17 replies to this topic

[Zakariah]

Hey everyone,

What's this thread about?

I post this here because I would like A) for everyone reading this to share whatever advice they have to offer and B) to share my experiences and current supplementing actives with everyone.

 

When I first got into nootropics, I read tons and tons of people's stacks and I'd see people taking a lot of things at once.. and to me it was ludicrous because I just couldn't fathom taking so many supplements each day.. But now, I realize the potential of the supplements we have at our disposal and I have become one of them :P ...

 

The Stack:

*In no way am I staking claim as the originator to the different combinations that I am writing out here.

 

Uridine + Fish Oil + Vitamin B complex:

Triacetyluridine, TAU = 25mg (Fat soluble, with MCT oil in the morning)

Fish oil, 750mg EPA and 250mg DHA (Fat soluble, with MCT oil in the morning)

Vitamin B Complex 100% or more of each B vitamin (Water soluble)

 

ALCAR + Na-R-ALA + PQQ + Magnesium + Alpha GPC:

ALCAR, 500mg (Water / fat soluble)

Na-R-ALA, 100mg per day (fat and water soluble)

PQQ, 20mg per day (water soluble)

Magnesium, 400mL ionic solution

Alpha GPC, 150mg

 

Noopept + Modafinil:

Modafinil, 50mg per day (2 days on 2 days off)

Noopept 10mg twice a day

 

Noopept + Adderall:

Adderall, 10mg twice per day (1 day on, 2 days off)

Noopept, 10mg twice per day

 

Noopept + Caffeine:

Caffeine 65mg<200mg (On Modafinil days / days w/o Modafinil or Adderall.. Never with Adderall)

Noopept, 10mg twice per day

 

MCT Oil:

MCT oil, 1 Tbs a day.

 

 

Reasoning behind each ingredient // stack of them:

 

Uridine, Fish oil, vitamin B:

 

 http://www.longecity...ne-uridine-dha/

 

PQQ, Na-R-ALA, ALCAR, Magnesium:

 

 

Potent anti-oxidant capabilities - protective against neurotoxicity of amphetamines, some with mitochondria enhancing capabilities (PQQ, ALCAR, ALA)

 

http://www.serenity-...nefits/#sources  <-- This source references all of it's information from 4 great sources

http://www.longecity...tionprevention/

 

 

Noopept + PQQ + ALCAR:

 

All to increase NGF.

 

http://www.ncbi.nlm..../pubmed/8187841

http://www.biopqq.com (List of 6 or so references backing up that PQQ increases NGF)

http://www.ncbi.nlm....pubmed/19240853 (Reference for Noopept increases NGF and BDNF)

http://link.springer...A:1022940507519

 

Modafinil, Adderall, Caffiene:

We all know the reasons for these three, more focus - less fatigue - more energy.

 

Other things I may add into the mix:

Tongkat Ali, Lion's Mane, CoQ10, Piracetam (if I ever decide to stop taking Adderall)

 

 

[Zakariah]

Alright guys! Now it has been a pretty substantial amount of time since I started - today being days 16 on the stack, i've decided to hault a couple supplements (adderall and modifinil) and add a couple (lion's mane, pqq, r-ala, a powerful vitamin b complex with all the b vitamins in a highly absorbable form)

 

Typical morning looks like:

Morning StacK:

Vitamin B complex

20mg PQQ

100mg Na-R-ALA

10mg Noopept (sublingually)

1200mg Piracetam

500mg Alcar

25mg TAU, Uridine

300mg Siberian Ginseng

750mg EPA, 250mg DHA - Fish oil

1/2 Tbsp MCT Oil

400mL Magnesium

 

Mid-DaY:

2 shot espresso, 120mg Caffeine

1/2 Tbsp MCT Oil

3 centimeter wide strip of grass-fed butter

 

10mg Noopept (Sublingually)

1200mg Piracetam

500mg Alcar

150mg Alpha-GPC

800mg Lion's Mane

300mg Siberian Ginseng

Milk Thistle

750mg EPA, 250mg DHA - Fish oil

 

 

PM StacK:

1000mg Vitamin C

400IU Vitamin E

Milk Thistle

 

 

It's been 16 days since i've been taking:

Noopept

Piracetam

Alpha-GPC

Siberian Ginseng

TAU, uridine

Fish Oil

MCT Oil

 

Perceived Benefits:

