Could You Guys Check My Labwork?

Pharma / TRT Testosterone Replacement
1

Hey, I’ve been in contact with you in the past, and I was wondering if you could look at this labwork I just had done, and tell me if you think my values are at a optimal level.

Pre TRT, I had a testosterone of 271. I then began taking 100mg per week of Testosterone.

Following that, my testosterone rose to 850 and my E2 was 23. I then began taking 150mg per week to further raise this level.

Then my E2 gave me problems, it rose to 49, so I began taking 2mg of arimidex per week.

Here is where I am now, taking 150mg of Test per week and 2mg of arimidex per week (everything divided up evenly throughout the week)

Category: TESTOSTERONE FREE/TOTAL ADULT MALE
Testosterone % Free(%) Result: 1.7%
Reference: 1.6 to 2.9 %

Testosterone Free Result: 180 pg/mL
Reference 47 to 244

Testosterone Result: 1077 ng/dl
Reference: 300 to 1080

Sex Hormone Binding Globulin Result: 52 nmol/L
Reference 11-80

Category: IMM-TESTOSTERONE:
Testosterone Result: 723 ng/dl
Reference: 175-781

Category: IMM-Estradiol
Estradiol Result: <20 and >10 pg/ml
Reference 20 - 75

(The way this was explained to me was that my E2 was less than 20, but greater than 10, but they won’t give me a specific number.)

Should I be concerned that the percent free testosterone seems kinda low on the reference range scale?

So do these values look correct, or is there anything I should be concerned about? Should I continue taking 150mg per week and 2mg per week or arimidex, or is there anything that I should adjust?

2

what are your symptoms?

how were you feeling at 100mg a week?

how are you feeling at 150mg a week?

in my opinion, you should stop chasing numbers and go by how you feel. If you need that much arimidex then you are pushing your T way above your personal genetic optimal point and probably have some other problem that you are overcompensating for (like thyroid or low cortisol or low vit D, etc.)

3

[quote]PureChance wrote:
what are your symptoms?

how were you feeling at 100mg a week?

how are you feeling at 150mg a week?

in my opinion, you should stop chasing numbers and go by how you feel. If you need that much arimidex then you are pushing your T way above your personal genetic optimal point and probably have some other problem that you are overcompensating for (like thyroid or low cortisol or low vit D, etc.)[/quote]

I eventually felt great at 100mg, but I thought that if I got closer to the higher end of the reference range, I might feel even more “superman” like. Then at 150 I had problems, but after arimidex, I feel just fine.

However, no matter which dose, my bodyfat percentage has always been disproportionately high considering my extreme work ethic and diet. I train 6 days a week in BJJ, 1.5 hours a day, and then I have an incredibly clean diet, but my bodyfat percentage will not drop below 14%, and it really angers me, is there anything I should do?

4

Why would you try to go higher when 805 is a high normal value? Actually, its the upper end of normal (most labs have 300 to 1000 as normal range).

Is your MD aware of how you experiment?

5

[quote]Bricknyce wrote:
Why would you try to go higher when 805 is a high normal value? Actually, its the upper end of normal (most labs have 300 to 1000 as normal range).

Is your MD aware of how you experiment? [/quote]

I do not “experiment.” Everything I do, the doctor PRESCRIBES me to do. He wrote the prescription for 150mg, not me. In fact, I am anti-experimenting, because he initially wanted me to take 7 (SEVEN!) mg of arimidex per week!

6

I understand, and I have you beat. I was taking 14 mg of arimidex a week with a prescription for 21mg arimidex a week.

my point still stands. reduce your T-cyp dose back down, reduce your arimidex back down and look at other causes for the weight issues… like thyroid and cortisol or vitamin D, b12, ferritin, etc.

trying for superman will result in a super crash at some point (in my opinion).

7

Should I be concerned about my free testosterone percentage? Wouldn’t I want more free percentages considering mine is on the low end of the reference range?

