To answer the question of what cortisol blockers are, you need to figure out whether it is really so harmful, what is its role in the body. Cortisol, in principle, is not so terrible for ordinary people. Here, with whom he is not friends, it is with athletes. This hormone is almost the main enemy of bodybuilders. Its action is attributed to the negative processes occurring in the body. Let's figure this out together.
Reaction inherited from ancestors
Cortisol is called the stress hormone. It is synthesized by the adrenal cortex. When is it produced and why? The most ancient reaction of the body, inherited from our very distant ancestors, is the release of this very hormone into the blood. This happened precisely when they were under stress at the time of the attack of a beast or an enemy, and also in the fight against the elements.
During stress, the hormone was produced, and he was responsible for the flow of blood to muscle tissue and its outflow from other organs. As a result, the person became more resilient and stronger in the fight. Our ancestors, of course, were not interested in cortisol blockers, and they did not even suspect that they needed them. Everything was simpler for them, having received a signal in the brain that the stress had passed, the body began to synthesize enzymes that remove cortisol from the blood.
About the need for blockers
When the hormone cortisol is at its normal physiological levels, it regulates the interaction of body systems and is an effective anti-inflammatory agent. By the way, if the body did not produce cortisol at all, it could lead to death when exposed to any injury. And now is the time to understand why cortisol blockers are needed if it is so important for the body.
The hormone has recently been talked about in circles of people who are related to sports. Emphasis was placed on the fact that this hormone harms the body of a person involved in fitness or bodybuilding. Therefore, drugs that block the release of cortisol have become very popular. However, before purchasing one or another cortisol blocker in a pharmacy, you need to read the instructions for its use.
physical stress
In addition to conflict and emotional life situations, there is such a thing as physical stress. An intensive release of the hormone into the blood occurs, as we found out, during stress. Physical stress occurs when:
- excessive training volume, that is, work "for wear and tear";
- prolonged cardio training;
- poor nutrition, lack of protein, a pronounced feeling of hunger;
- unhealthy night sleep.
In all these situations, cortisol is released into the blood and muscle tissue is broken down into glucose and amino acids. Thus, cortisol tries to replenish the system with energy, with which the problem that caused stress can be resolved. Now it’s clear what cortisol blockers are for. Thanks to blockers, the release of cortisol into the blood and, as a result, its concentration in the blood decreases. This will prevent the breakdown of muscle tissue.
How cortisol works under stress
If stress is present in a person's life all the time, in addition to muscle destruction, cortisol harms the entire body: the immune system is weakened, headaches and heartaches occur. In such a situation, the use of blockers will be justified. We are talking about people involved in active sports who work for a result that is important to them. The body of an average person, not physically overloaded, is able to cope with stress by itself, producing the necessary enzymes. The main thing is to be less nervous.
Natural Remedies - Cortisol Blockers
As explained above, cortisol appears in the blood in increased amounts during stressful situations. Natural remedies that can help you cope with or get out of stress include all sorts of relaxation techniques and listening to soothing melodies. Stressful situations at work can be avoided by creating a friendly and benevolent atmosphere in the team. As you know, laughter and positive emotions bring more benefits than sadness.
The body should not experience hunger, which is stress. So you need to make time for food and snacks. The issue of sleep and wakefulness should be addressed. A sleepy person is more prone to irritation, which means stress. Food must contain Omega-3 acids and vitamin C.
It is clear that by avoiding additional physical activity and negative emotions, it is possible to prevent excessive production of cortisol by the body.
Medicines
If you start from the fact that the athlete is a bodybuilder, and he fights with every gram of subcutaneous fat, it makes sense to do this with the help of medications. Cortisol blockers allow you to suppress catabolism after exercise. When applied to bodybuilding, drugs prevent muscle breakdown. Thanks to blockers and specialized supplements, muscle loss after a course of steroids will decrease. They also tend to act on adipose tissue without losing muscle mass. Of the available funds and inexpensive anabolics, we can distinguish:
The sports nutrition and pharmacology market is saturated with a large number of drugs and nutritional supplements that suppress the production of the hormone cortisol and reduce its negative impact on bodybuilders. It is in bodybuilding that this hormone inhibits the recruitment of muscle mass, and drugs allow you to save muscles from its destructive effect.
Cortisol blockers
What applies to them? These are serious drugs that are in great demand among professionals, such as Metyrapon, Trilostan, Ketoconazole, Aminoglutethimide, Clenbuterol. By acting on the adrenal cortex, they inhibit the production of cortisol. In addition, they are also used in the treatment of fungus and in oncology.
Drugs that increase testosterone in the blood, but have a lot of side effects in areas and systems such as the psyche, cardiovascular activity, and the reproductive system.
Phosphatidylserine is not a chemical compound, but a natural cortisol blocker found in meat, fish, and beef brains. It is found in small amounts in dairy products. This drug belongs to food additives. After taking phosphatidylserine an hour before training, cortisol levels drop by 25-30%. The drug copes with the function of suppressing the secretion of cortisol. In addition, it promotes the absorption of amino acids and is used after the completion of steroids, so that there is no collapse of the "mass". As sports supplements, athletes use Kortislim, Cortidrem, Kortibarn and other complex fat burners.
What is the risk of non-medical prescription of drugs?
Without consulting your doctor and a fitness club specialist in the field of bodybuilding, you should not experiment with drugs such as cortisol blockers. The result of self-treatment can be unexpected and deplorable.
Without tests confirming an excess of cortisol in the blood, it is impossible to regard the changes occurring in the body as its influence. It should be understood that blockers have side effects (they were discussed above), which can shift a person's hormonal background. A drug has not yet been created that would not give complications to the human body. That is, taking pills of various classifications of cortisol blockers, people should understand all the risks associated with this.
Summing up the above, we can safely say that such a hormone as cortisol is not an enemy to the human body. But, due to the constant stress that each of us is exposed to in the modern world, cortisol turns into an internal enemy of a person, with whom he fights. No matter how strange it may sound in the context of this article, but the best blocker of cortisol will be a good mood.