1. Color acuity, shades of colors stand out much more to me, and in general colors stand out much more.
2. Spacial awareness, the different shapes that make up an object stand out much more to me.
3. Mood, in general, my mood has increased a LOT. I feel much more happy in general, and I was already a really happy person, but this is the difference in my happiness: I am a lot more able to become independent of things than I would have previously because I do not need them to remain comfortable or happy. It has shown me stupid dependencies that I have had on different things and allowed me to stop these dependencies.. And has made me think about why I look up to certain people (people that I had just subconsciously idolized)
4. Anxiety, typically I get flustered with all the things I need to do.. But lately I feel much more willing and able to relax in times of high-stress and come to calculated decisions that aren't hinged off of stress
5. Motivation, I have been much more inclined to think over bad decisions like: "I don't want to focus on this problem anymore, I don't understand it" .. To thinking "Just give it a little more time, keep thinking and you'll understand it"
6. Blood flow, when I go to workout my veins are popping out everywhere, as good as if I were taking a arginine supplement.
7. Fatigue, I have less fatigue than normally, I can kill a workout after studying all day, one thing to mention, I typically do NOT feel the crash of my espresso that I drink in the middle of the day.
8. Creativity, I don't know if my creativity is increasing, but I am most certainly able to tap into it on demand.. When I am trying to figure out a problem, I can keep thinking of different possible ways to reach the conclusion, if I have a problem I can go at it in many different angles.
9. Conscious of my actions, I have been much more conscious of what I am doing and how I am feeling throughout the day.

 

I began to take PQQ, Na-R-ALA, vitamin B complex, Vitamin C and Vitamin E since yesterday. It is really soon to be talking about differences but some immediate differences I felt in my body:

1. Increased body temperature, it was 62 outside today and I was wearing shorts and a short-sleeve shirt and sweating at points (not running or anything). I was definitely more warm than I would normally be, it actually reminds me of the body temperature I used to have when I was young (then I smoked cigarettes for 3 years and i became more cold than I had been.. It's never been the same even though I quit like 4 years ago).
2. Increased irritation, I'm not sure why I felt so irritated today but as soon as I took the magnesium it went away. This could have been due to the continued usage  of piracetam and noopept (it gave me this last cycle i used them, and magnesium took away the irritation back then as well)
3. Pee is more yellow and water feels like it's retained much more than it was previously... I usually drink at least 8 or so 12oz bottles of water a day and my pee is always usually clear, but as soon as I began taking these extra sups, my pee began turning a light to medium yellow and as I sip water I feel more of a *thirst quench* rather than *sipping on water to ensure i'm drinking enough*

The body temperature may be working hand-in-hand with the water retention/usage.

 

Unfortunately, it has been too early to say anything about Lion's Mane because I just started using it today!

[Kinesis]

Thanks for sharing your stack, Zakariah. I wouldn't be concerned about the more intensely colored urine, as it's probably due to the riboflavin in your B complex. Riboflavin is B2 and notoriously yellow, sometimes darn near fluorescent!

Just one suggestion for your consideration. Since you're taking B complex, C, E, and magnesium anyway, you might consider getting them all together in a multiple. It would also supply vitamin D and some other helpful nutrients, and might even cost less overall while simplifying your supplement routine. There are a number of good products out there, but you might especially be interested in Life Extension's Life Extension Mix, as I think it already contains the potencies you're taking of all those in just one supplement. I've been taking it for many years and think of it as good for long term brain health as well as short term yellow pee ... ;-)

[Zakariah]

Hey Kinesis, thanks for explaining the possible reason why hehe.

 

Otherwise, I don't choose to pix mixes because I like having control over the quantity of each ingredient and I also like having the control over what ingredients I'm taking. That mix has a bunch of extra things inside of it that I don't want, I feel like you're getting too much of some ingredients and too little of some other ingredients.

[Zakariah]

Today is day 25!! Woohooo.

 

The standard stack for AM and PM is as follows:

 

AM: (Around 9am)

20mg PQQ

100mg Na-R-ALA

Vitamin B complex with all vitamin B's in their most absorbable form, nothing going beyond 300% RDA

1200mg Piracetam

10mg Noopept (Sublingually)

500mg ALCAR

800mg Lion's Mane

Milk Thistle

25mg TAU, Uridine

750mg EPA, 250mg DHA - Fish Oil

400mL Magnesium

300mg Siberian Ginseng

 

Just a heads up, even though I have all the supplements for AM and PM, I make sure to take the fat soluble ones with MCT Oil and the water soluble ones with water like 25 minutes before the fat soluble ones.

