I am a 35 year old former D1 athlete, trained naturally since 15 years old. I tore my achilles tendon 1 year ago and have been struggling to gain my athleticism back.
4 weeks ago I started taking 350mg of testosterone enanthate per week divided into 2 doses.
4 weeks ago I was 230 lbs at 6’2", around 15% body fat.
My pre-cycle blood work was:
Total T: 450 ng/dl
Free T: 75 pg/ml
E2: 35 pg/ml
In 4 weeks, I have shot up in weight to 266 lbs (most of which I’m assuming is water retention), gained an insane amount of strength (for example I was training overhead press with 90lb dumbbells pre-cycle, and now the 100lb dumbbells feel like feathers), slight increase in libido.
My face is noticeably more puffy/bloated and I have started to notice I am shedding hair. I have had a perfect hairline with thick hair my entire life. There is a strong family history of MPB in my family. My midsection looks bloated and my vascularity has decreased overall. I am eating clean and drinking lots of water. I am eating LESS food than I was when I weighed more than 30 lbs less. I have no signs of elevated estrogen except for bloating, which could possibly be entirely attributed to testosterone.
I will be doing labs this week. I have started using minoxidil and finasteride as well.
My questions are:
-Is temporary hair shedding normal in the beginning of a cycle?
-If I stop now, will the hair I have lost return?
-Is this level of weight gain and water retention normal?
-What can be done to negate all the adverse effects I am having?
-If it is found that I have elevated estrogen, will lowering estrogen with an AI will likely result in further hair loss? (from what I understand estrogen is protective)
1-For yes/For some no
2-Nobody can tell you that. It’s case by case but if you have family history I would be inclined to say goodbye to the hair.
3-You will certainly put on a little water but at 350mg/wk i would not expect a ton. Are you on an AI? What is your BP? Do you have any leg edema? This is serious stuff and should not be taken lightly.
4-I would get bloodwork asap
5-IDK on this one.
Honestly I would be much more concerned about the other issues that you are havening besides the shedding.
Thanks for the reply
BP hovers around 135/70, very trace amounts of leg edema.
Going to get labs tomorrow.
Most likely going to stop AAS as I am so vain about my hair.
Think this would depend on how aggressive you get with the AI usage. On cycles of higher T doses some guys will need to take higher doses of the AI and I think that would be counterproductive for keeping your hair.