Tribulus Terrestris

Tribulus Terrestris is the name of the vine plant that grows in tropical and moderate climates, basically the hot or at least warm areas of the globe. These areas include the USA, Eastern Europe, Mexico, China or India. Tribulus has been used throughout the centuries to cure anything from sexual problems like erectile dysfunction and premature ejaculation to general health problems such as headaches or migraines.

Tribulus Terrestris is used by athletes and bodybuilders mainly to raise testosterone levels. Tribulus Terrestris is generally thought to support healthy hormone problems by boosting testosterone levels via the stimulation of the anterior pituitary gland. This stimulation then promotes the production and secretion of the leutinising hormone (LH), which in turn leads to increases in unbound, free testosterone levels.

Tribulus contains steroidal flavonoids, saponins and alkaloids but it's in fact the protodioscins content of Tribulus that is believed to be the true culprit of the increased testosterone levels and healthier hormone profile function. Even scientific research that examined Tribulus Terrestris with a standardised level of 20% protodioscins found that the Tribulus was very effective at stimulating testosterone increases in subject studied.

In addition to to stimulating LH and testosterone levels, Tribulus can as I briefly mentioned before, be an effective treatment for male impotence or even female impotence (lack of desire for sex etc.) as well as promoting healthy cholesterol profile and blood pressure. Tribulus Terrestris is an all natural product and studies on humans have shown no side effects whatsoever. Tribulus is safe for use by both women and men.

Believe it or not, large amounts of Tribulus Terrestris were fed to sheep and the resulting impact was toxic but this effect is extremely unlikely to be applicable to normal supplement levels and use in humans.

Squats.

The squat is essentially a full body exercise. Every muscle is worked during a squat, but people include this movement in their workout because it primarily works the muscles of the hips, buttocks and thighs as well as helping strengthen the ligaments, bones and insertion of tendons throughout the lower half of the body. Squats are considered an irreplaceable and vital exercise for increasing the size and strength of the buttocks and legs. When you are training legs you are training by far the biggest muscle group in the body so failure to train this muscle group is cheating yourself and your results.

Doing squats increases Growth Hormone (GH) and Testosterone levels in your body. This of course has a beneficial effect on the rest of your body. If you put time and effort into your squats then your overall strength and size will go up. If you're only working your upper body then your weight training plan is seriously flawed. Muscle size is directly related to strength. This is why Arnold Schwarzenegger himself could squat close to 500lbs! Squats strengthen the legs by working through a full range of motion. This training will help you in ANY sport you do but also help you in everyday activities.

People usually lift objects everyday depending on who they are, some more than others but the fact remains that at some point during the day, week or month you'll have to lift heavy stuff. Contrary to previous controversial information, squats do increase and maintain flexibility. Whether you're going from ass to grass or just to parallel, squats will increase your flexibility. You NEED flexibility to squat in the first place, squatting will help you maintain that flexibility.

Squats get a bad rap for damaging your knees, the fact is, squatting CORRECTLY will do nothing but strengthening their surrounding muscles. Your body's muscle tissue strengthens when exposed to stress. The tendons, ligaments and other connective tissues in your body will also thicken in response to lifting weights. Because of these effects, heavy squatting can only increase knee strength! By strengthening the supporting muscles around the knee, you will also end up with a much improved level of stability and strength in the knees.

Knee problems almost always only occur when you have been squatting with bad or improper form, especially when you relax in the bottom position of the squat. When you relax the knee joints in this position, the joints themselves actually separate slightly, placing themselves in a dangerous and compromising position. The solution is not to relax in the bottom position of course! It really is that simple. Keep the form perfect, everything tight and flexed and you should have no problems at all.

With regards to squatting parallel or deep (to the floor), there are benefits on both sides. Some sources say that squatting deeper to the floor activates the glutes more effectively. Squatting deep won't blow your knees either unless you're doing it wrong and have been doing it wrong for months. This is indeed the same for any other exercise. If you do an exercise wrong and continue to do it wrong with bad form, tempo etc. then you're setting yourself up for big problems sooner or later.

NEVER do half squats. Your knee is in fact strongest in a fully flexed or extended position, not the positions in between. On top of that, partial or half squats only strengthen your quads, not your hamstrings or glutes. This will only bring you muscle imbalances and injuries. Half reps are also much less effective for strength and muscle gains. Always squat in a squat rack so that the safety pins cover you if anything goes wrong (these pins will catch the bar).