 

PM: (Around 3pm)

10mg Noopept (Sublingually)

1200mg Piracetam

150mg Alpha-GPC

300mg Siberian Ginseng

500mg ALCAR

800mg Lion's Mane

750mg EPA, 250mg DHA - Fish Oil

Milk Thistle

 

 

An hour or so before asleep:

Vitamin C and E

 

 

Effects:

• Energy upon waking up: For the longest time I would feel absolutely groggy and horrible upon waking up in the morning, but not anymore! - And yes, I've been using sleep cycle for a long time. - Interestingly, my sleep has remained similar, but upon waking I feel like 50X's more ready for the day.
• Energy during the day: I feel a lot more energy throughout the whole day, obviously because some of these supplements are stimulants or adaptogens (Noopept, piracetam, ALCAR, siberian ginseng)
• Visuals: Colors are way more vibrant, the different shapes that make an object stand out way more, depth perception is way stronger... To put this into context, I am getting similar visuals for this that I did when I took acid 3 years ago. 
• Thought evoked tunnel vision: My ways of thought are much more 'tunnel vision'. When I begin to think about something, every other thought and distraction fades away and I become involved with the thought as if it's the only thought there is to think about.
• Brain Elasticity: It's much more easy to observe my behaviors and decide whether or not to change them.. If it's a bad habit my body says "You sure you wanna do that?" or if I'm veering off from work my body says "You sure you don't wanna go back?" - I am much more aware of my actions
• Willpower: It is much more easily for me to tone out everything - from other people's influences on me, to my own feelings that force me to act in impulsive ways.. I found myself in a couple situations where I was filled with emotions but I pushed them aside and acted in a way that got me to the results I wanted... I've also realized different situations I'm in that are not good for me - situations I wouldn't have normally seen due to comfort.
• Confidence, anti-anxiety, anti-obstruction: I have more of a need to see through the bullshit around me and to see through my own bullshit. I am much more likely to come to a realization on how it is, and then tell it how it is.
• Memory: When I break something down to completely understand it, I can then remember that concept that I broke down for a long while. As well, I am much better at recalling past instances that come about when I am analyzing something.
• Creativity: I am much better at connecting the dots between things, of thinking out of the box for things (zooming out from the descriptions to see the overall picture) and problem solving. 

​When it goes away:

• When I do not stick to taking all the supplements (AM and PM stack or skip a day or two) the visuals diminish

 

** The visuals may sound as a nice "side effect* // something that doesn't really matter, but actually I feel like the visuals give an outside explanation for what's going on in my inside - I am interpreting the information around me in a different, more in-depth and connected way than I had been.

[Zakariah]

Alright, DAY 30! It has been a month!

 

So, just to recap on a few things:

 

A) I am still taking the same supplements everyday

 

B) I am still taking these supplements with their corresponding preference of absorption

 

Now, lets go into the nitty-gritty! 

 

My energy level: Above and beyond any energy level I have ever experienced IN MY WHOLE LIFE. I am not, not, NOT exaggerating this AT all... Literally, my concept of feeling tired is different than it used to be - when I'm tired, my mind used to become sluggish and my movements would slow.. Now when i'm tired I just feel like my body is fatigued - similar to how I used to feel after a workout.

 

My focus is waaaay better than it was - I can focus on an idea for a prolonged period of time, I can keep reading a book and keep taking notes and without slowing down on how fast I'm breaking down the different concepts presented to me.

 

My fluid everyday focus (stepping out from procrastination or "la-la-land") is much more top-notch. Meaning, if I read a book about active listening and I learned some concepts in that book, I find myself applying those concepts in conversations without forcing myself to apply those concepts in conversation.

 

My memory is way stronger - which I was expecting because last time I took a noopept and piracetam stack my memory got way better. I'd be able to read a book, break apart the concepts and remember what I learned without needing to study those concepts again.... It is the same as it was. But now I feel that I not only remember those concepts, but I put them into play in a considerably less amount of time - the time it takes for my mind to connect those concepts into my everyday analysis and behavioral patterns is much faster.

 

One strange thing now is that when I drink coffee I am not fatigued a couple hours later... And if I drink coffee a week in a row and stop for two days, I don't get a splitting headache or feel like I'm gonna fall asleep where I stand (like used to happen to me). This came to me as quite a surprise.

 

My mood has really been sky-high. I wake up happy and remain happy the whole day.. Bad energy doesn't bring me down, I just analyze it but it doesn't become internalized.. Nor do I find myself as a source for bad energy.

  - I have lately been in multiple encounters where people have lashed out on me at work (not because I did something, they actually come to me and apologize after) and rather than getting really mad and defensive, I process my emotions but instead of acting from them, I act from logic towards the end-result that I want... Yes, this has been a motive of mine for a while, but it is extremely easy to do now - it's not a struggle.. I see my emotions, but I also see how they may not lead me to the goal that I want to reach.

