How does hormonal contraception affect the athlete? (Part 2) | Steroids4U.eu

How does hormonal contraception affect the athlete? (Part 2)

It's been some Friday since we came up with the first part of an article on hormonal contraception in women who play sports. If you haven't reached it yet, or if you've forgotten all the information since then, it's high time you read it (again) here.

At the end, we mentioned that we would look at:

how HA affects aerobic / endurance training

how HA affects anaerobic / strength training

positive and negative HA

any scientifically based recommendations for HA

So let's get on with it.

Influence of hormonal contraception on aerobic and anaerobic activity

Several studies have found that hormonal contraceptives can affect performance, both endurance (aerobic) and strength (anaerobic). The point is, however, that the vast majority of studies were performed only on oral hormonal contraception (ie not on, for example, the hormonal intrauterine device) and, moreover, many of those studies do not respect the diversity of contraceptives at all - e.g. I do not understand why gestagen and combined contraception occur in the same group of test subjects. As we know from the last article, these two types of contraception behave very differently in the body. Or, for example, in one group of test people, women who train regularly mix with those who don't move that much. And to make matters worse, there is not much data on the subject of contraceptive athletes. And then for one to come up with some calm conclusion…

Aerobic / endurance activity

Endurance performance is affected by several factors, the three main ones being:

VO2 max (which is, in layman's terms, an indicator of your condition; the higher this number, the better off you are with the physicist)

lactate threshold (represents a specific measure of effort or pace at which fatigue begins to accelerate)

muscle efficiency

Hormonal contraception can potentially affect each of these measures, but not only that.

In order not to include you here in meaningless numbers, let us present the results of various studies on examples.

VO2 max is an indicator that is important for endurance athletes. Several studies indicate that the use of hormonal contraception is associated with a significant reduction in VO2 max, up to 5-15%. So if we imagine a top runner who starts taking contraception, it is a huge impact on her performance.

Overview of the results of individual studies or Milada, Josefín, Alžběta and Andrea, our endurance athletes, decided to start using contraception. What happened?

Milada with HA with first-generation progestins got tired as fast as she had on a treadmill as before, when she wasn't taking contraception; after 6 months of use, however, she found a 7-8% reduction in VO2 max

Josefína with HA without further determination (yes, such studies also exist) while riding a bicycle simulator found that she has a statistically significant reduction in VO2 max and lactate threshold compared to the period without contraception, although she did not notice any difference in performance; in addition, VO2 max was 3-6% lower during the 21 days she took the pills, compared to a week of placebo / no pills

Elizabeth with HA with third-generation progestins using it for 1.5 years showed no change in aerobic parameters compared to Andrei, who did not use any hormonal contraception; In addition, Andrea found a 7.5% increase in VO2 max in 6 months of training

After collecting data from all studies and knowledge to date on this topic, we can say that there is a fairly clear pattern: HA reduces VO2max, although this does not necessarily have an impact on performance. However, for top athletes, even a minimal reduction in VO2max can worsen overall performance, so HA use should be considered. However, HA with third-generation progestins should have less impact than HA with first-generation progestins or three-phase HA.

Anaerobic / force activity

There is a review that looked at 10 studies that discussed this topic. What about women using hormonal contraception and their strength compared to women who do not take contraception? Some studies showed an increase in strength, others a decrease, and the rest showed no change. Phew. However, as in the previous case with aerobic activity: each of those studies was quite poorly constructed.

One small study compared women who took HA with second- or third-generation progestins for min. 6 months for leg strength during three different times during the cycle. No change was observed, indicating that the androgenicity of HA (ie different generations of HA) ultimately had no effect. However, the group of women who do not use HA was not included, so we lack data for comparison.

Another study looked at women who did not exercise but had used HA for at least 1 year, or who had never used it. They completed 2 strength training sessions and 2 high-intensity aerobic workouts for 10 weeks. Result? No difference in strength or endurance was observed, there was no difference in the improvement of the two groups, however, the group of women who never used HA gained some muscle mass and lost a small amount of body fat.

These two small studies are just two raised drops in the sea. Two imperfect drops in a sea of ​​mini-ponds of even more imperfect studies.

Based on these findings (and the recommendations from the first article), you can try to choose a lesser evil, but at the same time it is necessary to monitor what changes begin to happen after using / discontinuing contraception and whether we are OK with these changes.

Positive and negative HA

you have control over your pregnancy

you have control over the cycle

you usually don't experience PMS with it (at least not in such a style as without HA)

your risk of anemia is lower

potentially you run the risk of knee injury less

every woman has a different one, contraceptives have a different effect on each one

may have a negative effect on weight or body composition

potential negative effect on acute and long-lasting on some types of training

we still lack proper research on this topic, we still don't really know exactly how HA affects us

So what, should I take the contraceptive or not?

see the section above and consider the pros and cons; if you are a top athlete, it is best to avoid HA

if you are not allergic to synthetic estrogen, be sure not to take gestagen contraception; Athletes report more negative / side effects with this type of contraception compared to combined HA

if possible, avoid three-phase HA; of all studied HA they show the worst side effects (gain, impaired aerobic and possibly anaerobic performance, potentially worse gains)

Although HA with 4th generation progestins show benefits “for everyday life” (prescribed against acne, prevents water retention), due to their anti-androgenic effects they could logically have a negative impact on performance or adaptation to training (reduce overall and free testosterone and blocks the receptor without sending any positive signal to skeletal muscle)

HA with 2nd or 3rd generation progestins seem to be the best choice (well, behind the option of "not taking HA at all"), but it is not possible to specifically recommend which one to choose - there is not enough data on which to build nicely.

