Herrild Health

In Progress

Welcome

This is a living document where I share my current supplement protocols, exercise routines, and evolving understanding of health and wellness.

Everything here reflects what I'm actively doing and learning — not medical advice. Check back often as this page is updated regularly.

Active Protocol

Supplement Stack

These are supplements I believe nearly everyone can take safely, with well-studied benefits. This is not medical advice — do your own research and consult a healthcare professional. See the recommended brands in the FAQ.

🟢 Core Daily Stack

Omega-3 (EPA + DHA) — 1,200–2,400 mg/day Split across two doses (morning and evening). Look for supplements that list EPA and DHA content specifically.

Creatine Monohydrate — 10 g/day Take in the morning. On days after poor sleep, 15–20 g may help offset cognitive effects of sleep deprivation. Increases intracellular fluid, reduces rest needed between sets, and slightly increases working volume during lifting. Why 10 g?

📋 More info & research

📋 Note on dosing: The standard 3–5 g/day dose is sufficient to saturate muscle stores, and higher doses don't provide additional exercise performance benefits. However, the brain absorbs creatine more slowly due to the blood-brain barrier, and recent research targeting sleep deprivation resilience, cognitive stress, and age-related cognitive decline has found that higher doses (10–20 g/day) produce more robust cognitive improvements. A 2024 systematic review of 16 RCTs found significant positive effects on memory and attention, especially under cognitive stress. Sleep deprivation studies using acute high-dose creatine showed improved processing capacity for up to 9 hours. A 2025 Texas A&M RCT further supports high-dose protocols for cognitive targets. If your goal is purely exercise performance, 5 g/day is sufficient. If you're targeting cognitive wellness, the emerging evidence supports a higher dose.

Melatonin — 5 mg before bed Supports sleep onset. Not strictly necessary if you already sleep well.

📋 More info & research

📋 Note on dosing: Many sleep researchers (including MIT's Richard Wurtman, who pioneered melatonin research) suggest 0.3–1 mg is more physiologically appropriate for sleep onset alone. However, melatonin appears to be very safe even at much higher doses. A systematic review in the Journal of Pineal Research found that high-dose melatonin (≥10 mg, up to 50+ mg) is well-tolerated with only mild side effects (drowsiness, headache). Importantly, available evidence shows no downregulation of endogenous melatonin production — the body resumes normal secretion after discontinuation. Higher doses have also been shown to stimulate growth hormone (HGH) release, likely by suppressing somatostatin at the hypothalamic level. So while lower doses may suffice for sleep, 5 mg is well within the safe range and may offer additional hormonal benefits.

Magnesium Glycinate — 400 mg/day Take in the evening. Must be the glycinate form — other forms (oxide, citrate) have different absorption profiles and are more likely to cause GI issues.

Glycine — 4+ g before bed Ideally taken ~1 hour before sleep. Supports sleep quality by causing a small drop in core body temperature. Also participates in collagen production (skin and joint health) and endogenous antioxidant production. Tastes mildly sweet — can be mixed into beverages like hot chocolate as a partial sugar replacement.

🟡 Optional: GlyNAC Stack

NAC (N-Acetyl Cysteine) — 0.5–1 g/day Always take with glycine (glycine buffers NAC). Combined with glycine, upregulates the body's natural glutathione production. Don't bother buying glutathione supplements directly — oral glutathione has poor bioavailability, and NAC + glycine are far cheaper and more effective as precursors. See the FAQ for who should consider adding NAC.

⚠️ NAC tastes and smells like sulfur. Most people take it in capsule form.

📋 Staging Protocol

Start in stages so you can identify what's working and isolate any issues:

Stage 1: Creatine + Omega-3
Stage 2: Magnesium Glycinate + Glycine
Stage 3: NAC (optional)

⏰ Timing Summary

Morning: Creatine, Omega-3 (first dose)

Evening: Omega-3 (second dose), Magnesium Glycinate, Glycine (~1 hr before bed), Melatonin (at bedtime)

NAC: Trial at night first. If it causes wakefulness, move to daytime. Can have paradoxical stimulating effects in some people.

🔴 Overrated: Skip These

Popular supplements that are either expensive wastes of money, carry real health risks, or both. Save your cash.

Methylene Blue Heavily promoted by biohackers as a nootropic and mitochondrial booster. The reality: nearly all cognitive claims come from cell and animal studies. Human evidence is preliminary, inconsistent, and often funded by interested parties. Methylene blue is an FDA-approved prescription drug for methemoglobinemia — not a supplement. "Supplement" versions are unregulated, vary wildly in purity, and may contain industrial contaminants. It also carries serious risks: serotonin syndrome if combined with SSRIs/SNRIs, and hemolytic anemia in people with G6PD deficiency. The hype far outpaces the science.

BCAAs (Branched-Chain Amino Acids) If you eat enough protein (0.7+ g per lb of body weight), BCAAs are redundant. Your body needs all essential amino acids to build muscle — not just three of them. Complete protein sources (meat, eggs, whey, soy) already contain BCAAs in the right ratios. Supplementing BCAAs on top of adequate protein intake shows no additional benefit for muscle growth or recovery in controlled studies. Typically $25–40/month for expensive flavored water.

