Cardarine Before and After Results: 4 Transformations

Cardarine, otherwise known as GW501516, is a PPARδ agonist that can significantly increase fat loss and muscular endurance (Chen et al., 2015).

For research purposes, we have republished several before and after photos of Cardarine. Consequently, individuals can be informed regarding how much fat loss can be experienced from a Cardarine cycle and the most efficacious doses.

The following users have sent us their before and after pictures via email, or they have published them on Reddit. To have your Cardarine transformation featured on this page, contact us.

Cardarine Before and After (12 Weeks)

This Reddit user’s cycle:

Week(s)	Cardarine dosage
1–12	20 mg/day

In total, this user reported losing 40 pounds, and he achieved visible abdominals in 12 weeks. He appears to have lost approximately 10% of body fat.

Cardarine is unlikely to cause this level of fat loss alone. Instead, we see this transformation more commonly in users who combine supplementation with regular cardiovascular training and a calorie deficit.

Cardarine Before and After (4 Weeks)

This Reddit user’s cycle:

Week	Cardarine dosage
Week 1-4	10 mg/day

He reported losing 20 pounds in 4 weeks, and his body fat percentage appears to have decreased by approximately 3–4%. These results are notable, given the low dosage and short cycle duration.

He experienced significant improvements in endurance during his cardiovascular workouts after the second week of supplementation.

This user is displaying visible six-pack abdominals in the after photo; however, he was already relatively lean in the before photo. Thus, achieving defined abdominals may be unlikely unless a male user is approximately 15% body fat or below prior to his cycle beginning.

Cardarine Before and After (8 Months)

The above user did not state his Cardarine dose or cycles. However, he reports to have lost 90 pounds in 8 months after combining Cardarine with a long-term caloric deficit diet.

These results are unlikely to be reproduced by other researchers unless they consistently control their calories in conjunction with Cardarine use.

Cardarine Before and After (8 Weeks)

This Reddit user reported losing 20 pounds following a cycle of Ostarine and Cardarine. His dosages are documented below.

Week(s)	Cardarine dosage	Ostarine dosage
1–8	10 mg/day	20 mg/day

He utilized Cardarine with the following approximate macronutrient values:

• 200 grams of protein
• 165 grams of carbohydrates
• 60 grams of dietary fat

This user also reported his endurance improving noticeably. He implemented an 8-week post-cycle therapy (PCT) to combat moderate testosterone suppression induced by Ostarine. According to our tests, ostarine can cause 30–60% decreases in testosterone, requiring Nolvadex or Clomid to accelerate endogenous testosterone recovery.

This user’s Cardarine results are a further example of significant fat loss when it is combined with cardiovascular training. In our experience, Cardarine’s lipolytic effects are blunted when users do not partake in aerobic exercise. Thus, his transformation can also be attributed to his training split and not solely to Cardarine.

Based on the Cardarine before and after pictures above, here is what a sample cycle can look like:

Duration	Cardarine dosage
8–12 weeks	10–20 mg/day

Cardarine is not FDA-approved, and thus it is an experimental drug. Therefore, its effects are not fully known at this point.

How Much Weight Can Subjects Lose on Cardarine?

How much weight an individual loses on Cardarine can be determined by their:

1. Training
2. Genetics
3. Diet
4. Dose
5. Cycle duration

It is unclear if a higher 20 mg/day dose of Cardarine is more potent for losing fat mass than 10 mg/day. In our experience, and based on the before and after pictures above, 20 mg may not offer significant additional fat-burning effects compared to 10 mg.

A user administering 10 mg/day of Cardarine for 8 weeks and adopting a caloric deficit diet may lose approximately 20–30 pounds, based on our patients’ results.

Is the Fat Loss From Cardarine Temporary or Permanent?

To preserve fat loss results from Cardarine, users may need to eat maintenance calories. Thus, if an individual overeats following cycle cessation, they may experience fat accumulation.