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CBD: A substance that is allowed everywhere. Does it have real effects for athletes as well? | Steroids4U.eu

CBD: A substance that is allowed everywhere. Does it have real effects for athletes as well?

CBD here, CBD there. In the last six months, we will put our hand on the fire for hearing something about CBD. Czech and Slovak rappers started a business with CBD, abroad CBD drops a lot of influencers and names like Morgan Freeman, strongman Eddie Hall or wrestler Nate Diaz, and this is a modern thing that is of particular interest to nutritional supplement retailers. As the title reveals, we are the only EU member state where CBD is banned, although there have been reports that this will change from January 2020.

CBD = cannabidiols. Substances found in cannabis plants. If a parent reads this and already has in mind that we are writing about marijuana and drugs, it must be said that CBD is not a psychoactive substance and is not THC, which contains dozens of cannabionides. However, because we have different receptors in the body, our body can respond to CBD. In the Czech Republic, CBD is legally longer, in Austria you have specialized shops for it, you can also buy CBD at the pump, and you can even find soaps or ointments with CBD even in a drugstore.

According to a survey of almost 2,500 people three years ago, as many as 62% of respondents said they use CBD to treat a medical condition, specifically pain (chronic or joint), which came first, anxiety / depression, and sleep problems. Studies on CBD are mostly in rodents or in vitro (in the lab), and this is the first problem. Simply put, the data we have is not enough. But never mind, let's at least look at what we have. We will divide it into 3 categories. To those described by the respondents. We will mainly start from the excellent AARR review by Alan Aragon, where experts have dealt with many interesting studies.

PAIN & CBD

Talking about CBD helping someone with pain is enough. That's not enough for relevance, is it? When it comes to analgesics that treat pain, placebo works in a surreal way, as this research suggests. As the main animal studies mentioned so far predominate, let's start with them. In chronic inflammatory and neuropathic pain, the benefits have been shown more than once. In rats. And we know that the differences between humans and rats are, so even though CBD is a known anti-inflammatory agent, it's hard to say a clear position.

In humans, we have research where transdermal application of CBD has helped individuals with temporary temporomandibular disorders (a group of jaw-related health problems. These disorders can cause joint sensitivity, facial pain, and difficulty moving). And the results were not small. We are talking about reducing pain on a scale from 70.2% to 9.81% compared to the placebo group.

Oral CBD has a bioavailability of only 6% due to cleavage, so transdermal administration can be truly effective. But before you go to the Czech Republic or Vienna to buy CBD ointments, you should be aware that many creams containing CBD, of which there are many on the market, also contain various other substances (menthol, etc.), so the effect can be via placebo.

ANXIETY, DEPRESSION & CBD

First of all, anxiety needs to be defined. It can be the well-known classic that we know before the interview, before the tests and the like. However, there is more of a disorder where anxiety is chronic - generalized anxiety disorder (GAD), post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and panic disorder.

We have more human research in this category. Two studies have shown benefits in both healthy people and those with social anxiety (SAD). In addition, CBD helped healthy individuals who had anxiety in public speaking. However, studies show that more does not equal better. The 600 mg dose did not have a better effect than the half dose. Chronic Anxiety and CBD? This is more complicated. The reason is simple - little research. Although there are some indicative benefits, as stated in the AARR, both have significant gaps. And depression? Also - little research. Once again, some data in rats showing the benefits, but nothing that we could call relevant and worth mentioning.

SLEEP & CBD

We have a few articles about sleep, even a favorite part of the Fitclan podcast. But nowhere did we mention CBD as one of the ways that could help us improve the quality of sleep or sleep itself. Does CBD have potential? Um, anni. In this research, we had people with insomnia, and the results showed that people had better sleep. However, these were results reported by subjects, no more specific measurements. In another study, the benefits were shown with 600 mg CBD, not the direct effects associated with sleep, but a sedative effect. In a further study of 26 healthy people, it was concluded that 300 mg with sleep did not help and was measured by polysomnography. There is not much research (yes, again, we know…), but so far it seems that CBD can improve sleep only in people who suffer from insomnia, but healthy individuals will probably not see the benefit (not counting placebo).

DOSAGE AND NEGATIVE EFFECTS?

Let's start with those negative effects. At the beginning, we mentioned the survey, but only now will we mention that the respondents were also asked about the negatives. They (30.8% of them) mentioned at least one, the most common being dry mouth, euphoria, hunger, red eyes and lethargy. In terms of dosage, most studies work with 300 mg. When you use google and search for some CBD products, CBD oil in a total amount of 300 mg will cost you 25-35 euros. You don't have to be good at math to know that by researching effective dosing, you would spend a lot of money on something that will last you a short time and about which we know little. Very, very little. Not to mention the fact that regulations are as they are and not always what is stated on the packaging is true. One study found that 30 out of 84 CBD products had a lower CBD content than declared and only 31% of the products had the same amount of CBD as on the packaging. In addition, 18 of the 84 products also contained THC, which can be a disaster for the athlete tested.

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How does hormonal contraception affect the athlete? | Steroids4U.eu

How does hormonal contraception affect the athlete?

We already have a few articles about how much the menstrual cycle can have on sports performance. However, there has always been a sentence that these articles apply only to those women who do not use hormonal contraception, and therefore their cycle is natural. This has definitely disappointed at least half of our readers. Recently, however, Lyle McDonald published a great e-book dedicated to (not only) women who play sports and use hormonal contraception. We took it to pieces together with other relevant sources and we bring you the first comprehensive article on this topic. In addition, we have done a small mini-study for you based on your answers from Instagram, which you will get in the Premium section. But let's get everything in order, this topic is extremely complex.

