The Morning Dose #8

In this week’s edition of The Morning Dose:

Ask A Coach: Reader Q&A

Reader’s Corner: Peptide Feedback

Research Spotlight: High-Fiber Diet Promotes Weight Loss

Is Your Supplement Bottle Lying to You?

Let’s inject this.

First time reading? I’m Matt, and this is The Morning Dose. Every week, our team scours 100s of sources to bring you need-to-know news and insights you won’t find elsewhere. All in 5 minutes. Did someone forward you this email? Sign up here.

 Ask A Coach: Reader Q&A

Want us to answer your questions? Hit reply, ask us your training, nutrition, or peptide questions, and we’ll choose one to answer in each edition of The Morning Dose.

We can’t guarantee an answer, but we’ll pick an interesting question each week to share. And if you want to speak with us directly about your burning questions, our coaching team is available for consultations.

Here are this week’s questions, along with our head coach Daniel’s answers.

“I’m curious about your opinion on the peptide Ipamorelin. Upsides and downsides, side effects, safety, and the reason it’s not approved by the FDA.”

Ipamorelin is good, for the most part. It has quite a few benefits, assuming you actually train, eat correctly, and live accordingly. However, the side effects of bloating, edema, and insulin are prevalent, not to mention the increased risk of cancer.

As for why it’s not approved, there simply aren’t enough human studies yet.

“I’m a competitive powerlifter with barely any knowledge regarding peptides. I’m 2 months out from a competition, but struggling with injuries. Which peptides work best to aid recovery?”

I would first and foremost ensure that your training, diet, and recovery are on point.

Injuries are a reflection that something is wrong, and peptides shouldn’t be your immediate go-to fix. That said, a basal GH-booster like CJC-1295 & Ipamorelin would be your first move, followed by the addition of BPC-157, TB-500, and perhaps even something like Glutathione.

Looking for the best peptides?

If you want to try CJC-1295, Ipamorelin, BPC-157, or any other research-grade research peptides, check out BioTechPeptides.com.

(Use code BP10 for 10% off).

They do COA testing on all their batches, check out the test for CJC 1295 below. Dated 7/22/23.

  Reader’s Corner: A Terrifying SARMs Experience

In each edition of The Morning Dose, we’ll be sharing reader stories, protocols, and experiences, and adding our thoughts and feedback.

This week, we have a SARMs-induced health scare to share from a Morning Dose reader.

In the last edition of The Morning Dose, we answered the question–are SARMs safe? Our answer was that the results are unpredictable, and individual results may vary, as with any type of compound.

One reader sent us the following message in response to our newsletter, and we wanted to share his story.

“I’d never been down the SARMs route until earlier this year when I thought I’d try RAD140 and Cardarine. I bought these from a reputable SARM supplier here in Australia and followed their dosage directions – although 30mg RAD140 per day did seem high, I was told it was quite okay when I questioned the company.

Long story short, I ended up with significant liver damage 6 weeks into an 8-week cycle. I wasn’t drinking any alcohol and was I using a liver support supplement. The injury was so severe I ended up extremely ill, losing 15kg in two months.

My specialist was concerned 6 weeks ago that my liver was not going to repair and I would be looking at a transplant if we didn’t see improvement within 4 weeks. Fortunately, something just ticked over about four weeks ago and my liver started repairing itself to the point that blood tests last Friday had me back at normal levels.

At 45 and with a young family, this has been a very scary time, especially given that I’d always been so healthy… and I wasn’t using a huge cocktail of heavy SARMs.

Maybe just unlucky, who knows? I’d love to be able to get my word out to those who are unsure.”

First and foremost, thank you for sharing your story, and we’re glad you’re okay!

Obviously, your medical provider knows you best, so we aren’t going to comment on the dosing, response, or anything else that would be medical advice.

But this is a great reminder to be very careful with what you’re using, and be sure to stay on top of your bloodwork.

Not everyone will end up with significant liver damage, but as this story proves, anything can happen.

That’s why we strongly advise only using peptides, SARMs, or TRT under the direct supervision of a medical professional or coach–if something bad happens, you want to have a provider on standby, as this reader did.

Thank you for sharing your story with us, and for everyone else out there, please stay safe if you’re considering adding SARMs to your routine.

If you’ve got your own experience you’d like to hear our feedback on, feel free to hit reply and let us know.

Research Corner: High-Fiber, Minimally Processed Diet Promotes Weight Loss

While common sense tells us that eating mostly whole foods is going to be good for us, now we have the science to prove it.

For the Carnivore diet promoters who bash fiber, listen closely.

In a newly published randomized clinical trial, a high-fiber diet based around minimally processed foods altered the gut microbiome, reduced calorie absorption, and resulted in weight loss.

The diet was specifically designed to support a healthy gut microbiome, as the good bacteria in your gut feed on the short-chain fatty acids found in fiber.

Fiber has also been shown to reduce the amount of calories absorbed from high-fiber meals, so increasing fiber will decrease your overall calorie intake, even if you don’t change the foods you’re eating.

If you have a weight loss goal, a high-fiber diet may increase fullness, improve digestion, and reduce your actual calorie intake, making fat loss easier than ever.

There aren’t many ways to make fat loss easier, but increasing your fiber intake is certainly one of them.

Even if you’re not looking for weight loss, fiber is still a fantastic health food.

It supports healthy digestion, promotes stable blood sugar, balances cholesterol levels, and stabilizes blood sugar spikes.

The best sources of fiber? Vegetables, whole grains, berries, and lentils are all great options to add to your diet.

  Is Your Supplement Bottle Lying to You?

Here at Muscle + Brawn, you’ll rarely see us recommend over-the-counter dietary supplements like testosterone boosters, fat burners, and other “health formulas” for good reason…

Even if they work, you can never be sure what you’re actually getting.

Unfortunately, the FDA does NOT regulate the supplement industry.

Sure, they have regulations–but you don’t need to prove your product meets these regulations before launching it.

In other words, you can sell anything you want, with any label you want, and until someone complains, the FDA will have no idea what you’re selling.

And if you’re thinking that supplement companies are run by fellow health enthusiasts who have your best interests at heart… think again.

In a new paper from JAMA, an independent analysis found that of 57 supplements tested, 84% didn’t contain the amounts of active ingredients claimed, 40% didn’t contain any of the ingredients claimed, and 12% contained unlisted ingredients that are prohibited by the FDA.

That’s a terrifying statistic.

Now, these formulas supposedly contained some lesser-known ingredients, like methylliberine, halostachine, and turkesterone, so we’re not necessarily talking about the best-selling multivitamins at your local store.

But still, the fact that over 80% contained less than claimed is a massive red flag, and sadly, this isn’t the first time the FDA has found contaminated supplements.

So how can you be sure you’re taking something good? Your best bet is to use a company like Labdoor, which does independent testing on popular supplement brands.

Aside from that, your guess is as good as ours, so stick to reputable brands, and look for GMP-certified products, which usually means the manufacturing process is highly tested and regulated.