Bloodwork After 6 Weeks TRT - Some High Numbers

Pharma / TRT Testosterone Replacement
1

For those of you that might be in a similar situation and wondering what to expect after beginning TRT:

I am male age 59, ectomorph, unable to gain muscle with decades of weight training. Have all other symptoms of low-T except ED. Taking Finasteride 5mg/day for BPH.

Protocol: 100 ml Test-E IM every 3.5d, 1500 IU HcG SQ 1x/wk, 1mg Arimidex on day of T injections

Weights 5-3-1 3x/wk, HIIT sprints 1x/wk, frequent 30-45 min walks

Body weight before/after: 149/151lbs
Body fat before/after: 18%/19% (increased appetite)
Slight increases in strength and energy noted, lethargy/brain fog still a problem. Getting less sleep now due to energy boost in early AM. Slight acne and itching rashes on back and shoulders. Facial skin more flushed and oily. Love handles shrinking.

LH before: 8.2 (1.7-8.6 mIU/mL)
FSH before: 7.0 (1.5-12.4 mIU/mL)
SHBG before: 33.2 (19.3-76.4 nmol/L)
Total T before/after: 359/1129 HIGH (264-916 ng/dL)
Free T before/after: 6.3/40.2 HIGH (5-21 ng/dL)
E2 sens. before/after: 14.4/18.9 (8-35 pg/mL)
PSA before/after: 1.2/1.9 (0-4 ng/mL)
Hematocrit before/after: 44.5/50.4 (37.5-51.0%)
Total Chol. before/after: 155/154 (100-199 mg/dL)
Triglyc. before/after: 62/59 (0-149 md/dL)
HDL before/after: 60/47 (>39 mg/dL)
LDL before/after: 83/95 (0-99 md/dL)
TSH before/after: 1.15/1.35 (0.45-4.50 uIU/mL)
AST before/after: 15/18 (0-40 IU/L)
ALT before/after: 19/17 ( 0-44 IU/L)
IGF-1 before/after: 236 HIGH/314 HIGH (54-194 ng/mL)

My T dose and level is probably a bit high and E2 is controlled by the AI. Not sure if I have anything to gain by making changes. The super-high IGF-1 is a head-scratcher. Finasteride may be negatively affecting DHT levels, maybe I need to check for that.

Appreciate comments.

2

Levels are pretty darn good expect T is a little high and you want E2 above 20, E2 is more important as it determines bone and joint health as you don’t want it low over the long term. SHBG is expected to be somewhat lowered which is probably why it wasn’t tested, I would expect to see if stabilize somewhere in the mid 20’s. LH and FSH are still good, HCG is doing it’s job. Hematocrit is climbing, this is the best indicator that your dosage is too high for you. The little bit of time you’ve been on TRT and it’s climbed from the mid 40’s to the 50’s, lower dose and keep an eye on it. Back when I was on 200 mg my hematocrit was climbing pretty quick and I felt far worse than pre-TRT, my dosages was way too high and my hematocrit reflected it. I would measure DHT at the 3 month follow up blood test. Why HCG once weekly? Usually guys take it 2-3 times per week at smaller doses.

How do you feel?

3

I went for a long time with my e2 in that range, does not feel good on joints.