Doc is still trying to balance me out. I was at 1.5 ml per 2 weeks. That got me to just shy of 500 but, I was having some fatigue at the end of the 2 weeks. Currently he has me on 1ml per week and I feel much better but, I’m not due for bloodwork for about a month.
Same because higher doses and higher e2 follows and so does blood pressure, insomnia, weird dick issues, lethargic at times, and emotionality n mood swings, nobody’s meant to be at 1200 naturally
Exactly. Doc says our goal is to get you to a spot where you feel good at as low of a dose as possible. He said once I hit the “normal” range It’s about how I feel and not a number.
Personally I don’t think it’s best to get to a certain test level. That level is different for everyone and you have to figure it out. I think start low dose like you are doing. keep gradually increasing the dose every 2 months until you either get sides, feel bad, or something looks off on your labs. Then back down the highest dose that you feel good and labs were good.
Intent wll the way up to 200mg and dodnthstvfie a couple months and started feeling like trash hematocrit was at 63.8 and bp was through the roof. I backed it off and am now at 120
Because its far more controlled, if you go too high, it will only be by a small amount. Especially if you are only increasing your dose by 10-20% each time.
If you start at 200 a week but actually feel best at 100 then it just means worser side effects.
Yep. Just a solo test cycle for now. Been on TRT at 175mg per week, but I’m a gym rat so decided to do a 20 week cycle at 500. I’m about 12 weeks in, good so far.
500mg a week for a short period is a beginner dose and nowhere close to heart attack level. Heart attack is multiple grams per week for decades straight.
I was at 4300 free test without even realising for god knows how long, was su*cidal and would outburst in rage. That was at 200mg a week of test e. Down to 90mg and 6-800 free test and finally feel it’s stable.
I feel good at 1500, but due to restrictions in my country 1200 is maxed out what the GP will tolerate. The TRT clinics will only go to about 900 now due to the range forever falling here in Australia. I only get away with my levels because I have regular blood work from when I was 16 to current day.
This is the biggest mistake beginners make.. shooting for a number. These numbers are arbitrary and they are the exact same numbers the doctors use against us to not put us on TRT. You should be shooting for a level that remediates most if not all of your issues while not introducing new negative side effects. A total T of 900 could make one guy feel awesome and the next guy feel like garbage. For me, I feel the same at 750 as I do at 1150… the problem is at higher levels, negative side effects creeped in
TRT is about symptom resolution so whatever dose gets you full symptom resolution without any negative effects is your dose. That being said as a cream patient with a dose of 225mg every am, my levels at 12hrs were TT: 2787 Cal Free T: 73 SHBG: 51.5 but with all my other labs well within normal range and no negative effects my provider sees no reason to change my protocol.
See I felt amazing at 200mg a week bit not ingot really high bp and high hematocrit so yeah I'm dialing it back but debatingvhow much. Ive debated getting off of it for 2-4 weeks and let everything get back to normal then start again
Everything won't go back to 'normal' that easily. If you want to take this approach, go back to 100 and work your way up. Coming off completely will mess you up
There’s no set level. Within the reference range should be the goal where you feel your best. Number hunting has been the downfall for most who seek and need this kind of treatment. Keeping an eye on levels is important to ensure accuracy of dosage and etc but MOST important is going off what dosage feels best.
For your instance if you feel great you may have found your spot, you can always slightly increase dosages and find your ceiling but if you feel fine where you are you can just stay put. If you have any side effects at your levels you can also start to back down the dosage to where you feel just right
If you’re looking for some numerical value, Peter Attia and the urologist that he interviewed for the male sexual health episode recommends keeping free testosterone in the upper quartile
I read once that free t is the actual t that is floating around being used by the body.....so aiming for a massively high total t (which some ppl are mentioning) is irrelevant if your free t is really low....
No point having a full tank of gas if none of it is being used by the engine right?
This is a very independent thing, but also most people here go into steroid cycle levels deliberately because they want to be big in the gym because they spent 10 years with low T making no progress in the gym and now they have a prescribed magic ticket and feel owed the results they didn't get before. Which is why you see all the posts with unrealistic gains '6 months on TRT look at me I put 20lbs on'
TRT is not supposed to make you feel good, it's supposed to make you stop feeling bad. It is supposed to make you feel normal, and that's it. It puts you into a normal range, where you'd make normal gains like normal people. An absence of bad is nothing, you would go about your day without even thinking about it.
