SARMS GUIDE
Ultimate Guide to SARMs - Selective Androgen Receptor Modulators
Boosting your muscle mass is extremely important and you always need to find the best, most reliable way to do that without endangering yourself. And that’s where the need for selective androgen receptor modulators comes into play. The thing to note about SARMs is that you need to be at least 18 years old in order to use these. Also, they are banned in some regions, not to mention that people with prostate enlargement or prostate cancer, HDL or heart disease need to stay away from this too. The more you do that, the better it will be in the end.
What are selective androgen receptor modulators?
Whenever you go to the Sarmsstore, you want something that helps you increase muscle mass naturally. And that’s what the selective androgen receptor modulators can do for you. They are compounds that allow you to either stimulate the key receptors in the body tissue or block them. As a result, you will get to increase the bone mass, muscle mass and even lose weight a lot easier.
This doesn’t really have any activity related to the prostate, however it can end up being very challenging just because it’s extremely demanding to use more often than not. With that in mind, in this article we are studying the benefits of selective androgen receptor modulators, their side effects and so on. This way you will know whether brands like Bodybuilt Labs or any others from the Sarmsstore are good and whether you should get these or not in the first place.
Important terms to keep in mind
The thing to notice about selective androgen receptor modulators is that whenever you start talking about them, you must learn the right terms. And we are here to help you with that.
- Ovariectomized means ovaries removed
- Orchidectomized means the testicles are removed, it’s widely known as a replacement term for castrated males.
- Estradiol is a type of estrogen and it’s released in small amounts in the male sperm to make sure that sperm won’t die very fast. In the case of women, this plays a great role in womb, breast and vagina development, among many others.
- AICAR is an analog of the adenosine monophosphate and this will help stimulate AMPK.
- VLDL means very low density lipoproptein, also known as bad cholesterol in many situations.
- LDL is good cholesterol or the high density lipoprotein.
- AMPK is the 5 AMP activated protein kinase. This is designed to boost the energy homeostasis process naturally. This will help boost the oxidation of fatty acids, triglyceride synthesis, muscle glucose uptake as well as fatty acid oxidation.
- PPAR is the peroxisome proliferator activated receptor data. This is important for the lipid metabolism regulation and it works extremely well.
- EB is estradiol benzoate and it can be used to maintain the right sexual behavior in rats.
- ED50 is the median effective dozes that will try to offer the effect you want for half the population.
- PCT is also known as post cycle therapy and it contains multiple compounds that help you restart the testosterone production naturally and with great success.
- BMD is bone mineral density and it shows mineral matter amount you will find in each square centimeter of bone.
- LPL is lipoprotein lipase and it stores calories in the form of fat.
- PSA is a prostate specific antigen test that measures how much of a particular protein is produced by the prostate gland.
- 5 alpha reductase is a very important enzyme that’s used during the steroid metabolism process.
- Aromatization is a process that allows you to convert a certain compound in either active estrogen or androgen, depending on the situation.
- ALT stands for alanine aminotransferase and it’s an enzyme that in high amounts shows you have liver injuries.
- AST is aspartate aminotransferase is similar to AST, it shows any potential liver damage.
- SHBG stands for sex hormone binding globulin and it binds to the estradiol, DHT and testosterone. You get to see if you produce too little or too much testosterone this way.
- DHT is dihydrotestosterone. This is a sex steroid as well as androgen hormone and you can find it in the adrenal glands, hair follicles and prostate as well.
- TP is testosterone propionate and it’s a derivative from testosterone that usually ends up injected in your muscles.
- FSH is the follicle stimulating hormone. It’s a hormone closely associated with the sperm development in men and egg creation in women.
- LH stands for the luteinizing hormone, this hormone is released in the pituitary gland and if it’s too much or too little you will have infertility or other related problems.
- HPG axis is the hypothalamic pituitary gonadal axis. This term describes 3 glands found in the endocrine system, but they are all a part of a single entity.
How did selective androgen receptor modulators started to be developed?
Researchers started to modify the testosterone molecule chemical structure in the 40s and these initial compounds were seen as steroidal. The first company that started developing cyclic quinolinones was Ligand Pharmaceuticals and these were the first compounds known as nonsteroidal selective androgen receptor modulators.
For the past decade researchers managed to make lots of improvements when it comes to the oral bioavailability of these compounds. They also got to decrease just how much hepatic toxicity they have too, which is a very good thing.
Unlike other similar compounds, SARMs are acting directly on certain androgen receptors. These are found in various portions of your body, be it seminal vesicle, prostate, cartilage, sweat glands, hair follicles, smooth muscles, adrenal cortex, brain and liver, among many others.
