How Melatonin Helps With Fat Loss and Muscle Gain

[destriero]

No offense to FF, but if you're concerned about getting enough melatonin to improve your anaerobic performance then you don't really lift. It's a good idea to cycle melatonin as it is a steroid and there is receptor saturation and feedback issues. It's not a good idea for kids as again, it's a steroid and it does mess a bit with your endocrinology/sex hormones.

No, it's not anabolic.

 

[Frederick Foresight]

No offense taken. I found the article interesting and so I posted it. I’ve experimented with melatonin from time to time, and would take it after some nights of poor sleep when I was probably due for a good night anyway. It seemed to “work” for a while until it didn’t. And so, I’ve had something of an on-again, off again relationship with the stuff. For example, after my last exchange in this thread I took a quarter of a 5mg pill for two nights. The first night I slept well, the second night not so much. And so, I haven’t taken it since. Although I used to typically take it for longer stretches, I stopped when I would feel a bit “off” at night. (For all I know, that “off” part may have been due to something I ate that day.)

Now that you suggest it should be cycled, it sounds like something I should probably avoid altogether. I probably shouldn’t dabble in areas above my pay grade.

 

[ElCubano]

I often take 0.1 mgs of melatonin, it really helps me sleep.
So your dosage is 30x times mine.

There was an MIT study that said 0.3 mgs was the optimal amount.
Less being a better dose than more.

But i can get a good nights sleep with even a fraction of that small amount.

Melatonin isnt toxic, so you can take big doses if you want, it shouldn't do any harm, although i wonder if high dosages mean your body will stop producing it
naturally.

https://news.mit.edu/2001/melatonin-1017

“The sleep solution” by Chris Winters will help tremendously understand sleep, its importance and steps to take to get sleeping like a baby.

For starters it’s when the glymphatic system works at its optimal to drain the toxins from the brain. What the lymphatic does for our bodies.

 

[ElCubano]

Had difficulty with fractured sleep lately for some time. I had taken melatonin for sleeplessness in the past with mixed results. Finally I took 3 mgs of melatonin the last 2 nights and slept fairly well. Even better last night than the night before. Possibly coincidence, possibly a bit of placebo, too. But I'll remain on it for a while and then taper off. With any luck, I'll also be bursting with all kinds of new muscle.

Start with sleep hygiene lol. No for real, it’s the first steps one should take when trying to improve sleep. . No lights and I mean pitch dark because light will contradict/negate melatonin by releasing histamine. . No sound and 67-70 degrees. You have to go through sleep cycle without skipping steps, fragmented sleep could mean you are going from wakeful to REM or deep sleep skipping stage N1 and N2. No bueno.

 

[Frederick Foresight]

Start with sleep hygiene lol. No for real, it’s the first steps one should take when trying to improve sleep. . No lights and I mean pitch dark because light will contradict/negate melatonin by releasing histamine. . No sound and 67-70 degrees. You have to go through sleep cycle without skipping steps, fragmented sleep could mean you are going from wakeful to REM or deep sleep skipping stage N1 and N2. No bueno.

Thanks for the suggestion, although I’m already reasonably familiar with sleep hygiene. Read this book a few years ago, and following ~some of the principles:

 

[ElCubano]

Thanks for the suggestion, although I’m already reasonably familiar with sleep hygiene. Read this book a few years ago, and following ~some of the principles:

Hygiene is the first steps one should take but not always the solution. There is sleep schedule, the time of your last meal and truly understanding sleep are also additional steps. Good luck.

 

[Frederick Foresight]

There is sleep schedule, the time of your last meal and truly understanding sleep are also additional steps. Good luck.

Yes, I've gradually had to space more time between my last meal of the day and bedtime in order to get a good night's sleep.

 

[ElCubano]

Yes, I've gradually had to space more time between my last meal of the day and bedtime in order to get a good night's sleep.

The best night sleeps I've had have been on a 3 or 5 day fast.

 

[Frederick Foresight]

The best night sleeps I've had have been on a 3 or 5 day fast.

Can't do it. Even with intermittent fasting and a reasonably wide feeding window, I've recently lost a bit of weight (and I'm not sure all of it was fat), and am only now beginning to get some of it back. Giving up my workouts isn't an option. And so, full-on fasting isn't even a consideration.

 

[ElCubano]

Can't do it. Even with intermittent fasting and a reasonably wide feeding window, I've recently lost a bit of weight (and I'm not sure all of it was fat), and am only now beginning to get some of it back. Giving up my workouts isn't an option. And so, full-on fasting isn't even a consideration.