Ugh, you’re right. Exemestane or aromasin is the other one I was thinking of.
I almost said exemestane, but I thought that was epistane. I just got confused
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I’ve heard that if you need more than a little bit, that aromasin is a bit better on the lipids than arimidex. Also, I guess if getting it UGL, it is preferred, as it is easier for a UGL to dose 25 mg of drug into a pill, compared to the 1 mg dose used in adex.
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Luckily the arimidex is from my TRT doc so I trust that it is correctly dosed. I don’t mind running the arimidex AND nolvadex together, but I also want to make sure that I am running this with minimal risk. Based on how hard this MENT is aromatizing, I was going to have to run min .25mg arimidex daily, and I wanted to avoid that so I chose to run the nolvadex @ 20mg/day instead. If I can run just the nolva and not run the adex at all I would do that. With the long-ish half life of nolva I’ll drop to EOD once the nipples are under control.
And as previously mentioned, I’ll cut the MENT dose if I HAVE to, but that is not preferred.
I would also run the Nolva before Adex if the nipple issue is all your running into. I think your plan of actions makes sense.
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If it’s me I actually cut the testosterone dose and keep the MENT. That’s usually the culprit. I would do that first before anything else. See if it helps. If not then you’ll know it’s because the MENT is too high.
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As far as I am concerned, you’re the resident expert on MENT, so I am asking this to learn.
Maybe I misunderstood, but I thought the ME2 (methylestradiol), for lack of better terms, hits harder with respect to E2 sides. But from what I am understanding now, it seems you’re saying that E2 is worse for E2 sides. Is this correct?
Also, along the same vein, if I cut my test dose, AND assuming ME2 isn’t as harsh, could I make up the cut in test with an increase in MENT?
For example, if I cut out 100mg/wk test, could I add 10 mg/wk MENT? or would this just make estro sides worse again? With respect to performance and strength gains, I have hit a sweet spot on a relatively low dose (overall mg is ~630 mg/wk between all 3 compounds)
I know there is a lot of hypotheticals and likely a lot of unknowns in my questions, but I am hoping to get any info I can.
What’s the highest you’ve ever ran test without needing an AI?
Your initial belief about methylestrodiol is likely correct, it does seem to cause more intense side effects. That being said, the vast majority of guys who have e2 issues with MENT are the ones who run it with testosterone, usually anything above a trt dose. I had more e2 sides (minor bloating, a little more emotional) in the brief time that I was on 70mg test and 5mg MENT then when I was just on MENT solo at 10mg. But I cannot stress this part enough: it is your body, you are a genetically unique individual, and I would not want to be making the ultimate decision for you here. Perhaps lower both the test and the MENT, get some relief, and then add the MENT back in after two weeks and see if the problems come up again. That’s probably the best approach, all things considered.
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My first few cycles I never ran an AI at 500 mg/wk. In retrospect, that was a dumb move on my part because I needed the AI. I was also probably 20-25% BF when I ran my first couple of cycles, so it obviously didn’t help to have all that extra fat.
With that said, I now run AI on TRT doses. I have not run a test only cycle since October 2019 and that was before I knew what I was doing. I am also quite a lot leaner now than I was then, so my body shouldn’t be aromatizing as hard as it was 2 years ago
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All very good points, and I completely respect your stance. I’m going to give it another few days, up to a week, and if I still feel like I can’t get it under control, I’ll cut the test in half.
I’m just making such excellent progress right now in all aspects of my training and I don’t have mood issues, or really any sides to speak of currently, EXCEPT BOOBS. So I am having a really hard time wrapping my mind around changing anything, but for the sake of health/wellness, I will if necessary
Also, unrelated to my cycle, but definitely related to training, I hit a HUGE speed PR last night on the yoke, which has always been my worst event.
I took 555 100’ in 21 seconds (with a turn and pick). The closest runs I have to that are 585 for 60’ in 16s (no turns) in April and last October I took 500 for 120 ft in 29s (with pick and turn). Both times I was running more gear than I am now.
My coach is a very athletic guy and he has been helping me increase my speed/athleticism.
O yea and I woke up at 240 today.
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Day 37 Update:
I am still getting leaner, stronger, and more athletic. I am down to 238.8 as of this morning. My last competition I was 246-247 before my water cut. One other thing I should mention with respect to my cut is that I am running Ventolin (AKA salbutamol) @ 4mg/ workout. This is an oral albuterol that I am using for the sake of not dying from asthma when working out and pushing myself hard, but it is also often used as a cutting agent, which is not my purpose for using it, but it is surely helping with the cut. I am ONLY taking it on workout days about an hour before my workout.
