Intro + Stepping Back

justintm

New Member
Hi all,

I'm a 23y/o male and I've been on test for a few months now. I probably made every possible mistake you can make starting out, including not getting baseline bloodwork, and impulsively pinning before optimizing other aspects of my life like training, diet, sleep, etc. I did get bloods done to see my total test (just total test, no other blood markers) which put me at 300ng/dL, which is part of my impulsive decision to start test.
After about six weeks on 100mg test/wk, I increased the dose 50mg every two weeks until I hit 250mg, no clear goals or plans, just experimenting. At 250mg/wk I lost all my energy and libido, chest pain and difficulty breathing, so I finally got bloodwork. Elevated RBC, HGB, Platelet Count, 52.8% HCT, LDL and HDL out of range. Decided to take a step back and reevaluate my goals.
I've dropped back down to 100mg/wk, energy and libido are back to feeling great. Looking at my goals, I want to focus on improving my training and be more consistent with my diet and sleep. I want to feel good and look good, but it's clear to me now that I'm wasting my time and money rushing into it the way I did. I plan on doing another blood panel in two weeks or so, and from there I will decide if I want to stay at 100mg/wk, lower the dose, or stop entirely.
It's obvious I didn't do enough research and planning, but I went into it not really caring about my health, fertility, etc (just got out of a five year relationship, boohoo for me).
Moving forward, my main focus will be on lifestyle changes, consistent diet, getting lean (currently just under 20% bf if I had to guess), and putting my health first. I haven't included a whole lot of specifics about me so there's probably not a lot of advice or suggestions that can be given, just lmk if anyone wants more info/blood work.

TLDR: Just another 20something y/o idiot prematurely hopping on test.
 
Get yourself straightened out in terms of diet, training, and lifestyle first. Those labs and symptoms are a bit much for 300 mg test per week. If your diet was crap, if you were not sleeping well, if you were drinking alcohol, etc. then it makes sense. Steroids are supposed to make you feel better and life a more vibrant life. It's ok to want to add more and take more all the time. It's NOT ok to give in to that (as you've learned). Dosage escalation happens slowly over a long period of time and ONLY if bloodwork and other health parameters permit.

I'd also get evaluated for sleep apnea - it will make your labs a lot worse and it's an awful condition to have for your health. It does not mix with PED usage.
 
Get yourself straightened out in terms of diet, training, and lifestyle first. Those labs and symptoms are a bit much for 300 mg test per week. If your diet was crap, if you were not sleeping well, if you were drinking alcohol, etc. then it makes sense. Steroids are supposed to make you feel better and life a more vibrant life. It's ok to want to add more and take more all the time. It's NOT ok to give in to that (as you've learned). Dosage escalation happens slowly over a long period of time and ONLY if bloodwork and other health parameters permit.

I'd also get evaluated for sleep apnea - it will make your labs a lot worse and it's an awful condition to have for your health. It does not mix with PED usage.
Yep, diet, training, and lifestyle are my main priority right now. Currently also a full time college student and I work part time, so sleep can be difficult to come by at times. Trying to supplement with naps here and there if I can. Definitely will be looking into a sleep apnea evaluation as well, thanks.
 
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