T3 for Accelerating Weight Loss

T3 (Trijodthyronin, Cytomel) - a thyroid hormone. It is related to and even more important than the other but more popular thyroid hormone, T4 or thyroxine.

Thyroxine is the precursor of T4 and the production of both hormones is signaled in the thyroid gland by TSH or thyroid stimulating hormone.

Thyroid stimulating hormone is released from the pituitary gland and forms a feedback loop with both T3 and T4. Therefore, when the plasma levels of the thyroid hormone falls, TSH production is increased and when the thyroid hormones rise above their normal plasma levels, TSH production is reduced.


What T3 Does and How It Works

The biological effects of T3 are extensive and the hormone contributes to almost all the physiological processes in the human body. For example, T3 affects heart rate, the rate of metabolism, body temperature and growth rate.

In the blood, T3 binds to specific types of carrier proteins: serum albumin (with low affinity) and thyroid-binding globulin (with high affinity).

These molecules increase the stability and longevity of T3 but impede the uptake of the hormone by tissues. For T3 to pass through tissues, it must shed its carrier protein.

To produce its biological effects, T3 binds to thyroid receptors in tissues. In addition, because it is fat-soluble, it can cross into cells through their phospholipid layers.

T3 can be found in most tissues although it is notably absent in the tissues of the testes and spleen.

Its overall effect depends on the part of the body where it acts. However, T3 generally increases the basal metabolic rate.

When T3 increases the rate of metabolism, it does the following:

    Increase the amount of oxygen and energy used up by the body
    Increase the amount of calories required for normal body processes even when the muscles are rested
    Increase the population of sodium/potassium/ATPase, the primary energy-generating complex in the body
    Increase the use and breakdown of many nutrient macromolecules produced in the body

On proteins, T3 increases the rate of their production and degradation by increasing the amount of the enzymes, RNA polymerase I and II.

For carbohydrates, T3 increases gluconeogenesis. Gluconeogenesis is the production of glucose from stored glycogen. This effect is mediated by beta adrenergic receptors. By acting on beta adrenergic receptors, T3 can increase heart rate and pulse rate. Specifically, T3 increases systolic blood pressure but decreases diastolic blood pressure.

On lipids, T3 increases the rate of lipolysis. Specifically, it drives the breakdown of cholesterol and increases the number of LDL receptors.

In the brain, T3 increases the production of certain neurotransmitters especially serotonin.

The positive effect of T3 on serotonin is the reason it is now recommended (along with SSRIs or selective serotonin receptor inhibitors) in the treatment of drug-resistance and recurring depression and bipolar disorders. Different studies have established that long-term supplementation with T3 significantly improves the symptoms of (and may even “cure”) these psychological disorders.

T3 (or any of its prodrugs) is also used as a fat loss supplement. It has been proven to increase the metabolism of fatty acid and the breakdown of fat stored in adipose tissue

How T3 Can Promote Weight Loss

The only mechanism by which T3 promotes weight loss is by increasing metabolic rate.

Although it is a one-trick weight loss solution, that one trick is pretty remarkable. T3 increases basal metabolic rate by increasing the rate at which the body breaks down all food groups. It unlocks significant energy for the body to use, and it can produce very dramatic results especially in overweight people with diagnosed or silent hypothyroidism.

When the amount of thyroid hormones produced in the body falls, the rate of metabolism falls with it. In this regard, the amount of circulating T3 is more important than that of T4.

Because of the reduced metabolic rate, low thyroid functioning results in difficulty in reducing body weight. When overweight individuals adopt healthy, low caloric diets and take up regular exercise but still cannot shed weight, the most likely reason is low metabolic rate caused by low T3 levels.

Even a 10% reduction in metabolic rate can make weight loss very difficult. However, available clinical data suggest that most people who find it difficult to lose weight have 15 – 40% reduction in metabolic rate.

For this group of people, T3 is the magic remedy for losing weight.

The ability of T3 to prompting weight loss does not really depend on adopting a low caloric diet. In fact, the usual response to a low-carbohydrate diet is a reduction in the body’s metabolic rate. By supplementing with T3, the body keeps up a high rate of metabolism even with the amount of calories in the diet is reduced.

Exercise, on the other hand, has a more significant effect on the result of T3 supplementation in weight loss. In fact, T3 increases the amount of available energy, and practically encourages the user to exercise.

Unlike stimulants like caffeine and synephrine, T3 increases the rate of metabolism without such side effects as jitters. It does not make the user “hyper”. Instead, it simply energizes the user without the crash that comes from overstimulation with stimulants.

When taking T3 for weight loss, the aim is to increase the levels of T3 to the edge of the upper limit while not stepping over and setting off hyperthyroidism.

To do that, it is important to closely monitor the plasma levels of T3 while taking the supplement.

Where this is not possible, clear signs of hyperthyroidism such as irregular, rapid heartbeats should be the indication to stop T3 supplementation.

In most cases of abnormal weight gain even in the face of dieting and exercise, there is an impairment in the enzymes responsible for converting T4 to T3. Since most of the circulating T3 in the body comes from T4, such impairment makes it important to find another source of T3. This can be done through drugs and supplements that increase T3 levels.

What are the Best Steroids for Women?

What are the best anabolic steroid for women? Are Anavar and Primobolan the best bets to minimize masculinizing side effects?

It may seem surprising but Anadrol (oxymetholone) is a good choice for women who wish to be conservative yet have very effective results.

Medically, you’d be astonished at the doses women and even girls have taken with very low virilization rates. So anyway, contrary to what intuition might suggest, Anadrol is not one of the riskier choices for women.

That aside, 15 mg/day of Anavar (oxandrolone) will be virilizing in quite a few cases. Probably about 5 mg/day of oxandrolone is comparable to 25 mg/day Anadrol (divided doses) for risk.

