Calling WarLobo...Interesting T3 Question

[fhg43]

I'm not a lady, but since you hang out here I figured I should post here first. Sorry ladies; as soon as WL answers I'll be on my merry way.

Okay, so I'm sure you're bombarded by T3 questions. However, I have done lots o' research and have few questions.

I have planned out a beginner 5 wk T3 cycle-quick ramp up-hold it and back off slowly. This is where you come in-

I am not a BBer. I'm an endurance athlete-cyclist/duathlete. We have a nice endurance thread going on another board, but not much T3 info. I train about 20hrs a week. I am naturally lean, ~155lbs, and 8%, high metabolism, good diet etc...So your probably asking why I need T3. Well, can I benefit from a short cycle? I want to kill some fat deposits and get down low BF wise, like sub 5%. Will T3 adversely affect my endurance training? It is important for me to be taking lots of carbs for fuel. I take in lots of protein more than most endurance athletes. I am not really concerned about loosing weight-if I could loose 5lbs and 2% BF great-but I am content as is. So let me recap

1) Can a highly competetive endurance athlete trying to cut fat and get ULTRA LEAN benefit from T3?
2) Does T3 adversely affect endurance training?
3) What dosage would help cut fat (taking into consideration diet and training volume) in an already lean athlete?

Any help would be appreciated. Feel free to PM or email me.

FHG

 

[MS]

Yeah, I thought a bit of readily mobilizable fat stores were essential for optimal endurance performance. But it's your body.....

How you respond to T3 really depends on your current thyroid status. If you're naturally lean and have an already high metabolism then the chances are good that you will lose mostly muscle with T3 supps. T3 is beneficial for fat loss more in people who have a slowed metabolism due to low carb/low calorie dieting or inactivity. If you've got a fast metabolism, you lose a lot of muscle by supplementing.

Now it's WarLobo's turn again

 

[BigEasy]

Also.....

If one is already in the single digit fat range, wouldn't topical yohimbine HCL or other a2 agonists be a better bet?

 

[wilson6]

You'd probably get better results from an ECA stack.

Ephedrine has been shown to enhance endurance performance. May also help you get a little leaner. Why mess with the thyroid unless you absolutely have to?

Do a Medline Search on ephedrine and exercise. There is some recent work in that area.

T3 in animals tends to increase fast myosin in muscle. Metabolically, this isn't what you'd want for endurance performance. Secondly, T3 will increase the metabolism of all energy substrate (carbohydrate, fat and protein). It is not just selective to fat. Thus, it could impair performance.

If you can tolerate it and don't have any preexisting conditions that would contraindicate ECA use, try that first in low doses. However, if you're drug tested in competition, caffeine is OK to a point, ephedrine (or ephedra) is not.

W6

 

[Ceebs]

8% is already pretty lean. When you're deglycogenated from long endurance rides, the easiest fuel substrate that your body can draw from would be fat stores. Therefore, if you're TOO lean, your preformance may suffer. And most importantly, gluconeogenesis of muscle (particularly cardiac and liver) is downright dangerous.

But if you're absolutely gung-ho about leaning out further, others in this thread have offered good suggestions. Ephedrine will certainly improve your preformance from an ergogenic angle, and if your intensity isn't too high, Yohimbine may chisel stubborn adipose tissue deposits off of you like nothing else. T3 is beneficial only under certain conditions, such as a lowered thyroid, or in the presence of AS.

Good luck.

 

[dieslgrl]

I doubt t3 could be of any real use to you... if your natural, and you are in the shape you are in... stay that way!


dg

 

[MS]

I agree that an ephedrine/caffeine combo would be your best bet for fatloss without diminishing your performance or muscle mass too much. But I assumed since you asked about T3 that you were in drug-tested events. If that's not the case then you really should try the EC. Just be very careful if you haven't used it before. Start with a low dose and work up.

 

[fhg43]

Hummm, wonder where he went?

Still here-was gone for the weekend. I'll probably try an ECA stack for a little bit-like 2wks on/2 off. The problem with ECA is that while it does give me a great boost-usually the next day I am wasted. It allows you to push yourself beyond 'normal limits' in workouts and anytime you train hard or push your body hard it is harder to recover. Basically recovery sucks on ECA. I don't use ECA for competitons because it is hard to recover-it works great and yeah its a banned item but it really has negative effects in multi day events or long blocks of training.

I am pretty sure T3 IS on my list of banned products-but this doesn't bother me. It is not really a 'direct performance enhancer'-it is really a drug which allows for better performance down the road. Drugs like AAS and EPO make you faster (their is a direct correlation between usage and performance), but thats not what T3 would do-it would make you skinnier which in the long run would make you faster. Anyway I digress...

I am mildly concerned about the catabolic effect of T3. I can't use anaboics to maintain muscle mass. However I am a few pounds heavier this season from some serious gym time in the offseason. Also I am leaner and stronger than ever. I'd like tol oose the pounds but not the muscle and I think T3 would cause me to loose some muscle. It wouldn't be awful to loose some muscle, but I'd be afraid I'd loose to much (my training and racing is already naturally catabolic) thus nullify months of offseason training and detracting from my performance.

I think after everyone's input I'll avoid T3. I am in awesome shape and I think as my season and training progresses I'll lean out more. I think I'll focus on diet more. I can't train too much more and I am concerned with T3's effects. I think if I had a serious BF issue it would be useful, but I think in my case where I am training a lot, it could negatively impact my performance. Losing too much body mass is bad-I know this from first hand experience-and since everything is going well I'll leave it alone for now.

Thanks all for your input. It was helpful. Anymore is welcome.

FHG

 

[MS]

Sounds to me like you've got your head screwed on nice and straight. You're young, healthy, fit and lean, so why mess with things. Good luck with your training and competition.