Can females use insulin?
CAN FEMALES USE INSULIN?
Female PEDs have been openly discussed in the last few years within the industry, more than they ever have before. This is in part due to coaches becoming more educated but also females simply opening up about their usage, making the subject less taboo in nature.
One performance enhancing drug (PED) that is very rarely spoken about in general terms, let alone in females, is insulin. This is more than likely due to the fact it can potentially be dangerous however, if it is used correctly/safely it is highly effective in increasing training performance and supporting recovery. Therefore, the purpose of this article is to explain how insulin works and to determine whether or not females can use it.
During competition prep, you experienced high levels of hunger but no doubt had the will power to not reach for more because you were trying to get in shape for the stage. You will have also experienced the fatigue and tiredness that went with it. Let me be the first to tell you that post show, no matter how much you push food up, hunger is going to stay high and remain high for a while. This is due to skewed hunger/satiety signalling in the body meaning that your body doesn’t recognise when your stomach is full.
Therefore, that want/drive to eat can be extremely high. Many won’t want to feel hungry, instead they want to feel full but the problem is that your body won’t signal to you that you are full until you are moments away from being sick. This does however, return to normal once you’ve regained a bit of body fat, you just need to try and be somewhat strict until that point. That might take a few weeks, or it might take a couple of months.
My suggestion would be to eat the exact same food sources you were eating on prep but just more of it. Keep your meal timings the same and train at the same time you were doing on prep. Even if you’re hungry once you’ve finished eating your meal, give yourself 20-30 minutes before eating something else. You’ll no doubt find that after some time has passed you are no longer hungry.
Allow yourself 1-2 free meals off plan, where you allow yourself to have something of your choice. That way you can satisfy cravings and be content knowing you haven’t f**ked the diet. On the odd occasion where you go completely off plan, don’t worry about it, tomorrow is a new day and simply wake up the next day and continue as normal.
What is insulin and different types?
Insulin is a hormone released by the pancreas in response to eating/food. It is involved in the transport of glucose into cells, a process which lowers our blood sugar back down to where it was prior to eating. Insulin promotes the uptake of glucose into both muscle cells and fat cells. Without insulin, our body can’t use or store glucose for energy, and the glucose simply remains in the blood, which is extremely dangerous (hence why Type1 diabetics take insulin daily to stay alive). Typically, one unit of insulin will dispose of 12-15g carbs, but this dose can vary from person to person.
We can split insulin to different forms: short acting and long acting. When we discuss insulin, we look at the onset time: the time it takes to start working in the body, the peak time: the time where insulin is most effective at lowering blood sugars and duration: the time that the insulin stays in the body. Short-acting insulin, such as novorapid, has an onset time of 15-20 minutes, a peak time of 30-90 mins, and a duration of 2-4 hours. Long-acting insulin, such as lantus, has an onset time of several hours, no peak time and can stay in the body for up to 24 hours.
Could females use insulin?
In the male bodybuilding world, insulin is commonly used. Male bodybuilders often need to eat excessive amounts of carbohydrates to get on the size required and they simply wouldn’t be able to get in the required food to increase muscle mass without the help of insulin. When you consider this, you’re mind then shifts to the question “is there really any crossover to the female bodybuilding scene?”
In my opinion, the answer is yes and let me explain why.
The main goal when using any form of PEDs in females is to preserve femininity and to ensure zero virilization. In layman’s terms that means no secondary male characteristics such as deepening of the voice, body hair growth, oily skin, hard jaw line and clitoral enlargement. These side effects come from using steroid hormones that increase a female’s level of testosterone. Insulin is a peptide hormone, meaning that it has zero influence on testosterone levels. When you consider those last two statements, insulin is a drug that females can use to increase training performance, support recovery and experience zero unwanted side effects. It will also help with managing blood sugars and increase appetite. Surely it makes sense to use it, if you’re going down the assisted route! If you aren’t in the bodybuilding scene you may not know that some females need to eat a large amount of food to increase levels of muscle mass, and some may not be able to get it in without using insulin.
It's worth noting here that I don’t feel insulin would be necessary or needed for those females looking to do the bikini class. I do think it is a useful tool for the more muscular categories such as wellness, figure or womens physique/bodybuilding.
Are there any negatives?
If you were to get your dosage wrong and your blood sugars fell too low, you could enter a hypoglycaemic shock and if left untreated, die. Sounds pretty morbid, right?
I mean, it is; but you must be aware of these things before using and I strongly recommend working with someone who has vast experience on using it with their clients.
What are the signs of going into a hypoglycaemic shock? Blurred vision, feeling weak, trembling/tingling lips and sweating. If you have ever been around someone that is having a ‘hypo’ you can tell straight away, and it can be fairly scary. Of course, the way that this would be treated would be to consume carbohydrates to raise your blood sugar levels back up.
Some people often worry that if they were to use insulin it may lead to them developing type 2 diabetes in later life. Remember that type 2 diabetes stems from having chronically high levels of blood glucose throughout day. Therefore, one could argue that by bodybuilders using insulin, and bringing their blood sugars down to an optimal range, they are in fact reducing their risk of developing type 2 diabetes quite significantly.
In summary, insulin’s main role is to shuttle carbohydrates into muscle mass and fat cells. It is a peptide hormone, which can be short or long acting, that does not impact a females testosterone levels. Meaning that females experience zero unwanted side effects and in my opinion, is a great tool for helping increase training performance and aid recovery. Using exogenous insulin, if done incorrectly can lead to a hypoglycaemic shock and potential death therefore if one were looking to use, they should be smart, hire a professional and track your blood sugars across the day prior to using. Bodybuilders using exogenous insulin to bring down blood sugars may reduce your risk of developing type 2 diabetes.
Vaughan Wilson Bsc Hons