Not sure if this is where I should post this but don’t see another option.
I recently got my initial blood work done to see about starting trt. Total test was 491 and free test was 79. I’m 33 years old, and just feel constantly run down. I know I have high stress levels and have been working on getting those down. Dr I talked to said 491 was on lower range but everything I read says it’s normal. Curious as to what others think or have done with numbers close to mine. I think I’m going to give it a go but still have some concerns just with being at 491. Figured I would be lower.
5’10” roughly 200. Lift 5 days a week and try to get at least 12k steps a day. Body fat% is pretty high, would say 25-30%. All blood work is good except cholesterol is a little high but not on any medication
You’re feeling constantly run down: how are you controlling the OTHER variables in your life? What is your height and weight, along with bodyfat? Do you exercise regularly, both resistance training and cardio? What is your diet like? Hydration? Sleep? Sun exposure? etc.
I can’t believe some people still mention Total T as if it has any relevance whatsoever to symptoms of hypogonadism and say that “500 is pretty good!”.
Even 1000ng/dL Total T isn’t good if your Free T is at the bottom of the range, which can easily happen with high SHBG.
OP, don’t listen to the lifestyle stuff; nothing you can do naturally will bring your Free T up significantly enough to make a difference. Sure, do whatever you can to stay healthy but you almost certainly need Testosterone supplementation.
In general, you can safely discard the advice of anyone who even mentions Total T numbers.
Free T at 79 is clearly in pg/mL, which translates to 7.9ng/dL, which is extremely low regardless of the range.
A read a lot of people talking about SHBG (Sex Hormone Binding Globulin). If you do have high levels, are there ways to lower it medically or otherwise (aside from unproven methods). Or is it just accepted and you start the TRT?