Cheating or not?

I have a question for those who use testosterone without HCG: do the testicles shrink so significantly that it becomes clearly noticeable? Also, does the volume of ejaculate become extremely small, or does it remain within a reasonable and acceptable range?

This test thinks my biological age is 10 years younger than I am based on the 50 markers it checked in my blood work but my Testosterone levels seem to be on the low side. Is it time to be on TRT?

I'm 44, currently on TRT taking 200mg/week of testosterone cypionate. I lift consistently and am looking to increase muscle mass and improve my physique.

I'm considering a few options and would appreciate hearing from people who have actual experience with them:

Stay at 200mg/week and focus on optimizing training, diet, and recovery.

Increase testosterone to 250–300mg/week (or potentially higher).

Stay at 200mg testosterone and add HGH. I've been considering 4–6 IU, five days per week, with 6 IU on lifting days.

I'm particularly interested in whether HGH provides a meaningful advantage for actual muscle growth compared with increasing testosterone, especially considering the cost, side effects, and long-term health implications.

For those who've tried both approaches:

What differences did you notice in actual muscle growth, strength, recovery, and body composition?

Was HGH worth the additional expense and potential risks?

Did increasing testosterone above TRT levels produce noticeably better results?

What side effects or bloodwork changes did you experience?

Looking back, would you do anything differently?

I'm not looking to make changes blindly. I want to understand the tradeoffs and what bloodwork or health markers I should review with my prescriber before considering anything.

Appreciate any firsthand experiences or evidence-based advice.

What's your experience? Was it worth it? Or not? The side effects scare me but what kind of likelihood there is it will actually happen? Is that a slippery slope? Or life changing? Ultimately, the decision is mine but i'd appreciate advice. Thks in a million.

67M. Been told my level is 17 but don't even know what that means.

Side effects cited: Hair loss Higher levels of red cells in blood hence risk of stroke Acne Gynecomastia Testicular atrophy Prostate growth hence urinary difficulties

Hi All, I had been taking clomid for 3 months and got the lab work done. Unfortunately the levels have been reduced after taking the clomid as in the screenshot so like in August I actually started taking the medication.

How is this possible, Here’s my before and after cycle
hormones.

Hey legends anyone in aus recommend an easy to use bloodwork company to use to check levels discreet? Im in gold coast qld if that matters and im sick of going through my g.p who raves on about me using test lol

Do any women take TRT? I’m looking for a dose for my wife that won’t make her look manly but help her get some gains in the gym and just improve her lifestyle? Does that does of test cyp exist?

22M, 165lbs, 6’ 2”
Low libido, low energy, gained 15lbs of fat in the last 6 months. Last October my levels were 369 ng/dl. These were my numbers today.

Anyone in Canada find a good place to order Labs? The doctor doesn’t give me exactly what I need, it’s annoying

Male
Age 23
5’9
190lbs losing weight
Natural

How do i fix this blood work?
Why is my free test so high?

hello I have been on 188 mg of test cyp since September 6th with the last two weeks I bumped it up to 200 mg. I thought my levels would be well above 1000 (its at 989 converted to american metrics) . I did a lab test back in may and it came back at 512. Despite my testosterone only jumping from the 500's to the high 900's I definitely feel a lot different. my strength in the gym has gone up for instance, and I have experienced some cognitive benefits as well. But I am concerned about raising the dose more because the e2 seems to be kind of high ( no real world symptoms despite maybe a few small zits on my chest and 1 on my bicep) . All in all I feel pretty good, but open to hearing about any suggestions or anything to look out for. I am 35/ m/ slender build bit of belly fat but working on getting rid of that.

Total testosterone: approximately 300 ng/dL
Free testosterone: 71 pg/mL (reference range: 35–155 pg/mL)
LH: 3.41 mIU/mL
FSH: 1.89 mIU/mL

43yo 220lbs

Prescribed 1 Vial (Grapeseed) Testosterone Cypionate 200mg/ml 10 ml
Inject .15 ml (15 units) subcutaneously (thigh or shoulder) daily

I had a failure to launch with this stuff a few years back due to high hematocrit and e2. I’m concerned that I might need to start a bit more conservatively this go around.

Previous situation: once a week injections, body weight was 310 lbs and drank alcohol nightly. I believe the dose was 200mg once weekly.

Current situation: planning on daily injections, body weight is 220 lbs and gave up alcohol a year ago. Prescribed 210mg weekly to be injected in daily doses.

I’m considering cutting the dose in half to start.

Appreciate any advice you guys can give me. Thanks.

My endo wanted to try Clomid for low test. These are the results:

Blood work before Clomid:

Total T: 211 ng/dL
LH: 6.5 mUI/mL
SHBG: 16.6
E2: 92.5 pmol/L

Blood work AFTER Clomid (1 month):

Total T: 675 ng/dL
LH: 6 mUI/mL
SHBG: 22.8 nmol/L
E2: 222 pmol/L (!!!!!)

Is the number concerning? I felt shitty on Clomid - very moody, bitchy and lots of migraines. I am 23M.

First timer 25m 250 ibs

Hey everyone,

Looking for some advice from people who have been on TRT longer than I have.

