Weight & Strength Gains Beginning TRT

Mycelium

New member
In a month ive gone up 8 pounds and all lifts have gone up every workout. Last night was legs. 3rd workout for legs. Deadlifts at 160lbs went from 10 reps to 18 reps. That's at the end of the leg workout. I also went up 4 reps on squats and on leg extension and leg curls before deads. Went up 6 reps on calve raises.

I don't think I've gained 8lbs of muscle and the weights and reps are nothing I haven't done before. Some actual mass gained is likely but I believe a majority of the weight is probably water, nutrients, proteins and such inside the muscles. Strength I think comes from muscle memory of sorts. I think it would have gone up by itself but working out is speeding up the process by causing the muscles to work, rebuild and reload/preload.

Also what else beyond muscle mass is refilling under the new hormonal conditions? Could I have "gained" a pound of skin? My skin looks better.

Since I was obviously under eating, not training and had low T was I actually 8 pound low on various cellular things?
 
Higher testosterone levels allow the body to hold more Glycogen. That is likely what explains what you are describing. There may be a placebo effect too. Higher testosterone levels also allow you to recover faster. You surely have added some muscle too -- but not 8 pounds.
 
I wouldn't expect to gain 8lbs of muscle. Most is probably related to water and eating better. You can definitely put on some mass with TRT if you were truly deficient before treatment. A lot of this goes into what megatron stated.

Definitely not gain any new skin, but it will look better if eating correct nutrients and increase cellular production etc.

Dr B
 
I had been googling glucose thinking sugars and water retention but gave me results that were more related to say trianing, hydration and fitness. I didn't think anything in my situation would lead to an actual gain of 8lb. Not nearly enough calories, workouts are not intense enough and I for think 200mg a week is high enough for gains like that.
Glycogen search served up the info.

To anyone else wondering glycogen is stored in your liver and muscle cells. It is "hydrated" and takes water into the cell with it. Its increase leads to increased muscle weight, working capacity and endurance. Couple studies and referenced articles later and the weight and rep gains definitely sound related to glycogen and eating more.

Thanks to both of you!
 
I'd be willing to be you did gain mostly muscle. Yes some glycogen, but my guess is muscle.

Your lifts are all up and the presence of 200 mg/wk test should be pretty significant.
 
My calories are not very high, but I'm also not expending lots of energy. I'm a house husband of 3 kids and 2 dogs. I think that goes towards my benefit building mass. My calorie intake has increased over the entire time and my training is more frequent and more intense now. I'm getting hungry even with a recent calorie increase.

I have been trying to collect detailed labs showing injection time and peak concentrations. I found this graph. 50 & 100mg Test E. I believe test E is shorter acting that test cyp but I don't know the effects over weeks and it's been a while since I read steroid profiles. I started at roughly 400 ng/dL so I am assuming my TT should be 1k plus at this point in time. My initial peak would have roughly been the same as the graph but my next injection was 3.5 days not 7. I'm also taking hCG and whatever that adds to test. I'm guessing it is a shorter and less dramatic raise in testoserone kicking off the day before my test shot.

What calorie intake would a 146 lb dude need for mass?
What level of protein synthesis and muscle buildingcones with 200mg?
If it's 1/2 water and glycogen . . . 4lbs of muscle seems huge. A pound a week. Just the triple threat of actually eating, sudden increase in T and sudden lifting adding up to a kinda system shock?

Ibwas going to run math off a referenced article that muscle is 1-3% glycogen. Article said it'll pull something like 3 grams of water for ever 1 gram of glycogen. I was guessing I'm in a way adding weight like create can do. A muscle fuel pulling water into the cell.

My protein is lacking also at roughly 90 grams and not the 1g/1lb rule.

2700 calories, 90 grams protein, 3 workouts per week at 146 lbs =what actual real new muscle growth?
 
You might be overthinking it, just train hard and eat more. If you really want to get scientific about it read 3J's articles on nutrition and calculate your calorie needs.

You said you aren't expending a lot of energy, that sounds like a red flag you need to do some more cardio.
 
Strength gains

After starting TRT 4 years ago, all my lifts in the gym increased by 25 to 30% within a few months. Since then some slow gains, but not much. My weight never changed much.
 
My weight has stopped going up but I'm still adding reps and increasing weight. I was really under weight and probably averaged 1200-1500 calories a day. Mostly at dinner. Is eat nothing but say a banana at noon, a snack with the kids at 3pm then dinner 5:30-6pm. I eat that before noon most of the time now.
Squat went up 3 reps
Deadlift went from 160lbs x 18reps to 180 x 12 reps
Calve raises same reps at 180 as 160.

DB rows are same reps with higher weights.
DB shrugs ups weights and reps
BB curl up 2 reps.

Went and did 3Js BMR TDEE and came to 3,055 calories. Been hitting my calories and getting my lifting in.

I'm guessing 4 pounds with glycogen and water, couple pounds of food in my digestive track and maybe a pound or so new muscle . . . Maybe.

With my weight leveled off I know gains now are actual gains. Weight wise.
 
Yes, important to get diet fine tuned in order to meet goals. TRT will definitely help with both weight loss and weight gain, just depends on diet. 3js is a great resource

Dr B
 
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