CommunityDosing & Titration

SS-31 Dosing Sequencing Side Effects and Mitochondrial Repair Before MOTS-c

69 replies24 peopleJul 12, 2026☆ Follow
Summary

How to safely dose and sequence SS-31 for mitochondrial repair ahead of MOTS-c while handling side effects

The thread positions SS-31 as a preparatory mitochondrial repair step before MOTS-c, particularly for users over 40 or with prior damage. Dosing discussions favor starting at 1-3 mg three times weekly or 5 mg protocols with gradual titration and explicit warnings against 10 mg jumps. Week-three energy crashes are commonly reported and variously attributed to adaptation, stacking effects, or unrepaired mitochondria. Practical notes cover half-inch needles for flank subq placement to reduce ISR and standard reconstitution where 10 units equals 1 mg, yet no consensus forms on safety or beginner suitability.

What this discussion establishesWhere people disagree

High-dose safety and whether the thread is reliable guidance for beginners

Still open

Optimal protocols, exact causes of energy crashes, and long-term sequencing outcomes

Nothing here is advice.

69 replies · 24 people · page 1 of 2
GreyPebble34archiveopening postJul 12

After looking up Mots C I still have questions for those who have used it. I am already on 2mg Reta and want to add Mots C hoping for more energy and less brain fog. Many say it helps endurance and energy especially when taken fasted before training. Will it still work if I take it in the morning and only get to the gym nine or ten hours later, or does it need to be right before activity? Some run it five days a week while others do three like Monday Wednesday Friday. Is there a standard on how often? For a first run what weekly amount makes sense, something like ten or fifteen milligrams? How long should a cycle last?

LevelAlder29archiveJul 12

Some keep it going without breaks but the usual approach mentioned is five milligrams three times a week. Threads cover how others combine it with SS-31 and NAD+ plus ways to cut down on injection discomfort with certain bac water. I just started so I cannot say yet how it works for a later workout. For shorter evening sessions I have been able to push a bit longer before wanting to quit.

NorthWillow72archiveJul 12

Age seems to matter. A lot of people suggest running SS-31 first to get better results from Mots C. I watched a video from a doctor that covered this. My own approach is SS-31 first, then overlap a couple weeks with Mots C, then finish the Mots C alone. I also keep NAD+ going the whole time as part of a mitochondrial cycle. Younger users might skip the SS-31 but those over forty often report more benefit from it. I have done the full sequence twice.

GreyPebble34archiveJul 12

I had heard the same about SS-31 first but then saw posts saying it is not required. Has anyone run Mots C without it and noticed results?

SteadyQuill58archiveJul 13
↳ replying to @GreyPebble34

I am in my early forties and have used Mots C without SS-31. It gives a clear energy lift and works well for me. My husband who is in his fifties has the same experience. SS-31 may not be necessary for everyone. If the energy boost does not show up then a round of SS-31 could be tried next.

RustLantern55archiveJul 13
↳ replying to @GreyPebble34

I am thirty-two and began Mots C after only a few SS-31 doses. The combination with NAD+ gives better energy for me. SS-31 alone has not stood out yet, though I have only used it a handful of times because daily morning injections are easy to forget. I did NAD+ three times a week for a month before starting Mots C and liked it. I plan to keep both going until supplies run low then drop to weekly NAD+. I settled on four milligrams of Mots C because the math worked better with the vials I have.

GreyPebble34archiveJul 13
↳ replying to @SteadyQuill58

Thanks for the reply. I am almost forty-seven. What weekly amount are you using?

WarmAlder80archiveJul 13

SS-31 is not mainly an energy booster. It repairs mitochondria and can raise ATP output and transport, which may raise energy levels indirectly, especially if mitochondrial issues like insulin resistance or high blood pressure are present. In those cases the suggestion is to run SS-31 first then move to Mots C on the protocol already mentioned.

SteadyLedger54archiveJul 13

I am starting week eleven of a fourteen-week mitochondrial protocol. Brain fog is down and I can handle mowing a big lawn in hot weather without feeling wiped out.

AmberCompass33archiveJul 13

I run Mots C at five milligrams every other day. Between those runs I cycle SS-31 and another compound using five vials as the cycle length. After finishing five vials of SS-31 I was going to start the next compound but the batch turned out bad so I am waiting on a replacement. Normally there are a couple months between cycles, so I will just keep Mots C going alone until the new supply arrives.

SteadySparrow75archiveJul 13
↳ replying to @SteadyLedger54

I saved that protocol write-up when I came across it. I have enough on hand to run it but will probably wait until later in the year after finishing some other peptides. Looking forward to seeing what Mots C and NAD+ do together.

SteadyQuill58archiveJul 13
↳ replying to @GreyPebble34

We began at one point five milligrams three times per week. We also run NAD+ twice a week so energy stays steady from Monday through Friday.

