Alpha Lipoic Acid

[Cindy]

This is one of my fav supplements. I began taking it On and Off about 5 years ago.
When I am consistent, I see a major difference in my complexion.
Does anyone else take it?

[thelamefalsehood]

One of the best out there by far. I used Glucophase XR by Designer Labs until they quit making it. Now just regular ALA from NOW foods. Awesome supplement for those high carb days, or even when you are leaning out and carbs are low. I'm surprised its not alot more popular than it is.

[WhiteHulk4]

ALA has been the one supplement that I have taken religiously for about 10 years now.  I'm a HUGE believer in it!!!

I also take the NOW Brand - 250mg caps.  Except when I eat a large cheat meal, I take the 600mg!

[Cindy]

ALA has been the one supplement that I have taken religiously for about 10 years now.  I'm a HUGE believer in it!!!

I also take the NOW Brand - 250mg caps.  Except when I eat a large cheat meal, I take the 600mg!

NOW has good products. I used to take their L-Carnitine.
ON does not have ALA, so I buy whatever is available.

Do you get nauseas on 600 mg. Well .....maybe not because of the huge cheat meal.

My sister almost fainted with 100 mg. She only weighs 95 pounds.

[WhiteHulk4]

NOW has good products. I used to take their L-Carnitine.
ON does not have ALA, so I buy whatever is available.

Do you get nauseas on 600 mg. Well .....maybe not because of the huge cheat meal.

My sister almost fainted with 100 mg. She only weighs 95 pounds.

Definitely depends on the amount of carbs in the meal with which you take it.  One time I accidentally took too much while eating low-carb and my blood sugar dropped so low, I honestly thought I needed to go to the ER!  It was a horrid feeling!

But at the same time, that was just another experience with ALA that proves that it works!

[No Patience]

Hey guys....please elaborate on why you all speak so highly about ALA....i have heard good things
but would like to hear your experiences and reasons for supplimenting it

[phemonmmill32]

i've got some GNC ala 50. i may be wrong but i think MRI offered a product, igf-1, they sold for like 80 bucks that was just a large dose of ala. what's the general consensus on when to take ala. i think the igf supplement suggested immediately post workout

[powerpack]

Unfortunately I get sick on ALA 
But for those who dont I know it is a good sup

[WhiteHulk4]

Here's a little blurb I wrote about ALA quite a few years ago...  It sums it up pretty good...

Alpha Lipoic Acid

Imagine the hormone Insulin to be Dr. Jeckyl and Mr. Hyde. On the one side, insulin, as Dr. Jeckyl, is our friend. He helps shuttle protein, carbs, creatine, etc., into our muscles, helping them grow bigger and stronger. On the flip side, the mother-fucking Mr. Hyde, shuttles all remaining sugar and fat into our blubbery midsections! DAMN THAT MR. HYDE!!!!

ALA is known as an “Insulin Mimicker,” but the cool thing about it is, it only mimics the Dr. Jeckyl half of the natural hormone. Which means, it helps Dr. Jeckyl get his job done before his alter ego, the Evil, Evil Mr. Hyde springs forth to subject his evil ways. How’s that for science? As I told you, I’m not going to get into the nitty-gritty about biology and such for a number of reasons. One, I’m not a chemistry teacher, and two, why bore you with the details? The shit works… Case and point!

Okay, for those of you that want a little EXTRA proof (I don’t see how you would need any more after my compelling Dr. Jeckyl and Mr. Hyde story!), I’ll give you a little example of how ALA really works wonders:

One of the best tests for an “insulin mimicker” is how fast it can clear glucose from your bloodstream. But how can we test this? Well, we could take blood tests to measure the amount of sugar in the blood. But, if you’re like me, needles are NOT your friends! My test was to see how fast I could get into ketosis (Atkins Diet, Protein Power). Now I’ve done the low carb diet a number of times. And from what I had learned, it took me about two and a half days to reach ketosis after cutting my carb intake to below 20 grams a day. However, when taking 200 mg of ALA three to four times a day, I was able to reach ketosis in less than one day! That means it cleared the glucose from my system more than two times as fast as I could do it without ALA. To me, that says “Alpha Lipoic Acid Does It’s Job Well!”

So what’s it good for other than getting you into ketosis faster you may ask? Well, as I mentioned before, it helps shuttle all of the muscle-building nutrients into your muscles faster AND it helps clear the excess from the bloodstream before insulin’s ugly side has a chance to take it for a one-way trip to blub-town! In plain English, this means that if you have a large meal and take ALA, you will store much less of the excess calories in your fat stores! Uhhhhh? Is that a good thing? Uhhhhhhh… FUCK YES!!!

Recommended Use:
200 mg taken 2-4 times a day with meals, especially with large/high-carb meals.

[MCWAY]

Most of my ALA intake occurs when I use CELL-TECH.

Another supplement you might want to try is  Acetyl-L-Carntine 500 & Alpha Lipoic Acid 200. It comes in yellow caplets and retails for $22 for 60 caplets ($17.60 with the Gold Card).

