First time TRT - what to expect?

[Talktoazza]

Hey all,

This is my first post so I hope I don't botch it too badly. I will be starting TRT later this week and was wondering what I should expect. I recognize this is a somewhat vague request but objective, personal experience is hard to find online. To frame it, I am curious to know what kind of positive/negative physical results are generally experienced. I know results vary, just looking for others personal experience. In advance, thanks for taking the time to talk the new guy through it.

I will be taking:
Test Cypionate 100mg once a week
Arimidex 1mg weekly - split into two doses
HCG 10000u strength - 250iu twice a week

 

[Megatron28]

Give this a read.

http://www.steroidology.com/forum/testosterone-replacement-therapy/662394-basic-trt-overview.html


There are a lot of other threads in this TRT forum that will help answer your question too.

Good luck with starting TRT. Hopefully you will be feeling better soon!

 

[Megatron28]

By the way, that looks like your doc put you on too much Arimidex. If you switch your injections to 50mg twice a week I bet you don't need any arimidex at all. I wouldn't take the arimidex uuntil you know you need it via getting blood work. If you think you feel bad now with Low T, wait until you take your estradiol down too far.

 

[Talktoazza]

By the way, that looks like your doc put you on too much Arimidex. If you switch your injections to 50mg twice a week I bet you don't need any arimidex at all. I wouldn't take the arimidex uuntil you know you need it via getting blood work. If you think you feel bad now with Low T, wait until you take your estradiol down too far.

First and foremost, thank you for taking the time to respond and provide some much needed information. I posted the dosages based off the notes I took but when posting, the twice weekly arimidex doesn't sound like what we discussed. I left a message to confirm the dosing protocol but suspect it is once a week.

 

[Talktoazza]

He put me on the arimidex because my estradiol is above (slightly) the accepted range. He explained in retail why he felt it was as high as it is, but I can't break it down nearly as well.

 

[Megatron28]

He put me on the arimidex because my estradiol is above (slightly) the accepted range. He explained in retail why he felt it was as high as it is, but I can't break it down nearly as well.

It does not matter what your estradiol is at pre-TRT. Once you are on TRT, all of your estradiol will come from the aromatization of your exogenous testosterone. I really want to stress that you probably will not need arimidex if your do 50mg injections every 3.5 days. You may need it if you inject 100mg once a week. But I would wait for blood work to confirm you need an Aromatase Inhibitor. Crashing your estradiol is one of he worst feelings in the world and can take weeks to recover from.

 

[Mprtz]

Listen to Megatron, individuals vary but 1mg per week was too much for me on twice the dose of testosterone.

 

[Mprtz]

I found the following info helpful when first starting, especially when I didn't feel any different after 2 weeks:

Onset of effects of testosterone treatment and time span until maximum effects are achieved

 

[golfer34]

I just crashed my estradiol with too much arimidex. It's not pleasant. Posting your lab results here will help with getting proper advise.

 

[Talktoazza]

It does not matter what your estradiol is at pre-TRT. Once you are on TRT, all of your estradiol will come from the aromatization of your exogenous testosterone. I really want to stress that you probably will not need arimidex if your do 50mg injections every 3.5 days. You may need it if you inject 100mg once a week. But I would wait for blood work to confirm you need an Aromatase Inhibitor. Crashing your estradiol is one of he worst feelings in the world and can take weeks to recover from.

I will talk to my doc and see if he has any objection with me switching to 50mg every 3.5 days (I doubt he will take issue with it) and hold off on arimidex until new blood work is done.

Thanks for the advice everyone!

He wants me doing the injections subcutaneously as well. Will that matter if I up the frequency? What location(s) do you use and how frequently do you rotate?

 

[Mprtz]

I will talk to my doc and see if he has any objection with me switching to 50mg every 3.5 days (I doubt he will take issue with it) and hold off on arimidex until new blood work is done.

Thanks for the advice everyone!

He wants me doing the injections subcutaneously as well. Will that matter if I up the frequency? What location(s) do you use and how frequently do you rotate?

Subq, huh? I wonder why. It will still be an advantage to pin 2x per week as 0.25ml will be less likely to leave a lump or cause irritation.

I inject subq (hcg) only to the left and right of my belly button, I would have a hard time finding enough fat anywhere else.

 

[Megatron28]

I will talk to my doc and see if he has any objection with me switching to 50mg every 3.5 days (I doubt he will take issue with it) and hold off on arimidex until new blood work is done.

Thanks for the advice everyone!

He wants me doing the injections subcutaneously as well. Will that matter if I up the frequency? What location(s) do you use and how frequently do you rotate?