For example, you will learn:

What is contraception, how does it work, what types exist

What effect contraception has on training adaptations

Whether it gains weight after contraception or whether it prevents fat loss

What effect does it have on muscle growth or loss?

How it affects aerobic / endurance training

How it affects anaerobic / strength training

What is (hormonal) contraception?

Contraception is a term that includes all methods to prevent unwanted pregnancy. When we talk about hormonal contraception (HA), we most often encounter the form of tablets, patches, injections and intrauterine devices. In addition to hormonal contraception, of course, there are non-hormonal methods, such as the method of fertile and infertile days, a condom or a non-hormonal intrauterine device. But they simply do not have such an effect on the female body as the hormonal ones, so we will omit them in this article.

As the name suggests, all types of hormonal contraception are based on hormones, respectively. synthetic versions of estrogen and progesterone. Regardless of whether we are talking about pills or patches and other forms, hormonal contraception can generally be divided into two groups:

combined hormonal contraception (contains two hormones - estrogen (female sex hormone) and progestin (corpus luteum hormone)

gestagen hormonal contraceptives (contain only the hormone progestin)

How does such hormonal contraception work?

The combined function works mainly by blocking ovulation (ie the release of an egg from the ovary). This is achieved by giving the artificial hormone from contraception false information to certain brain centers that control the ovary. They then believe that they are in a different phase of the menstrual cycle and do not send a signal for ovulation.

Secondary mechanisms, thanks to which HA is more reliable, are e.g. effect on the mucus in the cervical canal, which becomes viscous (… different, is simply different), and thus impermeable to sperm. Another effect of HA is on the uterine mucosa, where it makes it difficult to potentially nest an egg, should theoretically occur during ovulation.

If we are talking about gestagen contraception, it is as follows: The main mechanism of action is the effect on mucus in the cervix. It is viscous (similar to the infertile phase of the normal cycle) and completely prevents sperm from entering the uterus. The additional effect is to prevent ovulation, ie the release of the egg. Gestagen contraception is usually the second option, in women whose bodies do not tolerate synthetic estrogen.

According to the dose of the hormone in individual phases, we divide the products of combined contraception into:

Monophasic (same dose of both hormones in all tablets)

Biphasic (same dose of estrogen in both phases of the preparation, in the second phase there is a higher dose of progestin)

Triphasic (progestin doses change every 7 days, estrogen, with some exceptions, remains at the same dose, but most tries to mimic a woman's natural menstrual cycle)

Combiphasic (in the second phase of the preparation there is a lower dose of estrogen and a higher dose of progestin)

If you are taking a pill form of contraception, you usually follow this pattern of use: for 21 days you take pills where the hormones are located, for 7 days you do not take any pill or placebo pill. During the first 21 days, HA suppresses your natural hormones, but during the 7-day break during menstruation (pseudomenstruation) they are no longer suppressed and the levels of natural hormones try to return. Pretty hormonal tornado. If you are using a contraceptive that uses the pattern of 24 tablets and 4 days off or 26 days and 2 days off, these are newer contraceptives that, by shortening this time, try to minimize the hormonal fluctuations that would normally occur.

What does HA contain?

Ever since the introduction of hormonal contraception (sometime in the 1960s), the form of estrogen found in contraception has been ethinyl estradiol (EE). In our mini-research, which we did based on your Instagram answers, we confirmed this, but also found that there are already exceptions. But about that later. Just to supplement: when a woman's body naturally produces estrogen, it is a form called 17-beta estradiol.

Interestingly, the first contraceptive pill contained 150 micrograms (0.15 mg) of this hormone, while current contraceptives most often contained 15-35 micrograms (0.015-0.035 mg). What has been achieved by reducing the estrogenic component? Some side effects have been significantly eliminated, but the effects on pregnancy prevention have been maintained. WIN-WIN.

What are the side effects? Estrogen is to blame for e.g. breast tenderness, water retention, increased risk of deep vein thrombosis. On the other hand, the less estrogen, the higher the risk of oily skin, acne, etc.

Do synthetic forms of hormones have the same effects as natural hormones produced by the female body? In the case of ethinyl estradiol, the answer seems to be "yes". It binds to the estrogen receptor and sends more or less the same signal as estrogen would do - just a little stronger than we said before.

On the other hand, with synthetic progesterone it is a thousand times more complicated. There are about 8 different progestins, which are divided into 4 different classes / generations according to when they were developed and what their chemical structure, resp. how much they chemically approach progesterone and how androgenic (ie how they act "masculine"). Accordingly, these progestins also have different effects on the female body. Third and fourth generation progestins were mostly present in your contraceptives, the second here and there, while the first was no longer present in them at all. The first and second generations of progestins are the most androgenic and carry with them more side / negative effects than e.g. third and fourth generation progestins.

Drospirenone has antimineralocorticoid effects in addition to its antiandrogenic effects, ie they block the effects of mineralocorticoids, e.g. aldosterone. Thus, such contraception blocks fluid retention, which can be caused by estrogens, e.g. swelling, weight gain (even a slight weight loss is shown), breast tenderness.

Here, the less androgenic / the more antiandrogenic progestin, the more pronounced the contraception affects oily skin, acne, unwanted hair or hair loss - so if you go to a gynecologist to improve your skin, you will get a fourth-generation progestin contraception. Different types of progestins do not affect the reliability of contraception.

It should be noted that although EE and progestins in the female body behave similarly to their natural counterparts (estrogen and progesterone), they do not behave identically. In addition, hormonal contraceptives provide much higher amounts of these hormones than the female body normally produces. At the same time, EE is in itself much more effective than female natural estrogen. To make matters worse, even progestins vary from generation to generation (especially in their androgenicity) and the way it is administered (orally / patch / body) may change the resulting effect. Can it be even more complicated?