[njflex]

Most of my ALA intake occurs when I use CELL-TECH.

Another supplement you might want to try is  Acetyl-L-Carntine 500 & Alpha Lipoic Acid 200. It comes in yellow caplets and retails for $22 for 60 caplets ($17.60 with the Gold Card).

is that the part of celltech that makes your throat burn.and does the pills cause that effect..

[busyB]

is that the part of celltech that makes your throat burn.and does the pills cause that effect..

Yes, that is the part of Cell Crap that makes your throught burn. Pills will not cause that, just the powder form 

[candidizzle]

i bought a bottle of cinnamon + chromium a week ago to use as an insulin mimicker.....   it says take two caps...so ive been taking two caps with each meal....didnt really notice any differences..   so today i figured id use the rest, and then go out and buy soem ala (untill i can get my hands on some metformin)...so i tok the last remaining 8 pills with my morning oats+whey/casien+cinnamoon...  and FUCK i am all lihgt headed now!    that tells me that it worked! and now i cant wait to get the rala becaus ei know that stuff works so much better than cinnamon + chromium... im excited to say the least

[WhiteHulk4]

The problem with chromium and vanadyl sulfate (other than their lack of effectiveness) is that they are minerals and can become toxic if you take too much.

[MCWAY]

is that the part of celltech that makes your throat burn.and does the pills cause that effect..

I think it does. However, that only happens to me when I use the Orange and Fruit Punch kinds. Grape and Lemon-Lime doesn't do that. I've yet to try the Blue Raspberry.

I've never used plain ALA pills. The ALA-ALC caplets from GNC don't bother my throat.

[candidizzle]

i picked up a bottle of 300mg ala yesterday.     trying it out today!

[No Patience]

Here's a little blurb I wrote about ALA quite a few years ago...  It sums it up pretty good...

Alpha Lipoic Acid

Imagine the hormone Insulin to be Dr. Jeckyl and Mr. Hyde. On the one side, insulin, as Dr. Jeckyl, is our friend. He helps shuttle protein, carbs, creatine, etc., into our muscles, helping them grow bigger and stronger. On the flip side, the mother-fucking Mr. Hyde, shuttles all remaining sugar and fat into our blubbery midsections! DAMN THAT MR. HYDE!!!!

ALA is known as an “Insulin Mimicker,” but the cool thing about it is, it only mimics the Dr. Jeckyl half of the natural hormone. Which means, it helps Dr. Jeckyl get his job done before his alter ego, the Evil, Evil Mr. Hyde springs forth to subject his evil ways. How’s that for science? As I told you, I’m not going to get into the nitty-gritty about biology and such for a number of reasons. One, I’m not a chemistry teacher, and two, why bore you with the details? The shit works… Case and point!

Okay, for those of you that want a little EXTRA proof (I don’t see how you would need any more after my compelling Dr. Jeckyl and Mr. Hyde story!), I’ll give you a little example of how ALA really works wonders:

One of the best tests for an “insulin mimicker” is how fast it can clear glucose from your bloodstream. But how can we test this? Well, we could take blood tests to measure the amount of sugar in the blood. But, if you’re like me, needles are NOT your friends! My test was to see how fast I could get into ketosis (Atkins Diet, Protein Power). Now I’ve done the low carb diet a number of times. And from what I had learned, it took me about two and a half days to reach ketosis after cutting my carb intake to below 20 grams a day. However, when taking 200 mg of ALA three to four times a day, I was able to reach ketosis in less than one day! That means it cleared the glucose from my system more than two times as fast as I could do it without ALA. To me, that says “Alpha Lipoic Acid Does It’s Job Well!”

So what’s it good for other than getting you into ketosis faster you may ask? Well, as I mentioned before, it helps shuttle all of the muscle-building nutrients into your muscles faster AND it helps clear the excess from the bloodstream before insulin’s ugly side has a chance to take it for a one-way trip to blub-town! In plain English, this means that if you have a large meal and take ALA, you will store much less of the excess calories in your fat stores! Uhhhhh? Is that a good thing? Uhhhhhhh… FUCK YES!!!

Recommended Use:
200 mg taken 2-4 times a day with meals, especially with large/high-carb meals.

that was a great way of explaining it....thanks!

[MidniteRambo]

Here's a little blurb I wrote about ALA quite a few years ago...  It sums it up pretty good...

Alpha Lipoic Acid

Imagine the hormone Insulin to be Dr. Jeckyl and Mr. Hyde. On the one side, insulin, as Dr. Jeckyl, is our friend. He helps shuttle protein, carbs, creatine, etc., into our muscles, helping them grow bigger and stronger. On the flip side, the mother-fucking Mr. Hyde, shuttles all remaining sugar and fat into our blubbery midsections! DAMN THAT MR. HYDE!!!!

