Activate + Forskolin Stack?

I dunno enough aout forskolin to really advise, but i don't think i recall anyone using act/forsk in the past (they may have, i just have a crappy memory).

Give it a go and let us know the results.

Will do. I'm not dedicated enough to promise a daily log or anything but I will post periodically. That and I've got too many variables probably to make it scientific enough to satisfy most. (I know people like to see everything left unchanged, how a supplement affects the outcome).

Quick summary though:
30 Yr old Male,
222lbs, 5'7", 32% BF%
Gained 40 lbs in 2 yrs on Lexapro and bad diet (I can't solely blame the Lexapro).
Now tapering off Lex down to 2.5mg/day which is barely a placebo dose but I heard horror stories from people not tapering so I'm going slow. Nearly off though for all intents and purposes.
Resumed working out Nov 2005 after a 4 year layoff. Had previously worked out intensly for 3 years before that.

Fedex notice emailed to me today says I should get Activate (120 caps) and Forskolin (20% extract) today.
Likely I will slowly ramp up the dosages (start low) to see how I respond. This is common practice for me with any supp as I am allergic to a lot of things (foods) and like to make sure I don't have a bad reaction.

Interesting stuff - I look forward to the log. A rough record of diet and training in the log would be really useful.

J

Posted by: @Josh

Interesting stuff - I look forward to the log. A rough record of diet and training in the log would be really useful.

J

Sounds good. Turns out my fedex didn't come today so will have to start tomorrow.

btw are you doing hard cardio? One of the amazing effects of regular hard cardio is on improving mood and reducing depression. It may ease any pains of eliminating the lexapro. One other thing is have you tried SJW (St Johns Wort), if so, what were the results like for you?

J

Anyone else thing that gyno might be a problem here? We've seen the abstracts about cAMP and know that Activate can potentially increase free estrogen. Couple this with his high bodyfat % and I think it's a good possibility.

That said, pick up some transdermal formestane.

Any thoughts?

Posted by: @Josh

btw are you doing hard cardio? One of the amazing effects of regular hard cardio is on improving mood and reducing depression. It may ease any pains of eliminating the lexapro. One other thing is have you tried SJW (St Johns Wort), if so, what were the results like for you?

J

I would not use the word "hard" to describe my level of cardio. I have been doing 25 min on the elliptical about 4 times per week at 145-155 BPM. I have a problem running due to asthma. Incidentally the Forskolin is supposed to be a bronchodilator so it will be interesting to see if this helps with cardio. I actually don't treat my asthma as it is only exercise-induced (although it was chronic as a teen).

Depression isn't so much the issue as was anxiety. What sent me to the Doc for Lex in the first place was a series of about 5 episondes of panix attacks in Dec 2003 where I went to the ER thinking I was having a heart attack, 5 times, within a period of 2 weeks. This along with chronic anxiety (minus the panic attacks) over the previous year caused me to seek treatment.

Nevertheless I think the cardio helps out with the anxiety as well not to mention the fact that I'm fat and need to do it anyway. SJW I may try if I run into difficulties but so far I think a lot of the Lexapro withdrawal horror stories are overblown cases of reverse-placebo or something. (Knocks on wood). I really haven't had trouble but I've taken 45 days to go from my regular 10mg/day to 2.5 so it's been very gradual.

So no, to answer your question, I haven't tried SJW. WRT anxiloytics, I am taking magnesium 500mg in the am and 750 before bed, Taurine 500mg morning and night (dosages some use are much higher but coupled with the magnesium, for me higher dose taurine was leading to more frequent emergency restroom trips than what is ideal), Theanine as needed.

I also take Piracetam, Alpha GPC, ALCAR daily, and r-ala daily.

Honestly since my slow withdrawal from Lex began I feel better than ever, clearer mind, etc.

Thanks for the input.

Posted by: @Derek

Anyone else thing that gyno might be a problem here? We've seen the abstracts about cAMP and know that Activate can potentially increase free estrogen. Couple this with his high bodyfat % and I think it's a good possibility.

That said, pick up some transdermal formestane.

Any thoughts?

I hadn't considered this as a possibility so I appreciate the comments. I haven't up till now ever had a gyno problem. Never did cycles or whatnot either. But anyway - I am not sure where to get transdermal formestane if it does become an issue. Product suggestions?

Update:

Got my Forskolin and Activate last night finally. Took half a cap of each. This is pussy but it's what I do for any supp. Comes from me having a lot of allergies and I always test a small dosage before getting into the real label recs, to make sure I don't have any bad reactions.

So I woke up this morning with no hives or anything so I took a full cap of each. Had a second dose of each today at lunch. I will workout around 7pm tonight and plan a third dose about an hour before that. Then, before bed one more serving of Activate (but not the Forslean). In other words, I will be doing 4 doses per day of Activate and 3 x 125mg (20% extract) Forslean. So for the Forslean this is 75mg per day of the active. Most of the studies I think were 50mg/day active.

So far, no observations to note. Too early to tell.

Day 3 Activate + Forskolin

The "deep sleep" that people report on Activate is for real. Last night I wasn't super tired before bed but I must have slept well because I woke up early and already feel like I'd normally feel after a cup of coffee. Meaning that I am well rested and not the least bit groggy right now. Normally it is hard for me to wake up and I typically hit the snooze button multiple times per morning (to the point the ink on the button is worn off...).

Anyway - short of that not much to mention yet. My weight this morning was 221. I worked out on Day 1 of the stack but yesterday was a skip day. I go again today and tomorrow.

So today is day three but it's really the beginning of day 3 (haven't taken my doses yet).

Posted by: @ShuffleUp

I hadn't considered this as a possibility so I appreciate the comments. I haven't up till now ever had a gyno problem. Never did cycles or whatnot either. But anyway - I am not sure where to get transdermal formestane if it does become an issue. Product suggestions?

I transdermal formestane. Advanced Dermabolics E-form is available from mike for $15/bottle.

Day 5

Nothing much to report yet. I did get quite tired near the end of the day the last two evenings. Like I wanted to go to bed early.

My weight is holding steady at 221.

One other thing is that my body temp has been unusually warm a couple occasions throughout the last couple days. Not uncomfortably so, but noticeably so. This is not all day, but rather a period of an hour here or there that I feel extra body heat.

Your body type is pushing towards the endomorph, right?

Personally, I have always thought this will be a good combo, and am interested to see the results.