I will keep this short because there is not much to report. Bought a bottle of cordyceps capsules from a major supplement retailer after seeing it promoted by every fitness influencer on my feed. 1000mg daily for 6 weeks.
Results: nothing I could detect. My lifts did not improve beyond normal progression. My recovery between sessions felt the same. My energy was the same. I tracked everything in my training app — sets, reps, weight, RPE scores — and there is no visible inflection point when I started cordyceps.
A few possible explanations: (1) the product was low quality — it was a mycelium-on-grain product and I have since learned these may contain minimal active compounds, (2) 1000mg was too low a dose — studies showing benefits used 3-4g, (3) resistance training may not be the modality where cordyceps shines — most positive research is on endurance performance, (4) cordyceps genuinely does nothing and the positive studies are noise.
I am inclined to think it was a combination of poor product quality and wrong application. If I try again, I will use a standardized fruiting body extract at 2-3g daily and assess during cardio work rather than lifting. But I wanted to post the honest negative experience because social media is full of people claiming cordyceps turned them into superhumans. It did not turn me into anything.