I will be starting my first cycle after Christmas but want to make sure i have everything on hand. Im 36, 180 25% body fat aiming at adding some size and cutting fat. Ill be on a test win cycle. Per a recommendation i ordered 5000 iu of hcg. Im having trouble finding info on dosage ect. What is the reccomended dosage and should i take it throughout the whole cycle and pct or…thank you for the input
800-1000iu per week divided into at least two pins. Adding size and cutting same time… hmmm. Whats your cycle history? I recommend getting down to below 20% BF before starting the cycle. Many would advice lower but hell 20% is pretty average… at least beat the average dude.
Thank you. To be honest im estimating some. I havent tested in a bit. This is my first cycle. Im waiting until after Christmas so i can make sure i have everything and lower bmi some more. My end game (may take a couple cycles) is 10-12% and 190-200 lbs. Im not looking to compete just get to a better aesthetic and strength
Is the 25% your body fat or BMI? Because those numbers will be way different.
Bmi. Sorry
BMI is useless. What’s your BF?
A pic is worth a 1000 words. Don’t show your face. If you’re not looking ready to cycle you will be told so. Caution: You may also get flamed if you look pretty bad.
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Why not try to get there naturally? Based on your pic I would say you have a long way to go before you hit your natural ceiling. Adding drugs to, hopefully, look better when there’s a lot of work you can do training and diet wise first is, IMHO, a bad idea.
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You are going to get roasted for your wanting to jump on Gear right away.
First things first,
Blood work? Get it done and include a hormone panel. Get Free Test and Total Test, SHBG, Full panel. You may be a candidate for TrT. You coudl utilize TrT as a way to help you get the gains needed before any cycle. You need to cut BF and add muscle, but you arent ready for full cycle steroids. First cycle would be Test alone for 10-14 weeks. You dont need Winny.
How often are you in the gym? What is your training like? Diet like?
You have to cut naturally first. It’s not a criticism. But you will have all kinds of problems if you start a cycle without having prepared your body properly. If you’re willing to listen I will give you a detailed explanation, as well as any other information you seek. But I’m not writing it all out unless you’re truly open to hearing it. I’ll leave it up to you.
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Ive tried off and on for years to do it naturally. As far as diets ive tried keto, carb cycling and just general healthy eating. The only reason im looking at win is it was a recommendation from a co worker. I have no issues doing test only. Ive had my blood tested already and will continue to. All numbers are within “normal”. I tried going that route prior to looking at other options. I typically hit the gym 3-5 times a week
Im absolutely open. Im just at a loss of optiong as i havent had luck other routs. I am limited on lower body as i have an extremely unstable knee and rods in my opposite leg from a wreck.
What is considered within normal ? My first lab work showed a 253 with a range of 300-900. My next lab work showed a 308 on the same range. I asked my Dr to treat the symptoms and not the numbers.
Are you experiencing any symptoms? Look up Low T and see if any fit.
How long have you been “hitting” the gym? I do the gym thing, but then I also do 45-60 minutes of cardio on a bike.
Test was 623 and free test was 19.6. I have some symptoms. I typically spend 45 min or so weight training and the do a mile or 2 on the treadmill
Not trying to be a dick here, but if you can’t make progress naturally; what makes you think you can make progress while on drugs? Steroids aren’t magic and only supplement the training and diet you should be doing already. Train hard, eat smart and most importantly be consistent.
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I dont take offense to anything said here. I asked for advice here because i wanted it. Not to hear only what i wanted to hear. I dont expect it to be a magical shot and then i have a 6 pack and look like i should be in a fitness magazine. Im being realistic. Im wanting to do a cycle to help. I feel like i hit a wall fairly quickly. Im also not looking at jumping on the horse next week. Would i like to start fairly soon, sure. But i want to a make sure i do it safely and b use it to aid
@raverthug Ok so brave of you to post pic. Honestly you look like an average dude who doesn’t lift. That’s ok. But… like others have said you really need to establish a solid routine not 3-5 days. Pick your days… stick with it… change routine every two months… dial in your diet and lose about 5% of that body fat. Then reconsider. This can all be done in 6 mo - 1 year. I would still not advice a cycle at that point but If you’re gonna do it at least follow those simple guidelines. IMO cycles for non competitors should be used for those that have lifted for a long time and reached somewhat of a genetic plateau.
Thank you. I posted it because i want honest imput.
What macros does everyone recommend aiming for
You can get where you want to go, naturally first, then add a cycle if you’ve met all your goals unaltered first. And the reason you need to do it that way is simple: if you run a cycle with your body the way it is now you will get bigger, stronger, and fat as Hell. Being fat after a bulk is fine, but getting that fat carved off after is a lot harder than you think. It’s miserable. It’s soul-crushing. And it doesn’t seem worth it while you’re going through it. There is no light at the end of the tunnel. It’s darkness. Eventually it gets better. But before that it’s just plain awful. If you front load your fat loss now it takes a lot of pressure off when you get to the end of a bulk cycle.
The plan should be laid out in a way that sets you up for success. Have small, modest goals that you can achieve quickly, then just keep adding them on as you hit each milestone. Running a marathon is hard, running a mile isn’t. So just run it one mile at a time.
Start with a complete overhaul of your diet. Just scrap everything and build an entirely new one. Blank slate. That way you can gauge how you respond to different inputs and make adjustments.
Track macros religiously. Make it a job. You get paid in the form of a better body. Find your maintenance calories, then hit 500 below that every day for a week. Then another week. Then adjust again to reflect the weight you lost. Then hit 500 below The new maintenance for a week. And another. Rinse and repeat. Do this for eight weeks and see where you end up.
After that you will have a good idea of how hard it is to cut your body fat at your age and activity level. This is an under appreciated aspect of fitness in general. I know an awful lot about nutrition and training (but always trying to learn more!) and my slow cut has been much slower than expected. I’m borderline insane at this point because absolutely nothing has been working the way it should be. It’s frustrating. It’s almost enough to make me want to give up and just start bulking again. But I cannot do that. Because if I’m struggling to hit my goal it means one or more of my assumptions about my maintenance and my macro breakdown are wrong. Somewhere along the way I failed to account for some externality that is heretofore unknown to me. So I make my deficit deeper. I add even more cardio. I cut certain foods. Now I’m going to go mostly plant based for the next four weeks to see how I feel. Constantly tinkering with diet is like 99% of the game. And I look like a regular dad who lifts. Well maybe not regular, but I’m not the ideal body type and I don’t look like an Instagram model. Knowing the science doesn’t necessarily mean you can execute. So you have to experience it. There’s no other way. And you will have days that you feel like nothing is working. Then you’ll have days where you can’t believe that the guy in the mirror is you. The strength you need to get leaner doesn’t come from any muscle, it comes from your brain. You have to will yourself to make changes and stick to them. And there is no reason why you can’t do it.
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