Good Read - Testicle Shrinkage

[Johnny_Rotten]

Hey bros,

got emailed this today by Mick Hart. I'm sure alot of you already know bout this but i think it's a good read regardless.

------------------------

A common problem amongst bodybuilders and other strength athletes is that of testicular shrinkage during the prolonged use of androgens / anabolic steroids .

This can be thought of in the following way: the hypothalamus in the human brain has a detection mechanism which regulates the release of many hormones which control the production of androgens by the testes and the adrenal glands. If this detection mechanism detects an abnormally high amount of androgen / anabolic steroids , which it recognises primarily as testosterone , then the hormones responsible for testosterone release will have their production decreased, and so the testes etc. will no longer be stimulated by these hormones, and so will cease, or decrease, production of natural testosterone, and so cause testicular shrinkage.

Oestrogen (androgens can aromatise in the body into oestrogens) have even more of a shut-off effect upon the release of androgens via the hypothalamus, and so we have a "double-edged" problem, with both androgens / anabolic steroids (which are all basically androgens) and oestrogens causing shut-down of hormonal stimulation of the testes, and thus testicular shrinkage.
One of the best ways to avoid this is to take some Tamoxifen (perhaps 20mg per day) in order to stop the oestrogen, from the aromatisation of androgens, acting upon receptors in the hypothalamus. Therefore, even though the oestrogens are still there, their effect is blocked by the Tamoxifen. This is also very useful to prevent gynaecomastia (bitch tits), i.e. formation of breast tissue in the male, caused by aromatisation of the androgens to oestrogens in the body.

Another very good idea is to use chrysin (an isoflavone compound, derived from plants), which prevents the formation of oestrogen in the first place, by inhibiting the enzymes which perform aromatisation on the androgens, and so very much reduce the production of oestrogens from the steroids, hence reducing the effect upon the hypothalamus, and so upon the testes. Therefore, testicular shrinkage can be very much reduced, and so you are likely to be preserving that part of the function of your endocrine hormonal system.

What if you say you don't care about it? Well, you can probably say goodbye to getting an erection if your own endocrine system is messed up, and you may also risk life-long infertility. Look after your health, and you will have a longer and happier life, and in this case, a more active sex life.

In general, if natural testosterone production shuts-down, then men experience problems in getting erections, or even become impotent, whilst wanting more sex! VERY frustrating, as you can imagine. Alternatively, sex drive may disappear completely, or be very much reduced.

Therefore, the message from this article is to use Tamoxifen AND chrysin DURING, and for four or five weeks AFTER a steroid cycle. It is then advisable to be off steroids for as long a period of time as you were on them, before you begin your next cycle. It is also advisable to use HCG (Human Chorionic Gonadotrophin) both during, and for four or five weeks after a steroid cycle. This acts directly upon the testes themselves, and helps to keep natural testosterone production going along.

If your testes do shrink slightly, then don't panic, as they will return to normal upon cessation of steroid use , as long as shrinkage is not severe: if so, stop the steroid cycle immediately by slowly tapering down the dosages (stop injectables first, followed by reducing oral steroid dosages).

Enjoy your bodybuilding, but remember, nobody should consider taking anabolic steroids until they have gained everything they can by using hard training, enough rest, a lot of protein, and everything else from the health food store i.e. by training naturally. This can take anything up to eight or ten years of consistent training, i.e. you have to make bodybuilding part of your life-style.

You are living dangerously if you don't follow this advice (see previous articles in 'No Bull Collection'), and once you are so fit, you will experience far fewer, or no, side effects from steroids after all these years of natural training, i.e. you have 'prepared' your body for them.

[BuffBuffalo]

Good read! Kinda seemed like a commercial for nolva or something. lol

[Johnny_Rotten]

THIS THREAD WAS IN NO WAY ENDORSED BY NOLVA*


















Complete/utter lie.


Hahaha. Naw kidding.

[Lach01]

good reading, but thought a little estrogen was good for gains, from what i understand with this is getting rid of all estrogen from your system.

correct me if im wrong would no way contradict Mick Hart knows a lot more about gear than myself.

[ChuckLee]

I love Mike Mentzer

[Merc..]

good reading, but thought a little estrogen was good for gains, from what i understand with this is getting rid of all estrogen from your system.

correct me if im wrong would no way contradict Mick Hart knows a lot more about gear than myself.

Nolva binds the receptor .... It does not reduce total estrogen levels ( like a AI does)...

[Merc..]

when was this written ?? He also doesnt explain that HCG is suppressive ... He does state that HCG should be used during PCT ( also advises using nolva) , but he fails to explain that nolva blocks the suppressive nature of the HCG... I think this should have been explained ( unless of course he is not aware of this )?? I think he should have went into more detail with this article .. I dont think it is well writen and nolva is not the best choice to use to bring up testical size during a cycle, HCG is ..


