Hard Coded Labs — Protocol Guide

Start Your
Protocol.

Four stacks. Four athlete profiles. Every formula is built on clinical doses of studied ingredients — no proprietary blends, no hiding behind complexity. Pick the stack that matches how you train.

Stack 01 — Complete System

The Full Stack

The Competitor
OVERRIDE FLOW CREATINE BUILD
Individually $136.97 Save $10.98 $125.99 Get the Full Stack →

The most complete training system in the lineup. Three formulas built for three distinct metabolic windows — pre-workout energy, intra-workout strength and hydration, and post-workout recovery. Each product does exactly one job. No overlap, no redundancy, zero wasted servings.

OVERRIDE fires up the CNS and locks in focus before you touch the bar. FLOW CREATINE keeps ATP regeneration running and replaces electrolytes lost mid-session. BUILD delivers 22g of whey isolate with MCT oil and apple pectin in the critical post-workout window when muscle protein synthesis is most sensitive.

This is the stack for athletes who train 4+ times per week across modalities — lifting, conditioning, sport. Designed to be repeatable, every day, without fatigue accumulation.

Daily Protocol
  • T −30 min OVERRIDE — 1 scoop in 350ml water. Empty stomach for faster peak.
  • Intra / Post FLOW CREATINE — during or right after. Replenishes electrolytes and maintains creatine saturation.
  • T +30 min BUILD — 1 scoop in 250ml within 30 min post-workout to hit peak MPS window.
  • Rest days FLOW CREATINE only. Creatine saturation is cumulative — never skip it.
Week 1–2Loading

Creatine begins saturating. Energy during sessions improves. Sleep quality often lifts.

Week 3–4Adaptation

Measurable strength increases (3–7% typical). Reduced soreness. Faster inter-set recovery.

Week 5–8Compound

Full creatine saturation. Body composition shifts. Recovery between sessions significantly faster.

Week 8+Sustained

No plateau. No cycling needed. The stack keeps compounding as long as you train.

01Never skip creatine on rest days

Benefits are concentration-dependent, not workout-dependent. Missing rest-day doses delays full saturation by days.

02Adjust OVERRIDE to your session time

Always 20–30 min before you train, not at a fixed clock time. The mechanism is pharmacological, not habitual.

03BUILD works as a meal

Mix into oats or yogurt on rest days. The MCT oil slows digestion — sustained amino acid availability across the whole morning.

Stack 02 — Strength Focus

The Protocol

The Lifter
OVERRIDE FLOW CREATINE
Individually $76.98 Save $6.99 $69.99 Build the Protocol →

Everything that moves the bar, nothing that doesn't. The Protocol is built for strength and power athletes who prioritize lifting performance above all else — powerlifters, Olympic lifters, CrossFitters, and physique athletes in a strength phase.

OVERRIDE primes the nervous system. The caffeine and L-Theanine combination increases voluntary activation of motor units — meaning more muscle fibers recruited per rep at the same perceived effort. FLOW CREATINE ensures the ATP-PCr system isn't the limiting factor on your heaviest sets.

Two products. One clear job. A clean pre-workout stack you can run for months without stimulant fatigue.

Daily Protocol
  • T −25 min OVERRIDE — empty stomach or 2+ hours after a meal. Faster absorption, sharper peak.
  • During session FLOW CREATINE — sip intra-workout with 500ml water. Maintains intra-set performance.
  • Rest days FLOW CREATINE only. Skip caffeine. Let your adenosine receptors reset.
Day 1Immediate

OVERRIDE effects felt the first session. Sharper focus, better mind-muscle connection, longer time to fatigue.

Week 2–3Creatine onset

Phosphocreatine stores reach saturation. Inter-set recovery noticeably faster on heavy sets.

Week 4Full load

5–15% improvement in total training volume at same RPE. PRs come more frequently.

Month 2+Compounding

Higher volume → more adaptation → more strength. The stack removes the biochemical ceiling.

01Take 1–2 days off OVERRIDE per week

Cycling off 1–2 days weekly prevents receptor downregulation. Your Monday session will hit harder.

02Sodium drives creatine uptake

The 1g sodium per serving in FLOW CREATINE isn't just for taste — it actively drives creatine transport into muscle cells.

03Don't load creatine

5g daily reaches the same saturation as a loading protocol in 3–4 weeks, with zero GI issues. There's no reason to rush it.

Stack 03 — Endurance System

Hydration Stack

The Runner
FLOW HYDRATION FLOW CREATINE
Individually $79.98 Save $7.99 $71.99 Stack the Hydration →

Built for athletes who measure sessions in hours, not sets. Runners, cyclists, triathletes, and anyone whose sport involves sustained aerobic output need a fundamentally different approach — hydration isn't optional, it's the foundation.

