only keeping 6 pounds from a cycle is shabby. that means either your pct sucked or diet/training and pct sucked. sorry, not to be harsh.. but its true

also... only gaining 12lbs on a first cycle... refer to above again....

for a second cycle.. thats too many compounds. you soo do not that many. you need your diet and training up to par. the gear wont work if everything else isnt in place.

stick to just test and deca. but first id post up your training split and diet. im sure they can be tweaked to get more gains.

dont worry about sodium, your body will adjust to your intake. and if your eating how a bodybuilder should then your sodium intake is fine.

running your AI during cycle is probably another factor why your gains werent good.
i never run an AI during cycle. i get and keep way better mass and strength gains with out it.
if your not prone to gyno. then dont worry. just keep it on hand in case
if your sooo worried about bloat.. then eat clean. drink lots of water. youll be fine.

and shame on the previous members who posted.... WHAT ARE YOUR STATS... first and foremost!!!

for a second cycle.. you dont even need your test and deca so high. 500 test and 400 deca. that was my second cycle and i gained 19 pounds and kept 14 of it. it depends on you... for how much you gain and keep. not the gear

id run caber with deca. i run caber every 19-nor cycle. and into pct

what dose is your hcg gonna be run at?

the fact that i had to reply to so much of your post... shows me that you need more research under your belt