“hi, my name is P-DOG and i am addicted to eca.”
j/k- on a serious note i want to stop taking this stuff pre workout because i have been on it for too long. what else is out there that will give me a “kick?” powerdrive is nice for the focus that it gives me, but i want a stimulant. is there anything i can use that will give the stimulatory effects and allow my beta receptors to return to normal?
why dont you just come off everything and let your will power get you thru a workout
P-Dog, I don’t see an ECA stack being a problem if you lift 3 or 4 days a week, or if you use an ECA stack the 3 days you think you need it most. It’s the chronic use thing (7 days a week, no off time) that’s a problem.
However, that’s not your question. My vote would be to go with a double dose of PD with club soda and caffeine. And if you’re not one to drink much coffee or caffeinated beverages, you’ll get a pretty good kick when you do use caffeine assistance.
Been there, done that. Your best cost-effective alternative is PD and vinpocetine. For the maximum effect, go for acetyl l-carnitine and PS. It isn’t cheap at proper doses, I’ll warn you right now.
I took E/C for no less than nine months out of the year for a good five year period. I’ve been off completely for about three months now and feel so much better it’s ridiculous. I also consume no caffeine other than what’s in Hot Rox and maybe one caffeine-containing diet soda a week. The ol’ adrenals are thanking me.
ECA is definitely a crutch for me. It wakes me up at 5am for my workouts and it gets me through afternoons when I’m on 1-test/4ad which seems to put me to sleep. Caffeine by itself doesn’t seem to do anything upwards of 1-3 hours after I take it.
I probably just need to stop taking it and workout as best I can. Getting up sucks.
I can definitely relate to your situation p-dog…When i need a little break from the traditional ECA stack, I basically just drop to a No-Doz or 2 before my workout just for a little pick me up…However, as tampa-terry said, if you are a habitual caffeine user, this probably won’t do the trick…The powerdrive seems lile a good choice, I personally haven’t tried it but it always seems to get great reviews by fellow t-maggers…best of luck on kicking the habit 
Been there done that P-dog! I took ECA straight- I mean every single day except for Sundays once in a while- for over a year. Finally my bf pointed out my skin looked terrible and I wasn’t losing any weight…so I groaned and started cutting it out. First thing I will warn you about is I definitely felt the hunger pangs going off it. I started off going to only before workouts, then to only one pill before workouts, and then kicked in when I found powerdrive to none at all.
It took a bit- three or four months- but I’ve lost more bodyfat since going off ECA and getting my diet together than before. It’s nice to have good skin again too hehe :). The effects I feel with Powerdrive are more subtle than ECA but I like it better. I wake up at 4 a.m. and take PD and head to the gym an hour away. Haven’t fallen asleep on the way there yet :).
I do remember a bit of a rebound in weight when I put the ECA down to one dose a day. It definitely does mess up your metabolism a little bit, so be prepared to tighten up the diet and hit the cardio. I found that really tightening up on the quality of carbs helped me a lot.
G’luck!
just do a fat line of yayo mang.
P-DOG, try taking extra L-tyrosine in your diet. Ephedra causes your brain to release chemicals on to your central nervouse system ,thats why you get a kick, so your heart can beat faster,so blood will pump faster, and everything else goes faster. Your body will get used to it and eventually wear off. So to keep it going longer we need neuro-transmitters to keep our brain-body connection the same. If I were you I would go off the ECA for about 4-6 weeks, let my body restore itself anf then start back but take the Tyrosine with it. Maybe 30 minutes before the ECA. i am no doctor but I worked @GNC for 3.5 years and learned a little. You are probably taking a MRP anyway with tyrosine, just take a little more. It is an amino so it is water soluble and if you take to much it will flush out…
thanks for the advice guys and gals. TT’s response got me to thinking. if i only use eca 3-4x per week, pre workout will it really cause any problems, with my metabolism or anyhting else?
i just wanted to point out that eca stil gives me the same kick that it did when i first tried it. oh and to further clarify i actually dont use an eca, i have e and c pills, no aspirin.
I’m in the same boat as Pdog but a different question. Anyone know the consequences of taking it just preworkout(3-4days a week)for 8-9 months of the year for about 6-7 years. How harmful to the liver, kidneys, adrenals etc.?
That’s probably the best way to do it… You aren’t really taking it enough to get your system used to it. I wish I only took it pre workout. Most of the time that is when I take it but occasionally I take it later in the day on certain days I’m feeling tired.