 

That being said, this goes into another really cool subject. My emotions may be pulling me to procrastinate, or to get into some bad habit.. But rather than mindlessly falling into a zombie state and doing it, it's CONSIDERABLY easier for me to look at the non-sense that's going through my mind and think about why it's a bad idea, and STOP myself from doing it.

 

 

- I honestly did not realize how amazing this stack was going to be.. I really believe that each ingredient is gold, especially when they are all playing synergistic roles with one another.

 

P.S. The visuals are still occurring, yet they have kind of turned into a regular day-in-the-life type of thing.

[Zakariah]

Day 35:

 

One addition to my stack (since yesterday).. Added a high quality source of CoQ10 100mg that is consumed AM around 20 minutes after I consume my PQQ.

 

..

 

I still feel all the results I stated last post!

[Zakariah]

Day 49:

 

Memory: Very easy to pick up new ideas - memorize them - and apply them

Energy: Sustained energy from morning until evening.

Mood: I've been in a great mood.

 

All is good!

[normalizing]

zakariah how about do 180 degree turn here and drop them all for 1-3 days and report results, then resume as needed

[Zakariah]

Before the summer is over I think I'm going to take around 2-3 weeks off, but that's going to be the end of summer.

 

I want to wait because if I stop taking noopept and piracetam for longer than 5 days or so, the benefits are going to go back to day 1 benefits (these two nootropics increase in effectiveness as time goes by)

[normalizing]

well, ill wait for those reports then, until then i dont care what a whole gallon of various substances are doing

 

btw how do you have the money for all that shit?

Edited by normalizing, 06 June 2016 - 09:20 AM.

[Zakariah]

@ Normalizing:

 

Actually, all of the supplements I'm taking only cost roughly 100$ per month.

 

 

--------------- (For everyone)

 

These supplements have been remarkable. I have never been able to extract information from something and turn it into wisdom so quickly.. Let me explain:

 

Usually I read a book, I take the concepts and break them down, and then I write out examples for those concepts in order to get my mind to start analyzing the world with those concepts in it's arsenal.. This process usually takes me a couple times over to ensure that I fully remember and understand how a concept works, and then it takes a little while longer to then permanently re-wire my brain to filter the world through those new concepts.

 

Lately, I have been able to learn something and remember it right away, and then walk through my day analyzing the world through those new concepts.. To give this some context, I have been studying NLP, persuasion, and seduction. Everything that I study is remembered almost instantly (I just need to pay attention to what I'm reading/listening) then I connect that understanding to my life and viola, I am then able to easily analyze the world from those new concepts.

 

So in other words, I definitely feel that these supplements increase brain plasticity (obviously since it's mainly based on increasing NGF), and short-term + long-term memory retention (which has been apparent in my previous runs with piracetam and noopept - though it's quite a bit more pronounced now).

 

- Just something I thought I should mention!

[Zakariah]

Okay, so I took the past week off from the stack.. So I was on it for about 4 months, give or take a few days.

 

I have to say, it was the most remarkable change I have ever had. I have been able to dig deep down into any and all concepts that I have learned (learning them isn't complicated - much less so than it ever has been) and I am able to take these concepts and use them in my day-to-day life.

 

 

Suffice to say, I am back on them again.. Starting today at day numero uno, after a week off.

[tronatula2]

Okay, so I took the past week off from the stack.. So I was on it for about 4 months, give or take a few days.

 

I have to say, it was the most remarkable change I have ever had. I have been able to dig deep down into any and all concepts that I have learned (learning them isn't complicated - much less so than it ever has been) and I am able to take these concepts and use them in my day-to-day life.

 

 

Suffice to say, I am back on them again.. Starting today at day numero uno, after a week off.

 

Hi Zakaria, how are you doing, are you still taking the same stack? From your stack, which do you want is good for motivation, beating procrastination? Cause that's the only thing I struggle with.

[Zakariah]

Hey Trontula, 

 

 

Before digging into this stuff, I just wanna explain the power a little:

I had a prescription for modafinil (and it's great stuff if you know how to use it properly) but I realized that this stuff is even better, so I ditched it.. I used to drink caffeine all the time, but I realized that it just puts me into shock - so i stopped.

Now, this is all that I take and I feel freaking amazing.. My personality is fully expressed, my mind is on warp-drive - the best conceptual analysis and critical thinking I have ever had, great at associating between different concepts and building upon them, great at applying what I just learned.

 

 

If you want to breakthrough procrastination, Piracetam and noopept are your go to! They are simply amazing.

I would suggest taking ALCAR with them so that you don't get brain fog incase you end up low in choline - used as acetylcholine.