How can hormonal contraception have a physiological effect on sports performance or long-term training adaptations

I may start too broadly to come to a fairly clear conclusion, but I feel the need and necessity to put all this information here.

A secondary effect of hormonal contraception is that the levels of natural estrogen and progesterone fall significantly, because synthetic ones (from hormonal contraception) seem to replace them.

Progesterone and synthetic progestins can bind to several different receptors, but we will focus on only two of them: the progesterone receptor and the androgen receptor, because these are the most relevant for our article in this case.

At the progesterone receptor, progestins behave like natural progesterone - they bind to and send a signal similar to progesterone. Of course, progestins of different generations will be slightly different, but in the end it is not so important now.

There are problems with the androgen receptor. In women, testosterone, which is commonly found in small amounts in the female body, binds to the androgen receptor. However, the progesterone that the female body naturally produces is anti-androgenic, which means that when it binds to this receptor, it prevents the effects of testosterone. Why is testosterone important in women? In this case, e.g. to grow muscle mass.

Along with the fact that progesterone blocks the positive effects of estrogen, this is part of the reason why progesterone generally has negative effects on muscle mass and potentially other aspects of physical performance or training in the second (luteal) phase of the menstrual cycle.

I will not go into other relatively complex details and summarize it as follows: Hormonal contraception, whether combined or gestagen, reduces the amount of total testosterone in the body, which has the potential to negatively affect performance, mood, muscle mass, sex drive and the like .

Will I gain weight when I start taking contraceptives?

I think this is one of the longest-running and at the same time the biggest concerns of women who are about to use hormonal contraception. But when we look at the available studies, they do not systematically support this idea. One study of combined contraception found little effect on increasing total body weight, but this depended on the type of HA used.

What should be noted, however, is that just as every natural menstrual cycle is different for each woman, so is the individual women's response to HA. There were huge differences between women in each study. While some women could gain 7 kg on HA, others could lose 14 kg. But when we look at the result of the study, aka the average, we find that it reports no difference.

However, Lyle McDonald noted one great thing in the book. One study compared women who took HA with those who had a non-hormonal intrauterine device. It works on a completely different principle and the essential information for us is that it does not contain any hormones and does not release them into the female body. Interestingly, both groups showed the same variation in weight change. The one with HA, and the one with no HA. So what is it that women gain on HA? Maybe not quite the contraceptive, huh? The fact that a woman says to herself: "She is gaining weight in hormonal contraception often plays a role, it is clear that I will gain weight!" And what will happen?

And does contraception prevent fat loss? No. As easy as that.

What about muscle gain?

We've bitten it up a bit already. (Combined) hormonal contraceptives with different androgenicity (ie with progestins of different generations) have different effects on the female body, even in the direction of muscle acquisition.

The worst thing in this respect is clearly HA with fourth-generation progestins, which are anti-androgenic. This means that it significantly reduces the amount of testosterone in the body and then blocks even the small amount that is left behind.

I will mention one study that tried to find out what happens to those muscles and hormonal contraception. In it, women were given combined HA, when:

one group had progestin gestodene (third generation, low androgenic effects)

second progestin norgestimate (also third generation with low androgenic effects)

the third group was control, women without HA

Although both progestins are from the same generation, gestodene is half less androgenic than norgestimate.

Protein synthesis in muscles at rest and during aerobic activity was measured. Resting protein synthesis was found to be reduced in both groups compared to the control group of women without hormonal contraception, but decreased significantly more in women with gestodene than in women with norgestimate.

Therefore: a progestin with higher androgenicity had the upper hand in this case. And we will make such a rule out of it. The more androgenic contraception, the less problem with muscle gain / loss. BUT also with a higher probability of acne, oily skin and other negative effects. I would probably like to point out that if you are not an elite athlete and you train just for fun, it is your hobby, you probably should not choose contraception according to how it affects muscle growth. There’s more to life than that.

There are still many subtopics to cover, but your attention is certainly not enough. That's why we've decided to split this article, and use it for your suggestions. In the second part you will learn in particular:

how HA affects aerobic / endurance training

how HA affects anaerobic / strength training

positive and negative HA

any scientifically based recommendations for HA

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Melatonin as a sleep wizard: Benefits and 3 cases where it can be a significant helper especially for women | Steroids4U.eu

Melatonin as a sleep wizard: Benefits and 3 cases where it can be a significant helper especially for women

Awareness of melatonin has expanded significantly in recent years. However, this is not due to advertising campaigns, but rather still a huge sleep problem that afflicts many people. Melatonium is the nutritional supplement that is associated with better and better sleep. Before we get melatonin, I would recommend starting by clicking on this link, where you will see some of our posts, including a podcast, on sleep, sleep hygiene, better sleep and all these things that bother many people. If you've really done everything to get a better night's sleep, maybe it's time to put an eye on melatonin.

This is the so-called sleep hormone, or in other words, it is a neurohormone secreted by the pineal gland in the brain that is responsible for regulating sleep. If we talk about its supplementation, it works like a classic, natural melatonin in the body, so supplementation will support sleep and sleep itself.

However, it is not only a sleep wizard, it also has neuroprotective effects and it is also a solid antioxidant. According to some data, it may even have an anti-cancer effect. It can affect the rhythms of reproductive hormones by controlling GnRH, which ultimately regulates estrogen and testosterone levels. It also affects body temperature, blood pressure, cardiovascular regulation, the immune system and also acts as a scavenger of free radicals.

