aka smart drugs aka coginitive enhancers
Lots of different things fall under the name. Often different things are combined or "stacked" together, giving a "nootropic stack."
What I'm doing is an entry level stack of caffeine and l-theanine. Recommended doses of 100mg caffeine + 200mg theanine. You can buy 60 caps in this formula for $20.
http://www.naturalstacks.com/products/smart-caffeine
also on amazon, here's reviews:
http://www.amazon.com/Caffeine-Nootropic-L-theanine-Focused-Recommended/product-reviews/B00GXPNEUO/
I've got a local store that sells theanine caps, which is just an amino acid. Been drinking a strong coffee and taking 200mg, which is not the best for getting your dose perfect. I need to get some caffeine tablets in 25/50 mg to experiment.
Here is one study:
https://www.gwern.net/docs/nootropics/2008-owen.pdf
I've read a couple, and there aren't any real negatives or side effects I could find. You need to take both together in a stack, as theanine alone doesn't do much, but combined, I get:
improved awareness
elevated mood
improved memory
improved cognitive ability
ambition/drive pump
Which is in line with the clinical study findings I've read.
I can crank some web work out when on this stack. As an example, I've put several dozen products in a woocommerce build over 2-3 hours, lots of variations and price calcs, photos, etc...total pita, and I banged it out and it didn't bother me.
Another site, I was hoping to get mostly hammered out by 3-4pm on a Saturday, plan was to finish in 4-5 hours on Monday from that point. I started at 7am, had my coffee and theanine, and I just kept cranking. At 4pm I could see the end of the project, thought not really close, and I wrapped up the site at 9pm, just hammering it out. I didn't really run out of gas until the end, and it felt good doing all the work. Normally I would've pooped out by dinner max and been worn out.
Focus, drive and mood elevation have been the best improvements for me. Though, long-term planning and the 10k foot view of a project or business are more difficult. I tend to focus on details and aspects instead of the overall project, so I do my planning and big overviews without the stack. When the work is lined up, a punch list with lots of work, I hit the stack and get 'r done.
Again, there are lots of different things that are considered nootropics, a lot of it you need to be careful with what you may already be taking, a lot of it is by prescription only. However, this newb stack is pretty safe, and does the job for me.
Interesting. Will look into that a bit more.
I'm usually running a lot of water, espressoes and quite a bit of BCAA's around training - sometimes also on off days and I love the Watermelon Madness taste from Scivation :)
I train fasted so a bit of Scivation hits the mark.
I'm sure, totally sure, that it's a placebo... but it works!
Hehehe, I think you're right Mark. Same for me, can't lift any weights with food in my stomach, but the oh the sweet taste of watermelon or green apple. Yum.
A nice cup of tea looks like it will do the trick.
What a coincidence, I started reading about Nootropics yesterday. There's a pretty good beginner's guide on Reddit. http://www.reddit.com/r/nootropics/wiki/beginners (http://www.reddit.com/r/nootropics/wiki/beginners)
Some of the supplements haven't been studied thoroughly, so make sure to do your homework.
I might try something to help focus. Will let you know how it works out.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Armodafinil
>A nice cup of tea looks like it will do the trick.
Well, maybe 20 cups of tea.
Thanks trav I meant to link to reddit too, great info there.
>Armodafinil
Funny I had Provigil (same thing - narcolepsy meds) in the op before editing it.
Have you, I mean somone you know, tried it?
>I might try something to help focus.
Couple of kids may help, might even be cheaper in the long run.
>cheaper
No.
> Nuvigil / Armodafinil
Only the R Enantiomer of Modafinil ..Likely "invented" to patent protect the expiring patent on....
> Provigil / Modafinil
The original...
> taken?
You may think that, but I couldn't possibly comment... [in the open] (obligatory House of Cards reference)
Do the affects normalize over time? It makes sense that they would. I know that's how caffeine works with me.
A few people have stated they build a tolerance, but most do not.
Also, this stack doesn't work as well for heavy coffee drinkers.
http://techcrunch.com/2015/02/12/nootropics-arent-just-for-tech-millionaires/
I've been looking into this recently for my ADHD symptoms as I've tried many different medications that either a) don't work or b) work but have side effects that make life miserable.
There is a ton of information on Reddit and, much of it says "caffeine and L-tyrosine."
I want to look into the L-Theanine...Probably the best thing that has helped me is changing my diet around. I felt a world of difference getting rid of dairy. I was skeptical about it until I stopped dairy for about a week and then one evening decided "Oh well, I'll finish that cottage cheese" and then the next day, BAM I was zombie city. Caffeine helps me a lot.
http://www.theguardian.com/society/2015/feb/15/students-smart-drugs-higher-grades-adderall-modafinil
Well, it's been a few years. How'd it work out in the long run Dras?
I didn't get too far down the rabbit hole. I did the caffeine and l-theanine stack for a while which worked well. Others got into moda and while I never did, I did get into an mlm (groan) product called thrive. I used it about a year: shakes, patches, pills daily of a bunch of natural stims. I loved the product but hated the mlm aspect of it.
That was the year I started the agency and I played league volleyball 4 nights a week. 2 indoor leagues and 2 outdoor. Won a championship in one indoor and one outdoor season that year. I'd also sub for others after my matches, playing all night after work. Looking back it was good for me mentally, temporarily physically, and was a great start for the new business.
After a year or so I got adrenal burnout (big surprise) which took a couple years to fully recover. While I still have some caffeine/l-theanine stack powders, as I get older I get more sensitive to stims so I don't even drink regular coffee daily.
While I pushed things to the extreme and wouldn't recommend it, going for an easy stack like above or trying moda would be attractive if I needed to be on point all day again.
That's really great info, particularly with the prospective the distance has given you. Sounds like they worked as intended for you and that in the short run you benefited, but it did come at a cost that took a while to recover from.
It has been an interesting ride to say the least.
Interesting!
I'm currently off as my training is on "pause" (another word for me being a f-ing lazy bastard and doing a bit too much traveling and putting a regular training regime aside).
When I do train, I tend to take regular stuff like creatine, bcaa, protein, magnesium and some fiber.
Just few weeks ago I came across a discusion about NMN and Resveratrol. Both supposed to boost celluar health, antiaging and general performance. Been taking it for a week now. Verdict still out I guess.