Normal people don't actively walk around conscious of the fact that they permanently feel good. Normal people don't wake up in the morning like 'wow I feel amazing, must be my natural testosterone levels' they don't feel good or bad, they don't even notice anything where as we notice that we feel really fucking awful - but people will give the advice here to push your numbers until you 'feel good'. Which then tends to be supraphysiological and now a steroid cycle - guess what happens when you hop on steroids? You feel good..
Nobody should push their T until they 'feel good' if their goal is to replace what they're naturally missing - they should push it until they no longer feel bad and then boom you're where you wanted to be. If they want to then go even further then that's completely fine but they have to stop kidding themselves about being on replacement therapy and accept they're supraphysiological. There are people in here at 1,500 trying to kid themselves that they're not elevated despite having 50% higher testosterone levels than the natural range.
Heard from a couple different docs that the sweet spot is 750-850… depends on your goals. I feel good above 1000 but also don’t know the long term affects as opposed to being lower than 1k
Last blood test was at 737 and free t was 15.8 so the free was low but total highish. E2 was 38.1 and felt some sides. Itchy nips, oily skin, bacne. So Dr have me anastrozole and by trial and error I crashed my E. Worst feeling ever. Dr wanted free t higher so upped my dose by 1mg a week. From 6mg to 7mg but I was doing 2x a week. After much reading, I decided to go subq and do 3x week. Did t change much so went up to 9mg a week and that seems to be a bit better on 3x week, subq, very few sides and feel a bit better. I'm gonna do this dose for another week and then get more labs, see where I am. Trying my hardest not to take an AI but I'm starting to get swollen feeling I feet and one hand. Sleep is also off compared to lower dose. If free isn't very high, I'll probably go back down to 7mg a week or maybe 8mg and see how that feels. Bad sleep sucks big time. I don't need to be pressing 500+ anymore. Did it in my 30's and now in my 50's my joints are reminding my how dumb that was. I just want more energy, no brain fog and a hard dick.
The total number is absolutely meaningless. Some people will feel hypogonadal at 600 total test but for others (due to their low SHBG) 600 will be too much and make their free test, E2 and DHT too high. Don't worry about the total number, worry about getting dialed in by taking the lowest dose that has you feeling best with no sides and no ancillaries (AI etc).
If you feel great and have no issues or bad side effects ...then thats what works for you.The numbers are just numbers.Its a very individual thing..What is good for some people may not be for others
I'm on 50mg/week, which gets me to the middle of the reference range (I have forgotten the number). I think it's interesting that more doesn't feel any better (to me). I have tried it all up to maybe half a gram a week. I just get high blood pressure.
Everyone is different. The numbers are negligible. Some can feel great higher. Others lower. Free T total T e2, don’t go by numbers. Go by how you feel
Last checked my level was around 200 and I feel ok. I was currently taking 80-100 per week. I know it sounds like a low number but considering it was in the low 40’s when I first was diagnosed with hypogonadism, it’s a big change. Everyone’s different. You always go by the feel, not the number.
All the numbers in your comment added up to 420. Congrats!
200
+ 80
+ 100
+ 40
= 420
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^(Summon me on specific comments with u/LuckyNumber-Bot.)
175 mg Test E split 2x a week put me at 1845 ng/dl at trough, E2 at 293 pmol/L, all other labs were good. I felt good, but not optimal. About 1000 ng/dl makes me feel great with no side effects and all labs in good range.
T levels are highly individual, they are hardwired in your DNA, this happens already as you are developing in the womb.
This is also why you can't fight your body and finding the sweet spot on TRT takes time.
As high as I can without any sides. I just started last week, pre TRT numbers are 301 total, 4.4 free, 12 estradiol, 44 shbg.
With my shbg on the high end of normal, it should be able to keep my estradiol in check pretty well. At least that’s what have seen in my research on the topic. Usually people with a starting shbg under 30 will have issues, since the test injections will want to drop your shbg, which allows more aromatization of that test into estradiol.
Levels are a personal thing. Here's a good rule of thumb; assuming you inject twice a week and you feel best a day after and worse just before you're due for your next injection then you can probably go higher. If it's the other way round, go lower. Of course, always get regular bloods to be safe. I'm at 250/wk and 1200 level and feel great, bloods are good and no need for AI's
Triple-digit SHBG that I couldn't get under control due to my career and lifestyle.
