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?

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?

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

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.

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!

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?

Hi

I’m about to start taking Proviron, and I have 160 pills, 25 mg each pill.

I’m struggling to decide whether to take 25 mg twice daily or to split a 25 mg dose into 12.5 mg twice daily. So 25 mg or 50 mg each day.

Does anyone have any tips or personal experience with this?

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 currently taking 140 mg of propionate per week, administered via daily injections. My E2 level was 87, while my testosterone was at 1300; I had a good libido, but my erections were not satisfactory. I wanted to lower my E2 to 60—my "sweet spot"—but I think I miscalculated the dosage and dropped it too low. I am currently waiting for my lab results. In a situation like this, is it better to increase the testosterone dose to bring E2 back up, or should I add something like HCG? I am using Aromasin.

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.

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

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.

I’m a 29-year-old male, and I’ve been experiencing reduced libido and weaker erections compared to a few years ago.
My recent blood tests showed:
Total Testosterone: 302.2 ng/dL (Ref: 280–800)
LH: 12.28 mIU/mL (Ref: 1.50–9.30) — High
FSH: 9.03 mIU/mL (Ref: 1.40–18.10)
Prolactin: 4.57 ng/mL (Normal)
TSH: 1.018 µIU/mL (Normal)
The blood sample was collected around 12:30 PM, so I understand that my morning testosterone could be different.

My symptoms:
Reduced sexual desire compared to 2–3 years ago.
I still get morning erections, but they’re not fully hard.
Even during masturbation, my erections are usually only around 50–60% firm.
Reduced energy and motivation to exercise compared to earlier.
I’ve read that elevated LH with borderline testosterone can sometimes indicate compensated hypogonadism or reduced testicular responsiveness, but I understand that one blood test isn’t enough for a diagnosis.
I’m planning to consult an endocrinologist/urologist and repeat my testosterone and LH tests in the morning.

My questions:
Has anyone in their 20s or 30s experienced similar testosterone and LH levels?
Did your repeat morning testosterone results turn out significantly different?
Did anyone find an underlying cause for elevated LH with borderline testosterone?
If you had low libido and weak erections, what helped you improve?
What additional investigations did your doctor recommend?
I’m not looking to self-medicate or jump into TRT. I mainly want to understand others’ experiences and what helped them identify the cause.
Would appreciate hearing from anyone who has gone through something similar.

And it says use immediately upon reconstitution. If I buy bacteriostatic water can I use that for reconstitution instead and use it eod for a month? Or is there probably something different about the actual hcg as well

Lads I got questions, did my blood test 9 weeks ago before hopping on 250mg of test E taking 0.25 twice a week. Just got blood tests again after the 9 weeks and my results are exactly the same, can someone steer me in the right direction, can definitely see a change in physique but I’m not sure. Have I been sold shit stuff?

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.

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.

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

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.

23 M
175cm
72kg
17%bf

Testosterone 178,8ng/dL
E2 162,14 pg/mL
FSH 2.20
LH 1.47
SHBG 40.90

what the hell it’s going on?? i’m feeling all the sides from low test and high E. Crying every time, low libido all my 17% it’s in the love handles. i was expecting low T but not E that high tbh.

what do you think?

If you’re on TRT and your estradiol levels are within your desired range, and you’re feeling good with no estrogen-related symptoms, is there a clinical rationale for continuing Arimidex prophylactically, or would it be more appropriate to reduce or discontinue it while monitoring sensitive estradiol levels and symptoms? In other words, should aromatase inhibitor use be guided by lab values alone, symptom management, or a combination of both, given the risks associated with suppressing estradiol too aggressively

Hey guys, looking for a quick sanity check on my 8-week bloodwork.

​Current Protocol:

​125 mg Test Enanthate / week (split 2x/week, shallow IM delts)

​Lean / athletic build (~154 lbs / 70 kg), low body fat

​Blood drawn at true trough (morning before scheduled injection)

​Labs (US units):

​Total T: 568 ng/dL (260–930)

​Free T (calc): 13.2 ng/dL (5.7–17.8)

​FAI: 81.4 (17.0–78.3) [HIGH]

​E2 (sensitive): 40.9 pg/mL (< 39.8) [HIGH at trough]

​SHBG: 24.2 nmol/L (16.5–79.3)

​(Thyroid, HbA1c, PSA, Lipids all fully optimal)

​Symptoms:

​Extreme fatigue / lethargy: Brutal afternoon crash (2–3 PM), brain fog, falling asleep super early on the couch.

​Very oily face by midday (zero gyno/nipple issues).

​The Dilemma:

My doctor only looked at Total T (568 ng/dL) and suggested increasing to 150 mg/week because "there’s room at the top."

​However, with lower-normal SHBG (24.2), FAI already above range (81.4), and E2 elevated at the lowest point of the week (40.9 pg/mL), I’m worried 150 mg will just spike E2 higher and worsen the lethargy.

​Questions:

​Would you keep 125 mg and just switch to 3x/week (~42 mg M-W-F) to blunt peaks, or drop the dose to ~100 mg/week?

​Has anyone cured TRT brain fog/lethargy caused by high E2 simply by increasing injection frequency without an AI?

​Appreciate your thoughts!

Hi,

Just on my first cycle at the moment at 300mg, running bloods at 6 weeks and providing all is good going to push up to 500mg, no sides so far 4 weeks in.

Looking to blast and cruise, currently using Test E. Considering for the cruise 500-600mg monthly injections of Test U to save pinning 3 times a week with Test E.

Any experiences with Test U or advice.

I'm a 42-year-old male, 6’2”(187.96 cm), currently around 241 lbs (109kg). Body fat approx. 28-29%. Actively working out 4-5 days a week cardio/lifting heavy and trying to cut another 30lbs and recomp (taking tirz).

I’ve had multiple morning testosterone tests ranging from 310–417 ng/dL, with my most recent labs showing total T of 368 and free T of 48 pg/mL.

My biggest issues are severely reduced libido, rarely having morning erections, fatigue, reduced motivation, mood changes, and brain fog. I have Hashimoto’s/hypothyroidism that’s treated, sleep apnea controlled with religious CPAP use.

I spoke to a clinic they want to start me on 150mg Test C a week split into three 50mg injections Mon, Weds, Fri. Is this reasonable?

I’m considering TRT because these symptoms are affecting my quality of life, despite trying to address the other contributing factors. I’m interested in hearing from guys who had similar numbers and symptoms. Did TRT make a meaningful difference in your libido, energy, mood, and overall quality of life? Anything you wish you’d known before starting?