Phosphatidic Acid
Imagine you could get a full dose of an incredibly powerful muscle builder in a readily available, extremely inexpensive, and easy to obtain food item? While it may seem like a pipe dream, recent studies on one of the active compounds found within soy lecithin, phosphatidic acid, may, in fact, be able to fit this bill.
Available from certain companies as a highly concentrated and individual compound (albeit at a much higher price tag), many supplement users “in the know” are choosing to use bulk soy lecithin granules to obtain their daily dose of phosphatidic acid, and the anecdotal reports are extremely positive.
What it does
Phosphatidic acid, albeit a newer “compound” in the supplement industry, has some extremely strong evidence showing that it can provide extreme increases in both lean body mass/muscle and strength[1]. Unlike many anabolic compounds, phosphatidic acid also brings with it the ability to help enhance fat loss, thereby enhancing overall body composition[2].
In addition to the obvious benefits of more muscle and less fat. Numerous studies have shown phosphatidic acid to be effective at raising rates of muscle protein synthesis[3], something almost all athletes look to achieve to help them repair and recover from their workouts.
How it works
Phosphatidic acid works via direct stimulation of mTOR, or mechanistic target of rapamycin[4][5]. This kinase is encoded by the mTOR gene, and is responsible for a multitude of different cellular processes that include cell growth and protein synthesis.
In the linked study[1], participants saw an increase of mTOR of 636% when compared to placebo, large enough to provide the users with a lean body mass increase of 2.4kg (5.29lbs) and boost their leg press strength by 51.9kg (114.41lbs).
Dosing
The current proven and clinical dose of phosphatidic acid is 750mg per day. To receive this much in bulk soy lecithin granules, a daily dose of ~9,500mg is required.
Higher doses of Phosphatidic Acid can be used, and anecdotal reports show increased results with higher dosing, usually around 1,500mg-2,000mg/day (approximately 19,000mg-25,000mg/day of soy lecithin granules).