FAQ for Older Guys

[Kenji]

Hey everyone. 44 years old and just recently learned about Peptides (through a family member) which led me to finding this forum. I've also lost valuable sleep due to absorbing so much information. But, I have been enjoying this forum since I know I'm not in the same boat as the 20-something guys. My goals are trying to stay lean, muscular, and have energy. The first two haven't been too bad being natural this whole time. But my interest has been piqued.

I recently had an annual physical and my Testosterone is at 360. Of course my doctor said that's perfectly fine...I'm looking for a new doctor. I have so many symptoms of low T - brain fog, low energy (especially in the afternoon), anger issues - and my doctor said I just need to talk to a therapist.

Anyway, going down this rabbit hole, I'm wondering if there is a good "getting started guide for older guys"? For example, I started looking for how to start purchasing and handing my own test injections, but most threads have led to finding a doctor since there is a delicate balance of managing testosterone with estrogen...makes sense. I'm curious if it's possible to spend a year or two with a doc to learn the ropes, then go off on your own as long as you are getting blood work?

I'm not sure if I'm supposed to mention others in the space, but I read a book by someone that seems to know what he's talking about regarding testosterone therapy. But I also hear it's for life and injections every 3 days, etc. That kind of freaks me out a bit. Maybe not the self-injections, but the for life thing. That being said, I have kids and I'm snipped but the thought of being on something for life doesn't sit right.

At this point I'm rambling, but excited to keep learning and see what others 40+ have/are going through.

As far as where I am right now:
45
5'10" / 205lbs
DEXA shows 25% body fat
Eat clean 80% of the time, but I do overeat all the time.
Powerlift 4 days a week. Cardio when I'm bored.
Looking to start possibly Sema and AOD to drop some weight.

 

[PenguinPiss]

Hey everyone. 44 years old and just recently learned about Peptides (through a family member) which led me to finding this forum. I've also lost valuable sleep due to absorbing so much information. But, I have been enjoying this forum since I know I'm not in the same boat as the 20-something guys. My goals are trying to stay lean, muscular, and have energy. The first two haven't been too bad being natural this whole time. But my interest has been piqued.

I recently had an annual physical and my Testosterone is at 360. Of course my doctor said that's perfectly fine...I'm looking for a new doctor. I have so many symptoms of low T - brain fog, low energy (especially in the afternoon), anger issues - and my doctor said I just need to talk to a therapist.

Anyway, going down this rabbit hole, I'm wondering if there is a good "getting started guide for older guys"? For example, I started looking for how to start purchasing and handing my own test injections, but most threads have led to finding a doctor since there is a delicate balance of managing testosterone with estrogen...makes sense. I'm curious if it's possible to spend a year or two with a doc to learn the ropes, then go off on your own as long as you are getting blood work?

I'm not sure if I'm supposed to mention others in the space, but I read a book by someone that seems to know what he's talking about regarding testosterone therapy. But I also hear it's for life and injections every 3 days, etc. That kind of freaks me out a bit. Maybe not the self-injections, but the for life thing. That being said, I have kids and I'm snipped but the thought of being on something for life doesn't sit right.

At this point I'm rambling, but excited to keep learning and see what others 40+ have/are going through.

As far as where I am right now:
45
5'10" / 205lbs
DEXA shows 25% body fat
Eat clean 80% of the time, but I do overeat all the time.
Powerlift 4 days a week. Cardio when I'm bored.
Looking to start possibly Sema and AOD to drop some weight.

For me, personally, as an upper 40s guy who was pretty sedentary and drinking a LOT, I can relate. I had a similar body composition. What really seemed to be my catalyst for change was TRT. It got me in the gym more, motivated me to drop fat (thanks GLPs!) so as to not aromatize so much. Now I'm motivated to not drink the empty calories, which end up ruining sleep as well. GH was a big help as well (2IU daily) with fasted cardio.

I've moved from a linear progression (Greyskull) to a 6 day PPL and noticing gains in just a week and a half. The combination of volume, eating more protein, and increasing my TRT to mini-blast really helped.

Also... tadalafil. love that shit.

 

[RaddishPork]

Wouldn’t consider myself an older guy quite yet but I feel you on the TRT for life hesitancy. It’s a strange concept for sure.

How I see it, is that it’s a hormone that I naturally produce. I’m going to have testosterone in my body until the day I die, but now I can decide what those levels are going to be. It’s more of a supplementation as opposed to introducing an entirely new chemical to my body forever. I also have 2 kiddos and got snipped so that’s no concern whatsoever.

