Hi everyone. I’m new to this whole thing, and I have a few questions I’m hoping you can help me with. I’m a 52 year old male who has lifted on and off since my early twenties. I never seemed to be able to gain any mass. My best friend is an executive in a bodybuilding supplement company, and his boss is a former pro bodybuilder. At one point I was working out with my friend and the pro bodybuilder in the pro’s private gym. I got really skinny and had very low body fat by dieting and lifting very regularly, but I looked anorexic rather than looking like a bodybuilder. My friend made good mass gains on the same diet and routine. After that I went through various phases of lifting and being sedentary. Now I am fat and weak instead of being skinny and weak. Last year my wife convinced me to get my testosterone levels checked. Sure enough they were super low (in the low 100s). I suspect they must have been low even in my 20s since I just could not make any real gains. I started TRT with my family doctor. He prescribed me 200mg once every two weeks. That only got my level up to the low 200s, still below the minimum clinical range. My doctor was reluctant to do TRT in the first place, and then when my levels came back low he only wanted to up the dosage to 250/2 weeks. I decided to go to a private clinic that does TRT. They put me on 400mg of Cypionate/week (Injected twice weekly, 200mg each time) with an estrogen blocker at the beginning of January this year. On that dosage my level is up to 774. I got motivated to lift again to take advantage of the TRT. I have made some modest gains. I have been using this routine:
barbend.com
So, after that marathon of an introduction, here are my questions:
1. Is 774 high enough to have an anabolic effect? From what little info I could find online I believe over 1,000 is considered to be in the anabolic range.
2. The clinic I’m going to isn’t going to increase the dosage any because they say I’m now in the upper end of the clinical range. Does anyone know of any legal clinics that will prescribe a dosage sufficient to achieve an anabolic effect? I’d like to keep everything legal and safe, if possible.
3. What kind of lifting program and diet would you recommend? I am 6’0”, 280 pounds, and at around 40% body fat. I have been able to get through the above linked workout routine no problem, and recover rapidly, with little soreness, which I also attribute to the TRT. Even with all of that fat I can see my biceps and triceps growing since I got on the 400mg/week dosage, which motivates me to keep going and to find out more.
4. I am getting a lot of water retention in my legs and especially feet and ankles. The TRT clinic swears it has nothing to do with the cypionate. I read elsewhere that cypionate in particular causes a lot of swelling. I had ultrasounds done on my legs and heart to rule out blood clots and heart problems. Both came out great, no problems there at all. My kidney function is off the charts good. I asked the clinic about trying a different form of testosterone, but they insist that the cypionate is the best option and that it doesn’t cause swelling. Should I keep using the same clinic or look elsewhere? I suspect that cypionate is the only thing they have access to, and therefore why they won’t prescribe anything else.
I have more questions, but this is already turning into a book, so I’ll stop there for now. I appreciate any advice you can give me based on your own experience.
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barbend.com
1. Is 774 high enough to have an anabolic effect? From what little info I could find online I believe over 1,000 is considered to be in the anabolic range.
2. The clinic I’m going to isn’t going to increase the dosage any because they say I’m now in the upper end of the clinical range. Does anyone know of any legal clinics that will prescribe a dosage sufficient to achieve an anabolic effect? I’d like to keep everything legal and safe, if possible.
3. What kind of lifting program and diet would you recommend? I am 6’0”, 280 pounds, and at around 40% body fat. I have been able to get through the above linked workout routine no problem, and recover rapidly, with little soreness, which I also attribute to the TRT. Even with all of that fat I can see my biceps and triceps growing since I got on the 400mg/week dosage, which motivates me to keep going and to find out more.
4. I am getting a lot of water retention in my legs and especially feet and ankles. The TRT clinic swears it has nothing to do with the cypionate. I read elsewhere that cypionate in particular causes a lot of swelling. I had ultrasounds done on my legs and heart to rule out blood clots and heart problems. Both came out great, no problems there at all. My kidney function is off the charts good. I asked the clinic about trying a different form of testosterone, but they insist that the cypionate is the best option and that it doesn’t cause swelling. Should I keep using the same clinic or look elsewhere? I suspect that cypionate is the only thing they have access to, and therefore why they won’t prescribe anything else.
I have more questions, but this is already turning into a book, so I’ll stop there for now. I appreciate any advice you can give me based on your own experience.