Primobolan up to 50 mg/week, divided injections, is a common and reasonable choice, but has some risk: not a particularly high rate though.

I first learned of Anadrol for women from Dan Duchaine. In the earlier parts of Denise Rutkowski’s career, he had her on 25 mg/day Anadrol. I don’t think I’m disclosing a secret here because he also published this. She obviously did very well with it and at that point she was not virilized at all. So from him mentioning this to me, I looked further into it.

The medical doses are pretty astonishing. The reason that 50 mg is the tablet size is because that’s the standard minimal medical dose, including for women and children! It used to be used extensively for improving red blood cell count.

I’m sure I could find it again, and I’ve posted it before, but there’s at least one paper in the literature reporting doses used for quite a large number of women and reporting low incidence of any side effects. And these doses were often more than 50 mg/day. Sometimes much more.

And further, personally I’ve never seen 25 mg/day go wrong.

I’m not saying it can’t: you see some women developing hoarse voices and facial hair naturally with time, so there must be some women that are right on the edge. But generally speaking, this is a conservative dose, yet quite effective.

The mg amount that women can tolerate of Anadrol is markedly higher than any other anabolic steroid. However, that said, it’s also true that effect per mg is less, but not enough so to make up the safety difference IMO. I would put 25 mg/day Anadrol (in divided doses) up against 50 mg/week Primo any time for effectiveness and it’s at least equally conservative.

Another thing about Anadrol that’s remarkable is that other anabolic steroids are very easily disruptive of the menstrual cycle. Even dosages such as 2.5 mg oxandrolone 2x/day commonly raise issues. Anadrol however medically has shown often only moderate effect on the menstrual cycle at 50 mg/day, and in my too-limited experience with it (as I generally don’t work with women on steroid cycles) 25 mg/day only lightened and shortened the cycles slightly. Remarkably less disruptive.

As a rough rule of thumb: take a dosage that would be quite moderate for a man, nearly the minimum likely to be recommended that could still give reasonable results for a novice, then divide by 10 to have something that’s moderate but effective for a woman.

(I don’t mean effective in the women’s pro bodybuilding sense.)

For each individual steroid, my suggested mild-but-effective dosage range may differ from the above slightly, and of course the above also is only approximate because there will be diffferent opinions as to what would be moderate for a man. But if having nothing else to work with, if you see or are considering a dosage and want to do a quick “reality check,” the above can help. For example, say that someone is proposing EQ at 100 mg/week. Multiply by 10, and our comparison would be to 1000 mg/week of EQ for a man. That’s well above being a mild cycle. So we can see at a glance that this EQ dose is off, without having had to remember specific values for each steroid.
I’d also take Winstrol out of the equation, as it’s possible (I’m not certain) it has a somewhat worse benefits/risk ratio for women than most other anabolic steroids.

Also in general I’d forget stacking for women.

Returning to the stacks you asked about, and in general to anabolic steroids other than Anadrol for women:

I can’t say that it couldn’t possibly be that some stacking method might give better ratio of muscle gain to side effects, but as to whether we know what that is, that’s another question entirely. The best understood uses are single-drug, and single-drug works fine. Primo or Anadrol are my top two choices for bodybuilding and fitness; oxandrolone is also acceptable but must be lower dosed than those two; for quality of life enhancement, very very low dose testosterone works fine.

How to Start Bodybuilding for Women

Strength training seeks to make a stronger you, while bodybuilding kicks the goal up several notches - to make your body a visual statement of rippling muscle and taut sinew. You can become a female bodybuilder and still maintain your femininity and appeal, as demonstrated by bodybuilding icons such as Rachel McLish and Marissa Rivero, successful actresses and beautiful models. To get started, you need mainly to commit to an initial three months of dedicated work, as well as planning and tracking your progress.

Commit to the Weight Room
Two to three days a week, you need to hit the weight room for a date with your barbells. Monday, Wednesday and Friday are ideal. You can focus on the powerlifts - the deadlift, squat and bench - to build muscle and in the process, burn fat. Expect to warm up by lifting light weights and to spend about an hour per session. Women: Don’t forget to train hard, after your first month or so of getting acclimated. Push yourself as part of serious training designed to pack on 5 to 10 pounds of additional muscle, advises fitness author Stuart McRobert.

Ramp Up the Cardio Intensity
Pick your favorite form of cardio - spinning, outdoor biking, running, hill sprints, swimming - and hit it hard. Literally. Brian Lebo of the Athletic Performance Training Center in Ohio advises HIIT, high-intensity interval training, as your way to burn fat in a time-efficient manner. Lebo advises a 3-to-1 rest-to-work ratio. In practical terms, this means you can for example go hard as you can on a hill sprint for 30 seconds, walk or jog back down the slope for 90 seconds, and repeat four times for an intense 10-minute training session.

Change Your Eating Habits
Processed and fried foods will be going bye-bye as part of your bodybuilding program. You’ll need five or six small meals each day with lean protein to repair muscles, carbs to fuel your workouts and healthy fats to satisfy hunger. Lebo advises that you create meal plans for your week. Rest your muscles a full 48 hours before working the same muscle group and get plenty of sleep.

Meal Ideas for Beginners
You may need to restock your pantry with lots of tuna and whole grains. A mini-meal may consist of oats and cooked egg whites; sweet potato and tuna; brown rice, chicken and greens; or tilapia and a quarter of an avocado. Figure competitor Ashley Toms, who describes diet as 90 percent of success in bodybuilding, similarly combines chicken, green veggies and steel-cut oats; whey protein shakes and oats; and snacks such as protein shakes or a handful of nuts.