Does your face change dramatically between being on and off testosterone?

[BabaJagga]

Went to beach for a few days with the family after my last bodybuilding competition . . .

people looked at you liek you are alien i would bet?

you are 50+, jacked and lean right? did i get it right from my short time here?
cause thats even more alien if you look at todays society.

 

[lukiss96]

this is maybe controversial opinion but guys below 10% BF look too .. im not sure how to say, like anomaly in normal world?

i get it, its gear & bb site mainly but i think, for me and for most of normal people, 13-15% of bf is lean enough or even shredded.

so, again, outside of bb competition, its not needed to be that lean. but thats just my opinion. even 10% is super shredded.

Most of them think 15% is 10% anyway, so in that case they're right. Real 15% body fat is quite lean by anyones standards. Don't take this place too seriously, members here like myself are just dieting, taking steroids and training as a hobby. Not everybody here is a competitor or anything like that. There are of course people with pictures and logs that do compete and get extreme. Other than that this is just a steroid lifestyle forum, nothing more.

 

[malfeasance]

people looked at you liek you are alien i would bet?

you are 50+, jacked and lean right? did i get it right from my short time here?
cause thats even more alien if you look at todays society.

All true. I was walking around in single digits, not far off contest shape at all. Felt great. Obviously was not sustainable long term, but great for a beach vacation.

 

[malfeasance]

Most of them think 15% is 10% anyway

 

[malfeasance]

members here like myself are just dieting, taking steroids and training as a hobby. Not everybody here is a competitor or anything like that. There are of course people with pictures and logs that do compete and get extreme. Other than that this is just a steroid lifestyle forum, nothing more.

I get all of that, but I think most here do not realize the benefits of a very good cut on their physique, both in terms of how they look, of realizing what their physique really looks like (now it is muscle there, not fat making those arms look big), seeing what actually needs improvement, and in terms of the next growth phase afterward.

It is also great on things like insulin resistance and a few other things I see folks discussing on here from time to time.

 

[malfeasance]

I also do not think 15% is lean.

This guy (physique competitor) is 9% (he actually dexa scans as part of the video). He is shooting for dropping another 3%.

9% looks lean.

another 6% on top, 15%, just is not lean.

PS - I did not realize the photo that would show below - he does not look like that in the video.


View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ENf0gO1iNps

 

[malfeasance]

 

[Eddie.]

Getting at sub 10% is only good for rebound and having all that fun of eating too much again. Other than that, i don't like it. (Disclaimer, i've never been close to 10%)

Yes it's fun when you see veins popping everywhere, abs showing etc but when i get lean i'm thinking of food all day, i'm feeling tired and pissed off, i'm forced to do more cardio or steps and mostly, i hate feeling small. So for me if i had to chose between 240lb with abs borderline showing but big, swole with good seperation and veins and 210lb shredded and smol i'd definitely chose to be 240 for ever.

Now, being shredded at 250+ is a different story and for that i wouldn't say no ofc. Big and lean i think it's what we're all after but this require to have a pro's genetics.

View attachment 323543

I don't trust these charts at all. Basically it compares a professional bodybuilder with a complete untrained obese person. I'd like to see someone who trains religiously, eats considerably clean but lots of calories and takes gear. For example Thor, i guess when he was 440lb with abs showing he was still over 25% but he looked great.

 

[BabaJagga]

Most of them think 15% is 10% anyway, so in that case they're right. Real 15% body fat is quite lean by anyones standards. Don't take this place too seriously, members here like myself are just dieting, taking steroids and training as a hobby. Not everybody here is a competitor or anything like that. There are of course people with pictures and logs that do compete and get extreme. Other than that this is just a steroid lifestyle forum, nothing more.

agree mate. put true 15% bf guy between general population and he will be kind of jacked, very lean and good lookin.

i think body dismorphia didnt hit me yet, i have pretty real view of myself and others. too big or lean or fat, any extreme is too much for most of people.

also, its nice to see someone mention steroids as hobby

 

[BabaJagga]

View attachment 323543

13-15% pic for me all day. good enough look, not too freaky, not that hard ro achieve (especially with PEDs) and can enjoy life.

