I was somewhat intrigued by this product as I hadn’t heard about epicatechin before seeing it on Amazon. After taking it for five weeks, I haven’t seen any massive gains, but I have seen modest increases in lean muscle mass (I lost about two pounds, but have also seen a small increase in my weightlifting numbers, which tells me that I’ve added muscle). No negative effects for me. I take a single capsule 4-5 days per week (on days when I am working out). Read more

I've been taking Epicatechin for about a month now, and I must say I'm not sure it has helped much. That said, supplement analysis is always difficult without the following: 1) lab analysis of the ingredients itself testing for purity, etc. and 2) blood work monitoring the claimed changes (cholesterol, blood sugar, etc.). I've had neither of these done, so take the review with a grain of salt. On the subjective level, I've not noticed any difference using this stuff. I've not noticed a significant reduction in carbohydrate cravings, nor any sign of fat less/insulin resistance. I've not noticed a significant "nitric oxide" pump in the gym. Furthermore, I know you can't "feel" cholesterol but I don't know if that metric has moved much either. If you're looking for a supplement you can *feel,* you're probably going to need a preworkout and some creatine. Maybe this is doing some work behind the scenes, but who knows, really? Read more

Severe diarrhea and stomach ache. Can't recommend at all. If you want an intense diuretic this is great. Read more

Epicatechin (one of the primary catechins in cocoa) has recently become very popular for promoting muscle growth and strength due to myostatin inhibition. Most of the studies have been done in mice, the elderly (with sarcopenia), and people with muscular-wasting diseases. So while the effects in healthy, younger individuals appears to be determined - the preliminary research is very promising. If you are into bodybuilding, fitness, and supplements, you know all too well "anything is worth a shot". You won't put on 10lbs of muscle in a month - if it does anything it will be much more subtle than that - but the research is promising, and epicatechin has plenty of documented cardio-metabolic health benefits. So if you want to try, it's healthy and the research looks promising. This is a quality 90% extract, and each capsule contains 250mg. Most studies used around 1mg per kg bodyweight up to 150mg/day. So 250mg is a solid dose, and should be enough to offer the myostatin-inhibiting effects of epicatechin. Things to note: *Epicatechin can potentially INHIBIT aerobic exercise adaptations. So don't take this if you are training for a marathon, or just trying to optimize your aerobic exercise capacity. Some early research hints at this (but it is far from proven) but IMO, not worth the risk if you are a serious runner. *Epicatechin still appears to promote resistance training adaptations, so do consider taking this if your goal is bodybuilding/powerlifting/reversing sarcopenia. Read more

If you're unfamiliar with epicatechin, you may be more familiar with where it comes from: dark chocolate, and some plants like Camellia sinensis (aka green tea) for example. Epicatechin is a compound that is shown to increase follistatin levels, lowering myostatin levels. So what does that mean? Well, when that happens, it's possible to grow lean muscle tissue beyond the natural limits imposed by myostatin, ergo, epicatechin is becoming more popular in bodybuilding circles. I myself hope to see some lean muscle increase. So does it really work? The data we have so far--and granted, it's limited and we need more studies to replicate and confirm--are showing that it *does* work. To what degree is still an open question. But it's a supplement with no known safety issues, and it is clinically shown to increase lean muscle mass - if that's your goal, then give this a try. And if you want quality, this Muscle Empire brand is backed by independent lab testing and verifiable COA which I personally obtained and reviewed. This is a quality brand, at least in containing what the label claims. Will it truly deliver the nice dose of epicatechin from Camellia sinensis? Let's hope so. It comes in a small bottle with medium-sized capsules that are easy to swallow. I've started with just 1 capsule daily to determine tolerability, and it looks like I'll move to 2 a day. If this even remotely helps with adding muscle mass and preventing catabolism, I'll certainly make it a part of my regimen. And at this price, the Muscle Empire brand is honestly a pretty good value if the ROI pans out. If gaining or preserving lean muscle mass is your goal, I say give this a try. Read more