steroid usage critique [not your typical story]

[ElGringo]

sup everybody, this is my first post in this forum and will try to keep it as short as possible.
sorry for no cliffs but i think it all has to be read to understand

Stats:
height :185.5cm - 6'1
starting weight: 60kg - 132lbs
current weight (januray 2014): 65kg - 145lbs
age: 22

medical history:
basically every since i was about 12 years old i had constant diarrhea and stomach pain. i managed to live with it but would constantly affect me. my parents didn't seem to care much and it was until i turned 19 that i decided i had to do something about it. a few months later i was diagnosed with celiac disease. for those who don't know, with celiacs you basically have to cut all wheat, barley and rye from your diet. being wheat the hardest one. anyway, i had a rough start (dropped a few kilos more..) but eventually found my way. after about 8 months with this diet i realized my condition improved, but i wasn't working 100%. 3 years into this i thinks i most probably suffer from either irritable bowel disease (IBS) or inflammatoryBS, apart from other food intolerances like dairy and apparently nuts.


how this has affected me:
- undernutrition. been skinny my entire life
- hormonal changes. low t during my entire adolesence (with pubertal gyno which i still have), i had mild to high case of acne during puberty which i my think was due to high estrogen levels (it only got better because i took accutane)
- diarrhea or loose stool over 90% of the year
- psychological effects like depression (not often), the feeling of being a pussay for being so skinny, and others.


weight lifting:
i first went to the gym when i was 16 and ever since i've been going to the gym for a minimum of 5 months every year, with on and off training and poor nutrition (in the sense that i wasn't eating enough). also started with poor routine full of curls. anyway:
- january 2013: ~61 kg
- january 2014: 65kg
mid-late 2013 was the time i really went online and find out what sould be donde in order to gain weight in terms of diet, and starting january was the time when i got into serious lifting, being constant and focusing on compound exercises and strict diet with surplus of calories and adequate protein intake. and even being so strict, i haven't seen any progress.


T levels:
june 2012: very low levels
june 2013: barley within normal ranges (doctor said no test injections needed)
will take test soon this year and update


why am i here?
i want to be between 80 - 85kg. i don't expect or with to become huge or a powerlifter or anything like that, my only goal at this time is to reach a weight with which i will feel comfortable and that is within what would be considered normal ranges. i do things like wearing sweaters so people can't see my wrists and also to look a bit bigger, etc. there are many ways in which i've come to hate the fact that i am so skinny and the frustration built up from not being able to change this.


my plan so far: (i'm not saying i'm 100% sure i will do this, it's just what i have in mind)
keep diet and training until the end of this year and see how far i get, start using gear early 2015. i know there is a lot to know about steroids and i've been roaming this site and forums for a while now, but if i was to do this i would most probably ask for critique.


inb4:
- check your diet (i can confirm i'm in caloric surplus with adequate macros)
- only curls at the gym (will post routine if necessary)
- you have to be at least 180lbs at 6'1 to inject
- you have to be at least 25 years old to inject


please share your opinion. do you think steroids is a viable option for me?

[RangerDanger830]

Well I would post your diet in the nutrition section, explain your situation, and see what alternatives they have for you. It seems there are a lot of foods that bother you, which sucks, but it still seems like you have options. The problem is most likely with your diet. You say you are in a calorie surplus with proper macros but if that were true, assuming your routine is solid, you would gain weight. That is also assuming your body processes the foods you are eating well due to your condition.

I think waiting the year is a great idea. It will give you time to figure this whole diet thing out. If early 2015 comes and you are still roughly the same weight you are now then I would not cycle. Steroids or not, you aren't going to gain weight if there is a diet problem. It isn't just how many calories you eat, it is where those calories are coming from. If you got your diet down I would say steroids are for you as long as you are willing to do what it takes to maintain the weight. Which, unfortunately for you, is going to be harder than most, but still attainable. And for the sake of ethics, I must say that as long as you understand the risks of taking AAS at 23 years old and have weighed them intelligently then I will not lecture you.

[thisAngelBites]

Sorry, this is more diet related and I will leave the guys that more expert in male hormones to help with the rest.

It sounds like you are excluding gluten and dairy at present and are still having gut problems. Are you fully excluding gluten and dairy, or just most of the time? It would be far better to exclude them completely for awhile, in order to help your gut heal. I would suggest that you exclude soy (sorry, I know that is a pain, especially in light of all the other exclusions) for two months as well, in order to see if that helps. It's a common allergen/food sensitivity, and many people with celiac benefit from excluding it (at least while they are trying to heal the gut, and then it can be reintroduced later).