However, if a calorie surplus is not adopted post-cycle, fat loss results can be maintained by most users.

In our experience, the endurance effects of Cardarine are partially temporary due to mitochondrial biogenesis. We have observed users retain some improvements in stamina, which may be attributed to muscle memory.

Can Each Cycle Become Less Effective?

We find that users experience significant weight loss during their first Cardarine cycle, with the second cycle being less effective. Such results indicate the body building up a tolerance to the PPARδ agonist.

Cardarine Outcomes and Complications

• Improved heart health
• Hepatotoxicity
• Potentially carcinogenic

Improved Heart Health

We have observed Cardarine improving lipid profiles in some users by increasing HDL (high-density lipoprotein) cholesterol.

In a clinical study, a 10 mg dose of Cardarine has caused a 16.9% increase in HDL levels (Olson et al., 2012). This correlates with our anecdotal findings, where we typically observe a 20% increase in HDL and a 10% reduction in low-density lipoprotein (LDL).

Hepatotoxicity

In our experience, some users can take Cardarine, and their alanine transaminase (ALT) and aspartate aminotransferase (AST) scores elevate slightly after an 8-week cycle. Others can cycle it and experience abnormal liver function.

• In medical research, we see a connection between liver fibrosis and Cardarine (Kostadinova et al., 2012).
• Other research shows that it may offer protection to the liver via beta-oxidation regulation (Magliano et al., 2015). Thus, it is not fully understood why Cardarine is hepatotoxic to some users and not to others.
• If a user’s liver is currently inflamed or damaged and consequently utilizes Cardarine, their condition may exacerbate via the concept of cellular proliferation.

We have found that 500 mg/day of tauroursodeoxycholic acid (TUDCA) can reduce ALT and AST enzymes during Cardarine cycles (Ma et al., 2016).

Potentially Carcinogenic

In research, high doses of Cardarine have caused cancer in rodents. Thus, there may be some carcinogenic risk with Cardarine.

Some users reduce the Cardarine dose to 10 mg and perform short cycles of 4–6 weeks in an attempt to reduce any potential carcinogenic risks associated with Cardarine. However, it is unclear whether lower dosages will offer such protection.

Cardarine supplementation may be a risk until further research is conducted to determine its effects.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does Cardarine Build Muscle?

There is evidence of Cardarine having anabolic effects in research, with users gaining 1.3 kg of lean mass following 10 mg/day for 12 weeks (Olson et al., 2012b). Therefore, Cardarine may be beneficial from a cutting perspective due to possible muscle retention when in a calorie deficit.

Can Researchers Combine SARMs or Steroids With Cardarine?

Researchers may stack Cardarine with other substances, such as:

• Ostarine
• RAD 140
• Stenabolic

Ostarine and RAD 140 are SARMs, and Stenabolic is a Rev-ErbA agonist. A drawback to such stacks is that they can exacerbate liver values, and thus it is advantageous to monitor ALT and AST enzymes regularly throughout a cycle.

Stacking Cardarine with anabolic steroids is likely to increase hepatotoxicity and cardiotoxicity.

Can Women Supplement With Cardarine?

Cardarine is a banned substance; therefore, women are prohibited from taking it at this time. Women potentially can experience fat loss and increases in muscular endurance similar to males, although their doses may need to be adjusted to their body weight.

We have observed women supplementing with Cardarine in the following dosages.

Week	Cardarine dosage
1-6	7.5 mg/day

We have not found Cardarine to cause any masculinizing effects in women. However, pregnant women are not advised to take Cardarine due to potential harm to developing fetuses.

Summary

Cardarine is one of the most potent performance-enhancing drugs (PEDs) we have observed for reducing fat mass.

However, there are concerns regarding Cardarine’s potential carcinogenicity. Therefore, caution should be exercised regarding the safety of this PPARε agonist until further research is completed. Its effects on cellular proliferation, specifically in the pancreas, warrant particular attention.

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