I had worked my way up to a decent pace on the exercise bike for 15 min/ stair master for 20 before stretching and hitting the weights. Keeping the rest period between sets short, reps in the 10-12 range , heart rate up. Slowly transition over to less reps on presses , squats. 5x5 on bench and sometimes squat that way. Dead lifts less reps unless really light. Shoulder presses lower reps also . Flys I do higher reps. Lifts seem to be getting heavier with lower reps, more rest
Iām curious at what point should we stop playing the size game, particularly if on TRT, surely if youāve consistently got the hormone profile of a 20 year old (probably better given that most guys on here aim for top of the range at trough, making them supra 6 out of 7 days) you can gain right up to genetic max?
Iām sure current size would play a big part, but if you arenāt absolutely maxed out on ānattyā gains/trt level why shouldnāt you keep pushing at 36, at what point does this become futility? And if we stop pushing to gain, do we start regressing?
Itās a genuine question (not least because Iām only a few birthdays off 36 and I donāt see me stopping try to gain anytime soon), love to know general thoughts.
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Instead of asking for a decrease in dose immediately. Decrease and stock pile. Then ask for dose decrease.
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Let me ask you this? Do you snore badly or know that you have sleep apnea? I ask because guys who have apnea never really acheive deep REM sleep and without REM sleep you donāt get the HGH release and HGH is critical to recovery and fat burning. What about your thyroid hormones, had them checked?
@stud hammer- no apneanbit Back when I was drinking regularly my wife said I would snore on certain nights. She say I still snore occasionally and that she has to elbow me or poke me in the ribs with 2 fingers. Neither are very hard lol
No apnea * Iāll ask them to check my thyroid also next appointment
Ok, typically the heavier we are the more we snore.
I think youād better off with keeping your TRT levels where they are and adding Anavar. You will reduce bodyfat and build muscle. Anavar can cause cramping so I would start at 25 mg/day (in 2 doses if you can) and then taper up to 50 mg/day. If you start to feel muscle pain, then stop for about a week, and then start over with the tapering up.
U got my respect
Actually i do have this problem,im on sleepin pills and antidepr atm , can u help me with this issue?
I can tell you what I did.
I knew I didnāt want a CPAP so I went to a Sinus and Snoring center specializing in fixing the issue not just sending you a CPAP machine.
I had to do an at home sleep study where they found I had a TON of apnea episodes every hour. Then I had balloon sinuplasty, correction of a deviated septum, turbininate reduction, uvulaplasty, and stiffening of the soft palate.
My doc is pretty progressive and the septum repair did not involve stints or packing, just a couple of stitches to hold it in place. The palette stiffening was pretty painful since it raised small blisters on the back of my throat which hurt for about 14 days.
I still snore but no more apnea and the snoring is helped with allergy drops for congestion and flonase spray at night.
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Letās say you achieve what you wish for? Best possible, genetic 1 ppb case:
Another very successful chap from development perspective:
How would you rate their functional fitness? Now what? As you get older, you have to consider how any additional weight (muscle or fat) will affect your #1 muscleā¦heart. Both present extra work load for the heart.
It depends on your objective function, strength, longevity, maximizing FFMI for an 8% BF level?
After trying both approaches, Iād argue for seeing what one would do while keeping BF level low as you get older. Otherwise, human nature kicks in and one will easily justify carrying an extra 10% BF so their bench is 50 lb higher. There is an optimal FFMI for human performance.
Think about this, letās say a chap sets a goal of doing 315 lb x 5 on the bench and also being able to run a 6 min mile. Another goal would be doing 375 lb x 5 on the bench. What would this individual need to do body wise to achieve each one of these goals? Is one a āhealthierā goal for a 30 something? Whatās the intrinsic value of another 50 lb on the bench vs shaving 4-5 min off your mile time?
I think the optimal is somewhere between running marathons and training for absolute mass hence just trying to bring into the discussion a consideration for cardiovascular fitness, BF level, and ALSO total body weight as one gets older.
So do you leverage the improved hormonal profile to carry a little extra functional FFM at low BF or use it to train for absolute mass? Iād consider the former as one gets closer to 40. But again depends on what you want. Joints only last for so long.
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When I saw your first two videos I thought you were going to go straw man on me!
Thoughtful response and I suspect in OPs position getting significantly leaner will be beneficial all round, improved health, look better, improved ability to chase lean gains etc endless benefits.
However Iād say that each case is unique and personally Iām not ready to stop chasing muscle and performance - but Iām not near either those bench or running standards you mention so Iāve got some room to grow haha.
There is always a point of diminishing and that will largely depend on training history, goals, if you compete in any sports, etc, anyways Iām rambling and repeating what you said!
I would disagree that you should stop chasing muscle mass at 36, but itās more nuanced than that I appreciate, and 100% agree about balancing Cardio health and Bf %s.
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Cries in powerlifter.
I have made the decision to drop weight, and not push for absolute strength. I still want to push for big weight, but while being in overall good shape. I know my ceiling of what I can lift goes down, but currently the weights can still go up, and BF can go down. Over a long period of time of course.
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I would never straw man you :-)!
I should have been more specific though when I originally said āsize gameā. For many this means look bigger in street clothes rather than adding 5 lb of muscle at the same total bodyweight, which would cause your bodyfat to go down. Plus under 10% BF your joints arenāt cushioned and any heavy lifts seem all the more painful. Thatās why all those Ronnie Coleman training videos are still unbelievably insane to me. And I am not going to post any current training videos of his as they make me almost cry. Thanks for your response and for me I am trying my best to look 10-20 years down the road but itās hard to leave your ego at the door. But easier at the beach!
@schmitty really impressed with your work ethic and progress this far. Keep up the hard work.
This!
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Haha good to know! I was half tempted to throw up a Mark Felix video in response!
Your so right, even though I train alone in my home gym ego can still get the best of me, that being said I want to be a strong old dude too, so not going to stop pushing, but staying healthy should definitely be a consideration!
Anyway the beach is what Tren was designed for! 
Designed to add bulk to cattle actually, but does work extremely well for the beach. Probably will never use it though.
Haha I know, just jesting. Definitely one to steer well clear of.
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