ALA is known as an “Insulin Mimicker,” but the cool thing about it is, it only mimics the Dr. Jeckyl half of the natural hormone. Which means, it helps Dr. Jeckyl get his job done before his alter ego, the Evil, Evil Mr. Hyde springs forth to subject his evil ways. How’s that for science? As I told you, I’m not going to get into the nitty-gritty about biology and such for a number of reasons. One, I’m not a chemistry teacher, and two, why bore you with the details? The shit works… Case and point!

Okay, for those of you that want a little EXTRA proof (I don’t see how you would need any more after my compelling Dr. Jeckyl and Mr. Hyde story!), I’ll give you a little example of how ALA really works wonders:

One of the best tests for an “insulin mimicker” is how fast it can clear glucose from your bloodstream. But how can we test this? Well, we could take blood tests to measure the amount of sugar in the blood. But, if you’re like me, needles are NOT your friends! My test was to see how fast I could get into ketosis (Atkins Diet, Protein Power). Now I’ve done the low carb diet a number of times. And from what I had learned, it took me about two and a half days to reach ketosis after cutting my carb intake to below 20 grams a day. However, when taking 200 mg of ALA three to four times a day, I was able to reach ketosis in less than one day! That means it cleared the glucose from my system more than two times as fast as I could do it without ALA. To me, that says “Alpha Lipoic Acid Does It’s Job Well!”

So what’s it good for other than getting you into ketosis faster you may ask? Well, as I mentioned before, it helps shuttle all of the muscle-building nutrients into your muscles faster AND it helps clear the excess from the bloodstream before insulin’s ugly side has a chance to take it for a one-way trip to blub-town! In plain English, this means that if you have a large meal and take ALA, you will store much less of the excess calories in your fat stores! Uhhhhh? Is that a good thing? Uhhhhhhh… FUCK YES!!!

Recommended Use:
200 mg taken 2-4 times a day with meals, especially with large/high-carb meals.

Great writing style.  Can you point me in the direction of any research that backs it up, I'm considering use of this supplement.  Thanks in advance.

[WhiteHulk4]

Great writing style.  Can you point me in the direction of any research that backs it up, I'm considering use of this supplement.  Thanks in advance.

I wrote that many years ago, and it came from a combination of personal experience and everything I had read on ALA up to that point.  Wouldn't know where to point you.

[Cindy]

Thanks WhiteHulk!! Great post.
ALA is a great antioxidant. In addition to the insulin like effects, you will notice great improvements in your skin!! (esp the face!)

[njflex]

thanks for good posts on this,i picked up bottle to try ,i would have never tried it until this read,i only remembered from cell tech which i tried yrs ago and hated.i rather try the ala on own.

[Faust]

Never even heard about the insulin thing.

I grind about 20 grams of flax seeds (gives about 4,5 g of ALA) and add it to my whey shake in the morning. Add some carbs (usually a couple of toasts) and i have a good breakfast, ready in 3 minutes.

Ground flax seeds gives you the benefit of ALA,  anti-oxidants (normal flax oil gets bad quickly), and both soluble and insoluble fiber.

http://www.flaxcouncil.ca/english/index.php?p=g1&mp=nutrition

[WhiteHulk4]

Flax Seed Oil has absolutely ZERO "Alpha LIPOIC Acid" in it...  It has "Alpha-LINOLENIC acid" which is an Omega 3 fatty acid.  Don't confuse the two ALA's.

[candidizzle]

Never even heard about the insulin thing.

I grind about 20 grams of flax seeds (gives about 4,5 g of ALA) and add it to my whey shake in the morning. Add some carbs (usually a couple of toasts) and i have a good breakfast, ready in 3 minutes.

Ground flax seeds gives you the benefit of ALA,  anti-oxidants (normal flax oil gets bad quickly), and both soluble and insoluble fiber.

http://www.flaxcouncil.ca/english/index.php?p=g1&mp=nutrition

if your natural cut out the flax bro...  its estrogenic

[Faust]

Flax Seed Oil has absolutely ZERO "Alpha LIPOIC Acid" in it...  It has "Alpha-LINOLENIC acid" which is an Omega 3 fatty acid.  Don't confuse the two ALA's.

Whoops. My bad. Kinda stupid though they're both abbreviated the same though.

if your natural cut out the flax bro...  its estrogenic

Do you have studies that confirm this? I know it contains phyto-estrogens, but sometimes that's actually a good thing. Aren't some PCT products actually weak estrogens or phyto-estrogens?

http://www.brinkzone.com/articledetails.php?acatid=6&aid=71
-> W. Brink even advises it against gyno for it's anti-estrogenic effects

Men Health Benefits:
The biological properties of lignans have several beneficial effects for men.Their potent anti-estrogenic effect has drawn the interest of bodybuilders who are looking to increase their testosterone to estrogen ratio. The lignans provide an economical, natural way to alter the ratio without adverse effects either physically or legally.

http://freshflaxseeds.com/catalog/flaxnutrition.php