I can manage LDL but not HDL

**Oxbow** · 08-11-2023, 04:48 PM

Hi everybody

AAS kills your lipids and it can be dangerous for the heart. I used to have high LDL ("bad" cholesterol) and I took yeast red rice (with COQ10 because the red yeast rice stop your body production of COQ10) and the bloodwork has shown a significant improvements ! Now I know I can totally deal with my LDL (I buy my yeast red rice on Amazon BTW)

But for the HDL ("good cholesterol"), I thought I had to eat a lot of good fat and omega 3. I took A LOT of different omega 3 supplements for 3 months and my bloodwork showed no improvement at all. After a search, HDL does not increase with Omega 3 intake.

So I made a lot of searchs, and apparently a supplement called Niacin can rises the HDL and it's supported in the scientific litterature.
So I've just ordered 4 bottles.

I wondered if you have any other tips ? Having a HDL at 0 is super dangerous for the heart. I want to plan a var cycle but anavar is famous to kill your lipids, to I need to take something to rise my HDL for a long period before blasting the anavar.

**Honkey_Kong** · 08-11-2023, 05:50 PM

Originally Posted by Oxbow

Hi everybody

AAS kills your lipids and it can be dangerous for the heart. I used to have high LDL ("bad" cholesterol) and I took yeast red rice (with COQ10 because the red yeast rice stop your body production of COQ10) and the bloodwork has shown a significant improvements ! Now I know I can totally deal with my LDL (I buy my yeast red rice on Amazon BTW)

But for the HDL ("good cholesterol"), I thought I had to eat a lot of good fat and omega 3. I took A LOT of different omega 3 supplements for 3 months and my bloodwork showed no improvement at all. After a search, HDL does not increase with Omega 3 intake.

So I made a lot of searchs, and apparently a supplement called Niacin can rises the HDL and it's supported in the scientific litterature.
So I've just ordered 4 bottles.

I wondered if you have any other tips ? Having a HDL at 0 is super dangerous for the heart. I want to plan a var cycle but anavar is famous to kill your lipids, to I need to take something to rise my HDL for a long period before blasting the anavar.

I don't know what your diet is, but replacing the kinds of fats you consume should help. You want more monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats. Using more olive oils, canola oils, fish, flax seeds, sunflower seeds, avocado, etc while consuming less saturated fats is what you want to do.

You can also look in to medications like statins. But yeah, if you're worried about your cholesterol levels, you probably shouldn't be messing with steroids .

**Cylon357** · 08-11-2023, 07:31 PM

Originally Posted by Oxbow

Hi everybody

AAS kills your lipids and it can be dangerous for the heart. I used to have high LDL ("bad" cholesterol) and I took yeast red rice (with COQ10 because the red yeast rice stop your body production of COQ10) and the bloodwork has shown a significant improvements ! Now I know I can totally deal with my LDL (I buy my yeast red rice on Amazon BTW)

But for the HDL ("good cholesterol"), I thought I had to eat a lot of good fat and omega 3. I took A LOT of different omega 3 supplements for 3 months and my bloodwork showed no improvement at all. After a search, HDL does not increase with Omega 3 intake.

So I made a lot of searchs, and apparently a supplement called Niacin can rises the HDL and it's supported in the scientific litterature.
So I've just ordered 4 bottles.

I wondered if you have any other tips ? Having a HDL at 0 is super dangerous for the heart. I want to plan a var cycle but anavar is famous to kill your lipids, to I need to take something to rise my HDL for a long period before blasting the anavar.

We just had this same topic come up like 3 days ago.

**Lemonada8** · 08-11-2023, 08:06 PM

throw some Niacin in there. .. oops just saw you said that lol

careful of flushing and turning bright red lol

**Test Monsterone** · 08-11-2023, 08:12 PM

Citrus bergamot increased my HDL. Look into it; there are studies. Got mine in capsule format.

**Oxbow** · 08-12-2023, 08:13 AM

Originally Posted by Honkey_Kong

But yeah, if you're worried about your cholesterol levels, you probably shouldn't be messing with steroids.

LDL oxidizes and deposits plaque in the arteries over time, having a very high LDL is a guarantee of having a heart attack in 20-30 years.
So when taking steroids , we should do breaks and cruise with low test doses and take supplement (red yeast rice, niacin) untill the lipids returns to normal range, before blasting again.
This way you can live very old (like Arnold) and still use steroids . Not only that, but if you are constantly blasting, your receptors become saturated and downregulate, causing you to stop making any further progress. The duration of the cruise/blast cycle influences the intensity of the blasting, with the strength of the blast increasing the longer the cruise phase has been maintained.

Originally Posted by Test Monsterone

Citrus bergamot increased my HDL. Look into it; there are studies. Got mine in capsule format.

Thanks so much man, this was the answer I was waiting for !!
As a chemist, I have tools to check the litterature and I found a lot of papers supporting this,
example : https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6497409/

Bergamot juice was found to reduce cholesterol (29.27%), triglycerides (46.12%), and LDL (51.72%) and an increase in HDL (27.61%) levels versus hypercholesterolemic controls.