For some people, when it comes to squatting, their hips just won't go low enough to reach the ground and this can make correct squat technique impossible. To fix this problem you should try squatting whilst holding a barbell overhead fully extended. This will quickly improve your hip flexibility.

ALWAYS step backwards to un-rack the bar. NEVER forward. You don't want to injure yourself stumbling over your own feet whilst walking the weight backwards into the pins of the squat rack after a draining or strenuous set.

• Set up the barbell in the squat rack around mid chest level or at armpit level
• Position your feet directly underneath the the bar, shoulders apart.
• Squat underneath the barbell and place it on your back.
• Tighten everything up and squat upwards to un-rack the bar.
• One step back with one leg, one step back with the other.
• SQUAT!

^ This is the general course of action for squatting but I'll delve into it further now in much more detail.

Setting up the squat:-

• Bring your chest upwards and tighten your upper back.
• Keep your head in line with your torso and look forwards, not at the ceiling or at your feet.
• Keep the bar low, below the bone at the top of your shoulder blades, NEVER directly on your spine.
• In terms of grip width, a narrow grip makes it easier to tighten your upper back before you squat.
• Your thumbs should be on top of the bar, next to your fingers. In this position you'll be able to keep your wrist in line with your forearms.
• You should keep your wrists straight during your lift as your back supports the bar, not your hands. Keep your wrists perfectly in line with your forearms and NEVER bend them.
• Make sure your upper back is tight. Bring both shoulder-blades together, tightening the upper-back gives the bar a solid base to rest upon.
• Keep your elbows back! Don't let them come forward. Pushing your elbows back prevents elbow injuries. Back doesn't mean 'up' by the way.
• With regards to your stance and where your feet should be, a narrow stance won't work for a low bar squat. Heels should be shoulder-width apart. If your lower back rounds, go wider until it doesn't.
• Point your toes out about 30 degrees. Your toes must ALWAYS follow your knees or you'll get knee injuries.

How to squat down properly:

Hopefully you have un-racked the bar correctly, all your muscles are tight and ready to squat. The key to squatting correctly with a low bar position is your hips. You must have good tension in your hamstrings at the bottom. Now I'll go into more detail about the squatting downwards:

• Knees should be out. Never allow your knees to buckle in or they'll get severely injured.
• Hit parallel to the floor (if you aren't doing the squat ass to grass). Your hip joint must come lower than your knee joint. If you're still unawares as to whether you're doing it correctly then ask someone to judge your depth.
• Never do partial or half squats EVER!

How to squat upwards properly:

Your hip muscles will be flexed and stretched when in the bottom position of the squat if you have done it correctly. Use that stretchiness to bounce out of the bottom. If you squat with this method, you'll be able to lift a lot more weight whilst keeping your knees safe.

• Keep your hips up. Drive out of the bottom by leading with your hips and not your chest. Don't let your knees travel forward at the bottom of the lift or you'll lose power in the lift.
• Squeeze your glutes! A lot of power comes from the glutes. Squeeze them hard as you lock out the weight. This will also keep your lower back tight and safe.
• Grab the floor with your feet, it will help in activating your glutes. Do NOT let your heels come off the floor.
• Keep your knees out as you did on the way down: NEVER let them buckle in. Push your knees out as you squat upwards.

ALWAYS use free weights for squats instead of machines. Machines are less effective for making muscle and strength gains because they balance the weight for you as well as force you into unnatural and fixed movement patterns. It's best in terms of all movements to use free weights over machines.

Vitamin C

In recent times, Vitamin C has become probably the most familiar of all the vitamins we take. Studies in America have shown that more than 40% of older individuals in the USA supplement their diet with Vitamin C and in some regions of America almost 25% of all adults, no matter what their age supplement with Vitamin C.

Outside of multi-vitamins, Vitamin C is the most popular supplement amongst registered dieticians. Over 80% of these dieticians who take Vitamin C, take it in higher dosages than 250mg!

Another name for Vitamin C is ascorbic acid. Vitamin C is a water-soluble nutrient that gets easily excreted from the human body when not in use. Because Vitamin C gets thrown out so easily, it's a good idea to space out your consumption of it throughout the day. It's still very critical that we get enough Vitamin C because we, along with gorillas, chimps, guinea pigs, bats and birds can't make it within the body ourselves!