Try introducing some soothing things to your gut, like a good brand of aloe vera juice (George's brand tastes very neutral) to drink in the morning on an empty stomach. Or a nice fermented kombucha, which many people with gut problems also find soothing.

You'll absorb more nutrients if your gut is in better shape. :-)

[FapOLantern]

How is your fat intake? Very low-fat diets will wreck your hormones, since cholesterol is the base from which all other steroid hormones are made.

[ElGringo]

thank you all for your responses.
i'm well aware my problem relies in my diet. i will post my diet on the nutrition section later today and see what responses i get.

my body is not able to absorb nutrients efficiently. i'm basically doomed because i either have to eliminate a lot of foods from my diet which makes it extremely hard to reach caloric surplus, or eat like a horse but face the fact that your body won't be able to process it correctly. it's very hard to explain to peolpe who don't live similar situations. it's basically like an extremely complicated, almost impossible to solve puzzle. one day you feel like you have it right, the next day you have no idea wtf is going on in your bowels.

i've never ever cheated my diet. not even once have i eaten wheat on purpose since i was diagnosed. i think this is what scares people the most but i've always been extremely determined to feel better and put on some weight. once i realize something might be doing some damage, i completely cut it out from my diet and will only try it again a few months later to double check how my body reacts to it. basically i've been doing this for 3 years now. experimenting with my diet and learning how my body reacts to certain foods.

i'd say my fat intake is regular. all my protein comes from animal sourced like beef, pork, chicken, fish and i also eat avocados on a regular basis. cholesterol itself as it comes in egg yolks is probably low since egg yolks don't seem to be good for me.

im probably gonna get bashed for saying this but if it doesn't get much better soon i will consider heavily using steroids. right now i'm holding myself because i want to give it a last push but the frustration is hard to bear with and at one point i know i will consider doing anything. i know gear won't make me magically and spontaneously bigger but maybe my body will react better under the use of steroids.

anyway, thanks again
i hope i will someday make it

[FapOLantern]

Brah, if you take steroids with chitty diet, you will have chitty results, and will be even more frustrated.
Reduce carbs, eat more fat, and do some bloodwork to see your T, E2 and thyroid. If your hormones are fine and your calories are too (they are not), THEN look into gear.

With a bad diet, on the off chance you respond very well to gear and get good gains, you'll lose it all after PCT due to your caloric intake. Also you'll probably go into the more is better mentality and feck your liver up for good, is my take.

Think carefully and act smart. Don't turn into a statistic.

[ElGringo]

Think carefully and act smart. Don't turn into a statistic.

i wanna be careful and smart but at the same time i just wanna say fuk dis chit and use cheats

i don't see how i could cut carbs and bulk at the same time. also, there are very few rich sourced of fat. i can only think of avocados and oils, being coconut oil the best of them. one symptom of this disease is a high percentage of fats in stools. it is not known why this happens

[RangerDanger830]

i wanna be careful and smart but at the same time i just wanna say fuk dis chit and use cheats

i don't see how i could cut carbs and bulk at the same time. also, there are very few rich sourced of fat. i can only think of avocados and oils, being coconut oil the best of them. one symptom of this disease is a high percentage of fats in stools. it is not known why this happens

Well before you decide to go against my advice and take AAS any time soon you must know that they are not a way of cheating and will not help you much. The risk of taking them will outweigh the minimal benefits you will attain from them. This is not broscience, or my opinion, it is a fact that you cannot effectively gain LBM without a decent diet. If you take AAS and your diet is the same as it is now then you will not see results. AAS cannot build muscle from nutrients that aren't there or aren't being absorbed by your body.

I, as well as anyone, know that we are never done learning. You may be getting frustrated and inpatient and want to take the fast way out but I am telling you now that there is no fast way out, there are no free lunches, and steroids are not cheating your way into easy muscle with little regard to diet. I have no reason to encourage, or discourage your use of AAS other than to tell you how to do it the best way possible. You have a year, more if you so choose, you can figure something out by then I promise you. You have many resources, the internet, your doctors, nutritionists, and self experience.

My very first google search clicking on the very first link showed me a forum where other people who live with celiacs discussing how they have successfully put on muscle without AAS. I did not post the link because it was another forum and I think that is against the rules on here and most other forums. If you are not gaining muscle it is not because you can't without AAS, it is because you haven't tried everything yet.

