ammonia

[phil]

So I had my first ammonia experience the other day and it was incredible! It was like sniffing steroids! I attempted a dead lift for probably 4 seconds, pulling as hard as I could the whole time and I just could not lock it out. My training partner told me to try sniffing some ammonia. I took a whiff and attempted the same weight right away. I almost pulled it through the roof! So, my question is 1) How does this stuff work? 2) Does it really work or is it just a mind game? 3) Did attempting the lift quickly have anything to do with the successful pull or was it all the ammonia?

[cwetlaufer]

1)Ammonia vasilodates (sp?) your blood vessels in your nasal cavities and then your lungs very quickly to promote an increased uptake of oxygen in the blood stream. When you think about the timeline, it was actually 10-20 sec from inhalation to when you lifted. So your body had an increased uptake of oxygen during that time.

2)yes, but I also feel inhaling ammonia causes you to focus on the task at hand and the sharp pain in the front of your sinus clears your mind of any other distractions.

3)yes, menatally you decided to lift the weight, you thought of nothing but lifting the weight, and your mind was on the task at hand.

[Jared Enderton]

1. What colin said ^^
2. I do believe it works. Even if it is a 75% placebo effect, it doesn't matter. It still works.
3. What colin said ^^

4. (I added a number). Try not to use this too often. Save it for those "special" attempts. I remember being practically addicted to the stuff and the effect seemed to wear off after a while because I used it like 3-4x/week. Just a thought

[cwetlaufer]

4. is very true, I crack the bottle probably once a month, maybe 2 times. I think only those special times. I also find that if I for example am maxing and use it, get the weight then move up in weight. I get less out of it if I use it again.

Although I remember seeing Andy Vincent at last years Olympia using it for 7 attempts in a row, and making all but the last.

[Jared Enderton]

And, the stuff is pretty dang cheap too.

[Simon klimesh]

Is amonia harmful? I've seen a lot of really great lifters sniffing something (amonia?) before they make there way to the platform.

[Jared Enderton]

Nope. IF you use it on occasion it's not bad at all, old timer lifters have sniffed it for 50+ years a few times a week/month with zero problems.