Description

RAD-140, or Testolone, is a SARM that has developed great popularity. In fact it’s possibly the most widely used SARM today simply because it’s so good at what it does.

This is a SARM that is almost as close as you can get to a steroid without it being a steroid, and the results that people (both men and women) are seeing with RAD-140 are nothing short of impressive.

I’ve long been satisfied with what RAD-140 can do, but that doesn’t mean this is a perfect compound. The list of benefits is short but targeted, while the downsides should be seriously considered.

If you’ve never used RAD-140 before, is it worth using now? What’s the best way to use it, what are the risks and side effects, and where can you even buy RAD-140 from? These are just some of the questions I had before trying RAD-140 myself and below you’ll find out all this about Testolone and much more.

RAD-140 History and Overview

Testolone is an investigational SARM, just as all SARMs are. This means RAD-140 is still in the very early stages of research and may or may not one day become an approved drug for treating specific conditions. Since 2020 it has been licensed to Ellipses Pharmaceuticals which is a company that acquires, develops and trials promising drugs for medical use.

No matter what the future holds for RAD-140, it’s already got a place among bodybuilders and athletes thanks to its powerful effects.

RAD-140 has only been around for a little over a decade, and it was first designed to potentially be used in testosterone replacement therapy rather than the regular synthetic testosterone that is used in TRT today (which come with many side effects). Like many other SARMs, other avenues of research for RAD-140 include treatment for muscle wastingand bone loss conditions.

So far only one human study has been completed with RAD-140, and it lasted for three years. This was a study that focused on a different possible use for this SARM, as a treatment for hormone receptor positive breast cancer in post menopausal women.

With just one clinical study under its belt, there’s so much we don’t know about what RAD-140 can and can’t do, and what possible side effects and long term effects it might have.

Chemical Characteristics and Properties

RAD-140 is a selective androgen receptor modulator (SARM). This class of drugs comes with some of the desirable properties of anabolic steroids, like promoting muscle growth through anabolic activity, but with a much reduced or even eliminated risk of androgenic side effects.

SARMs are able to do this because they are highly selective in which androgen receptors are targeted.

RAD-140 mostly targets receptors in muscle and bone, which is what makes it a valuable type of compound to bodybuilders and athletes who have traditionally had to cope with the often harsh androgenic side effects of steroids in order to get the benefits.

Effects of RAD-140 (RAD-140 Benefits)

The effects and benefits of RAD-140 are quite limited, yet very targeted to where we want them to be as bodybuilders or athletes. You could almost think RAD-140 is designed to deliver in just about every area that’s critical for performance and bodybuilding results.

RAD-140’s main benefits are:

Increased Muscle Mass

This is why most of us want to use RAD-140 – for the muscle gains.

RAD-140 has similar anabolic effects to testosterone, which provides a good indication of just how powerful its lean mass building ability can be when you’re using RAD-140 with a suitable diet and training routine.

Of course, we don’t suffer the terrible side effects that a lot of you will be familiar with when using testosterone at performance doses (RAD-140’s gains might be not be completely side effect free though, which I outline further later).

Exactly how much mass you can potentially gain on a RAD-140 cycle depends on who you ask. Ultimately your cycle will not be the same as someone else’s and if you’ve heard people boasting of 20lbs gains in a standard RAD-140 8 week cycle consider this as above average.

It’s not impossible to gain in the realm of 15-20lbs (some of these people may not let you know they’ve stacked RAD-140 with other compounds though).

But going in with a realistic target of somewhere around the 10lbs mark in gains shouldn’t leave you disappointed. And they will be good quality gains, especially if you can keep any fluid under control (caused by an incidental increase in estrogen) either through modifying your dosage or using aromatase inhibitors if needed.

Increased Strength

While RAD-140 has a famous ability to build muscle, it is perhaps its lesser talked about strength boosting capacity which is the greatest benefit of this SARM. After all, without increased strength you won’t be boosting the intensity of your workouts and the amount of weight you’re lifting.