[qscgugcsq]

My GF is celiac too, so I can understand your difficulty gaining weight...

However, celiac disease makes you unable to digest the food you eat in enough quantity, therefor evne by eating 5000 calories a day you may not gain weight...

Get your bowel fixed, cause steroids will do few to no good to you.
Once you start gaining weight on reasonable amount of food,(still will limiting dairy and gluten), you can start to consider something else.

but for now, steroid wont help you gain weight in a apreciable way.

get your digestif track in check, and once you gain weight, start going to the gym on a more regular basis and consistenly(5month a years is not enough, it MUST be 12months a years).

I strongly belive that 1 year of real training associated with appropriate food you can be surprised with your gain.
after that years come backs and we talk about AAS cycle if you still feel the need to.

good luck

[RangerDanger830]

My GF is celiac too, so I can understand your difficulty gaining weight...

However, celiac disease makes you unable to digest the food you eat in enough quantity, therefor evne by eating 5000 calories a day you may not gain weight...

Get your bowel fixed, cause steroids will do few to no good to you.
Once you start gaining weight on reasonable amount of food,(still will limiting dairy and gluten), you can start to consider something else.

but for now, steroid wont help you gain weight in a apreciable way.

get your digestif track in check, and once you gain weight, start going to the gym on a more regular basis and consistenly(5month a years is not enough, it MUST be 12months a years).

I strongly belive that 1 year of real training associated with appropriate food you can be surprised with your gain.
after that years come backs and we talk about AAS cycle if you still feel the need to.

good luck

I didn't even see the 5 months out of the year comment, yeah that definitely needs to be 12, can't believe we all missed that. So what you are saying by getting it in check is to avoid all upsetting foods so as to allow the stomach to heal?

[ElGringo]

However, celiac disease makes you unable to digest the food you eat in enough quantity, therefor evne by eating 5000 calories a day you may not gain weight

this right here is the problem i'm facing. no matter what i eat or how much i can't make any gains. and it's not as simple as just "fixing my bowels". that doesn't happen overnight nor does any pill or treatment exist. the only way is to identify and eliminate foods that might be causing this condition and i'm not bullchitting when i say i've been doing this for 3 years with little results. many times i've felt like i've got it right, feel great for an entire week, have epic workouts and start feeling fuller during the night then on day my body just crashes (with no changes to my diet) and i get an episode of liquid diarrhea and in less than 2 days i feel like a little pussay again and my confidence and self esteem drop instantly.

i understand training on and off won't get me anywhere. that's why i want to wait until next year or so to see how far i get with full dedication. this year i've been very consistent and my goal is to reach 70kg but at this pace i'm getting nowhere. i've even dropped a couple kilos a couple times this year but were probably water as in a week time i got back to 65kg.

i'm mad at your avi RangerDanger lol i've been told a few times i look like JB when in reality he looks like me cause i was born first and also he looks like a phukin phag because he chooses to, i look like a phag because of a fukken disease. damn i hate that kid as much as my digestive system

[RangerDanger830]

this right here is the problem i'm facing. no matter what i eat or how much i can't make any gains. and it's not as simple as just "fixing my bowels". that doesn't happen overnight nor does any pill or treatment exist. the only way is to identify and eliminate foods that might be causing this condition and i'm not bullchitting when i say i've been doing this for 3 years with little results. many times i've felt like i've got it right, feel great for an entire week, have epic workouts and start feeling fuller during the night then on day my body just crashes (with no changes to my diet) and i get an episode of liquid diarrhea and in less than 2 days i feel like a little pussay again and my confidence and self esteem drop instantly.

i understand training on and off won't get me anywhere. that's why i want to wait until next year or so to see how far i get with full dedication. this year i've been very consistent and my goal is to reach 70kg but at this pace i'm getting nowhere. i've even dropped a couple kilos a couple times this year but were probably water as in a week time i got back to 65kg.

i'm mad at your avi RangerDanger lol i've been told a few times i look like JB when in reality he looks like me cause i was born first and also he looks like a phukin phag because he chooses to, i look like a phag because of a fukken disease. damn i hate that kid as much as my digestive system

I hate him too, no worries there, it's sarcastically posted up there. You are not a "phag" as you put it just because you aren't as big as you want to be. Skinny kids seem to be in style these days with the women anyway. Just throw on some hipster glasses and you will fit right in, I can't believe I just said that.

