Ipamorelin
Also known as: Ipam
A selective ghrelin-receptor agonist that triggers a GH pulse without raising cortisol or prolactin — the property that made it the default GHRP and pushed the older, dirtier GHRPs to the margins.
Overview
Ipamorelin is a pentapeptide GHRP. The mechanism is the same as Hexarelin, GHRP-2, and GHRP-6 — bind the GHS-R1a, trigger a GH pulse — but Ipamorelin does it cleanly. The cortisol and prolactin elevation that complicate the older GHRPs are mostly absent here, which is why this is the GHRP most clinicians and self-administering users settle on. The pulse is smaller than Hexarelin's at equimolar dose, but the side-effect cleanness is what people pay for. It works fine solo for sleep and recovery; the body-composition signal really wakes up when you pair it with a GHRH like CJC-1295 or Sermorelin.
Evidence quality
Original pharmacology work by Raun and colleagues (1998) established the GH-selectivity profile — the absence of cortisol and prolactin lift is what differentiates this peptide from the older GHRPs and the data on that point is reproducible. Long-term outcome trials in healthy adults are not the literature's strong suit. The pulse pharmacology is tight; the chronic body-recomp evidence is anecdotal-plus-mechanism rather than RCT-based.
Benefits & timeline
Benefits
- Clean GH pulse — no meaningful cortisol or prolactin lift
- Sleep deepens within the first week when dosed pre-bed
- Mild fat-loss and recovery benefit accumulates over months
- Tolerability is good enough to sustain long cycles without endocrine drift
Timeline
Week 1
Sleep deepens; dreams get more vivid. The earliest and most reliable signal.
Week 2–4
Recovery between sessions shortens.
Week 6–8
Subtle body-composition changes if you are pairing with a GHRH or pushing twice-daily dosing.
Week 12
Plateau. Receptor sensitivity is the limiting factor; cycle off.
Off-cycle
Four weeks off refreshes the GHS receptor. The next cycle responds as well as the first.
Dosage protocols
Advanced
300 mcg
thrice daily
Beginner
100 mcg
once nightly
Standard
200 mcg
twice daily
Titration & adjustment
Start at 100 mcg once nightly for 2 weeks. If well tolerated and you want a fuller GH pulse profile, escalate to 200 mcg twice daily for the rest of the cycle. Maximum 300 mcg three times daily. Cycle off for 4 weeks every 12 weeks.
Injection timing
Pre-bed for sleep benefits and to coincide with the body's natural overnight GH window. Add AM and post-workout doses if running a higher-dose protocol. Fasted state preferred but not mandatory.
Side effects & contraindications
- mildBrief facial flushing post-injection, lasting a few minutes.
- mildTingling, usually hands or face.
- mildMild hunger 30–60 minutes after the shot. Far less than GHRP-6 but still present — Ipamorelin is a ghrelin agonist after all.
Contraindications
- Active cancer or recent cancer history
- Pregnancy or breastfeeding
- Severe insulin resistance
- Caution with concurrent corticosteroids — opposing signals on the GH axis
Reconstitution & injection
A 5 mg vial mixed with 2 ml bacteriostatic water gives 2.5 mg/ml. A 200 mcg dose is 0.08 ml — 8 units on a U-100 insulin syringe. A 100 mcg starting dose is 4 units. Subcutaneous abdomen, on an empty stomach, with the 30-minute food-free window on either side. If running a GHRH stack, draw both into the same syringe.
Open calculator pre-filledStorage after reconstitution
Refrigerate at 2–8 °C after reconstitution. Do not freeze. Light-protect. Stable 28–30 days at fridge temperature in BAC water — one of the better-behaved ghrelin mimetics on the bench. Solution stays clear and colourless across the dosing month.
Common mistakes
Running Ipamorelin solo and expecting body-recomp.
Better approach: Solo Ipamorelin is a sleep and recovery peptide. The body-composition signal arrives when you pair it with a GHRH (CJC-1295 or Sermorelin). If body-recomp is the goal, the stack is what you want, not the GHRP alone.
Dosing right before or right after a meal.
Better approach: Insulin and amino acids blunt the GH pulse the peptide is designed to trigger. Keep 30 minutes clear of food on either side. The night-time dose belongs after dinner, not with it.
Pushing past 300 mcg per pulse.
Better approach: The GHS receptor saturates well before 300 mcg. Higher doses do not produce a bigger pulse — they just use up more peptide and accelerate desensitisation. Add a second pulse window (AM) instead of escalating one.
Continuing past 12 weeks without an off-cycle.
Better approach: Receptor desensitisation is the rate-limiting step on chronic GHRP use. 12 on, 4 off keeps the next cycle as responsive as the first. The off-period is not optional — it is the maintenance schedule.
Real-world tips
- Pre-bed alone gets you 80% of what most people are looking for. Add AM dosing only if you have a specific reason.
- Track sleep depth (or just how you feel on waking) in week 1. It is the cleanest signal that the batch is good.
- If injecting fast produces uncomfortable flushing, slow the plunger over 5–10 seconds.
- Mix in the same syringe as CJC-1295 or Sermorelin if running a stack. The peptides are compatible.
- Refrigerate after reconstitution; 3–4 weeks at fridge temp is the practical stability window.
When something else is the better tool
Hexarelin
Use instead when: You want a bigger single pulse and you are running a short cycle. Hexarelin produces more GH per dose but raises cortisol and prolactin and desensitises faster — the right tool for 4–6 week intensives, not long runs.
GHRP-2 or GHRP-6
Use instead when: Cost is the limiting factor or appetite stimulation is a feature, not a bug. GHRP-6 in particular is the GHRP for bulking-phase appetite support; Ipamorelin's mild appetite lift is the trade-off you accept for the clean cortisol/prolactin profile.
Sermorelin
Use instead when: You want a GHRH instead of a GHRP. Sermorelin works upstream — telling the pituitary to release more GH via the GHRH receptor. The cleanest protocol pairs the two: Ipamorelin (GHRP) plus Sermorelin or CJC-1295 (GHRH).
- Best time to inject?
- Pre-bed for the sleep benefit and the overnight GH window. Add AM fasted or pre-workout if running twice-daily. The fasted state matters more than the time of day.
- Will it make me hungry?
- Mildly. The ghrelin-receptor activation produces some appetite signal 30–60 minutes after the shot, but it is much less than GHRP-6 or GHRP-2. Most users do not find it disruptive.
- Solo or stacked?
- Solo is fine for sleep and recovery. Stack with a GHRH (CJC-1295 or Sermorelin) when body composition is the goal — the synergy roughly doubles the GH pulse amplitude.
- How long can I run it?
- 12 weeks on, 4 weeks off is the standard. Receptor desensitisation is the limit; the off-period restores responsiveness.
- Why is this preferred over the older GHRPs?
- Selectivity. Ipamorelin triggers the GH pulse without the cortisol and prolactin lift that GHRP-6 and Hexarelin produce. For long cycles where endocrine cleanness matters, that is the deciding factor.