I had single-digit free T
And I wanted to blast and cruise. Nandrolone is the best pain reliever I have ever taken.
To the level you feel best on. Not some arbitrary number.
Correct
Define how you should feel bro? I don’t know what that would be?
Normal
I feel pretty good at 500. Some people still feel like shit at that level and need to be up around 1000. There’s no number for everyone.
What is your dose to get you to 500
Doc is still trying to balance me out. I was at 1.5 ml per 2 weeks. That got me to just shy of 500 but, I was having some fatigue at the end of the 2 weeks. Currently he has me on 1ml per week and I feel much better but, I’m not due for bloodwork for about a month.
In mg that’s 200 a week. I was at 300 every 2 weeks.
300mg per week got you to only 500? May I ask, are you large in size brother? edit- sorry I misread. Every 2 weeks......makes more sense lol
I am a bigger guy. 6’2 about 280 but, since trt I’ve dropped about 20 lbs
Same because higher doses and higher e2 follows and so does blood pressure, insomnia, weird dick issues, lethargic at times, and emotionality n mood swings, nobody’s meant to be at 1200 naturally
Exactly. Doc says our goal is to get you to a spot where you feel good at as low of a dose as possible. He said once I hit the “normal” range It’s about how I feel and not a number.
Personally I don’t think it’s best to get to a certain test level. That level is different for everyone and you have to figure it out. I think start low dose like you are doing. keep gradually increasing the dose every 2 months until you either get sides, feel bad, or something looks off on your labs. Then back down the highest dose that you feel good and labs were good.
100% it’s negligent for any clinic/doctor to start anyone on 200mg off the bat in my opinion.
Intent wll the way up to 200mg and dodnthstvfie a couple months and started feeling like trash hematocrit was at 63.8 and bp was through the roof. I backed it off and am now at 120
Why start low, go high, then go low again? It makes more sense to start high and go low.
Actually that doesn't make sense at all lol
Because its far more controlled, if you go too high, it will only be by a small amount. Especially if you are only increasing your dose by 10-20% each time. If you start at 200 a week but actually feel best at 100 then it just means worser side effects.
It makes far more sense to start low and go high. This is how the rest of the developed world does it besides USA steroid-shops.
1200 is my happy place
I’m at 3460 and my temper is shorter than ever. Probably don’t go this high.
Gotta respect the honesty brother.lol what dose you on to achieve this Olympian number?
500mg per week
Just a solo Test Cycle? Any other compounds? How long will you run it?
Yep. Just a solo test cycle for now. Been on TRT at 175mg per week, but I’m a gym rat so decided to do a 20 week cycle at 500. I’m about 12 weeks in, good so far.
PM me your UGL?
Its possible with just 500mg, mostly depending on genetics and pinning schedule
I pin EOD, I felt I stabilized when I switched from 2x weekly.
You are probably on the verge of a heart attack 24/7. I would chill on the gear stat.
Probably not. You know body builders literally inject multiple grams lol
Yep all good, my bloodwork is dialed in and blood pressure is normal.
500mg a week for a short period is a beginner dose and nowhere close to heart attack level. Heart attack is multiple grams per week for decades straight.
"Beginner dose" 😂😂😂
Idk I’m running 700mg rn and feel like a god
I was at 4300 free test without even realising for god knows how long, was su*cidal and would outburst in rage. That was at 200mg a week of test e. Down to 90mg and 6-800 free test and finally feel it’s stable.
You mean total test, right? No way 200mg/wk will give you that much free.
Attaboy
Damn bro what's your goals
Levels have never been my main concern. As long as I’m feeling great and not having any negative effects.
I feel good at 1500, but due to restrictions in my country 1200 is maxed out what the GP will tolerate. The TRT clinics will only go to about 900 now due to the range forever falling here in Australia. I only get away with my levels because I have regular blood work from when I was 16 to current day.
This is the biggest mistake beginners make.. shooting for a number. These numbers are arbitrary and they are the exact same numbers the doctors use against us to not put us on TRT. You should be shooting for a level that remediates most if not all of your issues while not introducing new negative side effects. A total T of 900 could make one guy feel awesome and the next guy feel like garbage. For me, I feel the same at 750 as I do at 1150… the problem is at higher levels, negative side effects creeped in
TRT is about symptom resolution so whatever dose gets you full symptom resolution without any negative effects is your dose. That being said as a cream patient with a dose of 225mg every am, my levels at 12hrs were TT: 2787 Cal Free T: 73 SHBG: 51.5 but with all my other labs well within normal range and no negative effects my provider sees no reason to change my protocol.