Melatonin works basically the same for both sexes, but there are three specific situations for women, according to Lyle McDonadl, where melatonin has additional benefits for women.

PMS / PMDD

PMS is a well-known term. PMDD (premenstrual dysphoric disorder) is something like PMS on steroids. A more serious "form of PMS", which is associated with extreme irritability, depression, anxiety.

In addition to all the negatives, which, if you know a woman, you probably have a disorder of sleep patterns in PMS / PMDD. In addition, women with PMDD perceive light even more, so their natural melatonin curves may be adversely affected. To make matters worse, women with PMDD show a reduced response to melatonin release, which affects their normal circadian rhythm. After all, they may feel as if they haven't even slept in the morning. And a little worse. Lyle McDonald says that while there is no direct research addressing the effect of melatonin supplementation on sleep and PMS negatives, he argues that supplementation will definitely not hurt, quite the contrary. If we combine this with all the data on the impact of PMS / PMDD on women, we can safely sign that you will not pay anything to try. That is, in addition to money for melatonin in tablets.

PCOS

If you have no idea what PCOS is, we have a great article for you. In women with PCOS, sleep is impaired, but according to the data, these may not be explicitly related to melatonin-related factors. Just for fun, higher melatonin levels are associated with higher testosterone levels - there is a correlation between increased melatonimus and increased TST, but not causality.

There are data to suggest that melatonin supplementation in women with PCOS may be beneficial. Three years ago, they studied women with PCOS who supplemented with 2 mg of melatonin daily for half a year. In 95% of women, the menstrual cycle improved. However, for the sake of objectivity, it should be added that it was a small sample and no placebo group was used. In last year's study, women with PCOS supplemented with 5 mg of melatonin twice a day, and women had a decrease in hisutism (excessive facial hair), total TST, c-reactive protein (inflammatory parameter), and increased natural oxidants in the body. Finally, we mention the analysis of fifteen human and seven animal studies. Melatonin supplementation in women with PCOS has been shown to improve egg (and embryo pregnancy) quality, reduce obesity, inflammation, and help reduce insulin resistance.

MENOPAUSE

If men are also educated by this article, then menopause is a period in a woman's life in which the reproductive organs essentially cease to function. This happens during the time when women approach menopause and go through this process. During this period, ovulation occurs less frequently until it stops completely, when estrogen and progesterone are not produced during the menstrual cycle. This may include a decrease in estrogen levels, an increase in body fat and weight, or an increased risk of heart disease and a loss of bone mass.

Well, it's no secret that menopausal women often have poor sleep. These can be problems with falling asleep, waking up at night, or hot flashes, and even, according to Lyle McDonald, it is thought that due to the role of melatonin in controlling reproductive hormones, changes in melatonin levels may play a direct role in menopause. We also have research here that melatonin supplementation in menopausal women can help improve sleep.

As we indicated at the beginning of this section, menopause is not just about sleep. Studies show that supplementation (3 mg melatonin for three months) can reduce the climacteric problems (hot flushes, more sweating, irritation, sometimes dizziness, etc.) that occur during menopause. Another study with the same dose, but for up to 6 months, showed a reduction in depression, an improvement in mood, an increase in thyroid hormones (thyroid and gonadal functions decrease during aging) and an improvement in GnRH (gonadotropin-releasing hormone - gonadotropins affect eggs ).

Melatonin dosing

The minimum effective dose is 3 mcg to 1 mg. However, some people need more and the typical maximum dose is 5 mg. However, you need to start gradually, it is possible that you need much less. The important fact is that more grams of melatonin does not mean better sleep. Take it 30-60 minutes before you go to bed.

Are you interested in the benefits of melatonin, but you have basically no problems with sleep? Wondering if it can disrupt your natural melatonin levels and unnecessarily jeopardize your own production over time? There is no study to confirm this. Supplementation does not affect its natural production in the body.

Melatonin seems to carry very nice data, especially for women, and when we discover other interesting studies addressing a specific issue related to melatonin, we will shed light on them in our Premium section. If you have trouble sleeping and have really, really read the first paragraph of this article, it is worth a try. We would recommend a combination with zinc and magnesium, which also have a positive effect on sleep.

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Improving the immune system and protecting against COVID-19. It is possible? | Steroids4U.eu

Improving the immune system and protecting against COVID-19. It is possible?

Over the past month, charlatans have been trampled by various pieces of advice and "guaranteed" information on how to fight the coronavirus. We could already see that we should all be vegans and no COVID-19 would be a threat. The authors of the perfectketo blog describe ketogenic diet as potentially one of the key ways to win over coronavirus. Right after that, they offer you guilt-free keto cookies or a revolutionary book on keto eating. Unfortunately, even this is not a real cure for COVID-19. Who would have said that? There were, of course, more different ketards (the definition of this noun is here), but they wield, as always, bad research, in addition to mice, and try to transform them into the real human world, which is not legitimately practicable.

Youtuber Jordan Sather, in turn, promotes MMS (Miracle Mineral Supplement) containing, among other things, chlorine dioxide (used, for example, for bleaching). According to Jordan, MMS is a coronavirus killer, but there are no in vivo studies and we cannot claim anything like that. In addition, it can cause serious health complications and is not recommended by official authorities. We could also see a Fejsbuk post, which was viewed by several hundred profiles, about one Japanese doctor recommending to kill the coronavirus by drinking water every 15 minutes. This information has been shared more than three hundred thousand times in total. Of course, Professor Lang of Oxford University and other experts on the subject have made it clear that this is nonsense.

