Starting slow/Recomp Test/Primo/NPP

[BuffMaltese]

Beginning stats: 47 years old, 6’, 175 lbs.

Started on 12/10/25. Increased testosterone from 150 mg to 200 mg per week, added Primobolan at 133 mg per week, and kept NPP at 100 mg per week. Also running 3 IU of HGH.

This comes off the back of a very successful cut. I dropped to roughly 14–15% body fat eating around 2,000 calories per day while using 1–4 mg of retatrutide for about 11 weeks. Calories are now up to roughly 2,500 with the goal of attempting a slow recomp. Retatrutide has been reduced to 1 mg per week since it was clearly affecting my sleep.

For now, the plan is to keep all doses exactly where they are until bloodwork in about 4–6 weeks. No rush to change anything without data.

Mentally, I’m a bit torn on the idea of increasing doses. On one hand, I’ve had an honestly insane response to TRT paired with low-dose NPP and HGH. Recovery, training tolerance, and overall performance have been better than I expected, and part of me thinks, why mess with something that’s clearly working. On the other hand, there’s that voice saying the clock is ticking and if I’m ever going to push progress, now might be the time as I get closer to 50.

Primary goals are improved recovery, the ability to train as much as I want, and continued strength and performance gains, not chasing a cartoon physique. That said, I’m already starting to look noticeably enhanced, which I’m not entirely sure I’m comfortable with. My forearms are getting borderline ridiculous in terms of vascularity. It’s fun to look fit, but I don’t really want to explain or justify what I’m doing to people. This feels personal, and I’d like to keep it that way.

After adding Primo, I’ve experienced some bouts of pretty extreme fatigue. Around the same time, I picked up a virus from my daughter. I haven’t been sick in a long time, so that alone could easily explain how I was feeling rather than assuming it was compound-related.

For now, the focus is patience, consistency, and letting bloodwork guide the next steps instead of emotion or urgency.

 

[oldage]

I would stick to the 200mg test. Get your macros dialed in. Eat more than 2,500kcal if u want to grow and train for a cple years. More gear won't give u what u want. Eating, sleeping, and training hard with 200mg test, maybe up to 300mg after training a little while. (Total test of no more than 1,500 ng/dl per blood work) This will have people asking u what ur on.

More PED's will put a lot more stress on your body and if u haven't put on 10lb, low end, to 20lbs of muscle it will just be a waste of money and unneeded damage.

Fyi, I wanted to do the same thing as you after 2 years on TRT and putting on 15lbs. Then took the time to stop estimating my caloric intake and realized I was holding myself back. I was still under eating, sleep is a battle, training hard is what I love. I have a ton of space to grow. Do I want desperately to grow bigger, faster and through PEDS at it. Hell ya! But to what end?

Just a thought from a stranger. Good luck on ur journey. Oh, and Primo and crashed E2 may be whats causing extreme fatigue.

 

[BuffMaltese]

I would stick to the 200mg test. Get your macros dialed in. Eat more than 2,500kcal if u want to grow and train for a cple years. More gear won't give u what u want. Eating, sleeping, and training hard with 200mg test, maybe up to 300mg after training a little while. (Total test of no more than 1,500 ng/dl per blood work) This will have people asking u what ur on.

More PED's will put a lot more stress on your body and if u haven't put on 10lb, low end, to 20lbs of muscle it will just be a waste of money and unneeded damage.

Fyi, I wanted to do the same thing as you after 2 years on TRT and putting on 15lbs. Then took the time to stop estimating my caloric intake and realized I was holding myself back. I was still under eating, sleep is a battle, training hard is what I love. I have a ton of space to grow. Do I want desperately to grow bigger, faster and through PEDS at it. Hell ya! But to what end?

Just a thought from a stranger. Good luck on ur journey. Oh, and Primo and crashed E2 may be whats causing extreme fatigue.

Appreciate the reply. I don’t really disagree with your points and I’m not trying to out-gear poor eating or sleep.

Just to clarify, I’m not talking about going wild with compounds. What I’ve been considering is more like 300 test / ~200 primo / ~200 NPP, not stacking for the sake of it.

I’m trying to understand your main point though. Are you mostly cautioning against wasting gear while recomping or under-eating, or are you saying additional PEDs are premature regardless? I’m not huge, but I’ve put in consistent training and my health markers are solid.

From your perspective, would something like 200 mg/week NPP meaningfully improve recovery and training quality over TRT alone if diet and sleep are reasonably dialed in, or is your view that unless calories are clearly in a surplus, anything beyond test is largely wasted?

Not arguing, just looking to understand where you’re coming from. Appreciate the insight.

 

[BuffMaltese]

Adding another pic for better context on current physique.