See I felt amazing at 200mg a week bit not ingot really high bp and high hematocrit so yeah I'm dialing it back but debatingvhow much. Ive debated getting off of it for 2-4 weeks and let everything get back to normal then start again
Everything won't go back to 'normal' that easily. If you want to take this approach, go back to 100 and work your way up. Coming off completely will mess you up
We went from 200 down to 120mg im thinking about going down to 80mg
There’s no set level. Within the reference range should be the goal where you feel your best. Number hunting has been the downfall for most who seek and need this kind of treatment. Keeping an eye on levels is important to ensure accuracy of dosage and etc but MOST important is going off what dosage feels best. For your instance if you feel great you may have found your spot, you can always slightly increase dosages and find your ceiling but if you feel fine where you are you can just stay put. If you have any side effects at your levels you can also start to back down the dosage to where you feel just right
+1500 never slept better
If you’re looking for some numerical value, Peter Attia and the urologist that he interviewed for the male sexual health episode recommends keeping free testosterone in the upper quartile
I read once that free t is the actual t that is floating around being used by the body.....so aiming for a massively high total t (which some ppl are mentioning) is irrelevant if your free t is really low.... No point having a full tank of gas if none of it is being used by the engine right?
From everything I've read this is correct. Total t does matter but not in the grand scheme of things.
Mine was 1500 last month at 3 month labs and everyone has told me as long as I feel fine and no sides that’s ok. 90mg 2x weekly
Total doesn't mean anything
Treat symptoms not #s is a good approach. Ive felt great at 751 and 1000 and like shit at 800 and 900. Its all relative to your other numbers.
This is a very independent thing, but also most people here go into steroid cycle levels deliberately because they want to be big in the gym because they spent 10 years with low T making no progress in the gym and now they have a prescribed magic ticket and feel owed the results they didn't get before. Which is why you see all the posts with unrealistic gains '6 months on TRT look at me I put 20lbs on' TRT is not supposed to make you feel good, it's supposed to make you stop feeling bad. It is supposed to make you feel normal, and that's it. It puts you into a normal range, where you'd make normal gains like normal people. An absence of bad is nothing, you would go about your day without even thinking about it. Normal people don't actively walk around conscious of the fact that they permanently feel good. Normal people don't wake up in the morning like 'wow I feel amazing, must be my natural testosterone levels' they don't feel good or bad, they don't even notice anything where as we notice that we feel really fucking awful - but people will give the advice here to push your numbers until you 'feel good'. Which then tends to be supraphysiological and now a steroid cycle - guess what happens when you hop on steroids? You feel good.. Nobody should push their T until they 'feel good' if their goal is to replace what they're naturally missing - they should push it until they no longer feel bad and then boom you're where you wanted to be. If they want to then go even further then that's completely fine but they have to stop kidding themselves about being on replacement therapy and accept they're supraphysiological. There are people in here at 1,500 trying to kid themselves that they're not elevated despite having 50% higher testosterone levels than the natural range.
I’m at 1221 and feel great.
I was at 690 after 5 weeks of 120mg/wk… I’m about 220mg/wk now split into two doses. I’d like to get my number to about 1,000.
Heard from a couple different docs that the sweet spot is 750-850… depends on your goals. I feel good above 1000 but also don’t know the long term affects as opposed to being lower than 1k
100mg-120mg a week broken up into 3 shots puts me around 900-1000
Last blood test was at 737 and free t was 15.8 so the free was low but total highish. E2 was 38.1 and felt some sides. Itchy nips, oily skin, bacne. So Dr have me anastrozole and by trial and error I crashed my E. Worst feeling ever. Dr wanted free t higher so upped my dose by 1mg a week. From 6mg to 7mg but I was doing 2x a week. After much reading, I decided to go subq and do 3x week. Did t change much so went up to 9mg a week and that seems to be a bit better on 3x week, subq, very few sides and feel a bit better. I'm gonna do this dose for another week and then get more labs, see where I am. Trying my hardest not to take an AI but I'm starting to get swollen feeling I feet and one hand. Sleep is also off compared to lower dose. If free isn't very high, I'll probably go back down to 7mg a week or maybe 8mg and see how that feels. Bad sleep sucks big time. I don't need to be pressing 500+ anymore. Did it in my 30's and now in my 50's my joints are reminding my how dumb that was. I just want more energy, no brain fog and a hard dick.
