Diuretic or not???

[The Creator]

So basically I want to come in hard as nails and dry as tumble weed for my show. I have a bottle of MHP xpel sitting in my cupboard. I have always been pretty anti-diuretic for natural bodybuilders but my views are changing a bit. My theory has always been "nothing drastic" in regards to pre-contest and peak week programming. I would like to hear some feedback from people who have used diuretics for shows and what the experience was. I would also like some additional SCIENTIFIC information on the subject. Any help would be much appreciated.

Pros:
Could increase vascularity
Could increase definition

Cons:
Could throw off water balance and make me flat
Could throw off water balance and make me smooth
Could cause nausea and lightheadedness.

So its pretty clear that diuretics reduce water in the body. My main concern is that, the body maintains a natural balance of water in the muscle cell and outside and consuming a diuretic doesnt necessarily mean that is will come subcutaneously. And since muscle is 75% water, that could pose a serious problem.

Discuss....

 

[Tonyk212000]

I would definitely go with taking xpel. Im not sure ho to take it because I haven't but I know some on here have. Im sure they will be in this thread telling you how they took it and how the results were. trust me dude alot of guys at natural shows aren't following all the rules. At least what you are doing isn't against the rules. I would definitely go with it.

 

[The Creator]

^^Thanks bro! Yeah KM was the one that initially recommended it and he said that it worked wonders for him. My understanding is that its just pretty hit or miss.

 

[DriDDeRz]

i know turk did take one, called shredded and also loaded creatine few days before the show,
can always PM and ask flex about it aswel.

 

[PistolPete]

This probably doesn't help a ton, but my friend and I competed in a show together and we did everything together, diet, lifting, tanning, the whole bit. We both bought a diuretic to take for the show, but an ex bodybuilder told me not to do it because of the strong chance it would make me flat. So I decided not to, but my friend thought otherwise and took it. Now, I couldn't really tell you if he lost his fullness or not, because I don't know his body as well as he does. But what I can tell you, is it definitly pushed him a bit further in looking cut. His abs definitly showed even better after taking it. He's a member here, I suggest talking to him. His member name is Drexel1234

 

[DriDDeRz]

^^^^^ Thanks for the feedback mate

 

[The_KM]

If you carb up correctly, the chances of you coming flat (excreting intramuscular water) is slim. It works well if you keep your water intake steady through the show. Most people taper/cut water the day of the show while on low sodium and in result they obtain sub-q water retention.

Here's what I think bro; you have the bottle aside you. Perfect. Now play it by ear, and by ear I mean by 4 days out you see what's up.

I will advise once more:

Do not cut water when on this. Outdated method- aldosterone is released when in combination of sodium and water deprivation, which causes the body to go into "survival mode" and causes your body to retain fluids from the internal environment.

I got an upset stomach when first on this, that's hard to refrain from.

Lastly, I would use Xpel as I did. Use it as an emergency recruitment. Use it if you're holding water under your skin causing you to look smoothe (hindering vascularity..big sign). If you use it, start 3 days out and use it if needed day of show. I 1/2 dosed day of.

Hope this helps bro!

 

[drexel1234]

pistol pete and i like he said did pretty much all the cardio and training together except for myself takin the dieuretic and while it did make me leaner and dryer i still lost some fullness since my body didnt react well when i carbed up since i carb depleted for way too long. next summer im gonna stay a little leaner in the off season then do the palumbo diet for 8-10 weeks and not have to deal with the whole science of carbs since i feel that is much easier. as for the dierutic ill see 1 week out if i need to drop some water or not but i think it comes down to the bigger u are the more u should consider it since u dont have to worry bout coming in flat as much.

 

[The Creator]

^^appreciate all the input guys.
I am kind of thinking that if I do the diuretic, I wont really drop sodium and I will drink a gallon of water a day up until and through the show. I will also probably do a pizza meal on friday night/saturday morning if I use the diuretic as well. I would do this because none of the pizza would be stored as fat and hopes would be that it would allow me to fill up and then the xpel may clean up any spill that could occur.
For my first show, I looked way better sunday then I did on the day of my show (saturday). This was after all my pizza and junk food and liquids. Full as could be, roadmap vascularity, and surprisingly good definition. I would have way rather stepped on stage with my sunday physique then how I did and I dont want to make this mistake again.

