22 Year Old Considering Steroids (Low T)

[boisebeast]

About a month ago I got bloodwork done for a physical at the doctor, I asked him to check my T levels purely out of curiously. When the results came back, I was very surprised to see that my total test was on the low side and my free test was very low (I got a second blood test done to confirm this). My doctor expressed his concern about this, saying that it was extremely unusual for someone who's my age (22 next month) to have levels like these. I have never taken anything that would suppress my T levels. He was on the fence of putting me on TRT, but since my total test wasn't technically at the minimum requirement for that, he decided not to.

Recently, I've been considering putting myself on TRT essentially, and running a low and responsible dose of 80-100mg of Test E or C weekly to bring up my levels to a normal level. I feel that staying within a very responsible, non-super-physiological range would minimize the risks of long term issues. My fiancé can't have kids anyway, so I'm not concerned about that issue either. I'm definitely on the fence of going down this route and I would appreciate hearing opinions from you all, I take them all to heart. Thanks guys

[Mr.BB]

You need to try to find out whats the reason for a low T.

If your doctor hasnt done this please consider changing doctor.

[system admin]

please tell us your free and total testosterone levels levels?

[kelkel]

Guys I'm going to get this moved to the HRT Forum. We'll discuss it more in depth there.

[boisebeast]

Here are the results from my blood tests.

First Blood Test:

Total test: 410 (range 302-1096)
Free test: 50 (range: 47-244)
Testosterone, free PCT: 1.2 (range: 1.6-2.9)

PS thanks for moving the thread kelkel



Second Blood Test:

Total test: 550 (range 302-1096)
Free test: 81 (range: 47-244)
Testosterone, free PCT: 1.5 (range: 1.6-2.9)

[boisebeast]

Oh and the first test was done at about noon, the second was done about 8:00am

[Beethoven]

Your Dr should be investigating the root cause for your low t. It would be irresponsible for you to put yourself on trt at your age unless there is no other recourse. If your Dr isn't doing this you need to find a new one. Your bw is incomplete. The more knowledgeable members will chime in but trt isn't an option at this point.

[kelkel]

Agree with Beethoven. You need full BW to see what is impacting your T levels. At the top of this forum use the Blood Work in the Finding A Doc sticky. This will give you a clear picture. Otherwise you're just guessing. So many things can impact T levels. Do not jump on self-imposed TRT.

[2Sox]

I couldn't agree more with Kel and Beethoven above. At your age you should be having wet dreams every night. Something is going on and you have to find out what.

[boisebeast]

Thanks for the feedback guys

[boisebeast]

I'd like to elaborate a little bit on why I'm considering this...

Even if a doctor were able to help me get my levels up a little bit naturally, I'd think there would be a high chance that they'd still be lower than the normal range for people my age. I do plan on trying steroids at some point. Although most people on this forum are for cycling steroids, I'm leaning more towards running a TRT dosage of test to establish a better baseline for myself, and then I can use some other compounds to blast-- although nothing too harsh (I'd mostly be using compounds like EQ, primo, TBOL, etc just to get a little more, clean, slow gains). Because I plan on using the TRT baseline strategy anyway, is it really worth trying to get my testosterone levels up a little bit naturally, just to end up blasting and cruising on a TRT dose of testosterone in a few years anyway? Right now I feel like my test levels are having an impact on the gains I'm making. My first bulk, I put on around 25 pounds on muscle. My second, I put on between 10 and 15. I'm just finishing my third cut and I'm about to hit the 4 year mark on my training, and I've put on maybe 2 pounds of muscle this year. This is extremely frustrating and confusing since my training and diet have been spot on and as consistent, if not even more consistent, than ever. I don't think I should be hitting a wall with my muscle gains quite so soon, and I think this may be due to my low testosterone. I've also noticed I've been extremely lethargic the last few months, perhaps a bit "down" in terms of my mood, and I'm struggling to get as lean as I have in the past (most notably in my mid-section) during this cut. These could all possibly be attributed to the low testosterone. Together, all of these things are kind of pushing me towards using a TRT dose of test right now.