Also, for what reasons would I be dropping back to 100mg? Do you think it would be healthier for me? Why do you recommend that?

I just want to clarify: I am not overweight at all, in fact, when I have a shirt on (keyword), people think I look great.

But when I take my shirt off, I do not look athletic or lean at all. I just look “skinny-fat”

Here is me about 6 months ago back when I was on 100 mg per week with no arimidex

That was the very leanest I could possibly get, and that was with ultra intense dieting, counting ratios and calories and working out.

Now adays, I am 1-2% bodyfat percentages higher (switched diets) I train BJJ 6 days a week and eat extremely healthy, no cheat meals at all, and I am still not lean.

I don’t understand it, the math doesn’t add up. Diet + intense workouts should yield a lean/athletic body, but as you can see, I am not. (I am not even as lean now as I was in that pic)

8

I think you just need to add some muscle mass to get the look you are after. Does your BJJ workouts include weight training?

Another thought is that you may be overdoing the workouts. Everyone has different recovery ability, but it is imperative that you do recover between workouts if you want progression and more mass. 6 days a week is pretty hard on the central nervous system if your workouts are intense. I’m not positive, but I think wiping out your adrenal system with overtraining could lead to the low T levels also.

9

You need to have a health metabolism before anything good can happen. Intense dieting can lower your metabolism [then cannot loose fat] so you can survive your self imposed starvation. You can end up with adrenal fatigue and increased tT3 that can lead to a state of functional hypothyroidism. Focus on health and vitality and a sustainable diet. Some have also killed their T levels with intense diets and training.

The problem of gaining fat may be an “understandable” result of extreme measures. And just because some others report that they can do these things does not mean that your genetics will allow that.

%FT: You cannot do anything that directly changes this because you cannot directly do anything to reduce SHBG. SHBG levels are largely determined by E2 levels and we do not know where those are.

And: Sex hormone-binding globulin - Wikipedia

If fat gain is a genetic trait to survive famines, then I would expect to see E2 levels increase to promote fat storage as selective Darwinian trait. And starvation could easily change gene expression to support that. Genes for being extremely lean would have been selectively eliminated by famines. You simply may not have the genetics to be a lean machine. Trying to get there with extreme diets may be harmful and make things worse.

10

[quote]KSman wrote:
You need to have a health metabolism before anything good can happen. Intense dieting can lower your metabolism [then cannot loose fat] so you can survive your self imposed starvation. You can end up with adrenal fatigue and increased tT3 that can lead to a state of functional hypothyroidism. Focus on health and vitality and a sustainable diet. Some have also killed their T levels with intense diets and training.

The problem of gaining fat may be an “understandable” result of extreme measures. And just because some others report that they can do these things does not mean that your genetics will allow that.

%FT: You cannot do anything that directly changes this because you cannot directly do anything to reduce SHBG. SHBG levels are largely determined by E2 levels and we do not know where those are.

And: Sex hormone-binding globulin - Wikipedia

If fat gain is a genetic trait to survive famines, then I would expect to see E2 levels increase to promote fat storage as selective Darwinian trait. And starvation could easily change gene expression to support that. Genes for being extremely lean would have been selectively eliminated by famines. You simply may not have the genetics to be a lean machine. Trying to get there with extreme diets may be harmful and make things worse.
[/quote]

But we do know where my E2 level is, don’t we? It’s less than 20 right now, but I might be taking too much arimidex.

I don’t want to make it sound like my diet is EXTREME. Here are the guidelines I eat by:

  1. Fruits and vegetables with each eating opportunity (fruit first 3 meals, vegetables last 3 meals)
  2. 6 meals a day
  3. Only beverage to drink is water, and sometimes maybe milk
  4. lean source of protein with each meal
  5. Healthy fats all throughout the day
  6. “other” sources of carbs (non fruit/vegetables), only before and after workouts (such as oats, whole grains, etc.)

I just follow those simply principles trying to get lean, and its just not working out for me.