I will leave most of the advice here for gsc to give you since he will know more than most of us. I will say that your diet might have been good but if you weren't in the gym the entire year you wouldn't have gained much anyway, except maybe some fat depending on your TDEE and caloric intake. All I was trying to get across to you that no matter how frustrated you may get, AAS aren't going to give you substantial, long-lasting results until you get to the root of the problem. Life sucks sometimes but it'll make you appreciate your gains more when you do get them.

[ElGringo]

a quick summary of my diet and routine:

diet:
- bowl of rice with lentils, 1 scoop of protein powder in water, 1 banana
(can't have eggs, bread, oatmeal)
- chicken breast, broccoli, cassava and red potatoes
- can of tuna, potatoes and fried plantain
- 300g beef, one large bbq'ed plantain
- fish fillet with cassava and potatoes
- pork steak with carb leftovers (be it cassava plantain rice or potatoes)

routine: exercises in their respective order, 3 sets of each
sunday: chest/shoulders/triceps (incline bench, db shoulder press, flat bench, barbell shoulder press, cable flyes, machine flyes, lateral shoulder raises, overhead db tricep extensions, underhand grip tricep pushdowns)

monday: legs (4 sets squats, deadlifts, leg press machine, leg extensions, leg curls, 4 sets bodyweight calf raises and 4 sets of planks for core)

tuesday: back/biceps (pull ups with varying grips, pulldowns with varying grips, bent over rows, t bar rows, rear delt flyes, face pulls, barbell shrugs, bicep curls, hammer curls)

wednesday: rest

thursday: legs/chest/ shoulders (squats, deadlifts, leg press, incline bench, db shoulder press, flat press, barbell shoulder press, dips)

friday: back/forearms (infinite amount of pull ups and pull downs with all sorts of grips, bent over rows, db rows, and 2 forearm exercises that i have no idea how they are called) forearm curls and extensions and bar twisting with plate attached with rope?

saturday: rest (very light swim)

[FapOLantern]

Have you ever tried a 5x5 method like Westside, or even Starting Strength? What are your numbers on the big three?

[ElGringo]

Skinny kids seem to be in style these days with the women anyway. Just throw on some hipster glasses and you will fit right in, I can't believe I just said that.

i lol'd hard. fawk being hipster i want to look masculine. i'm not castrated therefore i will never become hipster or have swag or any of that nowadays phaggotry. i guess i'm lucky enough to have some decent facial aesthetics and i get comments from women because of how "handsome" i look sometimes and etc but still i don't get women because i'm a low self esteem bastard who has no confidence in himself and thinks everybody judges me for my body the way i judge myself (which i've come to realize it's pretty f'd up)

All I was trying to get across to you that no matter how frustrated you may get, AAS aren't going to give you substantial, long-lasting results until you get to the root of the problem. Life sucks sometimes but it'll make you appreciate your gains more when you do get them.

i understand and i very much appreciate your input. i may look like i don't really understand how AAS work and under what circumstances they should be use but i really have a good idea. you're right, i'm saying bullchit about using them out of pure frustration but believe me i would love to do this natty. i really have no desire of using AAS just because. rest assure at least during 2014 no anabolic androgenic substance will enter my body.

[ElGringo]

it's fukken lame bro. i'm ashamed of posting this but what the hell, this is the internets:

no 1 RM's because i've always lifted within bodybuilding parameters

squat: 120lbs 5x5
deads: 140lbs 3x8 (usually do squats and deads on the same day so sometimes i have to drop some weight)
bench: 50lbs DB's 4x6 (i like pressing DB's much more than BB's)

yeah. most women you know lift more than i can. in my defense i have to say i never have a spotter, my gym really sukks hard and there is not even a proper squat rack. please don't tell me to switch gyms or whatever. you have to trust me on this one. gyms in my country sukk and this one i go to is where i can do the most exercises

[FapOLantern]

it's fukken lame bro. i'm ashamed of posting this but what the hell, this is the internets:

no 1 RM's because i've always lifted within bodybuilding parameters

squat: 120lbs 5x5
deads: 140lbs 3x8 (usually do squats and deads on the same day so sometimes i have to drop some weight)
bench: 50lbs DB's 4x6 (i like pressing DB's much more than BB's)

yeah. most women you know lift more than i can. in my defense i have to say i never have a spotter, my gym really sukks hard and there is not even a proper squat rack. please don't tell me to switch gyms or whatever. you have to trust me on this one. gyms in my country sukk and this one i go to is where i can do the most exercises

Where are you from? Also change that deadlfts to 1x5, or at least 1x8. they are REALLY taxing on CNS and doing them that much may hinder recovery. Your situation is very unusual, but let me tell you, don't be ashamed, we all start somewhere, and we all have problems. When you conquer them you'll feel like a million bucks. Don't worry, you'll make it.