So this effect goes hand in hand with your lean mass gains. RAD-140 is known as an excellent SARM to use to break through periods of stagnation, where you are struggling to get past a certain point with your gains. In fact, some bodybuilders will specifically use it for this purpose rather than for its direct lean mass building.

RAD-140 gets more red blood cells going to the muscles, enhancing endurance and powering your pumps. It will take a few weeks for RAD-140’s strength boost to kick in to its maximum level, so by week 3 to 4 this benefit is going to take your training to new levels.

Fat loss

There are far better fat burning specific SARMs out there and fat loss won’t be a primary reason to use RAD-140, but as a by-product of its powerful anabolic effects RAD-140 does enable fat burning to some extent. RAD-140 can give a boost to the metabolism and promote lipolysis.

If you want to use RAD-140 in a cutting cycle, it is best stacked with fat loss specialist compounds like Cardarine. To noticeably burn fat on RAD140 alone you need to be eating a strict calorie deficit diet and doing a lot of cardio work, but even then it is not such a powerful standalone fat burner as some other SARMs.

Dry physique and more vascularity

Gains with RAD-140 should be dry and lean as long as you aren’t using a high dose that can raise estrogen and cause some water retention to develop. Used right, RAD-140 should give you nice dry gains and with this comes a noticeable improvement to vascularity.

Testolone (RAD-140) has a reputation as one of the best SARMs to help you get that desirable hard physique, and many users find that the enhanced veiny look is one of the best benefits of RAD-140.

RAD-140 Cycles and Stacks

RAD-140 can be used on its own, it can be used in both bulking and cutting cycles, and it can be stacked with a range of other SARMs and other types of compounds for more enhanced results.

If you’ve never used RAD-140 before, it’s a must to start on a RAD-140 only cycle at a low to moderate dose and gauge your response to it, before proceeding to more advanced cycles and stacks.

Beginner RAD-140 Cycle

Beginners should test the waters with RAD-140 on a dosage of 10mg maximum for 6-8 weeks. This simple yet powerful cycle will keep side effects at bay (you should not see rising estrogen at this dosage, but some testosterone suppression is likely) and nice lean, dry gains will be obtained and excellent boost to strength from the third to fourth week. Despite the lower dose, PCT might still be needed by some individuals after this cycle.

Intermediate RAD-140 Cycle

After running one or two beginner cycles at 10mg it’s time to increase your dosage, as long as you had no adverse effects at the lower dose.

15mg to 20mg will be a big jump from 10mg and you’ll notice it not only in the strength gains, and the increased mass you can put on, but you’ll definitely be experiencing testosterone suppression at this point and it will certainly be enough to warrant PCT.

This 15-20mg cycle should run for 8 weeks, with a minimum break of 5 weeks before your next cycle.

Advanced RAD-140 Cycle

By the time you’re comfortable with RAD140 and consider yourself an advanced user, you’re probably ready to use this SARM with other compounds. Alternatively an advanced cycle can be one that is shorter and more intense at a high dose and this is mainly used to push you through a plateau.

Even at this level you might find that 20mg is as high as you wish to go, keeping side effects and shutdown in mind. But for the most hardcore advanced user, a maximum dose of 30mg for 6 weeks will help push you through a plateau, but you’ll also need to be prepared for serious testosterone suppression and potentially other side effects which don’t present at the lower doses.

Stacking RAD-140

It’s a very common option to stack RAD-140 with a range of other compounds including SARMs and similar products. This strategy helps you cover a wider area of benefits, but its true power is when you pick and choose your stack to reach a very specific goal. RAD-140 is a great stacking choice because it’s versatile and it has its place in both bulking and cutting cycles.

RAD-140/Cardarine stack for cutting

Cardarine is the number one non-steroid cutting compound in the opinion of most people so stacking it with RAD-140 is going to be a very potent fat burning and body recomposition cycle.

Because this is a cutting cycle you do not need to be using RAD-140 at the higher doses where muscle gains are the priority. Just 5mg of Testolone is enough to provide a powerful strength boost and the other anabolic effects of this SARM.

