zma

[Merk0135]

I ordered some optimum zma for the first time. It says to take it 30-60 minutes before bed on an empty stomach. I always take a night time shake with milk and peanut butter. Any advice from those who have taken zma? I'm primarily taking it to help with sleep.

[virus]

Alot of people think ZMA helped them sleep. Also some say it helps with recovery. Take it 1/2 hour before your bedtime shake. Take it with your shake if you wish - i took it with cottage cheese @ night.

[Gill]

In general, when something instructs you to take on an empty stomach, its suggestion is based off of activation rate. If you take your dose on an empty stomach, its absorbed rapidly and can do its job. If you take it ontop of a meal, your body takes its time getting to it. Anything liquid won't interrupt your absorption rate (unless you just ate a tub of ice cream, lol).

Virus' advice is great as usual. If you're worried about not being able to get right to sleep, go ahead and take it before your shake, but taking it with your shake should yield pretty similar results.

[Merk0135]

Thanks for the advice.

Virus - Did zma do anything for you?

[virus]

Originally Posted by Merk0135

Thanks for the advice.

Virus - Did zma do anything for you?

I really didn't get much good from it. It was still hard for me to fall asleep, but once I was asleep - my sleeping was much better and I suppose less tossing/turning and waking up in the middle of the night. If your looking to improve your sleep, i'd recommend:

Non prescription:
/ A sleep complex blend supplement (some of the ingredients to look for are: valerian root extract, magnesium, melatonin, B6 and of course zma)
/ melatonin alone (this stuff worked great. Fell asleep faster, stayed asleep longer. However, after taking this stuff on a religious basis, the effect wore off. I guess, just like creatine, your body can get immune to it therefore you must cycle it.)
/ Magnesium. Alot of people have wrote good reviews for their sleep while supplementing this. I for one haven't tried it BUT the reviews are prolly worth it.

Prescription
/ Lunesta (this is the BEST stuff. This worked very well for me and consistently too.)
/ Ambien (same as above)

Bottom line is, if you can get a prescription for any of the above - then do it. Just be careful cause you can develop a dependacy on them. I'd highly recommend a sleep complex blend of any type and melatonin based upon my personal encounters. Both of which you stand no chance of dependacy and it's less hard on your body since most of hte ingredients are organic or all natural.

[Noir]

Originally Posted by Gill

In general, when something instructs you to take on an empty stomach, its suggestion is based off of activation rate. If you take your dose on an empty stomach, its absorbed rapidly and can do its job. If you take it ontop of a meal, your body takes its time getting to it. Anything liquid won't interrupt your absorption rate (unless you just ate a tub of ice cream, lol).

Virus' advice is great as usual. If you're worried about not being able to get right to sleep, go ahead and take it before your shake, but taking it with your shake should yield pretty similar results.

I forget which one, but calcium f*cks up the absorbtion of either the zinc or the magnesium in ZMA.

[Gill]

A note on melatonin...

Melatonin is a fantastic scheduler. By that, I mean, it is great at keeping you regular when it comes to sleep; however, I don't recommend taking melatonin for longer than a month. Prolonged use will not only render it ineffective as a supplement, but as a basic biological indicator as well. Melatonin is something your body makes naturally. If you abuse it and your body stops responding, you can look forward to a long bout of terrible sleep until your system recovers.

When I was doing residency at a psychiatry office, two week regimens of melatonin were often recommended to help people create stable sleep cycles. As with anything, you can train your body to be sleepy at a certain time.

Sorry for the minor tangent.

@Noir: Good eye, but you probably wont see any negative interactions because of calicum unless its taken in excess of 3 grams. The body takes preference to calcium over metals like iron and zinc. It will get absorbed, just not as rapidly. I haven't taken chemistry in a year or so though =p

[Noir]

Originally Posted by virus

Non prescription:
/ A sleep complex blend supplement (some of the ingredients to look for are: valerian root extract, magnesium, melatonin, B6 and of course zma)

Have you ever tried valerian root virus?

[virus]

Originally Posted by Gill

A note on melatonin...