One of the reasons why selective androgen receptor modulators are so popular is that a lot of men don’t get to produce enough testosterone. It can be related to age, injuries and so on. Hypogonadism like this ends up being a problem because you end up with a lower libido, depression, you get to accumulate more fat and the libido will be low too.
Using these Selective Androgen Receptor Modulators is great if you want to boost the circulating levels of DHT and androgen receptor ligands testosterone. By increasing the natural levels, you get to deal with hypogonadism, and you will also end up treating any deterioration problems related to your age, not to mention muscle wasting issues too. And all of this is doable without any negative effect to the prostate, which is extremely important to keep in mind.
More often than not the Selective Androgen Receptor Modulators will have the activity of an antagonist in the prostate and it will be agonist in the bones and muscles. So it can affect the bones and muscles without affecting the prostate that much. These are important things to keep in mind as you focus on this kind of stuff.
You will notice there are 2 main methods to create Selective Androgen Receptor Modulators. The first one is called top down approach and researchers select a certain activity and a profile for tissue selectivity. Once that is done, they will create the desired SARM based on the target profiles.
On the other hand, there’s the bottoms up approach that requires you to determine the androgen action mechanism on the skeletal muscles and the prostate. It’s based on the action mechanisms that researchers will help create a SARM accordingly. Basically each one of the two options is very good, and it comes with its fair share of benefits. But based on the overall requirements, there might be a good idea to choose one over the other. Which is still great more often than not.
Since the Selective Androgen Receptor Modulators are very good, why aren’t they prescribed to patients more often? These are used during clinical trials, but none of them have been very advanced especially for the phase 4 or later trials. So that’s the reason why we are not seeing the full effect of all of this.
Then there’s also the fact that many of the studies made for Selective Androgen Receptor Modulators were performed on rats. Some of them were made on castrated rats, others on non-castrated rats. Researchers are actively measuring things like muscle growth, estrogen compound and so on.
The thing to keep in mind right now is that many life science and pharma companies all over the world are creating and developing Selective Androgen Receptor Modulators. However, these are not exactly for everyone to use. As we mentioned earlier the restrictions are still there, but even so there are lots of companies constantly working on SARMs. These include Bristol Myers Squibb, GTX Inc, GlaxoSmithKline, Johnson and Johnson, Kaken Pharmaceuticals, Ligand Pharmaceuticals, Merck and many others.
All these aforementioned companies are creating SARMs with the idea of serving large populations of people. Their products are great for postmenopausal women and non-castrated adults too. These are the two main categories that deal with major issues like fat gain, less mobility, strength and muscle mass loss. They even have to deal with constant bone fractures, which is exactly the type of thing that Selective Androgen Receptor Modulators can help boost and improve. It’s certainly something that works and you will be quite happy with the result.
Another important thing to note is that the IOC added Selective Androgen Receptor Modulators to the list of prohibited substances. They are also prohibited in the case of many sporting organizations like WADA and NCAA, not to mention strongman, bodybuilding and powerlifting organizations. That doesn’t necessarily make them bad or anything, it just goes to show that they are outside what type of substances are allowed. So if you do want to be a part of that kind of sports or event, you do need to avoid them. Otherwise, if the doctors says it’s ok to use them you should give these a shot because they are really good and among some of the best solutions out there.
Why should you use Selective Androgen Receptor Modulators?
Many companies like Bodybuilt Labs encourage people to get past the potential fear and use SARMs. And it’s easy to see why. These things are offering you some amazing benefits. These include decreased fat mass, more bone and muscle mass as well as other great features. These all add up to bring in front some amazing results.
Even if a lot of people state that these are meant for athletes, that’s not exactly the case. In fact a lot of people can benefit from them. IF you have muscle wasting disorders, a sense of total weakness, body wasting caused by HIV of Cancer or even burn, sports injuries and so on, you might be able to use Selective Androgen Receptor Modulators without that much of a hassle.
Yet you also need to keep in mind the fact that there are many drugs which tend to be really good at keeping you healthy and focused. However, Selective Androgen Receptor Modulators are non aromatized and non-methylated by the body. Many substances can lead to liver problems and sometimes even failure. SARMs don’t do that. They are good even if you are chronically ill, and they do make everything in their power to help you improve your quality of life in ways you would not imagine. Yes, if you want to maintain a great life in the long run, using Selective Androgen Receptor Modulators can definitely help. But it’s a good idea to talk with doctors just to be safe.