FLOW Hydration covers electrolytes and B-vitamins: 4 electrolytes (Na, K, Mg, Ca) and 8 B-vitamins per serving, zero caffeine, zero sugar. Works before, during, and after. FLOW CREATINE adds 5g clinical creatine — proven to reduce oxidative stress, improve glycogen resynthesis, and speed neuromuscular recovery between sessions.

A daily hydration protocol that doesn't fight your sleep, doesn't spike insulin, and doesn't require caffeine to function. Pure performance substrate.

Daily Protocol
  • Morning FLOW HYDRATION — 1 scoop in 500ml with breakfast. Sets your electrolyte baseline.
  • Pre / Intra run FLOW HYDRATION — second serving in your bottle. Replenish in real-time.
  • Post-session FLOW CREATINE — 1 scoop within 30 min. Electrolytes + creatine in one step.
  • Rest days FLOW CREATINE only. 5g regardless of whether you trained.
Day 1Hydration

FLOW Hydration effects are immediate. Better electrolyte balance, reduced cramping, more consistent energy on long sessions.

Week 1–2Accumulation

Creatine begins accumulating. Subtle improvements in recovery — you come back to the next session fresher.

Week 3–4Recovery lift

Post-long-run soreness decreases. Glycogen replenishment is faster. Back-to-back days become manageable.

Month 2+Consistency

Higher training frequency becomes sustainable. The stack's real payoff is training more without breaking down.

01Double up in heat

Sessions over 90 min or above 25°C — add a third serving of FLOW Hydration. Sweat rate doubles in the heat.

02Zero caffeine = zero timing constraints

Take FLOW Hydration any time of day without affecting sleep. Evening session? Morning session? It works identically.

03Creatine and endurance are not in conflict

The myth that creatine hurts endurance is based on outdated loading protocols. 5g daily has no negative effect on VO2 max or running economy.

Stack 04 — Cognitive Performance

The Focus Stack

The Focused
FLOW STATIC
Individually $79.98 Save $14.99 $64.99 Stack the Focus →

Built for athletes who don’t stop performing when they leave the gym. FLOW covers hydration all day — 4 electrolytes, full B-vitamin complex, zero caffeine, zero sugar. STATIC adds cognitive fuel — Alpha-GPC, natural caffeine, L-Theanine — for everything that comes after the session.

No overlap. FLOW has zero caffeine — it works any time, without affecting your sleep or stacking with anything else. STATIC has 200mg natural caffeine from green tea, the same as OVERRIDE. Pick one per session. OVERRIDE for the gym. STATIC for the desk.

This is the stack for the athlete who also has a career, decisions to make, and a long afternoon after a hard morning. Train hard. Think clearly. Neither should be optional.

Daily Protocol
  • Morning FLOW — 1 scoop in 500ml with breakfast. Sets your electrolyte and B-vitamin baseline for the day.
  • Pre-work / Pre-study STATIC — 1 scoop 20–30 min before you need to focus. Cognitive performance on demand.
  • Afternoon FLOW — second serving if session was long or in heat. Keeps you hydrated without caffeine.
  • Training days OVERRIDE instead of STATIC — never both. 200mg + 200mg = 400mg caffeine combined.
Day 1Immediate

FLOW hydration works from the first serving. STATIC focus effect lands within 30–45 min of the first dose.

Week 1–2Consistency

Afternoon energy crashes reduce. Hydration baseline stabilizes. STATIC cognitive effect becomes more reliable.

Week 3–4Compound

Alpha-GPC benefits compound with consistent use — memory, focus depth, and task switching all improve measurably.

Month 2+Baseline lift

Full cognitive baseline established. You perform on demand, not just on good days. The stack stops being something you notice and starts being normal.

01Never stack STATIC with OVERRIDE

Both have 200mg natural caffeine. Combined = 400mg in one session. Pick the right tool for the right session — OVERRIDE for the gym, STATIC for the desk.

02FLOW any time, STATIC with intention

FLOW has zero caffeine — use it freely at any hour. STATIC is a precision tool. Deploy it when focus matters, not reflexively every morning.

03Alpha-GPC compounds with consistency

Unlike caffeine, Alpha-GPC benefits accumulate over 2–4 weeks of daily use. Occasional use works. Daily use is measurably better.

Not sure which one?

Compare the four stacks side by side.

StackPre-WorkoutCreatineElectrolytesProteinBest ForPrice
The Full StackAthletes training 4x/week+$125.99
The ProtocolStrength-focused lifters$69.99
Hydration StackRunners & endurance athletes$71.99
Focus StackBuilding the habit from zero$59.99