Another interesting bit of information is that each human's required intake of Vitamin C is completely different to the next human. Some people may need 10x more Vitamin C than the next person and a person's general health can dramatically change their Vitamin C requirement.

Deficiency in Vitamin C puts people at risk of skin and gum disease, cardiovascular disease, cancer, joint diseases and cataracts. Vitamin C protects us by functioning as an anti-oxidant, preventing oxygen-based damage to our cells. There are very few, if any, studies saying that Vitamin C is toxic and these are based on samples taking a whopping 5 grams or more, way too much! I'd recommend 10,000mg a day based on what the top researcher in the field says.

You might think you'd get enough Vitamin C from food, but Vitamin C is highly sensitive to air, water and temperature. For example, around 25% of Vitamin C in vegetables can be lost simply by boiling. Cooking vegetables or fruit for over 10 minutes can destroy over ONE HALF of the Vitamin C content! Canned and reheated fruit and vegetables only hold a third of their original Vitamin C content too.

Clearly, supplement based intake of Vitamin C is the way to go but I'd advise you to keep getting it in through your diet as well to give your body a good pick of sources to synthesize from!

One of Vitamin C's most important functions is acting as an antioxidant, protecting LDL cholesterol from oxidative damage. When LDL is damaged the cholesterol appears to lead to heart disease, but Vitamin C acts as an important antioxidant protector of LDL. Vitamin C also has additional health benefits such as in helping to produce collagen (thus supporting joint health), assistance in healing and as an anti-histamine.

Supplement Facts:

Serving Size: 1 Tablet
Servings Per Container: 60

Ingredients Per Serving:
Vitamin C (Ascorbic Acid) - 1000mg
Calcium Carbonate - 20mg

Other Ingredients:
Magnesium Stearate, Silicone Dioxide, Maize Starch

Suggested Use:
For general health, take one serving daily.

L-Glutamine

L-Glutamine is an amino acid synthesized by the human body from another amino acid called Glutamic Acid or Glutamate. Glutamine is often referred to as a 'conditionally essential' amino acid because under certain circumstances the human body is unable or inefficient at producing enough L-Glutamine to meet its needs, so it really becomes 'essential' during these circumstances, like marathons or 6 day splits in the gym, to obtain more L-Glutamine from the diet or from supplementation.

L-Glutamine is well known and regarded for its ability to serve as a source of fuel for the cells that line the gastrointestinal tract. L-Glutamine is the preferred fuel source for cells that line the small intestine. By nourishing these cells, L-Glutamine helps maintain the health and structural integrity of the gastrointestinal tract. This is important because a healthy gastrointestinal tract is vital to preserving overall well-being, as the lining of the gastrointestinal tract serves as a first line of defence against micro-organisms that cause disease and this lining also minimizes the absorption of potentially allergenic Molecules, L-Glutamine also serves as a source of fuel for the muscles and cells that participate within your immune system.

Another often overlooked yet very interesting benefit of Glutamine is that it helps to maintain a proper acid base balance. I'll explain how this happens:

Glutamine is synthesized from Glutamate and Ammonia. Ammonia is a toxic waste compound with a high pH value, meaning that it is basic (as opposed to acidic). When your body's ammonia levels are elevated, the body clears the ammonia from the blood by synthesizing Glutamine. If your blood is too acidic (the pH is too low), then the body can break down Glutamine into Glutamate and ammonia to increase the pH of the blood.

Glutamine also serves as a precursor to the anti oxidant Glutathionine, participates in glycogen synthesis ( the storage of carbohydrate in the muscles) and provides nitrogen compounds for the manufacture of nucleotides which are then used to make DNA and RNA.

Glutamine deficiency is very uncommon as it's normally very easy for your body to synthesize it. Glutamine can be found in most high-protein foods such as beef, chicken, fish, beans and dairy products like cottage cheese or quark.

It is very useful for athletes trying to maintain muscle mass during a cutting cycle, or who engage in intense training.

Through taking L-Glutamine, you may shorten recovery times, increase muscle mass, improve immunity, enhance intestinal health and increase plasma HGH levels.

We highly recommend L-Glutamine during weight loss cycles, and or in periods leading up to competition.