Most of the SARMs studies took place on rats and this shows that prostate weight is not affected by the increase in muscle mass. And that’s great, because prostate weight imbalance can be increasingly problematic and it can bring in front its fair share of challenges too. Based on the SARM trials made on humans, some subjects ended up being fatter with 1-1.5 kg over up to 1 month and a half. However, this was a test on regular people, a study on those that do workouts very often will definitely have different results, so try to consider that.
Another great benefit of SARMs is that they are very good at minimizing or even keeping away things like muscle atrophy. If you work very hard to build muscle mass and strength, you really need a way to increase the results and also speed up the recovery. This helps you do that. It offers you drive, focus and speed. And that’s exactly the type of thing that you expect in a situation like this.
You will also find Selective Androgen Receptor Modulators that activate AMPKs, which are mechanisms that help with lypolisis and fat oxidation. The compounds derived from testosterone are decreasing the fat mass and boosting the muscle mass. However they are not as safe as Selective Androgen Receptor Modulators, which time and time again they managed to protect the body and not bring in any potentially damaging situations like it does tend to happen at times.
The thing to consider is that androgens can increase the periosteal bone formation and the estrogen compounds will decrease this formation. So yes, androgens are indeed building the outer layer of the bone and that helps with calcium storage, organ protection and so on.
Selective Androgen Receptor Modulators are great at decreasing the trabecular and the endocortical bone turnover. This is important because it seamlessly connects with less cancellous bone loss, not to mention your bones will have more flexibility and the joints will function better than ever before. All these things are crucial and you have to keep them in mind!
Thanks to the decreasing bone turnover and the increased bone formation it’s easy to see that Selective Androgen Receptor Modulators have a very positive impact if you deal with osteoporosis. This condition appears when the creation of new bones doesn’t manage to keep up with the old bone breakdown. Usually women at menopause tend to deal with this kind of stuff, however SARMs are the ones that bring you great benefits, such as keeping the bones healthy and away from major damage.
You will see that the fitness industry is also using SARMs for things like boosting fat loss, preserving lean mass, boosting muscle mass as well as increasing muscle strength and making the recovery process easier. Athletes will use Selective Androgen Receptor Modulators between testosterone cycles, AASs and pro-hormone cycles. Which means these need to be under control in order to work the way they want to.
Unlike all the other options above however, Selective Androgen Receptor Modulators are actually helping you avoid harsh consequences like prostate cancer, lots of body hair growth, male breast development, liver problems, high blood pressure, baldness, acne and so on. What you want to do is to avoid all those problems, so using SARMS is the right approach.
Of course, you can visit the Sarmstore and purchase these Selective Androgen Receptor Modulators, however it’s still a good idea to talk with a professional beforehand. They are very good, but making sure that you purchase the right amount is a priority here. Professional assistance will help you make the most out of SARMs, which is exactly why you should avoid taking them on your own!
Popular SARMs
Here we will talk about the most popular SARMs, the dosages and effects. This way you will have a much better understanding of what these SARMs do and how you can stack them or how they actually work to begin with.
Andarine
The thing to keep in mind is that Andarine is orally active and it’s also tissue selective. This helps stimulate the anabolic organs, sometimes even more so than the androgenic ones. It does not increase any estradiol levels, nor does it suppress the FSH or LH levels, which is very important. What it does is it allows you to boost the bone and muscle mass without having to worry about any problems with the prostate. Prostate issues are a serious risk, which is why Andarine is so good. Sure, it binds 33% to the androgen receptors, but it doesn’t come with any health issues, and instead it focuses on bone and muscle mass usage.
There are many ways to use Andarine, usually you will notice it’s used during the fat loss phase. It manages to decrease the LPL and sometimes users report a situation of increasing and decreasing water retention. So if you want to boost your muscle mass a little bit while also removing fat cells, this is the best way to do it. But there are side effects when you keep the dosage higher than 50 mg per day. Vision disturbances are definitely a problem, and then there’s also the suppression of the HPG axis which is extremely important to deal with. You do need to approach every SARM with caution and talk with a doctor beforehand. Granted, they are great, but they also have side effects and they are super strong, so you never know the effects on your body.
If you want to use it for strength gain, 50 mg per day for up to 6-8 weeks will be a necessity. Recomposition will require you to go up to 75 mg at times for 4-8 weeks. As for cutting, 50 mg per day for 6-8 weeks will be more than ok. Studies on rats show that Andarine can boost the bone strength, it will lower the fat mass and even help improve the performance of the cortical bone. It will even decrease fracture risks. So even if it does have its fair share of downsides, it also has benefits too.
Ostarine
When Ostarine was used on 120 healthy older men and women, it showed that it can increase the lean body mass. It helps with insulin sensitivity too, not to mention it can boost the physical functions just as much. Using it for fitness will be great if you give it a shot during the recomposition and bulking phases. It won’t be a huge increase right off the bat, but the overall results can be downright extraordinary.