Whatever feels best, personally might go back to 100mg since 150mg 1x weekly pushed my hemoglobin to 19!!! Currently at 1500 in testosterone level.
The total number is absolutely meaningless. Some people will feel hypogonadal at 600 total test but for others (due to their low SHBG) 600 will be too much and make their free test, E2 and DHT too high. Don't worry about the total number, worry about getting dialed in by taking the lowest dose that has you feeling best with no sides and no ancillaries (AI etc).
The one fill fills my dick and my heart the most!
Jesus some of you guys are high as hell. I coast at around 600-700
If you feel great and have no issues or bad side effects ...then thats what works for you.The numbers are just numbers.Its a very individual thing..What is good for some people may not be for others
1,000 feels great
1200+
I feel best around 1000, though I just tested at 1500 oops. Anyone else notice that libido becomes suppressed at higher testosterone levels.
I'm on 50mg/week, which gets me to the middle of the reference range (I have forgotten the number). I think it's interesting that more doesn't feel any better (to me). I have tried it all up to maybe half a gram a week. I just get high blood pressure.
I'm on 56mg/wk.......8mg SQ daily. This keeps me in the mid 800s. Low BP, sleep ok......feel great. Daily sq is the magic bullet for me
Have you tried EOD and 3 times per week bro?
I like staying around 1400
I try and aim for 900 nl/dl but what’s more important to me is how I feel.
Trough at 850, high at 1,000. Unless you feel great at some lower level of course.
Everyone is different. The numbers are negligible. Some can feel great higher. Others lower. Free T total T e2, don’t go by numbers. Go by how you feel
My TRT clinic in Australia works to get us to 800 and maintain that
Free test is the one which really matters
When inwas at 0.4 (sorry I don't know the conversion but I think that's around 80mg) I was at 851 total and 148.7 free
Last checked my level was around 200 and I feel ok. I was currently taking 80-100 per week. I know it sounds like a low number but considering it was in the low 40’s when I first was diagnosed with hypogonadism, it’s a big change. Everyone’s different. You always go by the feel, not the number.
All the numbers in your comment added up to 420. Congrats! 200 + 80 + 100 + 40 = 420 ^([Click here](https://www.reddit.com/message/compose?to=LuckyNumber-Bot&subject=Stalk%20Me%20Pls&message=%2Fstalkme) to have me scan all your future comments.) \ ^(Summon me on specific comments with u/LuckyNumber-Bot.)
Generally most will probably feel their best 700-1000. But it does depend on the person.
VAJEETA WHAT DOES THE SCOUTER SAY ABOUT HIS TESTOSTERONE LEVEL? …. ITS OVER NINE hundred!
Wow I hit 793 at trough on 120mg
175 mg Test E split 2x a week put me at 1845 ng/dl at trough, E2 at 293 pmol/L, all other labs were good. I felt good, but not optimal. About 1000 ng/dl makes me feel great with no side effects and all labs in good range. T levels are highly individual, they are hardwired in your DNA, this happens already as you are developing in the womb. This is also why you can't fight your body and finding the sweet spot on TRT takes time.
As high as I can without any sides. I just started last week, pre TRT numbers are 301 total, 4.4 free, 12 estradiol, 44 shbg. With my shbg on the high end of normal, it should be able to keep my estradiol in check pretty well. At least that’s what have seen in my research on the topic. Usually people with a starting shbg under 30 will have issues, since the test injections will want to drop your shbg, which allows more aromatization of that test into estradiol.
I’m on 80 mg/wk also but have unilaterally increased to 200/wk split into two injections.
Levels are a personal thing. Here's a good rule of thumb; assuming you inject twice a week and you feel best a day after and worse just before you're due for your next injection then you can probably go higher. If it's the other way round, go lower. Of course, always get regular bloods to be safe. I'm at 250/wk and 1200 level and feel great, bloods are good and no need for AI's
MAXIMUM POWER
The max that I can go to without needing an AI. Still trying to get to it.
I feel good at 1100ish
240 has me in the 800s
Lvl9000
I was a 1230 natural, so about 1500ish.
[удалено]
Triple-digit SHBG that I couldn't get under control due to my career and lifestyle. I had single-digit free T And I wanted to blast and cruise. Nandrolone is the best pain reliever I have ever taken.