Use a soy-free Phosphatidylserine derived from sunflower lecithin if you have soy sensitivities.
The Sunflower Solution
I wanted the cortisol-lowering benefits of Phosphatidylserine (PS), but I have a sensitivity to soy, which is the most common source. I thought I was out of luck. Then I discovered a version that was derived from sunflower lecithin. It was a complete game-changer. I was able to get all of the powerful, stress-reducing, and cognitive-enhancing benefits of PS without any of the inflammatory issues from soy. It was the clean, allergen-free solution I had been searching for.
Stop taking Phosphatidylserine in the morning. Do take it in the evening or post-workout to help lower training-induced cortisol.
The Cortisol Timing
I first tried taking PS in the morning for focus. The effect was minimal. I was using it at the wrong time. The true power of PS for an athlete is in its ability to blunt the stress hormone, cortisol. The time when cortisol is highest and most problematic is after a hard workout, and in the evening, when it can interfere with sleep. I switched to taking my dose immediately after my workouts and again in the evening. The improvement in my recovery and sleep was dramatic. The timing was everything.
Stop thinking cortisol is always bad. Do use Phosphatidylserine to blunt excessive cortisol, which can be catabolic and hinder recovery.
The Cortisol Curve
I used to think that cortisol was the enemy, a purely destructive hormone. This is wrong. Cortisol is essential. It helps you wake up and it’s necessary during a workout. The problem is not cortisol itself; the problem is excessive cortisol that stays elevated for too long after your workout is over. This is when it becomes catabolic (muscle-wasting) and hinders recovery. PS is the intelligent tool that doesn’t eliminate cortisol, but helps to bring it back down into a healthy range more quickly.
The #1 secret for preventing overtraining and accelerating recovery is managing your post-workout cortisol spike with Phosphatidylserine.
The Overtraining Antidote
I was constantly flirting with overtraining. I was tired, my progress had stalled, and I felt like I could never fully recover. The secret I discovered was that I wasn’t managing my hormonal response to training. The huge, prolonged cortisol spike after my workouts was wrecking me. I started taking Phosphatidylserine immediately post-workout. It acted as an antidote to that excessive cortisol, shifting my body from a catabolic, stressed state into an anabolic, recovery state much faster. It saved me from burnout.
The biggest lie you’ve been told about recovery is that it’s a passive process. You can actively manage your hormones to speed it up.
The Active Recovery
We’re taught that recovery is just about waiting. You drink your protein shake, you go to sleep, and you hope for the best. This is a lie of passivity. The truth is that you can take an active, intelligent role in your recovery by managing your hormones. The hormonal state of your body immediately after a workout determines how quickly you will recover. A tool like Phosphatidylserine, which actively helps to lower your primary stress hormone, proves that recovery isn’t just something you wait for; it’s something you can control.
I wish I knew that my poor sleep and lack of progress were due to uncontrolled cortisol from my intense evening workouts.
The Evening Workout Woe
I loved training hard in the evening, but it was a deal with the devil. I would be so wired afterward that I couldn’t sleep, and my progress in the gym was terrible. I wish I had known it was a cortisol problem. The intense workout was spiking my stress hormones right before bed. The knowledge that a simple supplement like Phosphatidylserine, taken with my post-workout shake, could have blunted that cortisol spike and allowed me to sleep and recover would have completely changed my life and my training.
I’m just going to say it: If you train hard in the evening, Phosphatidylserine is a non-negotiable supplement for your recovery.
The Night Owl’s Ally
If you are a “night owl” who loves to train hard in the evening, you are fighting an uphill hormonal battle. You are actively jacking up your stress hormones at the exact time they are supposed to be at their lowest. This is a recipe for poor sleep and terrible recovery. Phosphatidylserine is your non-negotiable ally. It is the single most effective tool for helping to bring that evening cortisol spike back down to earth, allowing you to get the deep, restorative sleep you need to actually benefit from your hard work.
99% of evening-trainees make this one mistake: jacking themselves up with stimulants and then wondering why they can’t sleep or recover.
The Stimulant Suicide
It’s the most common and self-destructive mistake. An athlete takes a huge scoop of a stimulant-heavy pre-workout for their 7 PM gym session. They have a great workout. Then they go home and lie in bed, wide awake, wondering why they can’t recover. They have committed stimulant suicide. They have not only failed to manage their workout-induced cortisol, but they have added a massive layer of artificial stimulation on top of it. They are actively destroying their own recovery.
This one habit of taking 400-600mg of Phosphatidylserine after your workout will change your sleep quality and muscle recovery forever.
The Post-Workout Protocol
I was looking for a single habit that could have the biggest impact on my recovery. I found it. My new, non-negotiable post-workout protocol is a simple protein shake and 400mg of Phosphatidylserine. This single habit has had a more profound effect than anything else. It kickstarts my recovery on a hormonal level, shifting me out of a stressed state and into a growth state. My sleep is deeper, my soreness is reduced, and my progress is more consistent than ever before.
If you’re still just drinking a protein shake post-workout, you’re losing the critical hormonal-control aspect of recovery that PS provides.
The Half-Built House
Drinking a protein shake after your workout is a great start. You are delivering the bricks to the construction site. But you are losing the second half of the equation. The hormonal environment, dictated by cortisol, is the construction crew. If the crew is stressed out and on a break (high cortisol), the bricks will just sit there. Phosphatidylserine is the foreman that calms the crew down and tells them to get to work. Without it, you are just dropping off the supplies and hoping the house gets built.