MK-677: Side Effects, Dosage & Results
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MK-677 is a very popular performance-enhancing drug that is used to burn fat, build muscle, improve sleep, and may even be able to increase hair growth. For such a popular and effective supplement, it is perhaps surprising how little people actually know about it. In this article, we will talk about what MK-677 is, what its benefits are, its side effects, and what dosage/cycle length is best.
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Is MK-677 a SARM?
MK-677, also known as Nutrobal or Ibutamoren, is often described as a SARM. This is understandable, as it is often sold on the same websites as SARMs and offers similar benefits. But in actual fact, MK-677 is a growth hormone secretagogue.
That is quite a name to unpack, so let’s take a look at the most confusing part of the name first. A secretagogue is a description of a substance that promotes the secretion of hormones, enzymes, neurotransmitters etc.
As you have probably worked out, that means that MK-677 increases the secretion of growth hormones in the body. This is different from SARMs, which bind to specific androgen receptors to mimic the effect of male sex hormones.
More growth hormone in your body means more muscle mass, better sleep and recovery, and even improvements in your hair and nail health. There is a reason why growth hormone is one of the most commonly taken PEDs in bodybuilding.
High growth hormone levels are responsible for the massive increases in size and strength that you experience during puberty, but after you hit your early twenties, your human growth hormone levels naturally drop [1].
By artificially increasing your HGH levels, you can see big gains in muscle size and strength, as well as a boost in your metabolism (very useful for fat loss). It is because of this that MK-677 is becoming very popular in the bodybuilding community.
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MK-677 Benefits
There are many benefits that are associated with MK-677 use, but there is a lack of scientific studies on humans to draw conclusions from. As such, many of the benefits mentioned are obtained from anecdotal evidence. This may be an issue in science and history, but when it comes to performance-enhancing drugs (PEDS), the waters become murky.
With a severe lack of human studies in the lab but thousands of anecdotal reports from people who have actually used MK-677, it would be silly to dismiss them. Of course, there are problems with anecdotal evidence. People get facts wrong, attribute unrelated factors to MK-677 and suffer from cognitive bias (if you believe it works and you don’t take any tests, then you are more likely to report that it has worked, and vice versa).
The following benefits all come from gym users who have reported them after cycles, there are some who won’t have experienced many (or any) of the benefits, but the general consensus is that MK-677 can help. There are also a couple of benefits that actually have scientific backing.
Benefit #1 Increased Muscle Mass
There is a decent amount of evidence that MK-677 can increase muscle mass, a 2009 study on the elderly found that taking MK-677 led to significant increases in muscle mass and improvements in overall body composition [2]. What is interesting is that the study found no real side effects, and it was generally well tolerated.
Another study looked at the role that MK-677 plays in reversing the catabolic effect on muscle mass that long-term dieting can have [3]. Basically, MK-677 helped to prevent further muscle loss after a diet and also helped to rebuild lost muscle mass after a seven-day reduced-calorie diet.
There are also a lot of bodybuilders who state that MK-677 has helped them to build muscle, but this is often when it is taken as part of a stack (see below).
Benefit #2 Strength Increases
This benefit is similar to benefit #1. MK-677 allows you to train harder, train for longer, and recover faster. Making it useful for increasing strength as well as increasing muscle size. However, it does not appear to be quite as effective at increasing strength as it is at increasing fat-free mass.
Benefit #3 Reduced Body Fat
One of the side effects of MK-677 is an increase in appetite due to the stimulation of the “hunger” hormone ghrelin. So, many people use it to help them eat more. How, then, can MK-677 be effective at reducing body fat?
Well, it is all down to its ability to boost your metabolism while also increasing your fat-free mass. A 1998 study found that when obese patients took MK-677, their metabolic rate and their fat-free mass increased significantly. However, their total fat loss was minimal [4].
What does this mean? You can use MK-677 to workout out more and build muscle (both of which will increase your metabolic rate). If you can combine that with a calorie-controlled diet, then you will burn significant amounts of fat. However, as it makes you hungrier, you may find it harder to stick to that diet. It all comes down to discipline.
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Benefit #4 Better Sleep and Recovery
The correlation between human growth hormone and sleep appears to work both ways. The more you sleep, the more HGH is released. The more HGH that is released, the easier it is to get top-quality sleep. Good sleep can help with mood, cognition, sex drive, testosterone levels, and recovery from exercise. This benefit may be one of the most underrated benefits of MK-677.
Benefit #5 Improved Hair Health
In the 1998 study mentioned in Benefit #3, an interesting side note was that the obese men who took MK-677 as part of the trial saw a 26% increase in collagen production. They also saw increases in Insulin-Like Growth Factor (IGF-1), both of which are crucial in hair growth.
The more IGF-1 you have in your body, the less Dihydrotestosterone (DHT), the hormone that is responsible for hair loss. The current scientific consensus is that men with lower IGF-1 levels are more susceptible to hair loss. So increasing your collagen and IGF-1 levels will improve your hair health and may reverse hair loss.