PatientFenwick91archiveJul 13

I keep extra Mots C and SS-31 on hand. I inject five milligrams daily and sometimes ten milligrams if that feels right. The steady energy without any jitter is valuable after years of fatigue. Mots C appears to help insulin sensitivity through a different route than GLP-1 drugs, via the folate-purine-AMPK path. Human data is still limited but trials are ongoing. With unlimited supply I would stay at ten milligrams daily.

LevelBeacon74archiveJul 13
↳ replying to @SteadyQuill58

Are you referring to the Mots C or the SS-31? How long does your cycle run?

SteadyQuill58archiveJul 13
↳ replying to @LevelBeacon74

Yes, Mots C. We have not tried SS-31. We have been on it three weeks now and it has made a big difference. I feel for anyone who does not get the energy lift from it.

LevelBramble49archiveJul 14

I have been on one milligram for three days and just moved up to two milligrams. I feel a bit tired but the treadmill after weights feels like it does not end.

CopperMeadow58archiveJul 14
↳ replying to @PatientFenwick91

I would like more detail on those amounts. What studies or milligram-per-kilogram conversions are they based on? Not judging, just curious.

PatientFenwick91archiveJul 14
↳ replying to @CopperMeadow58

I am not sure why the question is aimed only at me when five milligrams comes up often from others here. The common protocols and their sources are listed on the reference site. I already posted that earlier so I will not repeat it.

CopperMeadow58archiveJul 14
↳ replying to @PatientFenwick91

My first message said I was not coming at you. Your choice on dosing. I did check the reference list. The question remains whether those entries come from user reports, studies, or both. You mentioned pinning five milligrams daily and sometimes ten depending on how you feel, so that is why I asked you. I would like to see the source showing ten milligrams daily gives clear benefit. I enjoy your posts and would like to discuss nootropics more.

PatientFenwick91archiveJul 14
↳ replying to @CopperMeadow58

No human data sets an ideal Mots C protocol. Converting mouse-study doses to human equivalents gives amounts well above five to ten milligrams. That does not mean anyone should follow the animal-study numbers directly. The studies are on the reference site and searchable on PubMed. I do not have time to link and summarize them all here.

AmberSparrow73archiveJul 14

I am also unsure which Mots C protocol to follow because the ones I see differ a lot. One says twenty days at five hundred micrograms is safe but not optimal. Another says one milligram daily five days on two off for four to eight weeks stacked with SS-31. A third suggests starting at five milligrams and going up to ten per injection one to three times weekly. A fourth mentions five milligrams every five days over twenty days before bed. A fifth lists five to fifteen milligrams per week split into two or three injections for two to four weeks on and off. I am still deciding.

SlowLantern46archiveJul 14
↳ replying to @GreyPebble34 (opening post)

I have the same questions exactly. Good thread.

SlowLantern46archiveJul 14
↳ replying to @PatientFenwick91

Good to know it is not hard to find and costs less than most other peptides.

SlowLantern46archiveJul 14

Mots C just arrived. I am fifty-four and want to use it for better athletic performance while road biking one hundred to one hundred fifty miles a week. Planning to start at three milligrams Monday Wednesday Friday to check for any reaction.

SlowLantern50archiveJul 14

First week in, three times at ten units a day, nothing noticed yet.

NorthWillow72archiveJul 14
↳ replying to @SlowLantern50

When you say units it is hard to follow. Do you mean ten milligrams or point one zero milliliters? What was your reconstitution?

SlowLantern50archiveJul 14

Ten milligram vial with one milliliter of bac water added. I inject ten units.

SteadySparrow75archiveJul 14
↳ replying to @SlowLantern50

How many milligrams of Mots C in each injection?

NorthWillow72archiveJul 14
↳ replying to @SlowLantern50

Was the vial already liquid or did you add bac water or something else? How much? For example if I had a ten milligram vial and wanted five milligrams I might add one milliliter bac water and inject point five milliliters. That would be a ten milligrams per milliliter concentration. Units or milliliters only make sense once the concentration is known.

SlowLantern50archiveJul 14
↳ replying to @SteadySparrow75

Correct. Thinking maybe moving up to fifteen units.

SlowLantern50archiveJul 14
↳ replying to @NorthWillow72

No, I added bac water, one milliliter.

NorthWillow72archiveJul 14
↳ replying to @SlowLantern50

Good. It is simpler to talk about doses in milligrams rather than units or milliliters so concentration does not need explaining each time. You could say you tried one milligram three times a week. That is a cautious start, good luck.

SlowLantern50archiveJul 14
↳ replying to @NorthWillow72

What week did you first notice it working?

NorthWillow72archiveJul 14
↳ replying to @SlowLantern50

I went ahead with bigger quantities on my end, despite many folks saying to start low, so your method looks good to me. People have different reactions, meaning you could require moving toward standard amounts before effects appear.

