@enackers My doc is recommending 10-15 mcg/day Cytomel (T3 only). He feels adding Armour T3/T4 could increase my RT3, which is already a little high.
What do you think?
Reminder of my numbers:
TSH 1.24
T3R 20
T3 Free 3
T4 Free 1
Iām around the upper part of where I want to live now, somewhere around 15%-17%. This whole house hunting deal took so much of my time and effort that I actually quit working out for about a month. Back in the saddle now though, although Iām still not able to be as strict as I like to be. After closing and the big move though (scheduled for the 19th)ā¦Itās ON!!!
No this āhigh activityā phase would actually be part of the prep, starting at around 4-6 months out from showtime. You asked specifically about the ācuttingā phase, so I picked it up at around the 2 month mark. The point was to make sure that you understand that BEFORE you start the cutting phase, you will want to have already been in that high activity / surplus mode for a few months already before beginning the descent into the cut. Once you start that phase, you donāt want to tear down muscle tissue anymore. If you are creating a deficit with caloric intake, you definitely do not want to create MORE of a deficit by overdoing the workouts (unless you have a little more fat to lose than you wanted to of courseā¦). youāll lose too much muscle mass by showtime, or at least more than you wanted to. Itās best to go into the cut at no more than 15% BF, and a metabolism that is smoking. This is the best case scenario for cutting a ton of fat in just a couple of months.
I have not brother, and I donāt really have the desire to be honest. I enjoy learning, and Iām an information hound. I love pushing myself as if I were going to be hitting a competition, but as far as actually doing it, the lifestyle is just not for me. I donāt have the capacity to focus on body building full time, and hold a full time job, and be a good husband and Dadā¦Just too much. I donāt want that kind of stress in my life at this point in the game.
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Oh man, thatās crazy. I know itās been super time-intensive and draining, but I canāt imagine taking a month off. What was that time like for you? I bet your body might actually thank you for the break, in the long-run. Whatās your plan for when you get fully back in the saddle, brother?
Given your knowledge on the subject, I wouldnāt be surprised to learn you have experience āalteringā your metabolism ā do you? Iām somewhat comfortable with maintenance at 2200, but life would be much more fun (dessert!) if my maintenance level were up near 3000. That might be a pipedream, though.
Around that 2-month mark, would you maintain the high level of activity, or even slightly decrease it?
Completely get it. If you ever change your mind, though (maybe you get more free time and just want a fun challenge), know that Iām excited to follow along. I bet youād crush!
Adding to this whole ābodybuilding is unhealthyā discussionā¦Chris Bumstead just won the Mr. Olympia Classic Physique 2.5 months ago, and in this new video
he said heās lost 20 lbs of LBM since thenā¦20 pounds of LBM! The dude stopped taking crazy gear for a time (still some gear, Iām sure) and literally started deflating.
Very stressful, and itās not quite over yetā¦Hopefully in a couple of weeks though!! My plan is to run around 2400-2500 calories and work my ass off! lol
Iāve been in a surplus for a while because I havenāt been carefully monitoring diet, and my BF went from around 13%-14%, to 15%-17% over the last couple months.
I do have a TON of experience with āalteringā my metabolism, and it was all gained by accident lol! I have destroyed my metabolism so many times with an extended deficit man. I wonāt allow myself to do it for more than 4 weeks now.
Getting your maintenance up to 3000 cals is easy (theoretically). Go up a little at a time in intensity and calories, and allow your body to add enough muscle to support that intake. Muscle burns energy brother.
Keep it the same for a few weeks, then gradually adjust to make sure that I am still losing fatā¦That could even mean an increase if my caloric deficit is not as much as I think it is. I would judge that based on weekly measurements.
Thanks for your vote of confidence, but Iāll hold my opinion on it for now 
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This is very typical for high level AAS users.
Just shocking to me. 20 lbs of LBM, while still running gear and still lifting all the time? Crazy. I know these guys are genetic freaks, but I wonder how much he was taking.
You would probably wonder how heās still breathing if you really knew the answer to that!
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Yes he is correct. Is that free t3 a range to 4.2 or 5.?
This is an authority on thyroid health. They say 25mcg is one grain. Thatās where I would start. Heās not giving t4 and that means your dose is small.
When we take t4 and t3 we have a slow conversion of t4 to t3 that builds up over days. T3 absorbs within hours so you take that 8 hours apart. The fact that you have zero t4 dictates that you would want to take more t3.
Send him as many conversion articles on this topic as you can. Your free t3 levels are much lower and 1 grain will not increase it to top of range. I might be wrong; but I highly doubt it.
get Started ASAP it will be a big help to you. Expect faster heart rate. Expect more energy and other symtoms like being able to hear the heart beat louder. Itās normal and will get better after a couple weeks. The energy and symtom resolution will outweighs any short term symtoms you expedience.
Donāt sell yourself short because of these. You will feel better if your dose is right and everything should come together.
