Hi everyone,
I wanted to share my lab work prior to being on TRT. I am age 41, workout almost every day and in great shape however my labs show my levels are borderline low.
Can you tell me what you think about these labs and should I take trt with these levels?
Thanks!
Frankly, your labs are secondary to how you feel.
Do you have any symptoms of Low T, and have you done anything to correct them?
Also, are you looking for justification to go on TRT as a means to low dose steroids, or are you actually doing this for health? Either is fine, just an important question to answer before going into this.
So after those labs I got on trt for 8 months. Then I stopped just 18 days ago due to fertility reasons. Pre trt I felt decent, I definitely felt a slight edge on trt, more energy, confidence and slight libido raise.
Wait, so you asked if you should go on TRT after you went on TRT, and stopped? I don’t understand what it is you’re getting at.
Your 41. Are you anticipating having children in the near future? If you are, then speak with your provider about getting HCG in addition to your TRT.
How did you feel on TRT?
Yeah sounds confusing but I’m not sure I should have started it in the first place. The doctor (urologist) said my labs looked normal and I didn’t need trt. So I went to a testosterone men’s clinic and they prescribed it to me. I ended up going back to the urologist and his concerns were if I wanted kids in the future so he had me take hcg, now clomid for 4 weeks and I’m debating if I want to get back on after stopping. I feel pretty crappy right now. I sure miss the way I felt.
Our medical system focus on normal, not desirable healthy testosterone. That’s because it’s a sick care system and is not about prevention.
Men with the lowest quartile Free T has a 53% risk is developing prostate cancer and a more aggressive case.
Studies show Free T in the highest quartile prevents or delays prostate cancer.
There’s also a risk of cardiovascular disease with low normal testosterone.
Hi Systemlord,
Thank you for your response. I have been aware that most doctors are hesitant to treat low testosterone unless you are extremely low.
From my labs what is your analysis?
Thank you
Not unusual on Clomid.
If the goal is in range levels, then yes, you do not “need” testosterone. If the goal is to feel better, then it is up to you to decide what that looks like. A level of subjectivity enters the decision process. I’ve have had guys having sex once or twice a day tell me their libido could be better.
I think those labs justify taking testosterone, but the answer to should you take it is up to you, as andrewgen stated, based on your symptoms.
Makes sense. Yeah I just started clomid today at 50mg 3 times a week for two weeks then 25mg 3 times a week for two weeks. I feel like a wierdo today.
More Science-Based “Low Normal” Testosterone Facts
“Low normal” total testosterone concentrations are associated with reductions in motivation, initiative, self-confidence, concentration and memory, sleep quality, muscle bulk and strength, diminished physical or work performance, feeling sad or blue, depressed mood, mild anemia, and increased body fat and body mass index.
Low normal serum testosterone concentrations are associated with reduced male sexual desire, function, performance and potency.
Low normal serum testosterone concentrations increase the risk for premature death from any cause.
Low normal serum testosterone concentrations increase the risk for death from cardiovascular disease, and increase the combined risk for suffering a first stroke or first transient ischemic attack.
Low normal serum testosterone concentrations increase the risk for both memory loss31 and developing clinical depression.
Low normal serum testosterone concentrations increase the risk of developing an increased level of systemic inflammation.
Defining “Healthy” Testosterone
Multiple peer-reviewed papers state that “testosterone deficiencies” are more prevalent and “desirable testosterone” levels in men are actually much higher than what is currently being considered as “normal” in doctors’ practices across the country. Case in point: A cross-sectional study of Swedish men ages 69 to 80 years showed the risk for premature death from any cause and the risk for suffering a major cardiovascular event were inversely correlated with the total serum testosterone concentration (i.e., the higher the testosterone levels, the lower the risk of death).
Specifically with regards to cardiovascular events, men in the highest quartile of testosterone (at or higher than 550 ng/dL) had a lower risk of cardiovascular events compared with men with lower testosterone.
More importantly, details from this study show that it did not matter if a man’s total testosterone was very low (below 340 ng/dL ) or moderately low (up to 549 ng/dL ) – all men with T levels below 549 ng/dL had a similar increased risk for suffering a cardiovascular event. Only when total testosterone exceeded 550 ng/dL did cardiovascular risk drop.
This is truly alarming, as cardiovascular disease is the No. 1 killer of men in the United States and even more – this study was published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology.
These researchers documented a 30 percent reduction in cardiovascular events as well as a decrease in cerebrovascular disease incidence.
Men with the highest total testosterone had a 24 percent reduced risk of transient ischemic attack or full-blown stroke. Clearly, based on this study, the only target for “healthy testosterone” is to maintain total testosterone at or above 550 ng/dL.
As a health care practitioner, please note the following:
According to LabCorp, the “healthy reference range” for total testosterone is 348–1,197 ng/dL.
So, the lower part of this range completely ignores recent science that shows total testosterone levels need to be maintained above 550 ng/dL.
Subjectively, this broad range is ridiculous. As any 45-year-old man who has suffered with low normal testosterone knows, there is a world of difference in how a man feels and performs (both mentally and physically) when testosterone is “low normal” versus higher up the healthy “normal” reference range.
According to your doctor, you don’t need more energy, higher libido and higher confidence.
You reach about 80% of the benefits at 1 year, with benefits continuing for years.
That’s because they don’t know any better, sex hormones are not taught in traditional medical schools and residency.
Pre TRT, did you get more than 1 blood test showing your lowered level?
I had to give numerous tests showing my TT was in the 200s before my DR. would prescribe me TRT. And i’m glad he was diligent.
Maybe I missed it, but do you HAVE a fertility problem? I know pro bodybuilders (read: loads of T and other drugs) who make babies all the time. Do you have a pre-existing issue your doc is worried about? If not, your urologist may be overreacting.
I tried clomid once, like two decades ago, and felt like an emotional little bitch. Like getting teary-eyed over TV commercials… and not commercials featuring sad dog in shelters, which is acceptable. 
That’s great information! Yeah I may go back on. I’m in debate. I’m off now for about 19 days. I felt pretty bad a week after stopping on the hcg but now after just taking one clomid pill yesterday I feel even worse. I may just not take the clomid and let my body come back naturally. I did two weeks of hcg.
The urologist was telling me I should freeze my sperm in a bank just in case. He said the risk of not being able to have a kid goes up the longer you are on testosterone because of scarring of the testicles that can occur. He said just to be safe he recommended it.
The clomid is aweful! I’m not going to take it and I rather my body just come back naturally. I was only on 100mg testosterone for 8 months.
I had 3-4 blood test over a span of a year all drawn in the morning. My levels ranged from 350-400 and my free testosterone was around 9
Definitely an overreaction. While TRT can temporality decrease sperm count, it only takes one of those little swimmers to get the job done. Low sperm count doesn’t mean “no sperm count.” And if you ever definitely want to try for a kiddo, just hop off the TRT wagon for a while (if necessary). I wouldn’t worry about it.