 

Just a heads up, when you take noopept you may get this one side-effect (I get it every time I start back on it for about 2 weeks).

Basically, you end out having a bunch of words on the tip of your tongue... After many go-round, I realize that this is because the noopept is getting me to move beyond the normal thought patterns that I have, so I search for words and concepts beyond the ones that are normally at my dispense.

 

Beyond those 3 things (Noopept, Piracetam and ALCAR)

 

I am still taking:

Noopept

Piracetam

ALCAR

Siberian Ginseng

Fish Oil

Lion's Mane (only at night)

Tongkat Ali

Magnesium

 

I will begin taking the following again shortly, I just wanted to take a break from it for a while:

PQQ

Na-R-ALA

COQ 10

25mg TAU,Uridine

Vitamin E, Vitamin C and Vitamin B complex

 

 

How am I doing? More productive, energetic, centered, happy and critically thought out than I have ever been in my life. I am able to ask questions and build upon concepts through association more than I have ever been able to.. It's like i'm working with a new brain.. My memory is astounding and my subconscious is very open to suggestion by me. <-- Though this is all due to hard work, I have definitely been aided by the stack.

 

If you wanna boost your energy + NGF while also getting motivation, i'd look into:

na-r-ala

PQQ

COQ 10

Siberian Ginseng

 

If you wanna increase your mood + boost NGF:

Uridine

Fish oil

E, C, B Vitamin complex (need to take these if taking Uridine, vitamin B especially)

 

If you wanna boost your NGF:

Lion's Mane <-- This really does

Milk Thistle

Edited by Zakariah, 25 October 2016 - 02:36 PM.

[tronatula2]

May I ask what is your daily piracetam, tongkat ali, Lion's mane and Siberian Ginseng brand and dose? I've been taking piracetam for over 1 year with different doses but it seems does not help with my motivation.

 

I once took 3 capsules of this Siberian Ginseng and piracetam and just feel a little noticeable mood enhanced effect.

 

I take 1g Powdercity Lion's mane daily.

 

Noopept alone or Alcar, fish oil (cholinergic stuff) decreases my Digit Span scores, and I felt uncomfortable when on them. I react poorly to cholinergics, there are also many anecdotal reports about noopept impair short-term memory.

[Godof Smallthings]

Personally I haven't found a single nootropic that helps me with motivation. I know stimulants can, though, but the only stimulatory things I have taken are coffee and rhodiola rosea. They can help a little.

 

Piracetam is something I've abandoned, it does make me enthusiastic but often about the wrong things, and it makes me talk far too much in social situations. And I tend to experience a bit of a crash towards the end latter part of the day when I've used it.

Instead, motivation induction, for me, comes from repeatedly focusing on the benefits of whatever behaviour I want to encourage, to bring these benefits to mind as often as possible.

 

Meditation and physical exercise help motivation for me, but they need to be established as habits - my basic hypothesis on why they help:

Physical exercise forces me to move and also to change location - both of these seem to stimulate recall of priorities through new sense input, and also of course because of the massive downstream effects of a gradual adaptation to stress are really important and have immense benefits in the long run for well-being.

Meditation using the Buddhist 'five subjects for frequent recollection (about the inevitability of pain, ill health and death, as well as the fact that I own my actions and will reap the results of them, whatever they may be) helps me renew focus on what is important and also makes me aware of more subtle physical and mental phenomena.

Edited by Godof Smallthings, 26 October 2016 - 06:00 AM.

[Zakariah]

@ Godof Smallthings:

 

Oh yeah mean! Just because I say that nootropics can help with motivation doesn't mean that I disregard other things to increase my motivation and also my retrieval for focusing my efforts onto something.

 

I also meditate every morning, use two different programs that work with my subconscious to break away past stories that keep me from wanting to do what I want (and keep my subconscious from working with my desires) and also embrace the motivators that grow my passion.

As well, I exercise every other day, have morning reflections and evening reflections. I also work on tasks lists.

So yeah, it's not all in the nootropics haha. But the nootropics definitely give me an edge, without a doubt.

 

@Trontula:

I take 1.2g of Lion's Mane at night

1.2g of Piracetam twice a day (1.2g each part of the day)

10mg Noopept twice a day (10mg each part of the day)

300mg Siberian Ginseng twice a day (300mg each part of the day)

600mg ALCAR twice a day (600mg each part of the day)

250mg Tongkat Ali twice a day (250mg each part of the day)

 

Again as I stated previously, the short term side effects of noopept is short-term memory loss. <-- It does go away.

The long-term benefits of noopept are simply amazing.