**Cuz** · 08-12-2023, 09:24 PM

Originally Posted by Oxbow

LDL oxidizes and deposits plaque in the arteries over time, having a very high LDL is a guarantee of having a heart attack in 20-30 years.
So when taking steroids , we should do breaks and cruise with low test doses and take supplement (red yeast rice, niacin) untill the lipids returns to normal range, before blasting again.
This way you can live very old (like Arnold) and still use steroids . Not only that, but if you are constantly blasting, your receptors become saturated and downregulate, causing you to stop making any further progress. The duration of the cruise/blast cycle influences the intensity of the blasting, with the strength of the blast increasing the longer the cruise phase has been maintained.

Thanks so much man, this was the answer I was waiting for !!
As a chemist, I have tools to check the litterature and I found a lot of papers supporting this,
example : https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6497409/

All of the “receptors become saturated and you won’t make any more gains” is just simply bro science. Gains halt because of genetic limit’s and simply most gym goers arent able or willing to train with the insane intensity to recruit new tissue growth and or feed the muscle. I just dont buy into it. Receptors die off and regenerate everyday . Each cell has receptor and then that steroid molecule binds with that receptor and then what happens next is not studied alot or not alot of information on what exactly happens when that atom reaches the nucleus of the cell.
I had a lengthy discussion with my hrt specialist which is basically an obgyn of 40 years and now runs a wellness clinic.

With that said I agree we should always come off and let our bodies adjust back to a homeostasis agenda as far as cholesterol liver enzymes and kidney function which we all aas greatly effects if longterm abuse continues

**wango** · 08-13-2023, 05:49 PM

Originally Posted by Test Monsterone

Citrus bergamot increased my HDL. Look into it; there are studies. Got mine in capsule format.

Thanx. Looked into niacin, but there too many possible sides. The info on this looked good & mine arrives tomorrow courtesy of Amazon. Will likely run BW in 3-4 months to check results.

**Honkey_Kong** · 08-14-2023, 12:40 AM

Originally Posted by Oxbow

LDL oxidizes and deposits plaque in the arteries over time, having a very high LDL is a guarantee of having a heart attack in 20-30 years.
So when taking steroids , we should do breaks and cruise with low test doses and take supplement (red yeast rice, niacin) untill the lipids returns to normal range, before blasting again.
This way you can live very old (like Arnold) and still use steroids. Not only that, but if you are constantly blasting, your receptors become saturated and downregulate, causing you to stop making any further progress. The duration of the cruise/blast cycle influences the intensity of the blasting, with the strength of the blast increasing the longer the cruise phase has been maintained.

We're all aware of the fact that the ldl leaves plaque in the arteries. What I said is if you're that concerned about cholesterol then don't take steroids. All of them have some sort of negative effect on your lipid profile. Some are worse than others. But if You're afraid that gear is going to accelerate atherosclerosis or give you some other heart ailment (which is very possible), if you just don't take them, you'll never have to subject yourself to those risks.

And by the way, Arnold's had 2 separate procedures done on his heart (granted they were heart valve replacements) So I wouldn't exactly declare him the pinnacle of good health.

**Painjunky** · 09-14-2023, 11:03 AM

Just out of curiosity , does ldl at 125 mg/dl <100
Seem concerningly high?

**Lemonada8** · 09-14-2023, 12:28 PM

no. unless you have past significant heart issues or high risk for it due to other med issues. If you know, you know.

**Fluidic Kimbo** · 09-15-2023, 05:41 AM

I took Niacin every day for about a month or two.

It's available in a 'flush' and 'non-flush' form, but the 'flush' form is way more effective.

I got sick of the flushing though, it's pretty extreme. Don't take it if you have a little sunburn as you'll be screaming.

**powerliftmike** · 09-24-2023, 02:56 PM

Originally Posted by Cuz

All of the “receptors become saturated and you won’t make any more gains” is just simply bro science.

Some AAS like winstrol have very weak androgen receptor binding and something like anadrol has hardly any AR activity at all, or unmeasurable amounts [Saartok et al., 1984]. Endorcrinology

Originally Posted by Oxbow

very high LDL is a guarantee of having a heart attack in 20-30 years

Not really. LDL is not the great heart disease predictor that was once thought. Get bloodwork for apolipoprotein B and non-HDL-C (Aggarwal et al., 2021) Indian Heart. Some GPs may not be familiar with the latest research on APOb, LPa, and non-HDL-C as superior predictors, and stick to the, "high LDL put them on a statin" dogma.

Originally Posted by Oxbow

Having a HDL at 0 is super dangerous for the heart.

Low HDL is currently thought to be bad with high levels also being seen as bad. In Hypertension Trimarco et al. (2022) demostrated this non-linear U relationship in men.

Do you have a baseline off-cycle HDL level? Oral AAS will generally tank HDL. Niacin may help. I haven't looked into specific dietary ways to raise HDL outside of the fructose reduction for triglycerides. As you have found, the answer is not Omega-3s, which just generally thin the blood. The answer is also nothing to do with cholesterol, as strictly speaking, HDL only refers to the protein encapsulating the cholesterol. The is why Dr. Attia does not like the terms "good" or "bad" cholesterol as the cholesterol is identical and we are actually speaking of fat and proteins (i.e. lipoproteins). Furthermore, dietary cholesterol is very poorly absorbed and has a limited effect in the body with most be hepatically derived.