They do make long lasting shots and/or pellet inserts. I have 2 uncles in your age range and almost identical situations. Both of them got on TRT (one pellet, one injections) and are the healthiest they’ve ever been aside from the invincible college days. Of course you still put in the work but it adds that little extra crutch for keeping anthleticism and maintaining healthy energy levels. I just saw them both recently and remember thinking “damn y’all are living right”

 

[buck]

I am 64 and started TRT 25 years ago. One can always stop TRT if they want but it makes no sense to me. The more sources i read from the better understanding i have as no one person has the human body down to a science i find. Many use gels/creams and are happy with that. More then those that self inject from my experience. It is al about what one is willing to do. I find being healthy start with what i eat. Trying to overcome a less then healthy diet with drugs is just putting a Band-Aid on the problem. Health is a marathon not a sprint. It is something that needs to be done for the rest of ones life. And i don't do diet perfectly at all. It is an ongoing process and i use new knowledge as it comes out. What i thought was healthy 40+ years ago is different know.

 

[phenominal34]

Hey everyone. 44 years old and just recently learned about Peptides (through a family member) which led me to finding this forum. I've also lost valuable sleep due to absorbing so much information. But, I have been enjoying this forum since I know I'm not in the same boat as the 20-something guys. My goals are trying to stay lean, muscular, and have energy. The first two haven't been too bad being natural this whole time. But my interest has been piqued.

I recently had an annual physical and my Testosterone is at 360. Of course my doctor said that's perfectly fine...I'm looking for a new doctor. I have so many symptoms of low T - brain fog, low energy (especially in the afternoon), anger issues - and my doctor said I just need to talk to a therapist.

Anyway, going down this rabbit hole, I'm wondering if there is a good "getting started guide for older guys"? For example, I started looking for how to start purchasing and handing my own test injections, but most threads have led to finding a doctor since there is a delicate balance of managing testosterone with estrogen...makes sense. I'm curious if it's possible to spend a year or two with a doc to learn the ropes, then go off on your own as long as you are getting blood work?

I'm not sure if I'm supposed to mention others in the space, but I read a book by someone that seems to know what he's talking about regarding testosterone therapy. But I also hear it's for life and injections every 3 days, etc. That kind of freaks me out a bit. Maybe not the self-injections, but the for life thing. That being said, I have kids and I'm snipped but the thought of being on something for life doesn't sit right.

At this point I'm rambling, but excited to keep learning and see what others 40+ have/are going through.

As far as where I am right now:
45
5'10" / 205lbs
DEXA shows 25% body fat
Eat clean 80% of the time, but I do overeat all the time.
Powerlift 4 days a week. Cardio when I'm bored.
Looking to start possibly Sema and AOD to drop some weight.

Did you have a birthday by the time you finished typing this ?

Started out 44 and turned 45 ?

 

[Kenji]

Did you have a birthday by the time you finished typing this ?

Started out 44 and turned 45 ?

Ha! Good catch. It was either my obese fingers or my brain fog from low T-levels. Still 44 last I checked.

 

[dbbporter]

Similar, except 54, 6'5 started at 310, currently 290, goal weight 220. Got started on tirzepatide, killed the food noise and got me into the gym on a regular basis every other day. Looked into addtl peptides and started a cjc/ipa stack which helped a bunch with GH and I'm not sore the day after. Definately putting on more muscle and losing fat (have to keep telling myself I'm not stalling weight wise). Was reluctant to start TRT for the life long commitment perception, but I'm already taking losortan daily anyway (which I hope to drop with losing all the weight) so why not testosterone. Quality of life will be loads better. Looking to start as soon as I complete all of my blood labs (need E2 and D3).

FSH 3.5
LH 5.1
Free T 64
Tot T 235

​

​

 

[D-Eazy]

60 years old started TRT two years ago. I am better shape than I have been in years. My workout and diet has really improved.

I agree on tadalafil ….it helps with the workout and the other side effect is great

 

[GeezerPeformance]

50 yrs old and started TRT with a doctor eight months ago. After three months of reading the forums I sort of went out on my own. I started buying UGL and told my doc who was totally good with it and even prescribed telmisartan in case the blood pressure goes up. Started with Test C and picked up primo and anavar after five months using low dosage. The primo was my only real mistake as I ran 1:1 and crashed my estrogen. Lesson learned. Now I am starting to up the doses and hopefully blood work will continue to look good. The results have been great so far. Yes tadalafil is amazing!

 

[BigDeee]

If the concern is shutting down your nads completely, just run HCG along with Test to keep them going. If they don't shut down, not sure why you couldn't have option to discontinue TRT at any time.

 

[egruberman]

52yo here, currently running test and primo, coming off a blast of 750mg each. Was 25% bf a year ago. Presently sitting around 10% both numbers from DEXA. HGH daily around 5iu. I can run primo 1:1 and my e2 is just fine.