If your body fat percentage is still quite high, you could lose in the realm of 10% body fat on this cycle, while gaining a few pounds of muscle. Cardarine will provide a big endurance boost to power your cardio workouts.

This is an 8 week cycle and while side effects should be well controlled, Cardarine’s effects on the liver should encourage you to have a liver support supplement available.

• RAD-140 – 5mg per day
• Cardarine – 10mg per day

Not all users will need PCT after this cycle since RAD-140 is at a low dose, but keep the usual drugs on hand just in case or if you choose to use a higher dose of Testolone.

RAD-140/YK-11 stack for bulking

Stacking RAD-140 and YK-11 is a very advanced strategy, and should only be attempted by the most experienced and confident users.

This 8 week stack maintains moderate doses of each compound, to minimize side effects as much as possible (although testosterone suppression is still likely):

• YK-11 at 10mg daily
• RAD-140 at 15mg daily

This very powerful bulking stack not only adds substantial muscle but will greatly enhance strength, energy, fat loss, endurance, bone density, and more. Gains in the range of 15-20lbs are possible with this stack.

RAD-140 PCT

Do you need to be doing PCT after every RAD-140 cycle? Some would say yes, but it is possible to avoid PCT by using RAD-140 at low doses. This won’t suit everyone, and there will be exceptions for some individuals.

If you really want to avoid doing any post cycle therapy after a RAD-140 cycle, stick to a 5mg dose for the whole cycle (8 weeks max). If you want massive gains this won’t be an option, but guys who are happy with moderate gains can enjoy a stress free RAD-140 experience with minimal impact on testosterone.

Once you start using 10mg and more you will definitely need to do PCT to some extent. Higher doses will induce more severe suppression.

Tamoxifen (Nolvadex) or Clomifene (Clomid) are the standard drugs to use. Clomid is considered the better option by most people. Some guys will also include hCG (Human chorionic gonadotropin).

PCT should be started as soon as you finish your RAD-140 cycle. It’s short half life means you should not be waiting days or weeks following a cycle to start PCT. A 4 week PCT cycle is usually sufficient. For the first 2 weeks, take 50mg per day of Clomid, and decrease this to 25mg daily for the final two weeks of PCT.

RAD-140 Dosages and Administration

Many people will say that the ideal dose of RAD-140 is 10mg daily. This will work well for some, but a lot of us will want to move the dosage around according to desired goals, experience level, response to the SARM, and if any other compounds are being used (whether they be other SARMs or even stacked with steroids).

In fact there’s quite a wide range of dosages you can experiment with, but if you’re using RAD-140 for the first time it’s highly recommended to start at a low dose, evaluate your response, and adjust it as needed. What has been found is that a higher dose is not necessarily going to translate into much better results.

Bodybuilding RAD-140 Dosage

For a first bodybuilding cycle, it’s a good idea to start at just 5mg or 10mg daily. This might sound low but you can expect excellent RAD-140 results even at these doses and what people have come to realize is that using a low dosage such as 10mg could be 90% as effective as a high dose of 30mg – but with much less risk of serious side effects.

As you become confident using RAD-140 at 10mg and if you’re not experiencing adverse effects, in subsequent cycles it’s recommended to start raising the dose by 5mg at a time. Remember this is a very strong SARM and it’s not advised that a sudden high dosage is taken.

5mg increments – ideally with no more than one or two increments within each cycle – is the best way to ease yourself into RAD-140’s powerful effects. Most bodybuilders will want to have two or three RAD-140 cycles under their belt before even considering using a dose like 20mg.

As for a maximum RAD-140 dosage – 30mg is considered the highest dosage that any bodybuilder will want to use. Most users will rarely enjoy taking such a high dose and the inevitable shutdown and other side effects that are likely to occur will often outweigh any benefits.

