The Essential Anabolics

When guys hear the word anabolic, their ears normally perk up. This is most likely due to the fact that they associate the word with muscular growth, muscular strength, and lower body fat. This is because of the association with anabolic steroids. There isn't any doubt that steroids work, but as a guy who is always looking for secrets, what if I told you that you have essential anabolics at your fingertips that can enhance your training and health far beyond any

supplement on the shelves at your local health store?

My wife just recently had her tonsils out, which isn't a pretty thing for an adult. While doing the research on how to aid her healing, it came as no surprise to me that the biggest factors in her recovery were her hydration levels and her sleep. I mean, it makes sense, right? Every single metabolic process in the body requires water, and the majority of our body’s repair takes place while we are sleeping. But did you ever think about how we're really trying to get our bodies to recover better and more efficiently after pounding away at it in the gym? We're trying to get our bodies to do the same thing we'd be trying to get them to do after surgery.

Rest

I was guilty of cutting out sleep for a number of years on my quest to become successful. I have always had the mindset that rest should be a necessity, not a priority. Funny thing is though that as of this year, my hunger and thirst levels were out of whack with the lack of sleep. So as I wrote about before, I did my research on sleep.

Sleep is when we produce optimal hormone levels, including testosterone and growth hormone. It is the time when our brains replenish their energy stores. If we go without enough sleep, we will pay a price by producing too much cortisol. Our bodies with hold on to excess body fat. Our insulin levels will be askew, leading to altered hunger levels. I've found it to be true that this will also affect thirst levels, decreasing my own thirst. I've once again made the decision to sleep more and get an optimal amount of sleep, and my energy, body composition, and mental clarity are all a success so far. This leads to more strength, more muscle, and more motivation to

train. Kind of sounds like some of the effects of anabolic steroids, doesn’t it?

Catch 22

The catch 22 that I've found to be true in myself is that the less sleep I get, the less thirsty I am. So this means that too little sleep leads to shitty hormonal profiles and possible dehydration, not the environment that we want if we're trying to gain muscle and strength. Water is essential for every process in our body by nature of its role in cellular metabolism. You won’t gain muscle being dehydrated and you sure as hell won’t lose body fat being dehydrated because of the commitment you will place on the liver taking over for the kidneys in processing the body’s waste. (Normally, the liver can mobilize and use stored body fat for energy in an optimal state.)

Testosterone

I've had to go on testosterone therapy due to lower than optimal testosterone levels. The doctor and I have never been able to pinpoint the exact reason my levels have always been low. We suspected it was the numerous natural bodybuilding competitions I put my body through. Now, I suspect that it was just a chronic lack of sleep. I'm going to be getting my blood work done again soon, and I will discuss the findings with my doctor. But wouldn’t it be something if adequate sleep and water intake gave me the same results as going on testosterone therapy? Think about the essential anabolics and how they can be used to further your training.