Merc.

[longhorn814]

Merc is da man!!! Thats all you need to know!

[Merc..]

Merc is da man!!! Thats all you need to know!

Much appreciated Longhorn ...... Means alot coming from you .....

[Lach01]

cheers for clearing up Merc think i read it incorrectly, in work so only quickly read through the article.

[meathead320]

chrysin?!!!

how about ARIMIDEX ?


Also, the hcg part, as Merc said, YES that stuff can ruin your testes at anything over 500 iu per day, when only 250 iu 2x EW is needed for LONG cycles and HRT use..

Hey, Merc, would you be willing to put up a sticky ont he proper use of HCG?

I have seen a LOT of posts lately with guys about to ruin their leydig cells, not knowing the proper use of the stuff.

Over doses of HCG have more potential to cause long term harm to the HPTA than any AAS. The concern, is not that HCG is bad, but there are penty of newbs on the board about to ram 5,000 iu + into their body.

[Merc..]

chrysin?!!!

how about ARIMIDEX ?


Also, the hcg part, as Merc said, YES that stuff can ruin your testes at anything over 500 iu per day, when only 250 iu 2x EW is needed for LONG cycles and HRT use..

Hey, Merc, would you be willing to put up a sticky ont he proper use of HCG?

I have seen a LOT of posts lately with guys about to ruin their leydig cells, not knowing the proper use of the stuff.

Over doses of HCG have more potential to cause long term harm to the HPTA than any AAS. The concern, is not that HCG is bad, but there are penty of newbs on the board about to ram 5,000 iu + into their body.

I know A-Rob did a article on HCG ( in the s.com newsletter) .. He is also doing a 2nd part to this article ... This is a GREAT read !!!!!


Category: Featured in Newsletter / All Categories
HCG – The Best of Both Balls

By Anthony Roberts,


Senior Editor, Steroid .com

When I first had published my thoughts on Post –Cycle Therapy, I recommended using HCG. Other than those thoughts, and reasoning behind it, I really didn’t give much thought to HCG. Frankly, many people (Dan Duchaine, etc…) had recommended it for PCT before me – and many went on to recommend it for PCT after me (Dr. Michael Scally, for one ). Clearly Duchaine made his recommendations before me (he was dead before I was even published) and I guess I need to note that although Dr. Scally had his thoughts on PCT published after me, clearly he had been using HCG with his patients much prior to this.

Just because I happened to recommend it for PCT doesn’t mean that I invented its use for that purpose – nor do I think that I’ve invented he wheel. But honestly, I thought that recommending it for PCT was just that…a reccomendation for it’s use after a cycle, and nothing more.

Unfortunately, many people have interpreted this to mean that it’s only use, in my opinion, is for PCT. So I’m going to go over some different protocols for HCG use, as it’s been seen throughout the years. I never said that I think it’s totally useless while on a cycle – I just never really covered that use in my writing.

Oops.

But then again, there’s a lot of different ways that people have theorized that HCG could be used for various purposes…and I’ve only written about a few of them until now. I’m going to present you with some different ideas regarding HCG use, and that information is yours to do what you want with…to incorporate into your cycles, talk to your doctor about, use after a cycle…whatever.

The first time HCG for use with anabolic steroids had ever really been written about in detail was in Anabolic Steroids and Sports, Volume II, by James E. Wright PhD. In this book, he covers the three ways HCG had been utilized by anabolic steroid using athletes:


1. For 1-3 weeks following (500-5,000 units 1-2x/week) a cycle
2. (and) for varying lengths of time during (500-5,000 units 1-2x a week) a cycle*
3. As a stand alone anabolic
4. For fat loss (the so-called HCG diet)

However, there are two other schools of thought regarding concurrent HCG use with (or after) anabolics, and neither is very new either. In fact, both have been around since the earliest books on underground steroid use , and were spoken about more than a decade ago by Dan Duchaine (Underground Steroid Handbook) and also by W. Nathaniel Phillips (Anabolic Reference Guide volume 6). Phillips (who later wrote “Body for Life” and seems to have aged negative ten years over the last 20 or so) has some wacky ideas about HCG use, one of which being to stop using anabolic steroids (while on a long cycle) for about 2 weeks, and just use HCG for that period, then starting up the AAS again. I don’t think this is optimal, but it’s not going to kill you.