Female RAD-140 Dosage

Most women will see excellent results at very low doses of RAD-140. Starting at just 5mg per day, female users can expect nice muscle gains, increases in strength and endurance, and easier fat loss.

The powerful anabolic effects of RAD-140 and female sensitive to this means more powerful results can be seen at lower doses, and this is good news because women will have a much lower risk of side effects.

The maximum recommended female RAD-140 dosage is 10mg per day. Few females would want to, or have any need to increase the dose beyond that point. A 6 or 8 week cycle is considered suitable for female RAD-140 users.

Proper Administration and Timing

Taking RAD-140 is sufficient to maintain optimal levels of this SARM in your bloodstream. There is no known benefit to splitting the dose into a twice daily administration.

The timing of your dose is a personal choice, but most people will take it either first thing in the morning, or around an hour before your daily workout.

The standard RAD-140 cycle is to use it for 8 weeks. Following this you need a break of five weeks at a bare minimum without using RAD-140 or any other SARM. An 8 week break is more highly recommended, especially if you used a higher dose. Men will need to be undertaking PCT for part of this time as well, to restore testosterone function.

Another strategy for more advanced users, especially in cutting cycles and contest prep is to run a 6 week RAD-140 cycle (often at a higher than usual dose).

At the more extreme end are people who will use RAD-140 for 10 weeks. Warning: this is an advanced strategy only and definitely not recommended for anyone who has not already completed several previous RAD-140 cycles at lower doses.

RAD-140 Risks and Side Effects

A very common misconception about SARMs in general is that they come with no side effects at all. People often mistakenly think RAD-140 is a perfect anabolic steroid alternative with all the benefits, and zero side effects. Unfortunately this is not true.

But the good news is that RAD-140 side effects (at least the ones we know of so far) aren’t going to be anything like what you get when you use something like Trenbolone. But there’s still a few things you need to look out for with RAD-140 and the main one is going to impact male users. It’s testosterone suppression – something any steroid user will already be familiar with.

How much suppression can RAD-140 potentially cause? Can it shut you right down? Well you might be surprised to know that RAD-140’s suppressive effects can be just as harsh as anabolic steroids.

After all this is a SARM that has very similar effects on the body as testosterone, even though it’s not a steroid. When your body think it’s receiving an external source of testosterone, it reduces or stops its own natural production. This puts you at risk of being in a state of low testosterone as soon as your cycle ends. Therefore, PCT is critical when using RAD-140.

Increased estrogen is another issue that could cause some unexpected side effects. At higher doses RAD-140 can raise estrogen even though it is not an aromatizing compound. This can lead to some of those familiar steroid type side effects like water retention and gynecomastia.

Although you should not see the level of severity of these side effects like what occurs with steroids, keeping an aromatase inhibitor drug ready to use if needed is a good idea. Most users should be able to avoid estrogen type side effects by maintaining a moderate dose of RAD-140 and avoiding cycles longer than 8 weeks.

Another potential side effect of RAD-140 is increased aggression. Although some users will actually find this to be a positive effect depending how you channel and use that extra aggression. Since RAD-140 is very similar to testosterone in its effects, it’s not a great surprise that some users will see changes in mood.

This will impact every one differently and can depend a lot on your existing personality. Higher doses could cause issues for those who have problems controlling increased aggression so monitor this effect and adjust your dosage if it becomes a problem.

Hair loss is a possible side effect, and it’s caused by rising levels of DHT. Because RAD-140 raises testosterone levels while you use it, some of this can convert to DHT. Again, the higher your dosage of this SARM the more chance of experiencing this side effect.

Short term use of RAD-140 can actually see this side effect as being reversible – more of a shedding of the hair rather than full scale male pattern baldness as we see with steroid use. But long term use can certainly have you at high risk of hair loss being permanent if the hair follicles become permanently damaged.

Another surprising side effect is acne. We do expect RAD-140 to cause none of these androgenic side effects because it only targets muscle and bone androgen receptors. But again, possible acne development can come about by other means just like hair loss. Not all users will develop acne, as some people are much more susceptible than others.