There is no need to be surprised in today's world, because people set fire to 5G transmitters because they are said to be spreading coronavirus. People will and will still be. Fortunately, there are many who just smile at these single-celled subjects. But let's look at two things. The first will be the real boost of the immune system and how it all actually is, and the second will be lifestyle factors, nutrition and supplementation.

As for the immune system, it is such a line of defense divided into 2 parts

Congenital: various barriers, such as physical - nasal mucosa, chemical - stomach acids, or various protective cells

Adaptive: we use it when the innate immune system does not control and, in addition, can remember, so that when a pathogen attacks again, he can fight it better and more effectively.

Can we actually kick the immune system to make it better and more efficient? Yes and no. The immune system is a coordinated system of cells and proteins. It is not some biceps that you pump (with supplements, a specific diet) and it will be better. If you have a solid base, your immune system can't "boost". If you do not have such a base, there are ways related mainly to lifestyle, which, however, can harden your wooden base. And we're talking about ways that even single-digit IQ is enough. Nutrition, physical activity and mental health. Of course, just because all the factors I mention below are in order, it doesn't mean you can't be infected with any virus.

It should also be added that it will not work overnight. If you go to the gym for a week, you will also not be able to squat 200 kg, just as your immune system will not be able to heal in a week. It takes years of scratching, as with everything you want to last. Many of these factors certainly do not shock, but unfortunately, the revolutionary method does not exist.

# 1 Sleep

Personally, I sleep very well, but even so, sometimes the science of melatonin and sleep can fascinate me. Low sleep causes, among other things, a higher risk of cardiovascular disease, injury or illness. A systematic review of meta-analyzes and 41 RCT studies also points to inconveniences such as increased caloric intake and greater hunger. If you click here, you will discover some of our great articles on sleep that will definitely convince you to prioritize it a little more. Lack of sleep is also a synonym for impaired immunity, so something else needs to be added?

# 2 Physical activity

Another surprising thing, huh? This review summarized findings in four areas related to exercise and immunology. We will focus mainly on one of them - the acute and chronic effects of exercise on the immune system. Exercise (medium to intense exercise within 60 minutes) is considered an important adjuvant (enhancer of the immune response) of the immune system, which stimulates the ongoing exchange of various and highly active subtypes of immune cells between the bloodstream and tissues. Each such exercise increases antipathogenic activity. So with regular exercise / sport, these acute changes work through a summation effect = higher immune defense activity and better metabolic health.

The exact opposite may be too high a load. Typically competitions and related physiological, metabolic and psychological stresses. These factors are associated with transient immune perturbations, inflammation, oxidative stress, muscle damage, and an increased risk of disease. In addition, metabolism and immunity are inextricably linked. It follows that intense and prolonged exercise can cause transient immune dysfunction by reducing the metabolic capacity of immune cells. The risk of illness may increase when an athlete competes, undergoes repeated cycles of over-strenuous training, and his immune system experiences additional stress. Broader risk factors include high levels of depression (current status) or anxiety (current social isolation), participation in unusually intense training periods with large fluctuations (out of date), international travel in several time zones (at least we did not miss it), participation in competitions. events especially in the winter (out of date), lack of sleep (this might not be a problem, right?) and low energy intake from food (you will fix it!).

So we can summarize that regular training and higher physical activity can strengthen your immunity over time. Exercise and the immune system have an inverted "U" shaped curve. This means that people with no exercise usually have a worse immune system. However, there are similar people who exaggerate too much with exercise. The question is, can it really be exaggerated now in quarantine? There will definitely be extremists among us (ehm in practice). However, your immunity will certainly not be missed even by regular (intensive) home training associated with a high caloric deficit in the long run. However, exercise serves not only physical but also mental health. Large-scale research has identified it as a legitimate cure for depression and a helper against anxiety, to which we are undoubtedly more prone today.

# 3 Enough protein

The fact that you have to focus on nutritionally valuable foods probably does not need to be repeated a thousand times. It is such a common sense, and as reported in last year's research, nutrients can (not) directly act on immune cells, causing changes in their function, or they can have effects through changes in the intestinal microbiome. So let's move straight to proteins.

The effect of essential amino acids on the immune system has been investigated several times, each with similar conclusions. Another study states that a balanced diet, especially adequate intake of vitamins, minerals and proteins, increases resistance to infections and has a positive effect on the immune system. Proteins frame cells and are part of the body's defenses, enzymes that control the body's functions, and certain hormones. Even protein as a nutritional supplement has the potential to help, thanks to immunioglobulins, beta-lactoglobulins and the like. Of course, carbohydrates and fats also have an important place in the diet, in addition to which (or meals containing these macronutrients) contain a number of other important micronutrients. If you are active, they have at least 1.6 g / kg of protein.

# 4 Fiber (+ fruits and vegetables)

Vegetables? Full of micronutrients and fiber. Fruit? the same. And it doesn't matter if it's fresh or frozen. Again, this is not a shock for you and we all know this well from childhood. Nevertheless, only less than 10% of the Western population has a sufficient intake of these healthy foods. Fruits and fruit fiber have, among other things, benefits in terms of digestive tract health, long-term weight maintenance, type 2 diabetes, asthma and bone mineral density. Fiber generally has a significant effect on the immune system, and a study called the health benefits of fiber states that prebiotic fiber (eg onions, garlic, bananas, apples, beans, asparagus, oats) can support immune function.

# 5 Nutritional supplements

Of course, they are subordinate, but supplementation of some of them is important. We have discussed the studies and details in this Premium article. Examples are vitamin D, probiotics, pelargonium sidoides, glutamine, vitamin C or zinc. They have nothing to do with COVID-19, but they have a scientifically supported potential in terms of health and possible colds.