Supplement Facts:

Serving Size: 5g

Servings Per Container: 100

Ingredients Per Serving:

100% L-Glutamine - 5g

Suggested Use:

As a dietary supplement we recommend consuming 5 grams, twice daily. For optimal results consume a serving upon waking and before sleep. Add 1 teaspoon (5g) to 300ml water or fruit juice and mix. Advanced athletes may sip L-Glutamine mixed in water during their weight training or cardio session, to avoid catabolism and enhance muscular growth and recovery.

Beta Alanine

Beta Alanine is a non-essential amino acid. Scientists have found that Beta Alanine is the rate limiting precursor of carnosine levels in the muscles, meaning that our carnosine levels can only increase when extra Beta Alanine are made available. High levels of carnosine in the muscles should be of specific interest to anyone who wants to improve their body because it yields many benefits including:

- Dramatic increases in exercise and endurance capacity

- Increase in lean muscle mass and rate of recovery

- Increases your anaerobic threshold

- Causes a reduction in your level of bodyfat

- Creates a significant increase in strength

Taking carnosine directly seems like a logical choice but the problem is that carnosine doesn't absorb effectively in the intestine by itself. Very little carnosine remains after it has travelled through the digestive tract and even then the small amount that gets hydrolysed into histidine and Beta Alanine which then gets taken into the muscle tissue and then synthesized back into carnosine.

Carnosine is useful to all around athletes like Mixed-Martial Artists, rugby players, boxers and footballers or indeed anyone who uses explosive strength in their specific sport or method of exercise because carnosine helps to buffer hydrogen ions in your fast-twitch muscles. By buffering hydrogen ions, you can help prevent a build up of lactic acid in your muscles during strenuous physical exercise that requires lots and lots of explosive movement, basically anything that creates lactic acid buildup like weightlifting.

Beta Alanine is good for any athlete doing any sport! Further synergistic effects can be applied to Beta Alanine when combining its uptake with creatine and as always, just taking Beta Alanine does not give it a magic bullet effect. Taking Beta Alanine won't make you bigger or shredded unless you use it in conjunction with excellent sleep, training, diet and hydration. These are the main components of the vehicle to get you to your goal but there's no question that Beta Alanine is a valuable addition to anyone's routine.

Bodybuilding Warehouse Beta Alanine is a non-essential amino acid that combines with L-Histidine to help form Carnosine. Beta Alanine elevates Carnosine concentration in muscles and is useful for anyone participating in sports which require explosive actions, for example rugby, mixed martial arts,bodybuilding, weight lifting or football.

Using Beta Alanine will help increase the production of Carnosine, which is vital to athletes as Carnosine can increase the ability of your muscles to work harder, for longer, with improved enduranceand reduced fatigue.

Supplement Facts:
Serving Size - 5g (1 teaspoon)
Servings Per Container - 100

Ingredients:
100% Pure Beta Alanine Powder

Suggested Use:
For optimal effects, consume 5g's (1 teaspoon) of Beta Alanine mixed into 300ml of water or fruit juice, at any point during the day for cycles of 4-8 weeks. If convenient, you may take this dosage 20 minutes pre-workout. Upon completion of your Beta Alanine cycle, take a 2 week break before starting again.

Stacking Tips:
Bodybuilding Warehouse Beta Alanine is great to stack with Bodybuilding Warehouse Creatine Gluconate (click), and combined you should notice enhanced strength, power and muscle mass over an 8 week cycle. For an effective pre-workout stack, mix 5g’s Beta Alanine, with 10g’s Creatine Gluconate and 1 capsule of our Sida Cordifolia (click) 20 minutes before your workout and prepare to blow the weights away!

Warnings:
Whilst using Beta Alanine you may feel a tingling / flushing sensation on the skin. This is a completely normal and not harmful in any way.

Acai Berry

Acai Berry, pronounced 'Ah-Sigh-ee', is basically a deep purple coloured grape-like berry from the Acai Palm, mostly found in Brazil. The makeup of this berry is 90% seed and 10% skin/pulp. Because of this makeup, only 10% of the Acai Berry can be used for its anti-oxidants, which this 10% is full of. Because of this problem, it takes a huge amount of Acai Berries to obtain enough of the precious juice.

New advances in the modern process of 'flash-freezing' mean that you can now buy Acai Berry in a convenient form of tablet or capsule. Both of these forms still contain all of the natural goodness and anti-oxidants which come from the Acai Berry. Bodybuilding Warehouse's Acai Berry comes in a tablet form.