I don't trust these charts at all. Basically it compares a professional bodybuilder with a complete untrained obese person. I'd like to see someone who trains religiously, eats considerably clean but lots of calories and takes gear. For example Thor, i guess when he was 440lb with abs showing he was still over 25% but he looked great.

this is so true.

 

[MindlessWork]

On Test E I tend to get a bit of a moonface.

 

[ComancheChief]

On Test E I tend to get a bit of a moonface.

AIs don’t help? What about on test prop?

 

[MindlessWork]

AIs don’t help? What about on test prop?

AIs help that at least. I haven't used test prop so can't judge that. Test C is not so bad.

 

[malfeasance]

I don't trust these charts at all. Basically it compares a professional bodybuilder with a complete untrained obese person.

They are kind of forced to do so. Nobody else gets down to 4-5%


It still illustrates my point. The 11-12% pic is "lean" but the 13-15% is not.

To the extent that posts above have compared the 13-15% pic to the general population, well, of course he will look lean in comparison to everybody else. The general population is fat, fat, fat.

Anyway, gyms around here are full of indistinguishable middle aged, puffy steroid users. I want to avoid being another one of them at least once a year or so.

I am not criticizing you or anybody else if you want a higher body fat and never lean up - your body, your rules. I am just not going to call that 13-15% pic lean. That is "body building fat"

And I have definitely been that 16-19% pic before . . . I don't like it. Of course, I barely know it is happening at the time, until I see a pic of myself from vacation or something, and, ouch, time to cut.

 

[amazonas]

I thought people took HGH for skin benefits/anti-aging?

Bodybuilding dosages fucks your face up. Have so many wrinkles after this. I think people take 2 iu for skin benefits and anti aging. Same goes for Testosterone, with TRT you can look youthful, but bodybuilding dosages age you rapidly.

 

[Eddie.]

They are kind of forced to do so. Nobody else gets down to 4-5%


It still illustrates my point. The 11-12% pic is "lean" but the 13-15% is not.

To the extent that posts above have compared the 13-15% pic to the general population, well, of course he will look lean in comparison to everybody else. The general population is fat, fat, fat.

Anyway, gyms around here are full of indistinguishable middle aged, puffy steroid users. I want to avoid being another one of them at least once a year or so.

I am not criticizing you or anybody else if you want a higher body fat and never lean up - your body, your rules. I am just not going to call that 13-15% pic lean. That is "body building fat"

And I have definitely been that 16-19% pic before . . . I don't like it. Of course, I barely know it is happening at the time, until I see a pic of myself from vacation or something, and, ouch, time to cut.

Ofc man, not hating here just sharing my personal thoughts. In my past i've been probably close to 40% (while working out for years) so for me anything below 15% is like already too much and too good, I don't wanna start being obsessed with going entirely to the other side. But that's just me, I understand it's a "sport" of extremities.

 

[explodingHeart]

Anyway, gyms around here are full of indistinguishable middle aged, puffy steroid users. I want to avoid being another one of them at least once a year or so.

BP drops like a rock when you're under 10%. Water drops exponentially compared to what you were holding at 12-14%.

If you're gonna take roids and fuck your health, at least get shredded. I'm sure most of us have been in gyms our whole lives and have still rarely seen anyone single digits.

 

[malfeasance]

It definitely looks different. Folks approach you in the gym and at the pool and start asking questions, questions they never asked when you were 15%.

A surprising one is folks commenting that you have added size. LOL, uh, no, I am down 15 pounds!

 

[malfeasance]

Too bad I like beer and ice cream.

 

[GoldenDragonfruit]

im not that far, yet. im takin 1/2 of 25mg tab of aromasin weekly split into 2 doses on 500mg / week. removed most of my water / bloat but face is still bit puffy, much less but its there.

in less than 2 weeks i have blood test planned and will see there my estrogen is and if needed, i will increase dose of ai.
first blast, im learning estrogen managment but dont wanna overdo it with ai. even 12,5mg weekly solved bloating / water renetion for me so dont wanna push it without numbers from blood test.

Lowering E2 when not needed limits your growth potential by a lot, as Estrogen is anabolic in itself and the lower E2 the less growth hormone can be used by your body which further limits growth potential. They also come with a lot of sides, therefore taking bloods is a good start before doing any adjustments.