We believe that we have put together some information about the immune system, and we also believe that you will not be lured into a trap by those who turn the current unpleasant situation into a business without a backbone and an irrelevant and not helpful business. We've talked about legitimate ways to have armored immunity, and we hope most Fitclan fans have it. Unfortunately, we can't get more out of this "fitness" point of view, so in addition to the things mentioned and avoiding other obviousness (extreme long-term stress, smoking, alcohol, huge caloric deficit), we should focus on official advice such as hygiene, hand washing , the use of drapes or highly-restricted encounters with people.

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You will not lose muscle from day to day. After what time do you lose muscle, strength or power? | Steroids4U.eu

You will not lose muscle from day to day. After what time do you lose muscle, strength or power?

The current period is mostly associated with home training, when we try to knit a whip (sorry for the expression) at least thanks to rubber bands or exercises with our own body. Heavy weights, our training routines and a good number of one-arms, it's all up to date. That is, if you do not have your own booster. You may be afraid of losing your muscles, but fortunately science brings us quite nice news. What about our strength, flexibility, performance or muscle mass?

Muscles & strength

Muscles are quite resistant to atrophy and loss of strength. In this research, there were 20 men with an average age of 20 years and, of course, they enjoyed strength training. They completed a 4-week training program in the style: 4 weeks training + 2 weeks break from training + 4 weeks training. It turned out that two weeks of non-training did not cause loss of strength or muscle. In further research, they looked at 33 untrained participants. They compared 8 weeks of training (12-24 sets per quadriceps) with 8 weeks of reduced -volume training volume (only 8 sets per quadriceps). Although the volume of training was reduced by 50%, their strength was maintained. Ok, what about hypertrophy? They maintained most of their muscle mass even at a volume of only 8 series per muscle part (quadriceps) per week. That doesn't sound bad at all! In another study, they covered it for 3 weeks and the conclusions were similar. To quote this: "Evidence suggests that brief (approximately 3 weeks) non-training in people who are accustomed to exercising regularly does not cause significant muscle loss and, in addition, may experience an even greater stimulus in terms of hypertrophy after entering a training regimen."

Here, untrained individuals did 27 series on their feet almost to failure per week (3 exercises for 3 series, 3 times a week), while the training lasted 16 weeks. Later, this period was interrupted by a non-training period lasting 32 weeks (more than half a year), which had two approaches, and thus 2 groups. The first approach meant reducing the volume of work by 1/3 (ie to 9 series per week and practicing only once a week). The second approach meant reducing the volume of training by 1/9 (ie 3 series per week). In young individuals (20-35 years) this second approach caused the size of the muscles to be maintained, but in the older ones (60-75 years) it was a bit worse. More positive news for younger students! Similar results were recorded here, ie the loss of muscle did not take place, but we are already talking about the period of (only) three weeks mentioned several times.

Take a look at a systematic review of 27 studies in trained subjects. We talk about those who have been working for at least 3 years and participated in either some collegial or semi-professional sports activities. Simply trained athletes. The consensus from these data suggests that maximum strength may be maintained for up to three weeks of untraining, but will begin to decline significantly from about the fifth week. Other research confirms the results and speaks of a period of four weeks of inactivity, when the force is maintained and only then can it decrease. If you are a beginner, you also do not have to be extra worried. Research in this group of people is similarly positive, and the literature consensus speaks of a two to three week break, when strength is still maintained. Negatives are evident from about the fourth week. An old study on powerlifters with a training experience of about 8 years showed that their type II muscle fibers decreased by about 6% after two weeks of non-training, but their body weight remained the same.

At the end of this section, however, it should be added that there are individual (epi) genetic differences between muscle hypertrophy and atrophy, so we cannot completely generalize whether you and your buddy will be exactly the same. Probably not, and someone will be worse off. However, be sure to try at least some activity, because we have data that muscle loss is greatly accelerated when people are totally passive (bed rest or limb immobilization).

If you say that all this is bullshit and science deceives us, because you look smaller after only four days without a gym, calm down. During the break, the amount of glycogen in the muscles also decreases, so yes, you may look smaller, but it may not be a loss of muscle mass. And it is clear that the psyche will also play a role, when we will probably all put the "fact" that we are worse off, and then we will see ourselves in the mirror anyway.

Conclusions on strength and muscle mass in points:

We can maintain strength without training for about 3-4 weeks, but gradually it disappears during this period. Of course, only temporarily and we can take it back relatively quickly. It should not be forgotten that there is a difference between an ordinary exerciser and a powerlifter who has been systematically preparing for a competition and his personal record.

The muscles begin to atrophy after about 2-3 weeks, but at least for beginners they can return very quickly. Since we know that muscle memory exists, even in advanced exercisers, our "gainzzz" will return in a relatively short time.

If your efforts are high, you can train (even for months) with a smaller volume of training (by 33-50%) and maintain muscle mass.

During the first weeks, you look smaller due to a reduction in the amount of glycogen in the muscles, it is not a loss of lean muscle mass.

Aerobic performance, endurance or flexibility

When you're locked up at home, VO2max catches the most. The maximum rate of oxygen consumption (an indicator of aerobic performance) in trained individuals can experience losses of 6 to 20% and the time to depletion can be reduced by about 7 to 25% over two to four weeks. Endurance performance can be reduced by 4 to 25% after three to four weeks. When it comes to cardio, it seems to suffer more than our muscle mass or strength. Fans of crossfits and other endurance athletes should definitely not rest on the seat more than they should, but they should maintain more intense activity even during quarantine.

