I do not know. To me, based on experiences over the years, it means they will obsess on levels and even slight changes will need explanation and dose adjustments because they are not smooth or stabe. Hormones in flux, etc. They need to be women, then they can learn what real hormone fluctuations feel like.
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I suggested this happen with my HCG thread instead of endless drive-by threads on the topic. I donāt want to sound arrogant but I think what I summarized about HCG is nearly all one needs to know, which isnāt much.
On TRT your E2 hangs around 20 if I am correct right? Your biweekly TT trough is like 1k?
I could rave about it but that would be bragging. It does help for most people. I have the best performances when my E2 is the highest. I may be an outlier and it may not work for you but you might try letting your E2 get higher than the ānormalā range and see if this helps sexually. I know itās counter-intuitive but it does work.
Even lowering Test dose to increase the E2/T ratio can work.
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Interesting. When my E2 is that low my joints are extremely crunchy
20s is pretty mid range, I definitely wouldnāt consider it low. I was on 140mg T Cyp split into bi weekly injections for years. I take no AI or HCG. Just T cyp. Prior to this lab draw I had upped it to 160mg/wk with the Docs approval. I feel fantastic. Sometimes my libido is almost too āhair triggerā.
20ās with no AI? Not to be argumentative and happy that you have your protocol tuned in butā¦all my experience/reading tells me this number is oddly low for Test in the 900ās. Lucky you!
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Thats correct, no AI. Donāt worry, youāre not coming off as argumentative at all. When I first started TRT 7 years ago they threw the kitchen sink at me. Test, HCG, AI, DIM etc. I never felt well. I found a new doc and said āLook, Iām low on Test, just give me Testosteroneā. Iāve been well on solo T for 6 years. Ironically, Iāve never had much testicular atrophy either or none that I noticed anyway.
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Certainly canāt speak for everyone, but in my own personal case, a couple years ago I was āworkingā from home, which really meant I did about 4 hours of actual work and spent the other 4-5 hours on these boards. 
These days, itās back to reality, back to the bullshit 9-5 grind, working to make someone else rich while I struggle to pay my bills. 
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Over achiever here I see.
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Thanks for posting this. It was the anecdote I needed to hear to bump the dose up a smidge.
Were you steady-state yet on 160/wk when you had these drawn?
I gave up blast and cruise a while back and have been trying to dial in TRT for a few months now. Currently on 140/wk and nothing else. Been here two months and feel, meh. Good not great. Iāve got no recent labs at this dose. Been arguing with myself for days about going up to 154/wk. I keep telling myself, ā140 is not a weak dose. Just give it more time and focus on all the other factors effecting well-being.ā Your positive experience bumping up just a few mgs to 160 is encouraging.
In the spirit of discussion, I know some will read this post and wonder, āWhat does he mean by good not great.ā What I mean isā¦ā¦
I keep my notes in my phone based on four factors: how I look, feel, and perform (both gym and bedroom). On 140/wk,
- I look better than most men my age, but nothing spectacular. I get comments every now and then, mostly from unfit people. I donāt turn heads when I walk through a gym.
- I feel calm and confident in most situations, but still insecure at times. It comes and goes with lifeās ups and downs - what I would consider normal psychology I guess.
- I perform at about 90% of my all time bests in the gym. Iām a competitive powerlifter (9 meets now), so Iām fairly familiar with my capabilities. On 140/wk, I can hit about 90% of my all time PRs on the big three.
- In the bedroom, Iām blessed to have an insanely hot wife. (Pic below for your entertainment). So, libido and arousal are not a problem at any dose, no matter what the hell im taking. On 140/wk, I get pretty hard, not diamond hard, and can give her 2-3 orgasms.
So to anyone coming to this TRT forum looking for anecdotes, thatās how 140/wk makes me feel (good not great). Iād say if I had to put a number on it, meh, 8/10. Gonna try a slight bump to 154/wk and see how it goes.
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I get what youāre saying, and Iām not saying this be rude. TRT isnāt meant for desired performance or feelings aside from a general sense of well-being and normal function. Itās not meant to make someone look good for their age, feel less insecure, hoist specific weights one wants to hoist, or or perform sexually at some arbitrary frequency or degree of penile hardness (lack of what is considered ED).
So one can keep increasing his T dose indefinitely (not sure what ethical doc allows this) for desire feelings until itās not TRT.
Again, donāt intend to be rude, and your medicine is your business. I just see this is a common occurrence.
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When do you consider it ānot TRT?ā Iāve seen this question debated ad nauseam on these boards but I forget what your personal take on it is.
When the dose provides abnormal T values.
I donāt think most (not all) men need more than 100 mg per week. I take that and test at 700 to 1000 ng/dl on any given day. Granted Iām one guy, and my three friends on the same dose are only three guys, but Iām not convinced we have unique makeups.
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To add to my previous post, you wrote of some things that a doctor cannot even treat by any measure.
Like, if a guy said, āI feel confident, but sometimes Iām insecure,ā or, āI look like fit guys my age, but I donāt turn heads,ā these are issues doctors donāt prescribe medicine. Even feelings of good versus great cannot be treated.
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I respect that. So in the spirit of good discussion, what do you consider abnormal?
I ask not to be argumentative, but because hereās where we tend to go round and round on these boards about what is/isnāt TRT.
You stated you and your three friends walk around at 700-1000. Some might consider that āabnormalā. Iāve seen several graphs on the internet showing 900-1000 definitely being outside the bell curve, and therefore abnormal. Some labsā reference ranges even stop in the low 900s.
Most assert that TRT, by very definition, is replacement, and they are correct in the literal meaning. But I ask how do you know exactly how much youpersonally, need to replace your testosterone? Unless you have labs from a time period when youwere in yourearly twenties, exercising, eating, and resting properly, how do you know what your replacement amount is? Were you at 500ng/dL, 600 ng/dL, or 1,200ng/dL?
The fact is most people donāt have such labs and are basing their decisions off of the ānormalā distribution of a population that is increasingly sedentary, sicker, weaker, fatter, and for the first time in 100 years, dying younger, on average.
I, personally, am seeking a dose that makes me look, feel, and perform what I perceive to be optimal, and then run extensive labs to verify that I am not doing harm, as indicated by the markers commonly used in healthcare.
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Sir I respectfully disagree that feelings cannot be treated with medication
Yes but honestly I didnāt need to bump it. I felt fine on both dosages. Just a little legal experiment to see if I noticed a difference. I notice nothing at all.
I think this is okay (or at least okay IMO). It may not fall under normal medicine though. I think it should be a personal choice what we put into our bodies. Testosterone is for many a lifestyle drug. I think it is important that those who want to go this route know the trade offs, and have realistic expectations for what TRT or a cycle / blast will do for them (which most donāt understand IME).
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