Hi, I have been training naturally for almost 4 years and the gains recently had been really slow so I decided to run my first cycle as follows:
Test E 300mg/week week 1-10
Anavar 50mg/day week 4-10
Adex as needed or 0.25 e3d
Nolva PCT week 12-16
Stats : 22 y/o
5’10
168lbs
11% bf
My question is, is it possible to make muscle gains and bulk on this cycle? I am looking to get shredded and vascular that is the reason I added VAR. Looking forward to hearing from y’all. Thanks in advance!
these numbers are a bit meaningless without your lift numbers. Also 22 is still on the young side to cycle bro. You are full of natural testosterone and far from any genetic potential with only 4 years of training but if you insist this is my advice
My personal opinion is 500mg/week for 12 weeks (altho 10 is fine if that’s what you want) minimum when running test only cycles. 300 is just above trt dose if your gonna shut your endogenous test down might as well make it worth it. 500 is considered a good starting point and a spot where you may not even need an AI like adex.
Which brings me to my next point
I think it’s best to wait for serious estrogen issues before using additional drugs like adex.
As far as the anavar goes I believe these types of orals are best ran at the end of a cycle when your testosterone has peaked and you are in full swing. The general advice given is to only run test for your first cycle mainly because if something goes wrong you know what is causing it. Altho I believe in these cases if you have been on let’s say 500mg test/week for 8 weeks and everything is going great no issues and you want to add a oral for last 4 weeks then why not.
Pick one my guy. Do you want to bulk or do you want to cut? Both are 100% possible on this cycle altho trying to accomplish both in one cycle is probably gonna leave you with half ass results on both ends
I mean, it’s doable, but recomp is hard. I’m currently doing an insanely slow recomp (talking about a 14 week process at least) and results are mixed. Can you do it? Probably. Should you? Meh. Testosterone is awesome and building new muscle is a great feeling. First cycle should really be about adding size, especially in your particular case. You said your gains have stalled, hence the cycle. So use the cycle for that reason. Bulk up. Don’t do it dirty and you won’t have nearly as much trouble when you eventually want to lean out a few months from now.
I also agree with Zeek about the timing of the anavar. It is a great drug and I highly recommend it for those who can afford it. But use it towards the end of your cycle and you’ll be happier with the results.
Thanks for the response! Helps a lot.
Like you said, I’m just keeping the adex on hand for when needed. Should I not be taking it throughout the cycle to help with keeping water weight down and the bloat down tho?
And isn’t 4 weeks of anavar way too less? I’m trying to run it for at least 6 weeks.
If I keep my diet clean and eat in a surplus, can I expect lean gains without too much fat? Not trying to put on too much fat before summer.
also for the recomp, what do your macros look like?
Last 6 weeks is fine.
I don’t think adex should be used for bloat. Your diet can dictate a lot and water retention is one of them.
Your gonna gain water weight with a long ester like enanthate as long as it doesnt get out of control your blood pressure should stay in a good range. I’m just giving you my 2¢ you have some people that will reccomend you run adex from the start of cycle. I personally think it shouldn’t be used unless absolutely necessary. The less drugs the better!
High estrogen is better than low estrogen anyday
So I do my macros on a weekly basis rather than daily. Some days I’m not that hungry, so I don’t really want carbs. Other days I need carbs like they’re oxygen. So I shoot for 30/40/30, but I’m about to adjust that here after I read this study that’s been on my list for the last two weeks. If it looks worthwhile I’ll make a thread about it.
Wont takeing Var and the begging of this cycle help to kickstart the Test E
I wouldnt consider anavar a “Kickstart” oral. (I don’t really like that term) those are more along the lines of dbol, adrol, sdrol and a few others. I think orals like var and winny are best kept for the end when your test has peaked along with your androgen levels being high I think you will be much happier with the results.
Thank you!!!