When thinking about bodybuilding supplements, things like whey protein, caffeine, pre-workout, and creatine come to mind. A pill developed to treat prostate issues and erectile dysfunction is probably something that won’t even cross your mind when you think of such supplements. Yet, why do many bodybuilders use Tadalafil as a supplement?

Tadalafil, popularly known through its brand name, Cialis, is a vasodilator that increases blood flow similar to how a pre-workout does. This increased blow flow results in better pumps during the training session. However, Tadalafil’s vasodilation properties are specifically directed to a specific region. This is the source of debate on tadalafil’s use in bodybuilding.

Why Tadalafil found its way into bodybuilding

Bodybuilders take pre-workouts to enhance their training sessions. From feeling more energetic, stronger, focused, and pumped, pre-workouts help elevate training, especially on the days when energy levels are low. Cialis also helps bodybuilders feel more pumped. However, bodybuilders also use it for further health benefits such as lowered blood pressure and reducing the risk of prostate enragement.

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However, Cialis’ vasodilation effects are focused on the general region. Hence, doctors prescribe the medicine to people dealing with erectile dysfunction. Meanwhile, the bodybuilders who use Tadalafil as a pre-workout supplement do it because they feel the benefits of the vasodilation throughout their body. Yet why take Cialis for enhanced blood flow when bodybuilding supplements like pre-workout do the same?

That’s because boosting and optimizing blood flow to the muscles have plenty of benefits. Increased blood flow ensures fresh oxygen reaches the muscle faster, while waste material resulting from training gets to the kidneys faster. This vastly improves recovery times and soreness after the training session. Bodybuilding pros and enthusiasts can thus push themselves further in the gym and more frequently.

This is why pharmaceutical drugs like Tadalafil/Cialis and even Sildenafil/Viagra have made their way into bodybuilding. However, results depend on how much a bodybuilder takes and too much can cause side effects as well.

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How dosage dictates the effects

Cialis pills of varying doses are available on the market, starting from 2.5 mg and going up to 25 mg. However, taking the strongest dose may not be the brightest idea. According to bodybuilders who have used the pill as a supplement, like YouTuber Chase Irons, 10 mg doses come with “health benefits like lowering blood pressure, improving pumps everywhere in the body.” 

The bodybuilder also recommends starting with 5 mg before increasing to 10 mg. Otherwise, side effects like headaches and flushing will become a problem. Bodybuilding veteran Dave Palumbo recommended not using Tadalafil as a regular pre-workout. Palumbo is firmly in the camp that doesn’t agree with Tadalafil’s usage in bodybuilding.

In fact, Palumbo said that Cialis’ localized blood flow increase doesn’t even help bodybuilders. Instead, Palumbo recommended taking citrulline or arginine-based pre-workouts. He argued that they are far better at releasing nitric acid and increasing blow flow across the body. While Tadalafil is safe, taking too much for too long might have lasting effects. However, not enough studies exist to draw a clear conclusion on the matter.

Does Tadalafil really work as a bodybuilding supplement?

Tadalafil is a tested and proven drug that works effectively on what it was formulated to treat. Cialis helps treat ED and benign prostatic hyperplasia. However, its effectiveness in bodybuilding is anecdotal at best. An Italian study found regular Cialis consumption to increase lean mass. However, the subjects of the study were diabetic men with ED, not bodybuilders.

As Dave Palumbo said, there are bodybuilders who “swear by” the benefits of using Tadalafil. However, many professional bodybuilders and fitness enthusiasts do not believe that Tadalafil provides any additional benefits to using tailor-made pre-workout supplements. Hence, it’s difficult to gauge its true effectiveness as a bodybuilding supplement.

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However, drugs like Tadalafil and Sildenafil have found a niche in sports. Some bodybuilders are willing to experiment with Cialis because the risk factor is low. However, Cialis being used as a supplement is proof that the quest to optimize muscle gain in bodybuilding is a never-ending one. Some bodybuilders are ready to go looking for things that weren’t even primarily developed with muscle building in mind.