My experience with doctors is that they won't spend much attention and it's probably best to optimize on your own. Likely the best way to start is to run as much test as you can while keeping your e2 at the top of the reference range.

Probably start around 150mg a week and titrate up from there testing e2 (estradiol) every few weeks. Administration frequency will determine how much you aromatize. Given the 25% bodyfat that's probably a lot, and so you can run more test if you commit to daily injections. You'll want to inject IM, no matter what you read and trust me, you'll get used to it. My morning routine includes waking up, evacuating my bladder, stepping on the scale, injecting my test and then going about my day.

Once that's sorted, toss in a couple units of HGH to help with recovery and fat loss. Get into the gym a few times a week and maybe consider one of the many GLP-1 agonists to get the appetite under control. Tirzepatide is great, but there's nothing wrong with semaglutide either and it's a little cheaper.

Once you go on, the "for life" thing will fade away and you'll never want to come off.

 

[Millard]

but the for life thing. That being said, I have kids and I'm snipped but the thought of being on something for life doesn't sit right.

These type of lifetime commitments never really bothered me much. But I can understand the reluctance from many different angles.

For one, when we think of medicine, we expect to go the doctor, receive a treatment, take a pill for a week or so, and the problem is fixed.

Or we attach some sort of moral dimension to relying on long-term use, and often even short-term use. The idea of "cheating" or "taking short-cuts" with health matters deters a lot of people. Also the natural/unnatural dichotomy.

The whole idea that you are no longer self-sufficient and can take care of yourself without relying on something/someone else is troubling to many.

Then there is the inconvenience / scheduling / structure require to commit to some long-term even if it's less than 5 minutes once per week.

What's helped me is just to reframe the big worry about "life-long" commitments.

The truth is that life-long use of some pharmaceuticals is the primary reason why the average lifespan has increased so dramatically over the past 40 years. Things like daily use of anti-hypertensives, statins, and even aspirin have revolutionize health outcomes

If old people in their 60s maintain optimum health and feel they are morally superior because they avoided all drugs and lived with a clean diet and exercise, etc., etc., then whatever.

Being super healthy in your 60s is its own reward regardless of how it was achieved. Screw the morality of it all - if your goal is to be healthy. Then just be healthy.

If your goal is to be "moral" or "natural" or "superior" then it is not primarily about health so that is another story.

Even if you decided against lifelong therapeutic HRT or any other pharmaceutical intervention, the pursuit of health generally involves a long series of lifelong commitment - a lifestyle.

You can't exercise for 6-months and become fit - and then stop and revert to previous sedentary life and expect the health benefits to continue.

You can't eat well for 6-months and lose weight - and then stop and revert to hypercaloric consumption and expect the weight loss to continue.

Most health pursuits involve a lifelong commitment.

It seems odd that many find the lifelong commitment to exercise/diet tolerable, acceptable (and moral) as a way to pursue health.

But the lifelong commitment to pharmaceutical treatment is intolerable, unacceptable (and possibly even immoral) as a way to pursue health.

And of course, the options aren't mutually exclusive. It's not an either or choice. Nor should it be.

You can make a lifelong commitment to BOTH and most people do.

This is how I frame it.

 

[phenominal34]

These type of lifetime commitments never really bothered me much. But I can understand the reluctance from many different angles.

For one, when we think of medicine, we expect to go the doctor, receive a treatment, take a pill for a week or so, and the problem is fixed.

Or we attach some sort of moral dimension to relying on long-term use, and often even short-term use. The idea of "cheating" or "taking short-cuts" with health matters deters a lot of people. Also the natural/unnatural dichotomy.

The whole idea that you are no longer self-sufficient and can take care of yourself without relying on something/someone else is troubling to many.

Then there is the inconvenience / scheduling / structure require to commit to some long-term even if it's less than 5 minutes once per week.

What's helped me is just to reframe the big worry about "life-long" commitments.

The truth is that life-long use of some pharmaceuticals is the primary reason why the average lifespan has increased so dramatically over the past 40 years. Things like daily use of anti-hypertensives, statins, and even aspirin have revolutionize health outcomes

If old people in their 60s maintain optimum health and feel they are morally superior because they avoided all drugs and lived with a clean diet and exercise, etc., etc., then whatever.

Being super healthy in your 60s is its own reward regardless of how it was achieved. Screw the morality of it all - if your goal is to be healthy. Then just be healthy.

If your goal is to be "moral" or "natural" or "superior" then it is not primarily about health so that is another story.

Even if you decided against lifelong therapeutic HRT or any other pharmaceutical intervention, the pursuit of health generally involves a long series of lifelong commitment - a lifestyle.