[kelkel]

Your second set of BW is not that bad. If you gained 25 lbs, then 10-15, then 2 what makes you think you're doing bad? That's basically 40 lbs. Most guys would be thrilled with that. Huge gains do not simply continue just because you are running another cycle. A body can only handle so much. Gains become much more incremental so patience is your virtue here.

Bodybuilding is a very frustrating endeavor. Maybe your nutrition is not as spot on as you think. It's very hard to continually eat enough to gain weight. If you're 200 lbs and want to be 220 lbs then you need to eat like a 220 pounder. Not as easy as it seems.

Be patient. I seriously think it's foolish to think TRT will be some form of panacea for you to keep the gains going. Your way to young for it barring an actual problem.

[boisebeast]

Your second set of BW is not that bad. If you gained 25 lbs, then 10-15, then 2 what makes you think you're doing bad? That's basically 40 lbs. Most guys would be thrilled with that. Huge gains do not simply continue just because you are running another cycle. A body can only handle so much. Gains become much more incremental so patience is your virtue here.

Bodybuilding is a very frustrating endeavor. Maybe your nutrition is not as spot on as you think. It's very hard to continually eat enough to gain weight. If you're 200 lbs and want to be 220 lbs then you need to eat like a 220 pounder. Not as easy as it seems.

Be patient. I seriously think it's foolish to think TRT will be some form of panacea for you to keep the gains going. Your way to young for it barring an actual problem.

I completely hear you and I appreciate the response. I can't tell when you said "running another cycle" if I accidentally gave the impression that I've used gear. I've never touched anything that would have any effect whatsoever on my hormones, so I think it would reasonable to say that gains would start to pick up a lot if I began supplementing with testosterone. With that said, do you think waiting another 2-3 years would really be beneficial given that I want to blast and cruise with test at some point anyway? I really appreciate your responses, I'm just trying to gauge the value of waiting a few more years so that my natural test could possibly pick up, just to suppress it when I start cruising.

[kelkel]

I misunderstood then, or "assumed" is probably more appropriate when you mentioned the gains you made. Referring to gains picking up when on TRT, of course they can dependent on nutrition and training. Optimized T levels will never hurt in that aspect although T levels and gains are not linear. Having decent endogenous T levels should really be your goal if at all possible. TRT should never be the goal of someone your age. Finding the issue suppressing your T should be. Then cycle as desired and run pct's.

Why the rush to blast and cruise if I may ask? What are your goals?

[boisebeast]

I'm sure someone like yourself will understand that when natural gains start to dry up, it becomes very frustrating and disappointing when you've been working incredibly hard for a year and there just aren't any notable results to be seen. I feel that at my current T levels, I'm just not going to be able to progress any further. Even if I was able to raise my natural levels slightly, after 4 years of natural training, I don't think I'll see many, if any, more big changes in my body composition. I'm all for staying natural until I reach my natural genetic potential, but I feel that I've about reached that wall, not to mention paid my dues with extreme dedication in my training and diet. The 40 pounds I've gained over the last 4 years is great naturally, I just don't want to spend another year training hard and then see no payoff. My goals are just to be able to continue to steadily climb in my muscle gains-- I'm not trying to blow up or go crazy with gear dosages, I just want to be able to slowly, continually progress. If I decide to start supplement with testosterone, I would use 80-100mg/week just to bring my T levels up to a more normal level, and then add in some EQ, TBOL, or other relatively mild compounds when I'm doing a short blast. Being able to stay relatively lean year round while I continue to gradually progress in muscle gains is my goal.

[Beethoven]

Boisebeast, you're complaining about test levels but all I hear is about bb gains. What about sex and libido? 80 mg to 100 mg is just probably going to put you where you should naturally be anyway. If your Dr can properly diagnose and heal your problem there is no need for trt. If you want to properly cycle in the future for bb gains then that is another issue. But believe me when I say you are wanting to embark on something we would all gladly come off of having the chance. Cycling and trt are two different things, although I wouldn't recommend cycling at your age it is something you may want to do AFTER you are properly diagnosed and treated. Even then, if your Dr heals you, you risk the possibility of messing up your hormones by cycling. If you want good quality gains, nutrition and training are paramount. You are not going to add 20-30 lbs of quality muscle every year. Be patient and find the root cause, you will be glad you did later.