Melatonin is a fantastic scheduler. By that, I mean, it is great at keeping you regular when it comes to sleep; however, I don't recommend taking melatonin for longer than a month. Prolonged use will not only render it ineffective as a supplement, but as a basic biological indicator as well. Melatonin is something your body makes naturally. If you abuse it and your body stops responding, you can look forward to a long bout of terrible sleep until your system recovers.

When I was doing residency at a psychiatry office, two week regimens of melatonin were often recommended to help people create stable sleep cycles. As with anything, you can train your body to be sleepy at a certain time.

Sorry for the minor tangent.

Great post Gill! I abused it. It was working and I didn't want it to stop. I feel that after a month n half (trying to recall) that it begun to be/get useless for me. I just hope once I start to cycle it again, it goes back to producing great results for me.

Gill - do you think that since I took it virtually daily for that month+ that it'll return n help me sleep again? I haven't cycled it (cept for what lil amount is in this sleep complex I am using) for like, 3 months now?

[virus]

Originally Posted by Noir

Have you ever tried valerian root virus?

On it's own, no.

[Gill]

Short answer is yes. Here is a bit more indepth explanation though.

Your sleep cycles are generated by a process called 'circadian rhythms.' Its a 23-25 hour cycle that your body adheres to when it comes to setting internal temperatures, defecation, reproduction in more primal species, migration and so forth. Technically, after one 24 hour period of having a clean system, you can begin to generate and train a fresh new biological clock; however, as with most things, habits takes around 14 days to form.

Try to hit the sack within an hour of a set time each night. Set your bedtime for 11pm, for instance, and then try to be in bed somewhere between 10-12. If you do this for around two weeks, especially when supplementing with melatonin, you'll be itching to hit the sack around that time before long.

Some tips for better sleep.

1) Avoid ALL light. Light is our main zeitgeber which is a fancy word for activator. Light triggers a reset of our CRs which begins with... you guessed it, waking up. Make your room as dark as possible. If you have illuminating clocks, drape something over them or get one with an auto-dimmer. If you have to wake up and use the bathroom, do not turn the bathroom light on. Instead, buy a soft night-light and stick it in a corner where you'll have enough ambient light to do your business but not enough to upset your wakeness.

2) Sound is something our bodies, especially when unconcious, react to distinctly. Its evolutionary... you hear something while asleep, you jolt up with an adrenaline rush. This goes for constant noise like TVs and music as well. Some people say music helps them sleep, but anything your brain is having to process is something else to keep you in REM more and deep sleep less. If you want, fix yourself a mix-tape with 3-5 songs to listen to lightly as you drift off. Once the tape gets to the end, its done and you stay asleep without any thalamal activity (think dreams).

3) Relax. Don't jump in bed all worked up over something and expect a good night's rest. Everybody has fallen asleep with something on their mind only to dream about it or wake up thinking about it several times. Take a warm bath/shower, do some light stretches, listen to some calming music, read a book, sit down and think about how awesome it is to be alive. Whatever it may be, let it relax you. If you're calm when you get into bed, you'll sleep deeper and utitlize REM more effectively as you're less likely to be awoken during it.

If anybody ever needs more advice on it, please let me know. Sleep studies are something I've always enjoyed and are something I focus on in my studies.

[virus]

Gill, yes that you believe it will continue to work once I cycle it again (the melatonin?)

With help from dannyboy here (you rock danny!) I have a much better and greater sleep routine. He is who I got this sleep complex from that has not only worked when i've cycled it, but even after not cycling it i'm still getting good sleep. I also have developed a great bed time "pattern" that I do. I recommend this big time!

This is coming from someone who may be the lightest sleeper in the world. Being in college and other stresses, it's difficult for me to fall asleep and stay asleep.

[Gill]

I'm sorry. Yes, it will work for you. Try to use a reasonable dosage and only up the dosage if you're failing to fall asleep completely, not because you want to fall asleep faster.

[Boomer91]

ZMA will give you a better sleep right away, but I noticed the strength gains took a while to develop so I'de recommend buying a couple bottles. As for the ? of the empty stomach, I try not to eat after 8 or 9pm so I usually go to bed with an empty stomach anyways, but would liten to the instructions in that regard. Also if you read the instructions on the ZMA it says not to take with calcium, so check your protein shake label for calcium levels.