I was able to get the E2/ME2 under control with the AI and SERM. BP has been in the 123/78 range (7 day average) and RHR is right around 60 BPM.
Hit another big yoke PR yesterday. I took a 600 lb yoke 60 ft in 14s, which is 2 seconds faster and 15 lbs heavier than my previous best 60’ run. I’m still not great at yoke, but this just shows there is hope for me after all.
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What weight are you trying to get down to? Weight classes in some of the strongman feds make it a bit tougher to be at a good weight (especially if you compete in the one that just has U105kg and 105kg+). I do know a guy who competes at U105kg at about 5’9", and cuts from over 240 lbs. He has a 6 pack while over 240 lbs. Dude is a beast.
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Well initially I was just trying to get down to 240 and recomp from there, but if I can keep getting stronger while losing weight, why not keep shedding weight?
I am kind of at a point where I would like to just run maintenance cals and stick to 240 though. But if I can skip a water cut that would be “most excellent”. My coach is an under 200 guy and I was teasing him about cutting down to that and beating him lol.
I definitely have a 4 pack at 240, but not a full on 6-pack. I am 6’1". I don’t care to do another 16-18 lb weight cut haha
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I forgot to mention, I also compete U105
Day 42 Update:
I am still running the same 3 compounds, but as of this morning I have changed the dosages:
600/400/42 test/NPP/MENT. This is up (down) from 280/280/70. I am prepared to catch whatever flak y’all throw my way.
I dropped the MENT down to help offset the increased aromatization of more test and nand. One of my previous cycles was 525/350 test/NPP and I made great progress with it. I was making ok progress with the 280/280, but It wasn’t as much as I felt it should’ve been. Also, at 33, I am not sure how many more years I REALISTICALLY have trying to get a pro card. So I am not planning to explode my heart tomorrow, but I am throwing a little more caution to the wind.
I was also very clear with my wife, that if she feels like this is detrimental at all to our personal life, that I need to know quickly and I’ll back it off.
I also still plan to drop the NPP and add tren ace in 17 days. I’ll run 600/350/42 test/tren/MENT. I had also considered adding boldenone for it’s increase in endurance and tendon strength, but I cannot find Cyp or Ace, seems that only EQ is available and I don’t think 10 weeks is enough time to get much out of it.
I did hit a pretty decent PR yesterday on swiss bar flat bench:
285x6 @ RPE 7. For anyone that has ever used a swiss bar, they know how much harder this is than barbell.
Also hit a decent PR n 12" trap bar pulls:
640x4 @ RPE 6.5. For anyone that has ever used a trap bar, they know how much easier this is than barbell. 
comment/flame away
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No flak here. I think that the guys who really get results are using on the higher side. I think many report lower dosages than they are actually using. Of course, there are outliers who get by on a little, but they are not common. My buddy who has the best strength genetics I have seen, uses a lot. He used highish dosages (and stuff like anadrol, tren, npp) to go from a 700 lb deadlift natty as a junior to 800 as a 23 year old. All the strong guys I know have been let down by the low dose approach.
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I’m strong for an average guy, but compared to my competition, I am very “average”. But maybe the gear is the difference. I do truly believe I have slightly above average genetics for strength (like maybe 35th-40th percentile) but I am certainly not a freak lol.
With that said, I suppose I am closer to my genetic limit and that I was closer to my genetic limit, than most people, when I started AAS.
Not that these numbers are record breaking, but I had a 520 squat, 550 DL and 370 bench before I started AAS. And that was with no semblance of training, sleep or nutrition, and poor technique.
I guess this is all a long winded way of justifying higher doses. Still moderate dosage in comparison to many people, but higher than I was running.
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I am in that boat too. Almost any gym I go to, I’ll be one of the strongest, but compared to competitors in strength sports, I am fairly average. I do think on average that people who compete in strength sports have better genetics than average. The guy who couldn’t get to a 225 bench, probably decided it wasn’t for him.
To be above average wouldn’t you need to be above the 50th percentile? I would say out of 100 guys, I am probably in the top 20. I think between the guy right at 20 from the top, and say the two or three top guys can be quite a lot though.
I think what you are running for your goals falls under moderate. It isn’t low, but it isn’t high. I think it will probably be pretty effective though.
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Yea I think I went the wrong way, I was thinking top 35-40%, but I guess that would put me in the 60th-65th percentile
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