[boisebeast]

Boisebeast, you're complaining about test levels but all I hear is about bb gains. What about sex and libido? 80 mg to 100 mg is just probably going to put you where you should naturally be anyway. If your Dr can properly diagnose and heal your problem there is no need for trt. If you want to properly cycle in the future for bb gains then that is another issue. But believe me when I say you are wanting to embark on something we would all gladly come off of having the chance. Cycling and trt are two different things, although I wouldn't recommend cycling at your age it is something you may want to do AFTER you are properly diagnosed and treated. Even then, if your Dr heals you, you risk the possibility of messing up your hormones by cycling. If you want good quality gains, nutrition and training are paramount. You are not going to add 20-30 lbs of quality muscle every year. Be patient and find the root cause, you will be glad you did later.

Valid point, you're right, it's the gains I'm concerned with more than anything. Although, I certainly don't expect 20-30 pounds of muscle a year. As a was explaining earlier in the thread, I would use a low test dose and then when I did a blast, add in some EQ/primo/Tbol or something mild just to be able to keep making linear gains. 5-10 pounds a year would be great, I'm not looking for the holy grail of gains from a low dose of test and some mild androgens. Sex life is good and libido is through the roof. I'm not sure that my doctor would be interested in finding the root cause of my low test. He didn't seem to want to do anything after my second blood test.

Could you elaborate on why you would want to come off TRT given the chance? Thanks for your input!

[Beethoven]

Valid point, you're right, it's the gains I'm concerned with more than anything. Although, I certainly don't expect 20-30 pounds of muscle a year. As a was explaining earlier in the thread, I would use a low test dose and then when I did a blast, add in some EQ/primo/Tbol or something mild just to be able to keep making linear gains. 5-10 pounds a year would be great, I'm not looking for the holy grail of gains from a low dose of test and some mild androgens. Sex life is good and libido is through the roof. I'm not sure that my doctor would be interested in finding the root cause of my low test. He didn't seem to want to do anything after my second blood test.

Could you elaborate on why you would want to come off TRT given the chance? Thanks for your input!

If your sex life and libido are through the roof, there is something else going on there. Most of us if not all are on trt because we NEED to be. It is because we NEED it for well being, libido, sex, health in general and lastly as a benefit, a little help in the gym. That being said, we depend on pinning once a week or several times a week, monitoring bloods and mitigating sides. Side effects are something you probably haven't considered. Everything you put in your body has the potential for unwanted sides which may require more meds. This is not just a twelve week cycle we're talking about here but for the rest of your life. If any of us could achieve the above without trt, I'd do it in a heartbeat. If your sex life and libido are good, you are probably not a candidate for trt, but if you look hard through this forum, you will found a bunch of threads from guys who have attempted restarts trying to come off this, and here you are trying to get on? Take a poll and see how many of us would come off trt if we didn't need it, I think you will be surprised.

[Beethoven]

Just went back and looked at your bw, there is something else going on that needs more checking. Your second bw isn't that bad, there is just a problem with your free t. Now let's just take your total t of 590, that's what I get WITH trt.do yourself a favor and find a knowledgeable Dr.

[boisebeast]

Just went back and looked at your bw, there is something else going on that needs more checking. Your second bw isn't that bad, there is just a problem with your free t. Now let's just take your total t of 590, that's what I get WITH trt.do yourself a favor and find a knowledgeable Dr.

Alright I'll take your guys' advice and not go that route. Perhaps my frustration with this year's gains is getting the better of me... I doubt I'll be able to stay away from steroids forever, but I could probably manage to wait another 1-2 years and cycle them instead.

If I'm able to go get blood work again, do you have a recommendation for what tests I should ask to have done?