In terms of flexibility (flexibility means how muscles and joints are flexible), research shows that four weeks of untraining reduced the flexibility of the hip, torso, shoulder and spine by 7.4 to 30.1% for physical education students (men and women).

Conclusions on the cardio side and flexibility:

Endurance gradually decreases from 4% to 25% over 3-4 weeks

Maximum rate of oxygen consumption decreases by 6% to 20% in highly-trained athletes after about 4 weeks without training

Beginners can maintain endurance for at least 2 weeks without training

Flexibility decreases after about 4 weeks by 7 to 30%

How to put it all into practice?

Tired of training at home? Neither do I, believe me. The situation is not easy for anyone, but perhaps we are not capitulating, we are in it together. At least try to make a temporary exercise according to your current possibilities. It won't be a real nut, but it's always better than nothing. If you have a temporary fit at home, then use it, because you have more than 90% of people. However, if you exercise with rubber / your own body, they will cough up some specific repetitions. Ideally, you will focus on as many repetitions as you can to get close to failure. The question is, do you have any idea where your limit is, as you have not been used to training with this style yet. Well, be sure when it burns, you're still not at the end. It should be noted that for most (all) a certain daily physical activity is important. Not only for physical health, but also for mental health. Therefore, involve parents, siblings or children and do not just sit on the couch. Of course, everyone in terms of physical fitness.

And what about the diet? We will look at calories in the following article. Pay attention to mobility, flexibility and have enough sleep, which also has fingers in storing fat or losing muscle mass. Wash your hands, nose the drape… and… we are already on another topic :)

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Exercise during pregnancy: What effects does exercise or physical activity have on a woman and baby? | Steroids4U.eu

Exercise during pregnancy: What effects does exercise or physical activity have on a woman and baby?

Exercise is generally considered to be a healthy activity, as we have already discussed in this article. However, if pregnancy-related exercise is mentioned, many people find it dangerous. It is only natural that we are more concerned about many "normal activities" during pregnancy. Add to that all sorts of information from magazines (few scientifically based ones) and the stress of these fears harms us more than any training. So how is it? What do scientific research say?

Positive effects (not only) for mothers:

Exercise during pregnancy brings many health benefits for the mother and at the same time for the baby during pregnancy, but also after childbirth. Many studies show that women who are active during pregnancy have a lower risk of developing preeclampsia and gestational (pregnancy) diabetes. This study, which looked at 21,000 pregnant women, showed that pregnant women with a sedentary lifestyle had a 2.3-fold higher risk of developing "gestational diabetes." Further research showed that less active women had a 3x higher risk of developing hypertension (high blood pressure) and a 2.5x higher risk of fetal macrosomy (overdevelopment) than women who exercised 3 times a week during pregnancy.

Exercise during pregnancy also allows a woman to perceive her body more, pay attention to the correct posture and use movements that help reduce pain. Exercise during pregnancy also strengthens the pelvic floor muscles and improves aerobic capacity. These effects also help in childbirth as well as in postpartum recovery. Exercise during pregnancy was also associated with a lower number of births by caesarean section. In addition to these great health effects, physical activity during pregnancy also has a positive effect on mental health, as it helps reduce stress, anxiety and depression. Prenatal yoga is especially beneficial for reducing anxiety, stress, depression, sleep problems and back pain (which often occur in pregnant women).

But why are we afraid of exercising during pregnancy? One of the biggest reasons why women are afraid to exercise during pregnancy is the fear that they may harm their baby. However, most scientists and health professionals agree that the positive effects of exercise are far greater than the risks.

Common myths about exercise during pregnancy:

Redirection of blood flow away from the fetus

Exercise causes miscarriages

Exercise harms if the mother's heart rate is elevated above the "resting heart rate"

How does exercise affect an unborn baby?

Exercise during pregnancy brings the following health benefits to the health of the fetus / child during childhood. It is known that the blood flow to the uterus is slightly reduced during exercise. However, it is interesting and important to know that despite these changes, the amount of oxygen that reaches the fetus does not change - on the contrary, research shows the positive effects associated with increased blood flow during exercise, which brings "new" blood and nutrients to the fetus. which support fetal growth and brain development. These effects were associated with the results of studies that found that children of active mothers were born with better-developed brains than children of mothers who did not exercise during pregnancy.

These positive effects were noted even later than in the neonatal period, when these children had better linguistic development and better academic results during childhood. Positive effects for the child have also been reported in body composition, cardiovascular health and the nervous system.

As you can see, physical activity during pregnancy brings many positive effects not only for women but also for babies. However, it should be mentioned that despite these positive effects of physical activity during pregnancy, there are complications, such as genetic disorders, which a woman's activity cannot influence.

So let's summarize the effects of physical activity during pregnancy on the health of both women and children:

EFFECTS OF PHYSICAL ACTIVITY FOR WOMEN

Lower risk of pregnancy complications (preeclampsia, pregnancy "diabetes", fetal macrosomy)

Positive effect on physical "performance" during childbirth

Positive effect on postpartum recovery

Lower probability of giving birth by caesarean section

Positive effect on mental health (reduction of anxiety, stress, depression).

Reduction of back pain

Reducing sleep problems

HOW PHYSICAL ACTIVITY AFFECTS A CHILD

Better development of the brain and nervous system

Better linguistic development and better academic results during childhood

Positive effect on the composition of the baby's body

Positive effect on cardiovascular health

There are many positive effects. However, each person is exceptional with a different medical condition, so it is always important to consult your decisions (not just about exercise) with a doctor who has detailed information about your medical condition or pregnancy. If you are asking for more specific exercises related to what movements (not) to do and what to focus on, wait for the next article.

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