SteadySparrow75archiveJul 14
↳ replying to @SlowLantern50

From a dosing view it is clearer to state the actual peptide amount rather than units. Ten milligrams per milliliter would give one point five milligrams in a fifteen unit injection. If the same ten milligram vial had been mixed with two milliliters instead the concentration would be five milligrams per milliliter so fifteen units would be point seven five milligrams. Same volume, different amount.

SlowLantern50archiveJul 14
↳ replying to @SteadySparrow75

Do you usually add two milliliters of bac water to a ten milligram vial?

CopperMeadow58archiveJul 14

This thread and the range of suggested protocols is interesting. Everyone is different and both metabolism and lifestyle affect how this compound works. Rat studies scaled by body weight point to protocols between ten and twenty-eight milligrams. A heavy lifter training six days a week might go higher. An endurance athlete logging long hours might not. A smaller person might not need the upper end. I started hot with ten milligrams before training. The injection stung and I felt flushed. Not ideal. I dropped to two point five milligrams four days a week. Training stayed solid and my usual afternoon nap was skipped. So for me ten milligrams loading then two point five milligrams Monday Wednesday Friday Sunday. We are the human trials.

WarmSparrow33archiveJul 14
↳ replying to @NorthWillow72

This matches how I take mine except I run SS-31 and NAD+ daily without skipping weekends.

WarmSparrow33archiveJul 14
↳ replying to @SteadyQuill58

SS-31 is not meant to give energy. It is meant to repair mitochondria before starting Mots C. It should be taken first if you are over forty.

NorthWillow72archiveJul 14
↳ replying to @WarmSparrow33

My introduction to this sequence came from some research I stumbled across online. One substance works like a repairman for the power-producing structures inside cells while the other acts as a signal to improve how the body switches fuel sources. The proper sequence matters because the repair step needs to happen ahead of the signaling step. The initial compound attaches to a key fat in the inner membrane to restore its shape and allow smoother energy output. People often apply it over a stretch of weeks when dealing with low energy or advancing age. The follow-up compound copies the effects of movement by switching on a regulator that favors fat use and better sugar response. Applying the signal before the underlying fix is complete resembles forcing a damaged motor to work harder. Although both can be taken at once the preferred order helps avoid sudden energy dips or mismatched responses.

WarmSparrow33archiveJul 14

I also take five aminos daily with the protocol

ClearQuill84archiveJul 14

Right now I'm finishing week four on this at 3.3 milligrams three times weekly. The prior stretch felt awful with a total energy collapse that left me wiped out and forced me to miss several training days since I couldn't push through. Everything has turned around sharply since then as I'm loaded with vitality and feel strong while sessions now seem effortless. Just today I saw I could match the same rep counts with larger weights. My appearance has also shifted to look slimmer yet more defined. I left out the other compound beforehand but intend to run that along with the nad approach ahead of the following round. Injections produce no real reaction beyond brief minor itching right after with zero discomfort or visible issues. Overall this one will stay in my standard peptide lineup.

WarmSparrow33archiveJul 14
↳ replying to @ClearQuill84

Something went wrong on my end too. Can't tell what triggered it.

ClearQuill84archiveJul 14
↳ replying to @WarmSparrow33

I suspect a few things might be going on, maybe all at once. For one, I skipped any protective compound ahead of my protocol. Being 49 after years of nonstop excess, my cellular energy factories are probably worn down. On top of that, glucose got too low from stacking the peptides with strict carb cutting. Or perhaps my system is just adjusting to a fresh fuel pathway triggered by the peptide, and the shift is creating these effects. Tough to pin down the exact cause. Next round I'll include the protective one plus the other booster and observe the difference.

SlowLantern46archiveJul 14
↳ replying to @SlowLantern50

Units meaning ten units equals one milligram, correct?

SlowLantern46archiveJul 15
↳ replying to @SlowLantern50

That seems like a good amount to begin with. I might go with something similar myself.

WryBramble37archiveJul 15

I gotta say this spot looks like one of the least reliable for anything on MOTS-C. Details keep jumping around without any order. Anyone wanting to learn more about it really shouldn't base their view on this discussion.

WarmSparrow57archiveJul 16

I'm a 58-year-old guy who has gone from 205 pounds down to 167 over two years on tirzepatide and remain on it for maintenance. In my third week using 5mg five days on and two off, my vitality feels a bit improved. I've dropped two more pounds in the abdominal region near my belt. So far the added vigor pleases me as I pursue ongoing metabolic benefits. However severe solid nodules and strong pruritus trouble me at injection locations. Switching to shorter half inch needles this week might lessen them if I go deeper. Found some helpful guidance regarding MOTS-c dosing as well.

Add your experience

If you have tried it, this topic is still open. Sign in to reply — it takes a minute.