Do you use progressive overload?

[FapOLantern]

Double post

[RangerDanger830]

Everyone has to start somewhere, no judgment here.

[ElGringo]

Where are you from? Also change that deadlfts to 1x5, or at least 1x8. they are REALLY taxing on CNS and doing them that much may hinder recovery...

Do you use progressive overload?

i'm from costa rica.
you really think i'm taxing my cns too much? i feel like i'm giving my body enough time to recover. also, in my expercience, i feel like i need A LOT of volume or else it feels just as if i hadn't lifted at all.
and yes, i'm aware of progressive overload. i've had to face problems like my gym having only one 45lbs dumbbell and other poverty things like that but with a bit of creativity i usually find ways of upping the weights.

Everyone has to start somewhere, no judgment here.

Your situation is very unusual, but let me tell you, don't be ashamed, we all start somewhere, and we all have problems. When you conquer them you'll feel like a million bucks. Don't worry, you'll make it

sheeet thanks brahs you make me want to go lift right now. i will never give up i swear i will make dis chit no matter what

[ElGringo]

here is a short video i made a few weeks ago on a fake youtube account to show people in another forum how poverty my gym really is. take a look.

tried a few embedding options but none worked so here's the link
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Av5S9ySnd2k (hope this isn't against the forum rules)

[thisAngelBites]

Hey ElGringo,

I heard what you said about your goals really being to increase your mass. I think the gut is the main underlying struggle for sure, and I appreciate that it is frustrating for you to play around with that for so long and still not get it worked out.

I have a friend who used low dose naltrexone (often abbreviated as LDN) for his Crohn's. There are a lot of anecdotes online about people with autoimmune disorders like celiac and hashimoto's that have used it to stabilise their immune systems. I doubt it's a really fast fix (stories I read say it takes a couple months to kick in), but as I understand it is low risk. Google and check the celiac forums to see what results others with the condition have had.

And I wouldn't dismiss the aloe vera and kombucha out of hand. A little soothing of the gut goes a long way.

[Honkey_Kong]

ElGringo, this is a bad idea. You're not going to gain much because your condition and diet will not support weight gains.

Here's what will happen. You'll put a good 5-10lbs on of water weight and then after your cycle is over, you'll lose that. Now what will happen then is your body will be shut down of hormones and that will put you at a worse for ware than you are right now. You'll probably end up even skinnier than you are right now.

What I suggest you do is find doctors and nutritionists that are better able at treating people who suffer from celiac disease.

It's not the answer you want, but putting steroids in to your body is probably going to make things worse in the long run for you.

[qscgugcsq]

I havent read everything so excuse me if you are aware of it,

Protein powder(if its whey) contain lactose, if you cant have eggs you can take rice protein, or isolate.
Those have no lactose.

Considering your acute states I would go with rice protein(high price unfortunatly).
I eat rice pasta(taste great BTW), and it is afffordable.

Rice is your friends, our diet will be pretty dull, but it will help.

For your bowel, ive been advise glutamine to help your digestive system heal, probiotic(ALOT of it!) tu redo your intestinal flore which is ****ed every time you have diahrea.
And so NAC for your liver(my GF had a ****ed up liver, I guess its your case too.)

Since my GF did that she weight over 100pounds for the first time in her life(Woot 101.2... XD)

Yes it takes time and yes it will be hard.
But thinking that steroid will fix it is wrong.
Imagine, you take steroids: you est enough train enough and gain 5lbs of LbM, 5 pounds water.
Great you are up 10 pounds.

What will happen when you come off.
Lose the water(of course), but now.you got to keep the muscle.you gained without all the anabolics activity of your body. And less due to the recovery time.
So youll lose that 5 pounds, loose even more than that.

I manage to keep only 5 pounds on a 15 pounds gain of my first cycle cause I had low test(prior and after). But I was eating enough...

Thats Why I tell you to fix it before.
And yes it will take years.

Good luck

[fit2bOld]

As with everything in life it's about choice.
5 months a year in the gym is a choice.
Just doing curls instead of a complete workout to strengthen your entire body, especially the legs,the foundation of your body.

