I recently finished a bottle of Optygen and am not convinced.
Has anyone successfully got their money back?
I bought mine in the UK so not sure if this guarantee is still valid…
I recently finished a bottle of Optygen and am not convinced.
Has anyone successfully got their money back?
I bought mine in the UK so not sure if this guarantee is still valid…
The guarantee is still valid. You can contact FirstEndurance directly if you have trouble with wherever you bought it. Let me know if you have problems.
I recently finished a bottle of Optygen and am not convinced.
Has anyone successfully got their money back?
I bought mine in the UK so not sure if this guarantee is still valid…
The guarantee is still valid. You can contact FirstEndurance directly if you have trouble with wherever you bought it. Let me know if you have problems.
Very good of you. thanks! Will let you know if I need it…
Make that 2 that perceived a negative effect. I bought 2 bottles over last winter, and used one bottle during a run focus block with consistent track intervals. While I was using optygen, my intervals slowed, when I stopped, they improved. There are lots of variables, so was it the optygen? I don’t know.
So now I still have an opened, mostly full bottle, that I don’t know what to do with. I have 2 A races left, one in 3 weeks and one the first of November. According to the advertised effects, I should take it now for my next A race, but I’m afraid to b/c of my perceived negative performance effect. It has been too long to return it. I’m not real sure what to do with it!
Alex, do you know if they run their own studies to classify or if they just base it off analysis of the available literature?
Either way, as I said, there’s ammunition on both sides. If people want to try, I’d encourage them to actually come up with an effective metric(s) to see if the perceive a difference. If not, then return it and get your money back.
They definitely do their own supplement studies (as do British Cycling), however I doubt they do it for every supplement. Their specialists would perform research into the available evidence and make recommendations accordingly.
I’ve been taking it for 3-4 months, and have noticed no negative side effects. I have noticed that my HR drops pretty fast between intervals on both the bike and the run. However, I’m training harder and what I think to be more effective then I did last year, so it’s hard to say how much, if at all, Optygen is contributing. I will continue with it thru IMWI and then take a break from using it.
I already know I’ll be training less next year, so it will be hard to compare this year to next year. I’ll probably wait to get a few months of training in next season to establish a baseline then give it another go.
–Adam
I would have to disagree with your beta alanine comment. I can tell you first hand that it works for power athletes, especially when paired with creatine. However, I would argue it has little to no benefit for endurance athletes (which is what Im assuming you are referring to, in which case I agree).
I’ve been taking it for 3-4 months, and have noticed no negative side effects. I have noticed that my HR drops pretty fast between intervals on both the bike and the run. However, I’m training harder and what I think to be more effective then I did last year, so it’s hard to say how much, if at all, Optygen is contributing. I will continue with it thru IMWI and then take a break from using it.
I already know I’ll be training less next year, so it will be hard to compare this year to next year. I’ll probably wait to get a few months of training in next season to establish a baseline then give it another go.
–Adam
X2
I’ve been at it since April, along with Pre-Race. I have not missed a day yet with Optygen HP. I have had no ill side effects, but I also don’t percieve any HUGE benefits either. However, my race times are greatly improving,my recovery is almost immediate, and I generally feel good. I have no evidence that Opt HP is the cause.
I think what a lot of people look for with supplements is what we felt when we did Ephedra back in the late 90’s early 2000’s. You took 2 pills and about 30 minutes later you were either superman flying around the office with super human energy and super human concentration OR you were on a couch somewhere with medical staff around you because your heart felt like it was breaking out of the rib cage and trying to run away.
I guess I will know it’s effects when I stop using it after my last “A” race in November.
already seen that - like i said, i’m not interested in debating efficacy. I’ve read those debates and concluded that the supplement is worth a try.
That was not the purpose of the OP or this thread.
I guess my next question is “Does this stuff work http://www.highfive.co.uk/supplements/supplements.html” because they are on your website.
All Robert here from First Endurance.
We certainly appreciate discussions on efficacy and performance of our supplements. We pride ourselves on doing our homework before we launch any supplement in our line. We review all the research available and in every newsletter we put out we are constantly reviewing the latest literature to assure we are at the forefront of endurance nutrition. When applicable, we will change or upgrade our products to match the literature. Recently we upgraded and relaunched our EFS drinks.
OptygenHP is definitely unique in that it does not have a targeted specific mechanism of action as do some other nutrients like beta-alanine. With Rhodiola and Cordyceps, two adaptogenic herbs are the drivers of this formula it can make it difficult to conduct clinical studies. However, on two occasions we have been contacted by Universities that had an interest in conducting studies on Optygen and in both occasions we supported these studies simply by offering the product and a placebo (sugar pills). The Universities designed and conducted the studies and both showed positive results. These results are above and beyond the independent studies done on Rhodiola and Cordyceps. All this information is available on our website via our research packet.