Duchaine originally recommended something along the lines of 1,000-1,500iu every third week on a cycle, then some HCG and Clomid afterwards for PCT. Then in his second edition of the Underground Steroid Handbook, he recommends 500-1,000 1-2x* a week during a cycle (perhaps with some Nolvadex ), while for getting off steroids he recommends 1,000iu E3D (along with tapering off the injectable dose, as well as the oral dose, starting with the most toxic steroids first, and lowering the total oral mgs every third day).

* Interestingly, there has been a doctor (of what Duchaine would refer to as the “benign-quack variety) who frequents various internet forums, claiming that he invented the “500iu of HCG 2x a week protocol”…which COULD HARDLY BE TRUE, since Dr. Wright first mentions this protocol in his book (1982), and Duchaine used a similar protocol in his second Underground Steroid Handbook.

What I’ve seen from athletes, anecdotally at least, is that when used on a cycle sparingly, HCG helps to maintain testicular size and condition. It is further speculated that the intermittent administration of HCG will keep the testicles receptive to LH, when we eventually go off a cycle. This may be due to HCG’s ability to help you maintain of a higher level of Inter-Testicular-Testosterone (ITT), when used during a cycle. This could aid and quicken your recovery of the hypothalamic-testicular-pituitary-axis. This is certainly possible, although I’ve never seen bloodwork or really good data confirming it.

The reason I tend to recommend it for PCT is that when used after a cycle, it will help in restoring your testicles back to their original size, and provide stimulation for the Leydig cells. Both using it during a cycle and for pct methods has merit, and there’s no reason why you can’t use HCG every third week at a one time dose (perhaps) 500iu or so, and then use it at that same dose for a daily schedule at the outset of your Post Cycle Therapy .

Dr. Scally has told me that he thinks that 500iu is too small of a dose (Duchaine disagrees), and that 2,500iu is the minimum he’s seen to be effective in his patients.

Personally, from countless users feedback on steroid.com, I feel that 500iu/day for 3 weeks (along with the rest of my PCT protocol) is highly effective…it’s probably the most commonly used do-it-yourself PCT for steroid users in the world. I’ll get more into the research and studies in the next part of this article, but for now, suffice it to say that I have never been “against” HCG for use on a cycle. It’s been done since the early 80’s at least, which is the first time I’ve seen the 500iu 2x/week protocol spoken about.

I know that my own Hormone Replacement Therapy includes 10,000iu of HCG per month, although I admittedly never even reconstitute the stuff. Chalk it up to laziness or apathy, or whatever you want, but I just never happen to use the stuff.

But I’ll get into this more in part two, when I’ll have to think up another clever title for an article about keeping your balls big.



http://www.steroid.com/newsletter-1-17-08.php

[Merc..]

Here ya go ...

Mick Hart go to 7 min 10 sec on the vid ..... Self proclaimed guru .. hahahahah

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vp5qX...eature=related



Merc.

[Merc..]

T.t.t.

[whiteowl]

that is why i hit this site every week....where can you get this kind of info? Merc your words are appreciated.... us 50+ guys, we just don't have the gym time like we did 25 years ago....thanks

[longhorn814]

Here ya go ...

Mick Hart go to 7 min 10 sec on the vid ..... Self proclaimed guru .. hahahahah

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vp5qX...eature=related



Merc.

lol too funny..theyre right..the self proclaimed guru is dangerous..mostly cause hes full of bad advice..doesnt even look like he trains anymore either

[Johnny_Rotten]

Damn.

Mick Hart seems a bit lose..

Opinions?

[Merc..]

Damn.

Mick Hart seems a bit lose..

Opinions?

He says alot of things that are old ( outdated) or simply just not correct ( from what I have read ) ...



Merc.

[Merc..]

lol too funny..theyre right..the self proclaimed guru is dangerous..mostly cause hes full of bad advice..doesnt even look like he trains anymore either

lol ....

[BG]

He says alot of things that are old ( outdated) or simply just not correct ( from what I have read ) ...



Merc.

I agree. I have a friend whom I have confined everything I have learned over the past 3 years, he has put it to good use. But all of a sudden he's doing his own research and is coming up with some bad information. He says he reads it online, but as you stated above, just because someone is a self proclaimed guro, does not mean he is correct or you should use his advice.

[Merc..]

just because someone is a self proclaimed guro, does not mean he is correct or you should use his advice.

Oh yea ..... TRUTH !!!!!

[Merc..]

^^^^^^^^^^^^^

[PEWN]

i was a post whore guru

[Merc..]

i was a post whore guru

Hahahahaah


Too funny Pewner

[meathead320]

Does anyone have any articles on the amounts/frequency of use, that HCG would cause desensitization of the Leydig cells?

Honestly, I have never seen any studies that it even does this, come to think of it. All of it is anecdotal. Even a lot of the current AAS game is anecdotal, as most of the use is done outside of proper test circumstances.