Taking control of your nutrition eating the right foods and in your case lots of small meals throughout the day to maximize absorption of nutrients.

You did not give actual numbers for your testosterone levels so i assume you may be guessing.
So your choice to be more proactive with your health and goals or not.

[Schwarzenegger]

Where are you from? Also change that deadlfts to 1x5, or at least 1x8. they are REALLY taxing on CNS and doing them that much may hinder recovery.

I would ignore this advice and keep doing wut ur doing in terms of exercises. Although legs twice a week is strenuous, if ur seeing poundage gains then stick with it.

Only 1 set of anything is a pussay's way out, esp for squats and deads. Compound lifts at least 3 sets each.

I'm curious as to how much weight fapolantern puts up on these lifts to make a bold and irresponsible claim of 1 set for squats and deads each. Sure it taxes CNS but not to an extent to only do one set out of fear, smh

[qscgugcsq]

I would ignore this advice and keep doing wut ur doing in terms of exercises. Although legs twice a week is strenuous, if ur seeing poundage gains then stick with it.

Only 1 set of anything is a pussay's way out, esp for squats and deads. Compound lifts at least 3 sets each.

I'm curious as to how much weight fapolantern puts up on these lifts to make a bold and irresponsible claim of 1 set for squats and deads each. Sure it taxes CNS but not to an extent to only do one set out of fear, smh

Disagreed, doing it more often while dropping intensity will yield more result.

I agree that 1set of squat sucks, however 1 set of deadlift(heavy) is plenty, and freaking taxing on the CNS.

Of course if you deadlift 1-2 times a week I would considere increasing. But I deadlift(1x5) 3x a week after doing squats(5x5) and its extremely taxing I would not imagine doing 2 sets of it...

One set is plenty if done correctly.

You must train light as **** to do 3 set of deadlift. Or having a small volume of everything else.

[ghettoboyd]

why doesn't anyone get any reps in on deads?...on leg day I either do deads or squats and either way its 2 warm ups and 3 working for my main compound lifts...I do sets of 10 with 315-365lbs and yes it taxes the cns but dam doesn't it get results....don't be afraid to lighten it up a bit and get some reps in or your shorting yourself of gains imho...and for the record I do 3 other exercises usually leg press,lunges,extentions and stiff legged dl for hams all 4 sets apiece...im respond to volume....just throwing that out there...

[Schwarzenegger]

You must train light as **** to do 3 set of deadlift. Or having a small volume of everything else.

Lol last set is at 495 for deadlifts 4-6 reps, Not exactly light but not super heavy compared to others. Heavy for me tho

I work up to that, 135, 225, for warmups
315 1x10, 405 2x6-8, 455 1x6, 495 1x4

So 5 working sets

Maybe ur doing it wrong lol if ur taxed from one heavy set. But i also only do deads once a week and do a full workout after words. Ends up being a 3 hr session where I'm dead after (no pun intended)

Some have the endurance and some simply don't. Every body part is high volume for me, I'm a big proponent of volume.

I just read ur post again, No wonder its taxing for u, u just did 5x5 squats before deads!! no wonder 1 set does u in. One set would be enough for u because of the previous squats but if fresh one would definitely not be enough. Try it out if u don't believe me.

In your case its not the one set of deadlifts that is taxing its the 5x5 squats then followed by the set of deadlifts that is taxing. Making u think that ur taxed just from that one set of deads when in actuality the squats did u in and the 1 set deads finished u off.

If u did deadlifts on back day first exercise guaranteed u would get 4-5 sets to get the same feeling

[ElGringo]

thanks everybody for the input

just want to say i will definitely not attempt to use steroids.
i will be back at the end of the year with an update on my progress.
cheers

[Chicagotarsier]

I would be very interested on your reaction to the TRT. I am a firm believer that many things that plague us and are named (Diabetes etc) are many times just side effects of hormone imbalance. There may be a miracle cure in the TRT,,,it has been a miracle to me with my diabetes.

thanks everybody for the input

just want to say i will definitely not attempt to use steroids.
i will be back at the end of the year with an update on my progress.
cheers

[thisAngelBites]

Low testosterone can cause insulin resistance in men, as high testosterone can cause insulin resistance in women, so type 2 can definitely be associated with hormones levels. I guess if you're diagnosed with type 2 and low T, and you get some TRT, and your glycated hemoglobin returns to healthy levels (4.5ish) then it could have been all down to low T, but I think that is pretty rare. Usually diet is the lion's share of type 2.