 

[oldage]

Where u are at u will need/want a surplus of calories to achieve your goal of building nore muscle and better recovery. (Note: 300mg test sounds good if blood work shows up to 1,500 ng/dl, super physiological) Remember adding more test is ur best option until u start getting sides before adding anything else. The point of adding another compound is to increase your androgen load past what u can run test at.

Do u know ur E2 running 200mg, 300mg, 400mg test? Do u use an AI? Primo is known drop ur E2.

There is a ton of info on Meso about the importance of managing E2.

Deca will add water weight for sure but u won't keep all of the scale weight and probably be disappointed when u discontinue using it. It also has sides that we all know and the ones we don't talk about are the effects on our brain, dopamine, and structural and functional damage to the heart including cardiac remodeling, and reduced contractile function. I I think the risk to reward is not in your favor.

Maybe 50mg/week deca if needed for joints.

Also, I dont really believe you are in a recomp phase anymore based on bodyfat/photos.

If u want to add Primo, id wait until u have put the weight on u want. Then cut and increase your androgen load then. Adding primo and masterone with a decent amount of Test to preserve muscle if cutting to 12%r below

Best bet may be test and HGH for recovery, bodyfat, anit-aging, general health.

 

[BuffMaltese]

Do u know ur E2 running 200mg, 300mg, 400mg test? Do u use an AI? Primo is known drop ur E2.

Just to clarify a couple things on my end: I recently increased test to 200 mg and hadn’t run that dose or higher before. I’ve never needed an AI on TRT doses up to 150 mg/week. I also haven’t pulled E2 or labs yet at this dose, as I’m planning to wait ~5–6 weeks for levels to stabilize before testing.

I also went back and read your introductory thread, and I couldn’t help but notice you were running very similar compounds and doses to what you’re cautioning against now, and had even planned something close to 400 test / 200 primo / 200 NPP before deciding not to.

Genuine question, not trying to argue: did the ~212.5 mg test, 100 mg primo, and 100 mg deca not work out well for you personally, or is your current advice more based on hindsight and longer-term risk considerations rather than short-term results?

Just trying to understand what specifically changed your perspective, or if there’s something about my situation that stands out to you beyond the under-eating point, which is a fair one and which I’m taking your advice on and adjusting by moving into a calorie surplus.

 

[oldage]

Great question. I love to learn and read. I take in a lot off what is said and then dive in to researching as much as I can in medical reviews and journals. Its why I mentioned I was planning on running a bunch of gear.

What changed my perspective is other people's wisdom and research. Test has some of the least risks and other PED's run higher risks. My belief now is the average user can go a lot further with test than they do during a growth phase before adding other compounds. Plus to gain size your gonna need to run much higher Primo and deca doses and in order to run those your starting ratios should be 2:1 ratios of test vs Primo and test vs deca. Good examples would be 600mg test/300mg deca or 600mg test/300mg Primo for growth. Based on blood work adjust your ratios raise primo if ur E2 can handle it and Deca can fuck with your mood and libido. Also why running 2:1 ratio isnt a bad idea. This is why I believe running higher test would be best. You haven't hit your potential just using test.

I ran the Primo to control E2. No other benefits to speak of. Altered cholesterol, HDL, mildly. I now run exemestan as an AI when I need it and will run my E2 up to 60 as its really needed to build muscle and when I hit 70 plus start holding a lot of water and become a bit more emotional.

Deca I didnt get much from and took for joints and chronic tendinitis of left forearm. With no relief of tendinitis. Definitely started to affect mood at 14/16 wks.

Post surgery I also have the additional androgens trying to preserve as much muscle as I can.

My real 1st cycle will be end of February. 400mg starting going up to 500/600 test, (im a poor responder to test and need higher numbers to raise blood levels) Use exemestane as needed and 3iu HGH ( super responder ) 4,500kcal a day. 16wks, then drop kcal to 3,800 or more week by week while adding 200mg/primo and 200mg/mast for 8 wks while in a kcal deficit. And all of this could change in a blink of an eye based on bloods and physical results. The idea being to lean out during summer (July/ August ) while retaining muscle. Maybe even slowly building. But using test to do the heavy lifting while in a growth phase. Then back to maintenance kcal with 250mg test, 1.5iu hgh for 8 weeks. Then repeat. Agian, if my body let's me. Who knows, I may need to scrap it all and just stick with 250mg test.

I also have a list of supplements and ancillary's I'll be running and stashed in case of issues/problems that could arise. Test blood every 4 to 6 weeks. Blood sugar daily, CRP, lipids, hematocrit, prolactin, prostate, E2, liver enzymes, kidney markers, etc etc etc etc. I also know my baseline for everything.

Please dont take my word for it. If your looking to the guys out there who are experienced bodybuilders and who have competed and really have been in the grind...... I would bet they give you some solid advice not to far from mine.

They may simply say start on 500mg test, take an AI if needed, eat and you'll love it and get big fast. Simple is best.