As Frank now realized, different muscles have a unique and different PTOR, which means such areas as his arms lose mass more quickly than others. The PGF- 2/IGF-1 stack significantly increased anabolism in those areas either as he dieted down or during the last 3 weeks before his contest. Thyroid Hormone: T-4 and T-3 thyroid hormones increased the BMR and the PTOR while significantly increasing nutrient absorption and utilization. They also had a very notable synergistic response with AAS and GH/IGF-1. Since T-4 and T-3 increased BMR and a high protein diet was utilized with anabolic chemistry, the result was faster fat loss (also better lean mass retention and growth). Thermalgenics: Thermalgenics increased the number of calories burned as heat expenditure. Clenbuterol and Ephedrine also had anti-catabolic qualities that also acted synergistically with GH. Caffeine greatly extended the time period for fat burning effectiveness of most thermalgenics. Anti-Estrogens: Estrogen control was absolutely necessary during contest prep. Any increase in estrogen activity could have lead to stubborn fat deposits (or even female pattern fat deposits), gyno, and serious water retention. The reader knows well the fact that estrogen leads to a negative feed-back loop that inhibits HPTA function. However, since contest prep cycles lasted so long, HPTA regeneration postcycle was quite necessary anyway. But why would we have added to the problem to begin with? No competitor came in truly hard without estrogen suppression. FACT!! Cortisol Suppression: During calorie deficit periods, the body increases catabolic hormone production. Cortisol, the body's main catabolic hormone increases protein based tissue wasting by triggering the release of amino acids from muscle cells. The amino acids are stripped of their nitrogen components and then utilized as an energy source. When cortisol suppression was utilized the body increased the use of fats for fuel. Total cortisol suppression would have been counter-productive as there existed an obvious synergy between cortisol and most contest or growth chemistries relating to growth, as well as immune function. Over dosing or prolonged use of cortisol suppressing drugs would have potentially resulted in serious negative feed-back loops. DNP: DNP affected the Krebs cycle by making the mitochondria create heat instead of ATP (energy). It did so by introducing lots of hydrogen ions between the two cellular outer membranes. The Krebs cycle is a series of chemical reactions that occur within the mitochondria that are responsible for the breakdown of nutrient molecules to form water and carbon dioxide as well as ATP. In short, DNP uncoupled the process. About a 50% + increase in metabolic rate occurred with the use of 5mg/kg of DNP daily. For most beasts this translated into a fat loss of up to 6-10 LBS in a 7-day span. Most of this heat was surface heat not internal heat so it was necessary for Frank to monitor his body temperature; 101-102 degrees was not uncommon. Also Frank slept in an air-conditioned room or had a fan on his face while he slept. Though I would never claim DNP was safe, I will say a maximum dosage of 5 mg/kg daily appeared not to be dangerous for most individuals. At a dosage of as little as 8 mg /kg daily, DNP could have been DEADLY!!! During periods of DNP use, Frank experienced major carb craving periods. Usually 25-50 grams of peptide or L-Glutamine resolved this. Arginine worked well also, but we had another use for this muscle mass amino acid we will discuss later. Another factor that fascinated me about DNP was its ability to prevent fat gain during insulin use. It did so by screwing up the shape of the insulin molecule. This also meant it was far more difficult to go hypoglycemic when DNP and insulin were stacked. Obviously DNP use increased the PTOR which then allowed for increased calorie counts and therefore increased nutrient availability at the cell. I personally believed DNP was very useful but had to be utilized with serious caution. Some users simply ingested the 5mg/kg dosage first thing in the morning. Others broke it up into 2 evenly divided dosages. I liked DNP's ability to clear receptor sites. This was especially effective for androgen receptor clearing and count up-regulation. While utilizing DNP, Frank had to train with higher reps and lower weight loads. This was because DNP users have experienced serious muscle cramps and tears due to interference with ATP re-synthesis and other factors. Red Blood Cell Expanders: AAS such as Anadrol-50 were sometimes utilized as a method of increasing red blood cells count. This allowed a beast to appear much fuller and vascular because there was more blood to expand vascular tissue (Like veins and muscle). There is of course a correlation between red blood cell count and hemocrit. I have often seen athletes with a hemocrit of over 52 thus exceeding the safer reference range. Instead of using one of the many hemocrit control drugs it has always been so much healthier to simply donate blood. The reduction is immediate and effective...and far more healthy. Eprex was a protein that aided in inducing an increase in red blood cell count. It too has been used pre-contest to create improved vascularity and a fuller musculature. It took about a month to become effective when utilizing daily dosages of 1000 iu/d subcutaneously (sc). SC injections were far more effective when Eprex was the drug. 60 days total use was a maximum use period. A blood viscosity increase too high could have resulted in heart, vascular, and brain damage. Eprex was often utilized as a method of increasing vascular support for new growth potential. As I have explained prior, new tissue only grows if there is an existing supply of vascular and nerve tissue as well as enough blood/nutrients to adequately supply it. If there is an existing inability for nerves to communicate with the cells or a lack of vascular tissue to supply blood, no growth occurs. Eprex was employed by some beasts, but others wisely avoided it. PGE-1: PGE-1 was a prostaglandin of the same group (but not series) as PGF-2. The difference was size created from deep site-injections was mostly cosmetic and resulted in a size increase lasting 4-6 hours. When 10-20 mg of PGE-1 was injected directly into a muscle, swelling occurred within about 10 minutes. Using arms as an example, 10-20mg was injected deeply into each bicep/tricep, resulting in a size increase of 1-2 " per arm. This has been utilized as a "last minute fix" for obvious lagging body parts. PGE-1 came in 1cc vials, providing either 10 or 20 mg. Nollatil, Kaverject (5cc ampules) and generic PGE-1. They are both used in medicine to induce penile erections for those who have such problems. I find it interesting that research has found that regular use, for this purpose, results in permanent size gains. Yes, there too. The issue of layers, not including AAS foundation and estrogen control, was a matter of synergistically improving results.