MK-677 Side Effects
There are only two common side effects that are associated with MK-677, which is why it is so popular. The first side effect is water retention, which can leave you feeling a little heavy for the first few days of your cycle (in a similar way to creatine monohydrate).
The other side effect is extreme hunger. Though this is only unwanted in those who are trying to lose weight. If you are bulking yet struggle to get enough meals in then you could see it as a benefit. The reason that MK-677 increases hunger is that it activates receptors for ghrelin at the same time as it is stimulating growth hormone and IGF-1 secretion.
Interestingly, not everyone experiences hunger, and many claim that if you take MK-677 before bed, then you don’t experience increased hunger even if you did previously.
One side effect (or benefit, depending on how you look at it) is that people whose growth plates have not closed may experience some minor growth due to the increases in growth hormones. Though, people who have open growth plates tend to have very high HGH levels anyway as they are going through puberty. If you’ve just finished puberty and start taking MK-677, there is a chance that you may grow a little taller.
MK-677 Dosage
People who are new to MK-677 may take slightly smaller dosages of around 10 mg per day, but the average dosage is between 20 and 25 mg per day. Women may benefit from smaller dosages than men, so 10-15 mg per day, but it’s really down to the individual to find out what dosage works best for them. As with any drug, always err on the side of caution.
MK-677 Results
The results for MK-677 seem a little mixed, with many people reporting excellent improvements in their workout performance and muscle mass gains. While others complained that they were put off by water weight increases and extreme hunger. A general consensus is that MK-677 works well when stacked with SARMS.
MK-677 by itself is likely to build 7-10lbs of lean muscle, whilst reducing a person’s body fat percentage by a few percent. However, when stacked with other SARMs its effects are amplified.
MK-677 Cycle
Unlike many SARMs, MK-677 cycles tend to last quite a long time. With cycles starting at 8 weeks but going up to 20 weeks for some people. This is mostly due to a lack of accumulated side effects. In other words, if you take a SARM, the longer you take it, the more extreme the side effects become.
Whereas MK-677 does not really have many side effects, and they don’t get worse with time. The only reason people stop is when their results start to slow down a bit or they run out of money!
MK-677 Stacks
MK-677 is commonly stacked with RAD 140 or RAD 150 as it can counteract the biggest side effect of both, hair loss. RAD 140 and RAD 150 are known for increasing hair shedding, while MK-677 can increase hair strength and thickness. So stacking one of the RADs with MK-677 is a very good compromise.
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MK-677 Price
The current price for MK-677 appears to be around $115-120 per bottle, but there may be discounts, bulk discounts, and cheaper alternatives out there. It all depends on which company you use, which country you live in, and how many bottles you are looking to purchase.
What is IBUTA 677?
IBUTA 677 from Crazy Bulk is a natural alternative to Ibutamoren (MK-677). But is IBUTA 677 a good replacement supplement?
The answer is absolutely not. IBUTA 677 is the supplement equivalent of rebranding your broken bicycle as a Maserati. Sure, it has wheels, but it is not the same!
IBUTA 677 contains glycine, glutamine, lysine, ornithine, tyrosine, and arginine. It is an amino acid supplement with some zinc and vitamin B5 thrown in. You could get the same results from a glass of milk.
Will adding a few extra amino acids into your diet lead to significant increases in growth hormone? We’ll let you guess the answer to that. Crazy Bulk does this a lot with SARMs, and now it appears to be repeating the trick with growth hormone secretagogues.
If you want the effects of MK-677, then you are going to need to purchase the real thing. If you don’t want to do that, then don’t waste your money on IBUTA 677. There are better amino acid supplements out there if that’s even what you want.
Final Thoughts
MK-677 is a good option for bodybuilders. It is sold at a reasonable price, has very few side effects, and it can be taken for long cycles without a drop in results or performance. A criticism against MK-677 is that it isn’t as powerful as many SARMs, but that comes with increased safety and no need to use PCT.
If you really want to see significant changes, and you aren’t brand new to the gym, then a stack with a SARM such as RAD 140 may be your best option. Not only will both MK-677 and RAD 140 have a synergistic relationship when it comes to building muscle and burning fat, but MK-677 can help to smooth over some of the side effects that are associated with RAD 140.
Whatever you do, though, don’t waste your hard-earned money on IBUTA 677 in the hope that it will provide you with similar results. It is a completely useless amino acid supplement that does not live up to any of its claims. It is also massively overpriced, considering it is about as effective as milk when it comes to building muscle.
Remember, MK-677 is only as effective as your diet and exercise regime allows, and it works best over longer periods of time. So be safe, be consistent, and use it as an addition to your exercise and nutrition.
References
[1] https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/12955018/
[2] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2757071/
[3] https://academic.oup.com/jcem/article/83/2/320/2865101
[4] https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/9661080/
Disclaimer:
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