[heroiccocoa]

There are non-steroidal OTC supplements that are specifically anti-catabolic instead of anabolic like HMB[1], a metabolite of the amino acid leucine, and also widely used in the fitness community. Personally I have no idea which is preferable though, or whether anti-catabolism is something actually positive, as we know the importance of autophagy of senescent cells for longevity. Most of the literature I read suggests the less growth signalling, the better longevity, with the only exception being the frail elderly.

[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/%CE%92-Hydroxy_%CE%B2-methylbu...

[cthalupa]

Most data on HMB shows that it is effective in preserving muscle mass in people with cancer cachexia or the eldery, results are generally not great for those without specific diseases or of younger age.

I'm still taking it because it's cheap and I figure I might as well, but anavar is likely significantly more effective.

[pogue]

Yes, HMB is another compound that would be potentially very beneficial during catabolic times such as extreme weight loss. The typical dosage would be 3g/day.

Examine has done excellent write ups on all the research related to it, which can be found below. They recently paywalled the bulk of it, but it's still on the wayback.

https://web.archive.org/web/20240310004421/https://examine.c...