OStarine does help with bulking if you take around 25 mg per day, and that can easily work the way you want to. For recomposition you will have to take the same amount too, both situations will require 6-8 weeks of treatment in total. It can work for cuts too, as well as injury rehabilitation. For the latter one you want 12.5 mg per day, whereas for cutting you can go 15-20 mg per day as that will work really well in the end, so try to consider all of that to get the results and value that you expect in the end,
Ligandrol
SARMs are always very powerful and this one was used in phase 1 clinical trials, so it’s a legit product that works quite nicely. The thing to notice is that it boosts the lean body mass, it lowers the fat mass and it boosts strength. It also seems that it helps increase that sense of wellbeing, which can be extremely important to check out and consider, so try to consider that.
Another thing to keep in mind is that Ligandrol helps decrease the bone turnover rate. That, combined with all the other findings suggests that you can use this SARM for anything such as strength gain, recomposition, cutting and bulking as well. That being said, the dosage for the 8 weeks of treatment will vary. 5-10 mg per day for bulking, 5-8 mg for recomposition and 3-5 mg for cutting. You can also stack it with Ostarine, Cardarine and Andarine for cutting if you can, that will come in handy.
However, don’t expect it to lower the FSH or LH. It does decrease the free or total testosterone, so try to consider all of that. It’s important to understand that this compound does have its limitations, but it does tend to work really well if you use it adequately.
BMS-564,929
This is a nonsteroidal SARM that’s orally active. It’s designed to treat any functional decline related to age. It’s said to be a lot more potent when compared to testosterone in the situation of boosting muscle growthy. In many situations it can become one of the best Anabolic SARM options on the market and it’s quite easy to access and use.
AC-262,356
Created by Acadia Pharmaceuticals, this product offers a stellar anabolic effect that’s around 66% as strong as testosterone. Since it doesn’t affect the seminal vesicle and prostate weight, it definitely helps a lot and it delivers some amazing results and benefits. It can be really good at helping you boost muscle mass, not to mention it does a good job for hormone regulation too, which is extremely important to consider.
JNJ-28330835
This is yet another orally active nonsteroidal SARM that will help lower prostate weight and improve muscle growth. You want to dose it at around 10 mg/kg just to be safe. It’s said that the product can affect a person’s prostate, however the overall damage is unknown and that’s important to keep in mind in the end. It helps eliminate fat mass quite often, and it also increases sexual desire for female rats, all while lowering the bone turnover, so try to keep that in mind. It can lead to some complications, so the issues you can deal with are extremely demanding.
LGD 2226
When you use this SARM you might be able to boost sexual function without damaging the prostate size, all while increasing bone strength and boosting muscle mass. During a treatment that lasted around 4 months, it was clear that this SARM helps with bone formation and it also prevents the bone turnover rate. It also helps with boosting muscle mass. And yes, it also helps with boosting sexual functions which is really interesting. But more research is needed on this topic.
LGD 3303
LGD 3303 helped quite a lot with increasing the muscle mass and BMD in the rat models. It doesn’t mess with the prostate size, so it’s not problematic for the androgenic organs. That being said, you can opt for continual infusion or oral use if you want. Even if you have a large amount of this compound in your system, the muscles will boost their size. It’s something quite abnormal for any SARM product, but it shows that it’s definitely a lot safer when compared to some of the other options that you can find out there. Attention and true focus are key here, and the results might very well be among some of the best in the end.
S-40503
You will see S-40503 as a great SARM designed to boost muscle mass and increase BMD. It will to that similarly to DHT but without having to worry about any of the side effects. According to researchers, the product is safe and that makes it a really good anabolic SARM. Rats that received this compound had a 150% increase in prostate weight and that led to urination problems. However, the biomechanical strength of the cortical bone was improved as well.
It’s interesting to see that you can add this product and apply it to both females and males. But what can it be used for? If you want to increase your muscle mass, bone mass density and strength, this is by far one of the best possible options to take into account.
S-23
S-23 is known to have a very high binding affinity to androgen receptors. Based on the latest research regarding this compound, it’s said that it will help lower prostate size, help you eliminate fat mass and boost muscle mass too. It can even be used as a reversible hormonal contraceptive for rats at the very least. The right dosage would be 63.5 mg and around 11.75 mg per day, which is exactly what you need in this situation.
