.tantrum: In the Poliquin Principles thread you said: “… I bet you
never tried ashwaganda. Its a great product, for inducing HQ
sleep. I use it, my clients use it.”
I used ashwaganda in the past after reading Chuckie P’s
rave about it. My results were disappointing, to say
the least. Perhaps the brand I used sucked (Nature’s Best
lquid ex. @ 5 gram equivalent).
What brand and dose do you recommend? Also, where do you
get yours from? I have had a problem locating a quality vendor -
without purchasing it directly from Chuck at a 20X markup!
Anyone else who has had luck with this compound, please
chime in! Thanks, Joey Z.
Any good ayurvedic supplier will do.
I live in Israel, so my source wont be of any help to you.
Dont forget to use it with a bit warm milk and honey as adviced by CP.
Dont use it year round, try to limit it to those heavy CNS work days, for a good, recharging restful sleep.
Good luck.
ZMA has a mild effect on sleep from my experience. I would use it with ashwaganda, though.
Melatonin has its problems, as it can be addictive. I would use it from time to time, only when necessary, and with a small dosage.
Poliquin mentioned three VERY specific things with taking ashwaghanda:
He only knows of one brand that’s worthwhile. I forget what it is, but you can get it through his site.
It should be taken with warm milk with honey in it before bedtime.
Large dose. I forget what the dose is, but it’s quite large. I remember taking it a while ago, and for some reason, the dose that comes to mind was 26 tabs of the brand he recommends.
Search through Poliquins site and see if you can find about it in the ask the guru archives.
Please dont get sucked into the hype of this absolutely worthless supplement. Its the warm milk thats helping you sleep better, Einstein, and thats cheaper and been around for years.
ZMA, never did much for me. It’s actually the magnesium
in the ZMA that’s responsible for the CNS calming effect.
Problem is that a serving of ZMA contains only 400 mg’s
of magnesium, and I need a to take “at least” a gram to
reap any benefits from it. I found that while taking doses of
magnesium @ 1200 mg’s and upwards, it’s best to be near
a crapper - I’m talking “explosive” bowel movements!
As far as melatonin is concerned, not too much luck
either. I’ve take 21mg’s - without a wink.
Melatonin is one of the least toxic substances known. People have
taken as much as 6 grams (600 to 3000 times the normal dosage)
of the substance in carefully monitored studies with no sign of toxicity.
Only four complaints regarding melatonin have been report to the FDA
(USA’s Food and Drug Administration). The only consistent side effect
of high doses has been drowsiness and a slower reaction time. In the
most extensive clinical trial to date a high dose of 75 milligrams of
melatonin per day was given to 1400 women in the Netherlands for
up to four years with no ill effects. The FDA reports that in the more
than two years melatonin has been available for sale over-the-counter
in the United States, no alarming side effects have been reported.
According to one report, 10% of the users said the hormone did nothing
for them with regards to sleep disorders, and another 10% complained of
side effects such as nightmares, headaches, morning groginess, mild
depression, and low sex drive, weight gain, irritability, diminished brain
function, and impaired athletic performance. In past studies, researchers
have given people up to 600 to 3,000 times the usual doses - without
causing any toxicity.
(glute, this was not where I got the idea from. I believe it came from a
book by Dr. Ray Sahelian.)