A study done by Dr. Andrew Creer (2007 South Dakota State University) showed Optygen reduces cortisol levels (the primary stress hormone) by 26%. Researchers concluded that Optygen is beneficial for trained athletes undergoing high training volumes because it decreases baseline stress and improves training sessions. Cortisol is a catabolic (breakdown) hormone that the body produces when under stress, such as after hours of running. Chronically elevated cortisol levels can prevent an athlete from recovering, increase the risks of overtraining and supress the immune system.
Another study done by Dr. Karlton Larson (2007 Luther College) showed endurance athletes who used Optygen increased the time to lactate threshold by 42%. Results of this study show Optygen is effective in reducing lactic acid production and delaying onset of lactate threshold (the exercise intensity at which lactic acid starts to accumulate in the blood stream), therefore improving endurance.
Furthermore each year there are more and more studies being conducted, last year alone three new positive studies were published by (Olsson 2009), (Parmossioan 2009) and (Zhang 2009). Again, we try to stay at the forefront of the research and have reviewed and summarized these studies in our latest newsletter article on Cortisol and Overtraining Syndrome. http://blog.firstendurance.com/2010/08/cortisol-and-overtraining-syndrome-why-an-athlete-should-care/
The extracts found in Optygen and OptygenHP are of the highest quality and are actually quite difficult to find. You cannot simply look for Rhodiola or Cordyceps and expect positive results. We take care to source the highest quality extract available and where applicable the exact same extract as was used in the clinical studies. For example, our cordyceps sinensis is a very specific strain known as CS-4, this is the only strain that has shown any positive effects in clinical studies. Finding a cheap cordyceps at a store will likely result in disappointment. There are also other carefully chosen and researched nutrients in both Optygen and OptygenHP that support Cordyceps and Rhodiola which enhance the efficacy of these products.
Now Why is this product legal if it works? Its legal because it does not artificially enhance any bodily functions beyond what is normal. In other words, it does not increase testosterone above normal levels. What Optygen and OptygenHP do is modulate your cortisol during times of heavy stress. Modulating cortisol leads to numerous positive physiological functions, one of which is improvement in lactate threshold (proved by Dr. Karlton), improvement in cortisol/testosterone ratio and improvement in VO2. Not to mention less soreness, better mood and better sleep. All of which lead to better training.
Adrenal overload (this is what drives cortisol chronically) is quite common among triathletes and can be very damaging to ones health. Chronically elevate cortisol is just one function addressed by our products. We have designed the entire line of products to work as a concise complete system using branch chain amino acids, high glycemic carbohydrates, antioxidants, free form amino acids, quality proteins and various other nutrients spread out among our product line to address all aspects of hard training.
Lastly, and this has been stated here before, we offer a 100% performance guarantee on ALL of our products. This guarantee is available through any retailer and extends to anything you do not like about any of our products. In the end, we do our best with the best available research to offer the highest quality, highest performing products on the market…all of course legal and free of banned substances.
What would you say to a seasoned triathlete who has experienced Bradycardia
Arrhythmia in the past and is researching taking optygen.
Though we do not have any contraindications that we are aware of, we would not recommend it. There are no known stimulants or mechanisms of action that would indicate you could not use this product, however there is always the unknown. We suggest you focus on good healthy food, a proper fueling plan, a well managed training program and allow your own personal drive and fitness to achieve your goals. MultiV, EFS and Ultragen would be a great foundation to use for your training.
when are you putting cordyceps back into Optygen HP, it’s not the same without! You had the perfect combo and then you messed with it…
My advice to most people is that admittedly, Optygen is expensive. Really expensive.
^^ This. I have used a few bottles of the regular Optygen a few years ago prior to HP coming onto the market. I did notice a little improvement, mainly when I took it during a block of VO2 training (I was 100% road racing on the bike at the time, no other sports). I felt like it helped me recover better between rides and allowed me to hit sessions that I may not have been able to quite hit otherwise. However overall I felt the cost/benefit didn’t work out for me, if I had very deep pockets or was sponsored sure I would keep using it but I felt that whatever small benefit (real or perceived) I got from it didn’t warrant the cost I pad on it relative to my personal budget.
However without hijacking the thread the one FE product I’ve consistently gone back to (used before key races) is FE PreRace, now that is an awesome product!