You are welcome to email me directly and contact me via text message when you start if you have any questions as you start.
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@bkb333 - almost 2 weeks into going to ED injections. How are you feeling?
Thanks so much, brother! I really appreciate your assistance.
The reference range was 2.3-4.2 for Free T3. I requested 25 mcg/day of the Cytomel, but not sure they will oblige. Fingers crossed!
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Show him documentation that the half life is 8 hours or so. Makes no sense to not dose daily. You need a better doctor.
Wow brother, you never cease to amaze me with remarks like thisā¦ He hasnāt even yet asked the question of his doctor, and as such does not even know what his doctor will say in response, and you just assume his doctor is shit and he needs a new one. I really feel sorry for you man on how short sighted you are sometimes. Such a brilliant potential that will never see true fulfillment because you canāt see past your own nose on some things.
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To be fair, this is largely my fault. Iām new to this game and donāt always understand what I should/should not be asking my doctor (i.e., I donāt want to be annoying or constantly in their ear with every little question). Thatās why the awesome guys on this forum (like you and @enackers) are absolute life-savers.
But I also recognize I could make better use of Defy, and thatās what Iām striving to do now. I do think there are some things they could do better, but no provider is perfect! And I am very grateful for them.
Oh for sure brother, Defy is not perfection by any means, and Iām quite sure that they could learn a few things from the Nichols crew.
It just aggravated me that the only basis for completely discrediting an organization (or so it seems by reading the posts) is that the Clinic or Dr is not the one that the said accuser is associated with. Itās nonsense and biased, and has no useful addition to the community, or the conversation.
And yes I agree that @enackers is a VALUABLE member of this community. I think sometimes though that the time he spent with Danny has kind of rubbed off on him.
And Iām not picking on just him mind you, there are several other members of this forum who do the same thing. Itās just not useful to the forum IMO.
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The thing with Defy is, theyāre the biggest T organization, so they apply a āvolumeā approach. They canāt give the same degree of individualized consideration/constant interaction that, I presume, a Nichols would. Just not feasible, given different cost structures.
Thereās nothing wrong with that ā itās their business model, and it creates less barrier to entry for new HOT patients, so Iām thankful for that ā but it does lead to some dissatisfied patients, who inevitably share their experiences online, creating this negative perception.
Iām confident that, even if I ultimately go with a different provider because I want more hand-holding and donāt want to do as much research on my own, I will never bash Defy. Even if their methods arenāt always ideal, theyāve been really good for creating access to hormonal therapy.
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I totally agree with you, with one exception. Donāt think for second that Nichols is a smaller organization than Defy. EVERYONE in the TRT world knows who he is. I would bet you money that he wouldnāt turn down a new patient. This fact alone should tell you that heās not at all interested in keeping his practice under a certain size.
If he doesnāt know you, and has only one conversation and a set of labs to go on the first time he meets you, then you can bet your ass that heās going to start you with whatever ācookie cutterā approach has worked for whatever patients he has seen in the past with similar stats as you, and then adjust from there over time as he sees how YOU react to that protocol.
This is what ANY reputable TRT doctor or clinic SHOULD do. Each case will be unique, but those individual nuances will only be revealed over time by watching the patient react to different methodologies. No Dr, not even Nichols, is clairvoyant. He, just like any other Dr out there, will get LUCKY every now and then and nail it first time, but itās just thatā¦dumb luck backed by an educated guess.
FWIW, I do think heās turning down new patients under 30 now. Not that itās that big of a deal (doesnāt exclude most guys seeking HOT), but it does tell you heās not looking to scale at any cost and genuinely seems to be prioritizing the ādo no harmā philosophy he often states.
The difference, from my vantage point, is that his ācookie cutterā approach seems to be more backed by science (or at least the majority of anecdotes Iāve read online ā which, take that for whatever itās worth, lol) than Defyās go-to T/hCG/AI starter concoction. I also think heās more willing to think outside-the-box about things like EDCs and challenge ātraditionalā lab rangesā¦but, again, that all comes back to Defyās business model.
No other T provider can actually provide some real potential for insurance coverage. They have to āplay it safeā in some regards and probably canāt afford to roll the dice on pushing T levels too high.
Now youāll get to see my cynical, or rather my āconspiracy theoryā side lol. I may be talking out of my ass, and everyone (especially Dr Nichols) please forgive me if I am, but the first thought in my head when I read something like this is that he is trying to limit his liability. The more you prescribe testosterone to a younger crowd, especially when you are pushing the limits of the Grey area as far as testosterone levels go in the name of āoptimizationā, when there is no real CLINICAL reason other than āwell they just arenāt as good as they could beā, then the more eyebrows you raise within the medical community, and the more questions of investigation start being asked.
Again, if Iām wrong Iāll swallow that one and apologize in advance to Dr Nichols.
Oh yeah, Iām sure liability has to be a salient concern in all decisions for a T provider. They are constantly under the microscope and at risk of serious harm, I imagine.
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