You can't exercise for 6-months and become fit - and then stop and revert to previous sedentary life and expect the health benefits to continue.

You can't eat well for 6-months and lose weight - and then stop and revert to hypercaloric consumption and expect the weight loss to continue.

Most health pursuits involve a lifelong commitment.

It seems odd that many find the lifelong commitment to exercise/diet tolerable, acceptable (and moral) as a way to pursue health.

But the lifelong commitment to pharmaceutical treatment is intolerable, unacceptable (and possibly even immoral) as a way to pursue health.

And of course, the options aren't mutually exclusive. It's not an either or choice. Nor should it be.

You can make a lifelong commitment to BOTH and most people do.

This is how I frame it.

Well said !!

 

[Stormwallace]

For me, personally, as an upper 40s guy who was pretty sedentary and drinking a LOT, I can relate. I had a similar body composition. What really seemed to be my catalyst for change was TRT. It got me in the gym more, motivated me to drop fat (thanks GLPs!) so as to not aromatize so much. Now I'm motivated to not drink the empty calories, which end up ruining sleep as well. GH was a big help as well (2IU daily) with fasted cardio.

I've moved from a linear progression (Greyskull) to a 6 day PPL and noticing gains in just a week and a half. The combination of volume, eating more protein, and increasing my TRT to mini-blast really helped.

Also... tadalafil. love that shit.

Totally agree with this mentality. Running TRT has now motivated me NOT to drink the beers that I previously been having almost daily and to hit the gym more often. I realize I don’t need TRT to do so, but for me it’s just that extra bump, that extra nudge of motivation.

Can I ask if you bump up your weekly test dose occasionally? I’m on 150/week currently (1 month in) and interested to see if I double that for a while how it would impact me.

 

[sbtr12]

I started on TRT several years back but I do incorporate some blasts. I have to watch my lab results much more closely vs when I was young.

It wont be long before I cut out the blasts. I do not see an issue with injecting say 75 to 100 mg of test a week for life. At least I hope my health markers continue to agree with me on this.

 

[Stormwallace]

I started on TRT several years back but I do incorporate some blasts. I have to watch my lab results much more closely vs when I was young.

It wont be long before I cut out the blasts. I do not see an issue with injecting say 75 to 100 mg of test a week for life. At least I hope my health markers continue to agree with me on this.

Do you notice significant changes (gains, energy, etc) during the blasts?

 

[PatriotsEnjoyer]

I just recently started TRT. I've had good results. I always yoyoed on weight but last year had to take prednisone for an extended period and I gained almost 60 pounds. I've lost 40 of it now but am struggling with the remainder.

I'm on Tirzepatide and found it helped a lot with food noise. Funny enough because I'm on Test C and gaining water weight, my overall weight has only gone down a touch but according to my smart scale, fat has gone down and lean mass has gone up.

I also stack with Tesamorelin + Ipamorelin. I'm not sure how much that is individually contributing, but it definitely helps my sleep.

 

[PenguinPiss]

Totally agree with this mentality. Running TRT has now motivated me NOT to drink the beers that I previously been having almost daily and to hit the gym more often. I realize I don’t need TRT to do so, but for me it’s just that extra bump, that extra nudge of motivation.

Can I ask if you bump up your weekly test dose occasionally? I’m on 150/week currently (1 month in) and interested to see if I double that for a while how it would impact me.

yes, running 250/125 Test/Primo right now, with 3IU GH. For me, this has been a great recomp recipe. My TRT dose was 125-150, which I ran straight for a year. I didn't want to increase my T too soon, since i was PARANOID about growing tits (I was 30% BF). Currently ~15%BF (goal 10-12), and when this deep cut is finished, I'll take a break back to 125-150 without anything else for about 8-10 weeks, then bump the gear up and possibly do a strength/speed program.

 

[Stormwallace]

yes, running 250/125 Test/Primo right now, with 3IU GH. For me, this has been a great recomp recipe. My TRT dose was 125-150, which I ran straight for a year. I didn't want to increase my T too soon, since i was PARANOID about growing tits (I was 30% BF). Currently ~15%BF (goal 10-12), and when this deep cut is finished, I'll take a break back to 125-150 without anything else for about 8-10 weeks, then bump the gear up and possibly do a strength/speed program.

During the year if TRT @125-150, What did you do for AI?

 

[Country Club Hero]

We need a 40+ sub forum or something on here. And then maybe a 50 and above.

I think we start experiencing more significant changes in our 40s with gear. Or late 30s. Can’t speak for after 45 though.

I’ve recently lessened my overall gear intake significantly. Kinda enjoying being super lean more than all beefed out like I have been for 17 years or so now. It’s not exciting but I feel it’s necessary for me to stay healthy.