 

[brizzy03]

don't know why, but xpel makes you queezy as shit. i've seen others that have had the same issue. i would say to look into taraxatone if you wanna go for the natural diuretic route.

also, i doubt xpel is gonna be powerful enough to clean up a "spill" you might have.

 

[tim290280]

I'll add that Flex and Turk's prep log for Turk's show covered things well and I'm sure either would be willing to help.

Also be prepared for what could go wrong with diuretics. Depending on what the actual active ingredient is you may want to have some potassium on hand.

There are various types, all of which have a slightly different action.

THIAZIDES

These are the type prescribed most often and they work by blocking the reabsorption of sodium, potassium and water. Taking them, however, can lead to a shortage of potassium in the body and for this reason they may be given with a potassium supplement or in conjunction with another type of diuretic known as a potassium-sparing diuretic.

LOOP DIURETICS

These are powerful diuretics which also block the reabsorption of sodium, potassium and water. They have an extremely rapid action and for this reason they are sometimes used in emergencies, for example to relieve fluid on the lungs. They are especially useful to people with impaired kidney function who do not react well to thiazide diuretics. Like thiazides they can cause a shortage of potassium, which can be counteracted by taking either a potassium supplement or a potassium-sparing diuretic.

POTASSIUM-SPARING DIURETICS

As the name suggests, these diuretics block the reabsorpton of sodium and water without affecting the body’s potassium balance. They are mild diuretics and may be prescribed together with a thiazide or loop diuretic to prevent the body losing excess potassium.

OSMOTIC DIURETICS

These are not prescribed very often. They work by blocking the reabsorption of sodium and water and are used to maintain the flow of urine through the kidneys after surgery or injury and to lower pressure within fluid-filled cavities

ACETAZOLAMIDE

This is a mild diuretic that is mainly used to treat congestive heart failure, fluid retention, pre-eclamptic toxaemia (PET) during pregnancy, premenstrual tension and epilepsy. It’s also used to treat some types of glaucoma when locally acting drugs have failed to treat the problem successfully.

CARBONIC ANHYDRASE INHIBITORS

These work by blocking the effect of carbonic anhydrase, an enzyme that affects the level of bicarbonate ions in the blood. However, they are only effective for a short period of time.

Sodium loading - most people screw this up because they listen to guys in the gym that use diuretics who then think they understand renal physiology. Adjustments in plasma osmolality and sodium loads in the body occur at different rates running from minutes to days. Again this is something you experiment with before your big day, because if you miss your timing you will look quite bloated and smooth. Simply double your sodium intake about 10-15 days before the big day. Water intake should still be quite high (1.5-2.0 gallons per day). About five days before the show, reduce sodium intake to 2 grams per day or less (this is from all sources). Water intake is still high. Three days before the show cut water intake down to about 1-2 quarts per day. At this time you will also have reduced protein and fat calories so that you can start carbing up Lower protein intake to about .8 grams per kilogram of BW making sure that you eat high quality protein sources. About 1000 mg of potassium per day is usually taken when you cut down on the sodium. I have to say that the extreme look that is valued in competition can not be achieved without excessive dehydration. This is rather unhealthy. It is also very important to lower protein intake when you are this dehydrates. Several animal studies have made it clear that dehydration and high protein are an invitation to renal problems later on.

 

[Ironslave]

A natural over the counter diuretic (like you mentioned) is a great idea, and it's what we used with Turk's prep, and he had great results. The problem happens who you try and nail things perfectly. It's better to play it safe, and come in 90%, than to make a bunch of tinkerings, try and come in 100%, and miss and look like 50%.

Basically, you're going to be in good shape. So all you need to do is a tiny bit of depletion, a tiny bit more carbs, a mild OTC diuretic, and you'll look better than you have yet.

 

[The Creator]

Thanks so much for all the advice guys. None of it is going to be overlooked. I think what I will do is take half the dose of xpel and see how I look and feel. I dont want to have a "pendelum" effect at all and if I am not looking rough to begin with, I wont try to fix whats not broken. I think just a half dose will help me to shed a little extra while maintaining fullness and reduce the risk of any adverse effects.