Drugs/supplements can be tremendously useful for this purpose, with many compounds having been clinically proven to improve both insulin sensitivity and Glut-4 translocation, but not all are created equal and neither should they all be used in the same way. Perhaps the most well known of the bunch is Metformin. Since this drug has the ability to rapidly mobilize and activate Glut-4, it is best taken 1 hour pre-training at 750 mg. If you train at night, your second 750 mg dose should be taken in the AM and if you train in the first part of the day take your second dose in the PM. This dosing scheme will keep Metformin active for most of the day, while further capitalizing on the training window.
Berberine is potentially the most potent of the OTC sensitizers. When taken at equivalent doses, some clinical trials have show improvements in insulin sensitivity in par with metformin, which is exceedingly impressive, to say the least. 500 mg, 3X/day is the dose used in human trials. However, berberine doesn’t have a half-life as long as Metformin, so its administration should be timed in accordance with meals. Take 200 mg with each of your daily meals, with one of those doses 30 minutes pre-training.
Alpha lipoic acid is a long-term standby in the diabetic world. With well documented insulin sensitizing effects, it is one of the most commonly used of all the insulin sensitizers. Evening Primrose oil appears to potentiate the actions of ALA, improving its overall effectiveness. With an even shorter half-life than berberine, Alpha lipoic acid should be taken in small doses throughout the day, rather than just a couple large doses. Administer 600-1,000 mg/day, with 100-150 mg taken with each of your daily meals. If you opt to take Evening Primrose Oil with it, then 500 mg, taken with each dose of ALA, will suffice.
Cinnulin PF—a cinnamon extract containing the active compounds responsible for cinnamon’s insulin sensitizing effects—has been clinically validated for effectiveness when used at 300-500 mg/day. Cinnulin or any Cinnamon containing products should be avoided during the training window and the first meal of the day, as they slow gastric emptying, which is the exact opposite of what we want at those times. 75-100 mg taken with your other daily meals is ideal.
The final product I am going to recommend is 4-Hydroxyisoleucine. 4-HIL is what’s known as an insulin mimetic and has been clinically demonstrated to have potent insulinogenic effects. Mimetics increase insulin sensitivity by reducing the body’s need for insulin. Because mimetics work like insulin in the body, it no longer needs to produce as much insulin to manage blood glucose levels. This reduction in insulin levels leads directly to an increase in insulin sensitivity. 300-500 mg/daily will have pronounced effects. Take 500-100 mg with meals, including 30 minutes pre-training.
If you have not previously gotten your T3 levels checked, I suggest you do so the next time you get bloodwork, as T3 levels have a direct effect on insulin sensitivity. The goal with T3 should be to bring levels into the upper-normal range (optimal) but not beyond, as excessive amounts of T3 has numerous negative effects in the body, including muscle tissue breakdown. Although T3 is not typically considered an insulin sensitizer, it deserves to be mentioned, as those with a T3 deficiency often suffer from various degrees of insulin resistance.
Let’s transition to nutrition here for a minute. Most BB’rs, when putting together their diet, focus primarily on two things—macro intake and meal frequency, but with the body’s nutritional needs constantly in flux, maximizing progress requires more than taking in adequate amount of the 3 basic macronutrients over 6 daily meals. More specifically, we need to figure out what the body needs and when it needs it. This means that food type and quantity will vary based on the circumstances.
When it comes to carbohydrates, there are only two times of the day where simple sugars and/or refined carbs are ideal. These are the training window (the time period which stretches from the beginning of a training session until a few hours afterward) and first rise in the morning. Upon awakening, the rapid rise in blood sugar following their ingestion is beneficial, as the quick rise in insulin levels abruptly terminates the catabolic state most of us find ourselves in after a night of fasting. While refined complex carbs are acceptable for this purpose, I prefer a combination of whole-grains and fruit, as they allow us to achieve the same quick spike in insulin levels, in addition to all the other benefits supplied by these carb sources.
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