There are pros and cons to using it, as you might imagine. On the first hand you have increased muscle growth which is very positive, however the decreased LH levels and prostate size problems are an issue. However, it did boost BMD and lowered the fat mass in lab rats. Normally a dosage of around 14.9 mg per day would be more than ok. After the treatment creased, infertility was reversed and rat couples expected pregnancy, which is an interesting find. Of course more clinical testing on humans is needed, but the results are optimistic to say the least.
Cardarine
Also known as compound GW-501516, this is a selective activator and it binds to the PPAR receptors. Once it’s in your system it will help you oxidize the fatty acids. It will also help you with boosting the uptake of muscle glucose, which is extremely important to keep in mind and consider. The compound can help reverse many pre-diabetic obese abnormalities. Considering the number of people all over the world that are almost close to dealing with diabetes, this is extremely interesting and a great solution.
Aside from that, rat tests and monkey tests showed that it can build muscle and burn fat, not to mention it lowered the appearance of diabetes induced by diet. However, the downside for it is that it can end up causing cancer in the long run. However, this is all about using high dosages in the long term, and that’s an important aspect to keep in mind. Even if Cardine is not seen as a complete SARM, the WADA and the IOC decided to prohibit it either way, mainly because it activates AMPK and it’s a metabolic modulator.
But a few studies show that Cardine is harmless, it’s definitely not toxic, nor does it suppress hormones. It’s a good idea to use it at around 10 mg per day for 8 week cycles and that will help a lot. Your anaerobic endurance will increase, same with aerobic endurance. And it also seem s that you have a much faster and better recovery rate, which is an extremely important thing to consider and keep in mind to begin with. You can start with that dosage and talk with the doctor, then if you need to add more you will be able to do so at your own pace. It definitely works and you can adapt it to your own requirements.
Products similar to SARMs
SARMs are great but you will also notice that there are some type of replacement products that might be able to work just as nicely on this type of thing. However, you never really know if there are side effects to those replacements or not. Most of the time there are no side effects because they try to mimic the benefits without bringing any dangers.
Applied Nutriceuticals for example is offering RPM. This has a plant derived P- SARM Synthase AI complex at around 344 mg for each capsule. The product does come with active ingredients like citrus paradise macfaydven, grape seed extract, l-arginine base and epimedium grandiflorum to begin with, and that’s exactly an important aspect to consider. The dosage will vary based on your weight, but you have to take it 1 hour before the workout. If you have 140 lbs you can take a capsule and every 20 lbs you can add one more capsule, until you are at around 220+ lbs, in that case you can stick to 5 capsules. The pricing is ok and you get 240 capsules in total.
LG Sciences provides you with 6-Mass, this gives an anabolic hormone in 25 mg as well as a proprietary blend. Their blend has 328 mg, it includes piperine 90%, grapefruit extract, stinging nettle root, ginger extract, D-Aspartic Acid and a variety of other great compounds. You are recommended to use it at around 3 tablets per day and you can divide that in dosages 30 minutes before you eat. Serve it with 12 ounces of water for the best possible results. You want to make sure that you use this for up to 8 weeks in total, so try to consider all of that if you want to achieve great results.
LG sciences state that if you are an advanced user you can go with up 6 tablets per day and the cycles can be 120 days in total. You will not have side effects if you keep the dosage under control. If you do go with 120 days as a treatment time, you do want a 4-week cycle-off. You get 90 capsules per purchase, so you get 15-30 servings per bottle depending on how often you want to use it.
Experimenting with SARMs
This is a possibility, but you have to realize that SARMs do have their own fair share of challenges. The long term effects of SARMs are not widely known, so you have to study this as much as possible to avoid any possible issues. It’s definitely a really good idea to know what you are getting into, and the results can indeed shine due to that. There are also SARMs that were tested clinically and others are not. It’s important to check the SARM product you want to buy and see if it’s actually approved by the FDA or not. This way you can make sure that there are no possible major problems and in the end it can be your advantage, you can rest assured of it.
Even so, taking your own due diligence into account when you choose and use SARMs is a necessity. It does have the potential to work amazingly well, and there are a plethora of possible options that you can think about when it comes to stuff like this.
Most of the time SARMs will be extremely good when it comes to boosting muscle mass, lowering the amount of fat in your body and boosting your bone power as well. However, it can also be a bit tricky because you never know the true results for your body until you try it. Working closely with a medical professional is a priority because you never know what you are getting into with stuff like this unless you actively try it. That doesn’t mean it will be an easy thing to do, but the ROI can indeed be huge, so try to consider all possible options.
One thing is certain, with the right control you will find that SARMs really deliver the support and value you want. They work really well and you can adapt them to your own needs in no time. Even if some SARMs are quite difficult to adapt to your day to day life, the results can be second to none.