Up 5.5lbs in 1st 10 days of TRT - water weight or muscle?

[miker295]

Hi all,

This is my first post - a big thanks to the community here for putting great information together.

I started TRT 2 weeks ago. I've had long term symptoms of low free test/high E2 and 10 years of diet/exercise attempts have failed to remedy it. My goal is to lose body fat first and foremost, add some muscle (not trying to get jacked though) and increase libido.

My levels are within range or on the edge of the range (see below) so the endo's I've seen have refused treatment. I recently started going to a T clinic and started a regimen of 150mg TCyp 1x week, 1mg anastrozole 2x week and 250mg HCG 3x week.

Since starting the treatment on December 11th I've gained 5.5 lbs. I've been to the gym 3x during this period doing a slow lift routine (10 secs up, 10 secs down, repeat and then hold 10 secs upon failure). This has been good in that I definitely feel "good sore" the first couple of days following, so I suspect I'm building muscle. However my waist has increased by about a quarter inch too, which is concerning given my goal is to move the other direction!

I'm curious to get the experience of the group out there and if it seems possible to add that much muscle in a short period, or if this is water retention indicating my E2 is creeping up.

Here are two test results. The first was Dec 2012 and I only received the actual lab values recently, so I did not know about the low/high free test/E2. The most recent test is from the T-clinic and although it's in range again you'll notice that free test is near the lower end and E2 is near the higher end, which seems to be consistent with my symptoms.

Dec 2012
Total T 392 (range 241-827)
SHBG 53.8
FAI 25.3
Free Test 8.4 LOW (range 8.7 - 25.1)
Estradiol 48 HIGH (range <47)

Dec 2013
Total T 738 (range 332 - 896)
Free Test 12.4 (range 5-40)
Estradiol 43 (range 0-56)

Thanks!

[Bonaparte]

Well, you sure as hell didn't gain 8oz of muscle per day. That's impossible no matter what you're taking.
It's all water weight. You don't gain any significant amount of muscle in a week.
But it isn't just from estrogen, as steroids directly increase hydration through sodium reabsorption in the kidneys, as well as through increased glycogen storage in muscle cells.

[kelkel]

1mg of anastrazole twice per week?
Eventually I see that crashing your E2, which you will not like.
That much adex is more than most use on a cycle.
Consider splitting your dosage to 75mg every 3-4 days for more consistent levels and better E2 management.

[miker295]

So if it is water weight is that as you would expect 10 days in, or does that seem like E2 is too high/low already?

I will ask about lowering the AI amount. I'd like to get E2 into the 20s but have no idea how quickly the AI impacts things.

[64509chvl]

I'm going on 2.5 months now...in the first month I gained 10 pounds. Of coarse I thought my E2 was all phuk'd up, but I felt pretty good & wasn't bloated or any other high/low E2 symptoms.

I've lifted for the past 2 years with very slow progress...suddenly my lifts were all jumping up (felt great) so I thought it was all muscle, lol! Then I realized how stupid that sounded! My waist is still the same...it's just water weight throughout the body.

At 6 weeks my E2 was 20, no AI...doc bumped my dose up & I'm splitting to 2x a week aswell. Bloods again in another 4 weeks...I'll be curious, but I'm feeling pretty damn good now!

Seems like guys suggest E2 in the 20-30 range to be safe...then I guess make slow small adjustments staying within that range to find out where you feel the best. Also not that I really know, but from what the knowledgable guys on here talk on AI's...that dose sounds pretty wild, just keep a good eye on it bud & good luck!

[NEFLRick]

E2 can make you retain water so it's not out of the question. I have been a little bloated and I'm believing my E2 is a little high. Waiting on BW results to come back but I expect I'll have to add a little AI to my morning routine.

[Beethoven]

E2 can make you retain water so it's not out of the question. I have been a little bloated and I'm believing my E2 is a little high. Waiting on BW results to come back but I expect I'll have to add a little AI to my morning routine.

I was the same. Gained weight, (not all water due to poor diet) but I'm retaining quite a bit of water due to high E2. Just started AI.

[lovbyts]

At this rate you should look like the Hulk in no time. lol

If it was me I would be concerned. Do you work out? Does it look like muscle? Are your veins showing? Do you have a 6 pack? Do you have a moon face?

I would be betting on it being water weight even if you have been working out 24/7 and your diet is near perfect.

Get the E2 checked, get your test levels checked, get the diet on track, less salt, more water intake.

It will take a couple of months or more for your hormones to normalize and become steady.

[miker295]

At this rate you should look like the Hulk in no time. lol

If it was me I would be concerned. Do you work out? Does it look like muscle? Are your veins showing? Do you have a 6 pack? Do you have a moon face?

I would be betting on it being water weight even if you have been working out 24/7 and your diet is near perfect.

Get the E2 checked, get your test levels checked, get the diet on track, less salt, more water intake.

It will take a couple of months or more for your hormones to normalize and become steady.

I work out, but I'm not a gym rat. I lift heavy 2x a week. Diet has been low carb for 2.5 yrs - I'm relentless about avoiding carbs/sugar except veggies and some nuts, but can't drop the other weight. I suspect E2 but folks seem to be saying the 1mg AI I'm taking 2x a week could cause E2 to crash. I guess I will just have to wait for my next round of blood work in a couple of weeks to see where I am.

[APIs]

Not muscle, but definitely water weight gain and/or adjusting to TRT related. OP never stated what his current weight was. I can easily lose or gain 5+ pounds in 10 days based on eating habits etc...

[miker295]

So I went in for my shot yesterday but told the doc my symptoms and he told me to hold off on the shot. He is keeping me on the 1mg AI 2x week and the HCG until I get new bloodwork back next week. I think he suspects the E2 spiking so we shall see...

[miker295]

Hi all,

I reviewed results today with the doc:

Total T: 932
Free T: 32.5
Estrogen: <50 (the lab ran the wrong test here so that's all they provided)

Based on these results, the doc suspects that the protein bars I'd re-stocked on in week 1 (and ate a little too generously) led to the weight gain. I was also experiencing mood swings which he thinks are related to the length between shots. He re-started me today on a half dose of T with a second shot for for this weekend, and will keep it twice weekly to see if that helps.

I had been concerned that E2 had spiked which was causing the weight gain, but this seems to suggest otherwise. The Free T has jumped up which is fantastic and is what I've been going for as I've always suspected a problem with FreeT/E2 rather than Total T. What are your thoughts though?

Mike

[e1ectric]

thanks for the info. new here

[Bonaparte]

Hi all,

I reviewed results today with the doc:

Total T: 932
Free T: 32.5
Estrogen: <50 (the lab ran the wrong test here so that's all they provided)

Based on these results, the doc suspects that the protein bars I'd re-stocked on in week 1 (and ate a little too generously) led to the weight gain. I was also experiencing mood swings which he thinks are related to the length between shots. He re-started me today on a half dose of T with a second shot for for this weekend, and will keep it twice weekly to see if that helps.

I had been concerned that E2 had spiked which was causing the weight gain, but this seems to suggest otherwise. The Free T has jumped up which is fantastic and is what I've been going for as I've always suspected a problem with FreeT/E2 rather than Total T. What are your thoughts though?

Mike

How could he attribute the weight gain to protein bars over food? It's all just calories, and you obviously ingested too many of them.