Because of its huge anti-oxidant level, Acai Berry is regarded as the number one super-food as it's not only delicious, but it also offers twice the anti-oxidants of blueberries and 30 times the anti-oxidants of grapes. Acai Berry is the most nutrient dense berry available on the market and delivers a wide array of amazing benefits to the user, including:

- A reduction of inflammation and a delay of the aging process.

- An aid in protecting against heart disease and a reduction in

your chances of developing alzheimers or diabetes.

- An increase in libido (sex drive).

- An appetite suppressing effect.

- A boost to your natural immune system.

- A boost in your energy and stamina, along with improved sleep.

Bodybuilding Warehouse Acai Berry tablets contain a highly concentrated 500mg extract equivalent to 2,000mg of whole acai berries.

Acai Berry has been shown to contain high levels of anthocyanins - the anti-oxidant pigments that can help neutralise free radicals. Acai Berry is also a rich source of amino acids, fibre, omega 3 and omega 6 essential fatty acids, iron and the vitamins A, B1, B2, B3, C and E.

Supplement Facts:

Serving Size: 1 Tablet
Servings Per Container: 120

Ingredients Per Serving:
Acai Berry - 500mg (4:1 Extract Equivalent to 2000mg Dosage)

Other Ingredients:
Maize Starch, Silicone Dioxide, Magnesium Stearate.

Suggested Use:
Acai Berry is a great overall health supplement. We recommend taking 2 to 4 tablets daily for optimal effects.

Alpha-One

Competitive Edge Lab's Alpha-One is the most powerful pro-hormone of any of the Competitive Edge range. Alpha-One was designed to deliver massive gains in size and strength but shouldn't be taken on your first cycle because it's too much for the body, the receptors haven't adapted and fully opened yet.

The options we do recommend for a first time cycle are Competitive Edge Labs E-Stane or H-Drol. You shouldn't use any pro-hormones if you're female or under the age of 21 as it will mess with your hormone levels too much.

Because Alpha-One delivers such explosive and large gains in strength and muscle size, at such a rapid pace, it is recommended only for short cycles. Alpha-One is also a good option for front-loading into other products.

Ideally, you would use Alpha-One for bulking because it delivers the gains you want but some fluid retention too. This is only a mild amount of fluid retention however, so you can still use Alpha-One to great effect in lean bulking cycles. Alpha-One is a very potent option of pro-hormone that should only really be taken by advanced or experienced users who need results fast.

A typical cycle of Alpha-One will take 3 weeks. During this period you would have to consume 2-3 capsules of Alpha-One every day.

If you're looking to stack Alpha-One with any other supplement then CEL Formestane is the way to go. Taking these both at the same time delivers the gains of two pro-hormones with the side effects of one. The side effects being that you your liver will take in water to help filter all the chemicals moving around your body along with the extra ingredients that come with taking a pro-hormone.

You can take Alpha-One if you're loading up to take other products later. Don't ever use Alpha-One to bridge into M-Drol because doing this puts a huge amount of excessive strain on your liver and kidneys.

It's recommended that you use post cycle assist during your cycle of Alpha-One, to support your health overall. You can take cycle assist at the beginning of your cycle but we recommend that you start taking it 2-3 weeks before your Alpha-One cycle begins so that it has already built up in your system.

If you are going to stack Alpha-One with Formestane then it's recommended that you take a dose of 100mg per day, then follow that with a two week overlap into post cycle therapy at 100mg during your first week of PCT and then finally 50mg per day during the second week of PCT.

It's absolutely critical you use a PCT of some sort following your cycle, especially after taking something like Alpha-One, these are your hormones after all, the consequences for not getting these right can be a big hazard to your health.

Supplement Facts:

Serving Size: 1 Cap

Servings Per Container: 60

Amount Per Serving: Methyl-1-Etiocholenolol-Epietiocholanolone - 20mg

Other Ingredients:

Cellulose, Gelatin

Directions:

As a dietary supplement, take 1 to 3 capsules per day. For best results space the dosage out evenly throughout the day. Do not take this product for more than 3 weeks. Use proper PCT afterwards and follow it up by at least an 8 week break before using this product again.

Warning:

Do not use this product if you are under 21 years of age. This product should not be used by women. Do not use this product if you have high blood pressure, diabetes, or any other physical and / or psychiatric condition. Keep stored in a cool, dry place away from children.