Increased frequency should help subq since the volume will be smaller as previously pointed out. Just so you know, subq injections are fine for TRT by a lot of guys here have tried them and it seems like most go back to IM. If you get uncomfortable lumps from the subq injections don't be afraid to switch to IM.

 

[Talktoazza]

Subq, huh? I wonder why. It will still be an advantage to pin 2x per week as 0.25ml will be less likely to leave a lump or cause irritation.

I inject subq (hcg) only to the left and right of my belly button, I would have a hard time finding enough fat anywhere else.

He seems to prefer it overall and said something about theory that intramuscular converts to estrogen more easily (paraphrasing).

How do you like HCG?

If I go to injections every 3.5 days, including the HCG injections, I would have to inject 4 times a week. That seems like an awful lot. Would I just rotate quads, traps, oblique/belly button?

 

[Jimstigator]

Subq, huh? I wonder why.

Why would you wonder why? Its been proven effective, its painless, helps some men with estrogen issues, is less scary for the needle scared, etc, etc. I would actually ask - why not?

I don't by into everything someone like Crisler says, but its being recommended by Drs around the country now. My Dr also stated sub-q, or shallow IM is fine (ex. insulin syringe into delt).

-Jim

 

[Jimstigator]

He seems to prefer it overall and said something about theory that intramuscular converts to estrogen more easily (paraphrasing).

How do you like HCG?

If I go to injections every 3.5 days, including the HCG injections, I would have to inject 4 times a week. That seems like an awful lot. Would I just rotate quads, traps, oblique/belly button?

I know you aren't asking me but since I am in here writing... HCG was devils spit for me. My body hates the stuff. At any dose, I was losing appetite and feeling like shit. Without HCG, I already inject EOD, or 7 times every two weeks. If you don't want to add an injection to the schedule, double up. Draw the testosterone first, then with the same syringe, draw the HCG. You could also draw one of them, and backfill the other. Whatever works if you don't want so many shots.

Honestly, with an insulin syringe (29g, 1/2, .5ml), four shots a week is nothing. I don't even feel them going into a pinch of fat on the stomach.

-Jim

 

[Mprtz]

Why would you wonder why? Its been proven effective, its painless, helps some men with estrogen issues, is less scary for the needle scared, etc, etc. I would actually ask - why not?

I don't by into everything someone like Crisler says, but its being recommended by Drs around the country now. My Dr also stated sub-q, or shallow IM is fine (ex. insulin syringe into delt).

-Jim

I have nothing particular against it, it just doesn't seem that common or popular. I could be wrong.

I use a 29g insulin syringe for IM and rotate between several spots, which has got to be shallow IM, so the difference probably isn't that great.

 

[Mprtz]

... How do you like HCG?

I have to believe it serves its purpose to keep my testicles active and of somewhat normal size.
I also believe that using HCG would somewhat improve my chances of regaining some natural production if (god forbid) I had to go off TRT. For these reasons alone, it is well worth taking for me.

Others report all kinds of reactions, but for me personally - I feel no acute effects at all from any of these meds: test, hcg, adex or nolva.

 

[Gossamer]

This is my first post so I hope I don't botch it too badly. I will be starting TRT later this week and was wondering what I should expect...

You should expect acne, hair loss, except on your back you'll look like Sasquatch, shrinking balls, anger issues, and endless bouts of crying over nothing.

Welcome to trt!!!

 

[Spunkey71]

Welcome to the board!

Don't let all these guys scare you, I have been on TRT now for a year and it has been the best decision I have ever made concerning my health. Granted my test was extremely low when I started (64) my quality of life is vastly improved. It can take a little time to get dialed in but once you do you should and I stress should because sadly there are some be it a small percentage that just don't feel any difference on TRT, fell like a new man. Magatron is correct on holding off on the Arimidex until you know how the test injections will affect your estradiol, always better to play it safe than to crash your E2. I have found that personally I feel best with a slightly elevated E2 (around 50 on a sensitive scale).

Generally it will take about 6 weeks to really feel the effects of TRT as it takes time for the test to build up in your system and maintain a steady level but as for some I felt a difference within a few days. It could have been because I was so low to begin with or it could have been a placebo effect, either way I felt better and have been able to make many positive changes as a result that have improved my overall quality of life.

Best of luck to you and keep us informed, I promise you that there is very little when it comes to TRT that we as a collective group have not seen before.

 

[Megatron28]

You should expect acne, hair loss, except on your back you'll look like Sasquatch, shrinking balls, anger issues, and endless bouts of crying over nothing.

Welcome to trt!!!

TRT doesn't work for everyone, but most guys think TRT is a life saver. Living with Low T is no way to live.