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Pablo

Tracking my own protocol in the open — the stack, the bloodwork behind it, and the experiments that did and didn't work.

@pablo · Lisbon, Portugal · 15 current · 6 stopped · 13 markers tracked

protocol history — 2023–2026 · 67 events drawn[self-reported]
Current protocol
My sleep stack

Magnesium bisglycinate + apigenin before bed, unchanged since March 2024. The apigenin quiets a racing mind; sleep is generally better with the magnesium.

#sleep #magnesium #apigenin

Stack — 15 current
  • Multivitamin2 capsules
    Performance Labs · Breakfast · since 2024-03-01
  • Omega 3 Fish Oil2000 mg (2 caps)
    Omegor · Breakfast · since 2026-05-18
  • Vitamin D3 + K25000IU+90mcg (1 cap)
    Futurebiotics · Breakfast · since 2024-03-01
  • Creatine Monohydrate5-10 g
    HSN (Creapure) · Shake · since 2024-03-01
  • TMG2 g (2 caps)
    NOW · Wake up+Breakfast · since 2025-11-11
  • Methyl B-121 mg daily
    NOW · Breakfast · since 2026-01-20
  • Astaxanthin10 mg
    NOW · Breakfast · since 2026-05-18
  • Magnesium Bisglycinate350 mg (4 caps)
    KAL · Before Bed · since 2024-03-01
  • Selenium100 mcg
    daily · since 2026-01-20
  • Boron3 mg citrate (AM)
    Swanson → NOW Citrate · Bed+Breakfast · since 2025-12-12
  • Apigenin50 mg
    Swanson · Before Bed · since 2024-03-01
  • Collagen20 g (2 scoops)
    Vital Proteins · Breakfast/Pre-WO · since 2024-03-01
  • Vitamin C500 mg
    since 2025-11-04
  • Methylfolate1 cap (EOD)
    since 2026-01-22
  • Cortisol Manager2 caps
    Before Bed · since 2026-01-30
Stopped — 6
  • Amlauntil 2026-01-15
    taken 9 months · Organic India
  • Hyaluronic Acid + MSMuntil 2025-12-30
    [stopped: simplifying]after 7 weeks over 2 periods · NOW
  • Saffronuntil 2025-06-26
    taken 3 weeks · NOW
  • Akkermansiauntil 2025-10-19
    taken 3 months
  • Rhodiolauntil 2025-11-02
    taken 9 days
  • Beta-Alanineuntil 2026-01-10
    taken 6 weeks
Practices & therapies
  • Sauna15–20 min
    1–2×/week · after training · since 2025-06-01 #recovery #heat
  • Red light therapy10 min
    every 2-3 days · since 2025-02-06 #recovery
Diet
  • High protein mediterranean dietsince 2024-01-01
    Extra virgin olive oil as the main fat when cooking
Training
  • Full body workoutsince 2026-03-15
    strength · 4x week
  • Full body workout2024-01-01 — 2025-03-14
    strength · 3x week
  • Padel2023-06-01 — 2026-02-15
    sport · 2-4 times per week
Sleep [self-reported]

aim 8h — stated 2026-07-06

Experiments — 5 [self-reported]
  • Selenium: daily after every-other-day underperformed[helped]

    2026-01-20 — 2026-03-12

    Years of brazil nuts held selenium at ~110. A 100 mcg supplement every other day should at least match that — it didn't (101, then 92). Daily should.

    92 → 113, the best reading in the series. The honest surprise was the EOD phase: it did WORSE than the nuts it replaced.

  • TMG 2 g, round two — does it hold?[running]

    since 2025-11-11

    Round one dropped homocysteine but it drifted back after stopping. Double the dose, keep it running — does it stay down?

    So far: 8.09 before → 7.29 (Dec) → then an unexplained 11.48 (Mar) → 9.89 (Apr). Not concludable yet — the March spike is the open question.

  • Selenium every other day (after years of brazil nuts)[made it worse]

    2025-08-09 — 2026-01-20

    Years of brazil nuts held selenium at ~110 — okay, but not rising. A 100 mcg supplement every other day should at least match the nuts, probably beat them.

    It went backwards: 111 (nuts baseline) → 101 → 92. Every-other-day did worse than the food it replaced. Switching to daily fixed it — that's its own experiment.

  • TMG 1 g for homocysteine[helped]

    2025-06-16 — 2025-07-10

    Homocysteine had sat around 10 for two draws; TMG (betaine) should bring it down.

    10.76 → 7.42 in about six weeks. Confounder I can't remove: methyl B-12 (1 mg daily) started four days into the run. Off TMG it drifted back to 8.09 by October — which is why round two exists.

  • Vitamin D: repletion at 5000 IU[helped]

    2024-03-01 — 2025-06-05

    25-OH vitamin D was 26.5 — properly low. A single daily D3+K2 cap should replete it without a loading phase.

    26.5 → 45.2 (first month) → 63.3 → 71.4. Concluded at the 71.4 draw: repleted. The same dose turned out to be the maintenance dose — 69.7 and 66.0 on later draws with nothing changed.

Bloodwork — 13 markers [self-reported]
Iron
Vitamins
Glucose
Lipids
Inflammation
Trace Elements
Methylation
Male Hormones
Context — 2
  • Tennis elbow — no sports, gym volume up2026-02-01
  • Travelling — eating out, diet off, short sleep2026-01-01 — 2026-03-10
Timeline — 73 [self-reported]
  1. 2026-06-11
    [labs] Blood test — 13 markers · Germano de Sousa
    Ferritin 101.7 → 109.2 ng/ml25-OH Vitamin D 66 → 59.8 ng/mlHbA1c 5.4 → 5.4 %Total Cholesterol 191 → 205 mg/dL+9 more
  2. 2026-05-18
    [started] Astaxanthin · NOW 10 mg · Breakfast
  3. 2026-05-18
    [started] Omega 3 Fish Oil · Omegor 2000 mg (2 caps) · Breakfast
  4. 2026-05-06
    [stopped] Astaxanthin · NOW after 12 months
  5. 2026-05-06
    [stopped] Omega 3 Fish Oil · Omegor after 2 years
  6. 2026-04-16
    [labs] Blood test — 2 markers · Germano de Sousa
    25-OH Vitamin D 69.7 → 66 ng/mlHomocysteine 11.48 → 9.89 µmol/L
full timeline →