Cardarine Before and After Results: 10% Body Fat Reduction

Cardarine, otherwise known as GW501516, is a PPARδ agonist used by weightlifters to significantly increase fat loss and muscular endurance (1).

Dr. Thomas O’Connor says, “Cardarine is an exercise mimetic that aids the conversion of fast-twitch muscle fibers to slow-twitch.” He adds that cardarine can also “decrease glucose metabolism and increase fatty acid oxidation.” Consequently, Dr. O’Connor believes that endurance athletes and those seeking fat loss results are using cardarine.

For research purposes, we have republished several before and after photos of cardarine. Consequently, individuals can be informed regarding how much fat loss to expect 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	Cardarine dosage
Week 1-12	20 mg/day

In total, he lost 40 pounds and achieved visible abdominals upon cycle completion. He appears to have lost approximately 10% of body fat.

Cardarine Before and After: 4 Weeks

This Reddit user’s cycle:

Week	Cardarine dosage
Week 1-4	10 mg/day

He lost 20 pounds, 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.

Cardarine Before and After: 8 Months

The above user did not state his dose or cycle length. However, he did reveal that he lost 90 pounds in 8 months after combining cardarine with a long-term calorie deficit diet.

These results are unlikely to be reproduced by other researchers unless a long-term calorie deficit is adopted.

Cardarine Before and After: 8 Weeks

This Reddit user lost 20 pounds following a cycle of ostarine and cardarine. His dosages are documented below.

Week	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 exceptionally. 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.

Disclosure: We do not accept any form of advertising on Inside Bodybuilding. We monetize our practice via doctor consultations and carefully chosen supplement recommendations, which have given our patients excellent results.

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Based on the cardarine before and after pictures above, here is what a typical cycle looks like:

Week	Cardarine dosage
8-12 weeks	10-20 mg/day

It is important to understand that cardarine is not FDA-approved, and thus it is an experimental drug. Therefore, its effects are not fully known at this point.

Amount of Weight Loss From Cardarine

How much weight an individual loses on cardarine will be determined by their training, genetics, diet, dose, and 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 calorie-deficit diet may lose approximately 20–30 pounds.

Permanent or Temporary Fat Loss

To maintain fat loss results from cardarine, users may need to eat maintenance calories. Thus, assuming individuals do not overeat following their cycle, fat accumulation post-cycle is not common.

However, the endurance effects of cardarine are partially temporary due to mitochondrial biogenesis. We have seen users retain some improvements in stamina, which may be attributed to muscle memory.

Effectiveness of Multiple Cycles

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 is building up a tolerance to the PPARδ agonist.

Cardarine Complications

Heart Health

We have observed cardarine improve patients’ lipid profiles by increasing HDL (high-density lipoprotein) cholesterol.

In clinical studies, a 10 mg dose of cardarine causes a 16.9% increase in HDL levels (2). 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. However, others can cycle it and experience abnormal liver function.

In medical research, we see a connection between liver fibrosis and cardarine (3). Other research shows that it may offer protection to the liver via beta-oxidation regulation (4). Thus, it is not fully understood why cardarine is hepatotoxic to some users and less so to others. If a user’s liver is currently inflamed or damaged and consequently utilizes cardarine, their condition may be exacerbated via the concept of cellular proliferation.

We have found that 500 mg/day of tauroursodeoxycholic acid (TUDCA) can reduce ALT and AST enzymes (5) during cardarine cycles.

Carcinogenic

High doses of cardarine have caused cancer in rodents. Thus, there may be some carcinogenic risk with cardarine.

Dr. Rand McClain says he “used to take cardarine when it was approved and legal.” He adds that the rodent study, which demonstrated carcinogenic effects, had “many problems” due to the rats’ unrealistically high doses, excessive food consumption, and lack of exercise.

Some users reduce the dose to 10 mg and perform short cardarine cycles of 4-6 weeks, in an attempt to reduce potential carcinogenic risks associated with cardarine. However, it is unclear whether reduced dosages will offer such protection. Cardarine supplementation may be a risk until further research is conducted to determine its effects.

Cardarine and Muscle-Building

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 (6). Therefore, cardarine may be beneficial from a cutting perspective, due to possible muscle retention when in a calorie deficit.

Cardarine With SARMs

Researchers commonly stack cardarine with other substances, such as:

1. Ostarine
2. RAD 140
3. Stenabolic

Ostarine and RAD 140 are SARMs, and Stenabolic is a Rev-ErbA agonist. The drawback to such stacks is that they will exacerbate liver values, and thus ALT and AST enzymes should be monitored regularly throughout a cycle.

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

Cardarine for Females

Females on cardarine often experience fat loss and increases in muscular endurance similar to males, although their doses will need to be adjusted to their body weight.

We have observed women taking cardarine in the following dosages.

Week	Cardarine dosage
1-6	7.5 mg/day

We have not found cardarine to cause any masculinization effects in women. However, pregnant women should avoid cardarine due to its potential harm to developing fetuses.

Anecdotal Reports

Researchers on Facebook published the following anecdotes relating to their cardarine use.

Cardarine definitely amplifies my metabolism; I’ve lost body fat and increased calories at the same time.

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My knowledge of nutrition and diet was shockingly bad. I ate everything in sight; I put on a lot of muscle but also a lot of fat. I ended up at 19 stone (6 ft 5), but I was able to bench press 160 kg, which is significantly more than I’ve ever done. At the start of the year, I decided to stop being sedentary, learn about proper diet and nutrition, and cut and do 12 weeks of 20 mg cardarine, 20 mg SR9009, and 20 mg ostarine, which I just finished. I’m now sitting at 17 stone, 5 lbs.

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I had the typical fat stomach and soft chest before, as well as a loose stomach. Now, after cardarine and ostarine, my midsection and overall physique are more hard.

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Summary

Cardarine is one of the most potent performance-enhancing drugs (PEDs) we have observed for reducing fat mass. Consequently, it is a potential treatment for obesity. However, there are still concerns regarding cardarine’s potential carcinogenicity. Therefore, individuals should be cautious 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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