I’m a 37-year-old male and started TRT about 9 weeks ago. My doctor prescribed 150mg of testosterone cypionate per week, split into three injections:

Monday: 50mg
Wednesday: 50mg
Friday: 50mg

Just had my bloodwork done after 9 weeks, and here are my results:

Bloodwork:
Total Testosterone: 1280 ng/dL
Free Testosterone: 313.3 pg/mL
Estradiol (E2): 68 pg/mL

My stats:

Age: 37
Height: 6’1”
Weight: 245 lbs
Body Fat: Approximately 25%
Weightlifting: 5 days per week
Currently focused on losing body fat while building/maintaining muscle

For some background, I used to weigh 345 lbs, so I’ve already lost 100 lbs. I’m continuing to work on lowering my body fat percentage while maintaining as much muscle as possible.

My testosterone before starting treatment was around 267 ng/dL.

My questions:

Does 150mg per week seem too high based on these bloodwork results?

With my total testosterone at 1280 and free testosterone at 313, would you consider lowering the dose?

Is an estradiol level of 68 concerning, or is that expected with testosterone levels this high?

Has anyone experienced similar numbers and found a better balance with a lower weekly dose?

Could lowering my body fat percentage help bring my estradiol down naturally?

I’m not trying to chase the highest testosterone numbers possible. My goal is to find a sustainable TRT dose that improves my overall health, energy, body composition, and quality of life without unnecessarily elevating other hormones.

I plan on discussing everything with my doctor, but I’d like to hear from others who have been through something similar.

Appreciate any feedback!

HORMONES

Total testosterone: 6.661 nmol/L

Free testosterone: 0.159 nmol/L

SHBG: 18.52 nmol/L

LH: 1.7 IU/L

FSH: 2.32 IU/L

Oestradiol: 73.4 pmol/L

Prolactin: 233 mU/L

Albumin: 47.7 g/L

PSA: 0.3 µg/L

THYROID

TSH: 3.41 mU/L

Free T4: 21.66 pmol/L

LIVER

ALT: 61.3 U/L

ALP: 93 IU/L

GGT: 20.7 U/L

Bilirubin: 17.68 µmol/L

KIDNEY

Creatinine: 111.4 µmol/L

eGFR: 84 mL/min/1.73m²

Urea: 8.52 mmol/L

FULL BLOOD COUNT

Haematocrit: 46.2%

Haemoglobin: 160 g/L

Red blood cells: 5.41 × 10¹²/L

White blood cells: 4.85 × 10⁹/L

Platelets: 273 × 10⁹/L

MCV: 89.5 fL

MCH: 29.6 pg

MCHC: 331 g/L

RDW: 13.2%

MPV: 10.6 fL

Neutrophils: 2.32 × 10⁹/L

Lymphocytes: 1.9 × 10⁹/L

Monocytes: 0.36 × 10⁹/L

Eosinophils: 0.23 × 10⁹/L

Basophils: 0.04 × 10⁹/L

LIPIDS

Total cholesterol: 3.17 mmol/L

LDL cholesterol: 1.11 mmol/L

HDL cholesterol: 1.6 mmol/L

Triglycerides: 0.58 mmol/L

OTHER

HbA1c: 27.49 mmol/mol

Ferritin: 92.05 µg/L

----

I'm 20 years old. Was obese. Gone to the gym consistently 4-6x a week for around 1.5 years losing 30kg+. Been in a surplus for 3 months now only eating clean foods and sleep is good most nights. The NHS is uninterested in helping.

Is it worth going private looking into potential causes like a pituitary tumor. Anyone got experience with that process?

This is my third blood test now with low testosterone. It was taken in the morning and I rested 2 days before.

Curious what people think I should do

I know everyone here promotes the real TRT (I'll get there eventually, don't worry). I'm just starting out and my TRT clinic doc thought I should try a low dosage of Enclomiphene along with Anastrozole. I started the Enclomiphene (6.25mg EOD), but have been hesitant on the Anastrozole. I believe I am starting to feel some high e2 symptoms and was considering taking a very small dose.

I have been doing research here and many advise very low dosages of Anastrozole. The dosage I was given indicates 0.1mg on the bottle. So this would be far less than 1mg. Should I cut that in half, or is this already a small enough dose? I haven't seen anyone discuss a dosage this low.

Just looking for some opinions. I wouldn't take it more than once or twice a week depending on how I feel. Getting more labs done in a couple of months.

I believe I have high levels of e2, I’ll get my bloods done in around 4 days.

Because of the high e2, my face has been bloated to hell. If I do hop on Aromasin, how long would it take to visibly decrease the facial bloating.

A day? A week? 2?

12.5 mg aro eod for example dosage.

I am in my mid-30s and was recently prescribed TRT, but I am hesitant to start messing with my hormones and shutting down my natural production if I do not need to.

Here is my bloodwork (with US conversions):

• Total T: 15.6 nmol/L(~450 ng/dL) [Ref: 8.3 to 33.0]
• Free T: 296.2 pmol/L(~85 pg/mL) [Ref: 160.0 to 630.0]
• Bioavailable T: 7.36 nmol/L [Ref: 4.0 to 12.0]
• SHBG: 33.1 nmol/L [Ref: 13.3 to 89.5]
• Estradiol (E2): 127.0 pmol/L(~34.6 pg/mL) [Ref: 35.0 to 145.0]
• LH: 3.34 IU/L [Ref: 1.5 to 16.0]
• FSH: 1.21 IU/L [Ref: 1.0 to 18.0]
• Prolactin: 12.8 ug/L [Ref: 3.0 to 17.0]

42 year old male here, skinny build. Low energy. Take a look at my labs. Also, should I be concerned about my high estrogen levels? What may be causing that?