Ashwagandha
Ashwagandha is an herb which has been used for thousands of years in Ayurveda medicine and has had decent popularity in the dietary supplement industry since its inception.
What it does
Ashwagandha has extremely strong science behind it showing it to be capable of reducing anxiety and depression[1], lowering Cortisol while raising testosterone[2], increasing muscle size and total power output[3], and increasing running capacity[4] and luteinizing hormone[5].
How it works
Due to the multitude of active constituents in ashwagandha, its primary mechanism of action is not currently well understood. This herb is classified as an adaptogen which is a category of herbs that help the body adapt to both physical and mental stress more effectively. When stress is reduced, hormones such as cortisol traditionally decrease while the likes of testosterone increase.
Dosing
Standard dosing for this herb is 500-2,000mg at a single dose, with total daily dosing reaching 6,000mg. Certain forms of this herb are highly purified, allowing for significantly smaller doses to be effective. One specialized extract to seek is KSM-66, which provides all of its benefits at 675mg/day, offering far less raw powder or capsules to take each day.