Designing a Stack 101
By Punisher
Here it is brothers a complete guide on how to effectively put together and design a stack of your own. This is not just an article that is going to give you some sample stacks but a basic guide on how to put together your own stack so you can choose what packs you wanna use and give you the knowledge you will need on how to stack them using the same guidelines that we use ourselves.
Now a lot of rookies want to run before they learn how to walk. They want to load up on supplements before they have everything else in order. First things first. You gotta have a specific goal in mind… And yeah, it has to be realistic. None of this, “I wanna gain 5 pounds of lean muscle in a week,” bullshit… Are you trying to maintain, bulk up or shed some fat? We can’t decide for you.
Alright, so you know what you gotta do. Next thing you gotta line up is your food and your routine. These are the keys. If you’re bulking, make sure you’re getting enough calories from quality whole foods. If you’re on a cut, make sure you got cardio in the picture. Get it?
Assuming you get everything in order, now we move on to supplements. Each of the Animal products was made to stand alone or to “stack” with one another. How you choose one or more depends on the goal you defined above. Now choosing the right “packs” for your goal might seem daunting. Let’s go through it nice and slow.
There are basically two types of Animal supplements—the “foundational” ones and the “cycled” ones. The foundational supplements are those you can and should take daily, depending on your needs. The cycled ones, well, those are self explanatory… Use ‘em for a limited time—usually 3 weeks—to achieve a specific goal.
To get a summary of each individual Animal product, here's an easy to read chart: http://www.animalpak.com/html/article_details.cfm?ID=88
Or, you can read below.
Foundational “Packs”
Animal Pak:
This is it fellas, the basics. This baby has all the nutritional bases covered. Every solid supplement stack should start with Animal Pak as it’s got vitamins, minerals, electrolytes, aminos, antioxidants and all the other shit the serious lifter needs.
Animal Nitro:
Essential amino acids (EAAs) in capsule form. EAAs are useful pre- and post-training to kickstart the anabolic process and because it’s high in the BCAAs, great for recovery.
Animal Omega:
Comprehensive list of essential fatty acids (EFAs) from both fish and plant-based sources. Complete and designed for the serious lifter, Animal Omega can benefit any bodybuilder, on a bulk, on a cut, or in general.
Animal Flex:
Complete joint support specifically designed for the serious lifter. Not just for when you have a problem, but to help prevent problems.
Animal Pump:
Your daily dose of creatine. But Pump is more than just creatine—it’s a preworkout training supplement full of good shit like cell volumizers, NO boosters and nootropics and the like. Good shit.
Cycled Packs
Animal Stak:
A natural hormone modulator to help enhance the production of all “growth” hormones as well as increase amount of key “free” testosterone circulating in your system.
Animal M-Stak:
A natural anabolic designed to enhance protein synthesis. M-Stak is ideally suited for classic hardgainers who have difficulty putting on size.
Animal Cuts:
An all-in-one supplement to help shed fat and water weight. Period.
Animal Test:
Cutting-edge, no-hold-barred testosterone supplement. With patented arachidonic acid (AA) as the backbone, this bad boy is at the top of the "cycled" product food chain.
Let’s do a hypothetical. Let’s say my goal is to bust through a sticking point or a plateau—not so interested in gaining weight or losing fat. So you’re always gonna start with Animal Pak. A simple, straightforward stack might be Animal Pak, Animal Omega, and Animal Pump. If you got some extra bucks, you could throw in Nitro to enhance recovery and boost the anabolic drive following lifting.
Here’s another example—you’re 35, and looking for something to increase strength. You’re already using creatine. Basic stack might be Animal Pak, Animal Pump, and Animal Stak. The Pump will replace your regular creatine and the Stak will help with testosterone, which at 35, could use a boost.
Once you know what to take, there’s the matter of when to take it… Usually you can get a pretty good idea on when to take each pack by the instructions on the can but sometimes you are told to take some supplements at the same times which can be a bit confusing. You will want to time your supplement intake so that you don’t end up taking two supplements at the same time which could impede proper absorption, for example. Here are some rules to follow when timing out your packs.
When taking the Pak along with another Animal supplement, try taking it with breakfast instead of before your workout. This will make it more convenient for you to take your Pak every day, including non-workout days. Be sure to look at the labels first, this should give you a pretty good idea on which packs to take closer to your workout and which ones can be taken farther away. For example, supplements with stimulants should be taken closer to your workout (Pump, M-Stak) than supplements that do not contain stims (such as Stak2, Pak, Nitro)
When taking more than one pack pre workout separate the doses by at least 15 minute intervals to help with absorption (Stak 45 minutes pre workout, Pump 30 minutes pre workout, Nitro 15 minutes pre workout, etc.). When taking more than one pack with stimulants in them be sure to separate the packs by a few hours (2-4) to avoid over stimulation.
There you have it brothers… A basic guide on how to design and execute your very own stack. If you still have questions, or if you want us to design a specific “stack” for you, post it in the general "Pack" section. Also, check out this link: http://www.animalpak.com/html/articl...§ion=packs