Glutathione (oral) We recommend NAC + glycine on this site specifically because oral glutathione doesn't work well. Your digestive system breaks most of it down before absorption. Despite premium pricing ($30–60/month), oral glutathione supplements have poor bioavailability. The far cheaper and more effective approach is to give your body the precursors (NAC + glycine) and let it produce glutathione endogenously. Liposomal forms show slightly better absorption but cost 5–10x more than the precursors for marginal benefit.

Biotin Massively marketed for hair and nail growth, but unless you have a diagnosed biotin deficiency (which is rare), supplementation does nothing. Most people get plenty from food. Worse, high-dose biotin can interfere with lab test results — including thyroid and cardiac panels — leading to false readings your doctor may not think to ask about. Cheap per pill, but the real cost is a misdiagnosis from skewed bloodwork.

In Progress

Exercise

Current training program details coming soon. This section will cover weekly structure, key lifts, cardio approach, and recovery strategies.

Weekly Split — Coming soon
Cardio & Zone 2 — Coming soon
Mobility & Recovery — Coming soon

Reference

FAQ

Do I still need melatonin if I sleep fine?

Not necessarily. Melatonin supports sleep onset, but if you already sleep well, the other supplements (especially glycine and magnesium glycinate) still provide their benefits independently. You can skip the melatonin.

If I take glycine, do I still need a collagen supplement?

For skin health, probably not. Glycine is one of the primary amino acids in collagen (~33%) and upregulates collagen production and turnover — so 4+ g of glycine likely covers skin benefits. However, for joint health or connective tissue recovery, a dedicated collagen supplement at higher doses (10–15 g/day) may still be worthwhile. Studies using radioisotope-labeled collagen have shown that ingested collagen peptides do appear in joint cartilage and connective tissue, though only a fraction of the oral dose reaches these sites. The effective studied range for joint benefits is 10–15 g/day of hydrolyzed collagen. Glycine at 4 g alone is unlikely to deliver enough material for significant joint tissue repair.

Should I just buy glutathione directly?

No. Oral glutathione has poor bioavailability — your digestive system breaks most of it down before it can be used. Instead, take NAC + glycine: these are the precursors your body uses to produce glutathione endogenously. They're also significantly cheaper.

What do glycine and NAC taste like?

Glycine is mildly sweet and nearly tasteless — it can be mixed into beverages like hot chocolate as a partial sugar replacement. NAC smells and tastes like sulfur. Most people take NAC in capsule form to avoid the taste.

Can these supplements keep me awake?

NAC and glycine can occasionally have paradoxical effects, causing wakefulness instead of sleepiness. This isn't harmful — just adjust your timing. Trial them at night first, and if they disrupt sleep, move them earlier in the day. Glycine doesn't act as a sedative; it enhances existing sleep pressure by causing a small drop in core body temperature.

Why does it have to be magnesium glycinate specifically?

Different forms of magnesium have different absorption profiles and effects. Magnesium glycinate is well-absorbed and less likely to cause GI issues (unlike magnesium oxide or citrate, which can have laxative effects). The glycinate form also provides a small amount of additional glycine.

Is 10 g of creatine too much?

For exercise performance, 3–5 g/day is sufficient — that's where muscle stores saturate. However, the brain absorbs creatine more slowly due to the blood-brain barrier, and recent cognitive studies use higher doses. A 2024 systematic review of 16 RCTs found significant cognitive improvements at higher doses, especially under stress. If you're targeting cognitive wellness, the emerging evidence supports 10+ g. If unsure, 5 g/day is a safe starting point. Creatine monohydrate is the most studied form.

I work night shifts — when should I take everything?

Take creatine when you wake up (even if that's afternoon/evening). Glycine and magnesium glycinate should be taken ~1 hour before you plan to sleep, regardless of clock time. NAC can be taken before a shift if it causes wakefulness. Align supplements with your personal sleep/wake cycle, not the clock.

Where can I buy these supplements?

Look for brands with third-party testing and GMP-certified facilities. Here are the brands I'd recommend, ordered from cheapest to most expensive:

BulkSupplements Where I buy bulk powders Huge selection, single-ingredient focus, NSF/GMP-certified facility. The place I buy bulk powders like protein and creatine. Use for: creatine, glycine, protein powder

⚠️ CoAs aren't published (must be requested), ConsumerLab found a ~28% failure rate across 18 tested products, and they faced a 2024 mislabeling lawsuit over their magnesium glycinate powder. Fine for simple commodity powders where purity is hard to fake. I'd avoid them for fish oil or anything where contamination risk matters.

Nutricost Best value GMP facility, third-party lab verified, clear labeling. Competitive pricing with a clean track record. Use for: creatine monohydrate, glycine powder

NOW Foods Best all-rounder In-house + third-party tested, GMP-certified, non-GMO, widely available. Good prices without cutting corners. Solid across every category. Use for: magnesium glycinate, melatonin, NAC, omega-3

Thorne Premium NSF-certified, TGA-certified (Australia), many products NSF Certified for Sport. Published CoAs. 2–3x the price, but the highest confidence in label accuracy. Use for: anything where you want clinical-grade assurance

Who should consider taking NAC?

NAC is primarily recommended for adults over 40. Research shows the body's natural glutathione production declines with age, and GlyNAC supplementation (glycine + NAC) has been shown to improve cognition and reduce oxidative stress in older adults (Sekhar et al., Baylor College of Medicine). Younger adults probably don't need it, but can trial it if the core stack alone doesn't feel sufficient. Always take NAC with glycine — glycine buffers NAC and provides the other precursor needed for glutathione synthesis.