[Beethoven]

if you want to cycle in the future then do so. That said make sure you are well schooled in what you're doing. Take this time and thoroughly educate yourself on how to properly cycle and pct. I can tell you that cycling will help but it's not a magic bullet. If your diet and training aren't optimal you won't reap the full benefits. Also, it takes time. No one with a quality physique got it overnight. Even those with good genetics have had to put in a lot of hard work. Face it, if it was easy, everyone would have it. Patience.

[kelkel]

Use the list of BW in the Finding A Doc sticky at the top of this forum.

[boisebeast]

Thanks guys

[2Sox]

If your sex life and libido are through the roof, there is something else going on there. Most of us if not all are on trt because we NEED to be. It is because we NEED it for well being, libido, sex, health in general and lastly as a benefit, a little help in the gym. That being said, we depend on pinning once a week or several times a week, monitoring bloods and mitigating sides. Side effects are something you probably haven't considered. Everything you put in your body has the potential for unwanted sides which may require more meds. This is not just a twelve week cycle we're talking about here but for the rest of your life. If any of us could achieve the above without trt, I'd do it in a heartbeat. If your sex life and libido are good, you are probably not a candidate for trt, but if you look hard through this forum, you will found a bunch of threads from guys who have attempted restarts trying to come off this, and here you are trying to get on? Take a poll and see how many of us would come off trt if we didn't need it, I think you will be surprised.

Boise,
I think this is an extremely important comment as is Beethoven's comment in post #16. If you are asymtomatic - meaning that your libido and energy are both high and your emotional/mental state is good - what would be the logic of taking testosterone? Some men do exceptionally well at your numbers and others need higher numbers to function the same. Everyone is different.

As Kel and Beethoven have suggested, find a doctor that knows his/her stuff and who can give you a thorough run-through. I'd suggest that you first find out if there IS something going on before you make a move at all.

Then I would suggest that you look at the reasons why you feel you must get bigger than you are now. What’s your purpose? Would it be a good thing to question our purposes in everything we do? I think it would. This may be a controversial comment since I’d guess that over 90% of the people on this forum are present or former body builders but I’ll say it because it feel it may be useful and these are things I’ve been giving a great deal of thought to myself recently: I know from personal experience that vanity and the desire to be better than others can have a very strong hold on us sometimes. (After all, these are called body building “competitions”.) In some cases, it can literally drive us. And we have a tendency not to want look at this vanity and superiority in ourselves; it’s just not very pretty and it's something that’s difficult to respect ourselves for. I think one reason we can go so much for praise and the approval of others, is because we don’t have a solid basis on which to approve of ourselves. So we use building our bodies as a substitute. (Others may use cosmetic surgery. Many men find a certain kind of superiority and self-approval in the “conquest” of women – which I’ve seen is nothing more than a form of self-love – another form of vanity – which can be very hurtful. Regrettably, I did this.. ) So the question is, How does a person truly approve of himself – like himself? I learned the only way we can, is to be fair to people and things not ourselves. And this is a BIG study.

Nothing against body building or looking good; just food for thought.

[kelkel]

Had to put my waders on for that one 2Sox!

[2Sox]

Had to put my waders on for that one 2Sox!

Is the water clear and can you see the riverbed below?

[kelkel]

Is the water clear and can you see the riverbed below?

Yes, it was well said.

[Beethoven]

Allow me to wade into the water if you will. We as humans are different and as such have different motivating factors in and for our lives. The fascinitation with the human body has been going on for thousands of years. There is nothing wrong with vanity. Some like bodybuilding, others powerifting, marathoners, scholars, etc. the point being that everyone likes to be the best at what it is that motivates them. The op is frustrated because he is not making the gains he feels he should. Moreover that is his complaint. Not sex, libido, etc. However the fact that someone wants to cycle to better himself is not necessarily a bad thing per se as almost everyone in all types of different sports are "juicing". But it is in the manner one goes on to this is the issue. IMHO he is a bit young to embark on this journey unless he has a legit chance at high end competition. And unless you were gifted with those genes he may do more harm than good.
But, that said, bodybuilding is no different than any other type of motivation, except harder to accomplish.