[KobayashiMaru]

Alcohol, weed, and psychedelics have had pretty good runs here lately. I'm curious to know how many people are using testosterone routinely and what sorts of cycling specific benefits it provides.

I had my levels checked ten years ago. It was barely over 300... like 330. It wasn't low enough to qualify for medical necessity so insurance wouldn't help with the expense. I thought it was pretty low myself, but whatever. I was young and I didn't feel too bad, I'll just take what God gave me.

A couple of years ago I had it checked again. A bit better... 360 or so, but I've been feeling like crap for a long time.

I didn't want to mess with the whole dance of supplementation and all the other substances you have to take with it without a medical professional supervising it. The urologist I saw actually suggested I go to one of the "anti-aging clinics" in town where you can get pills for weight loss, botox injections, tanning, movie rentals, bait and tackle, as well as testosterone therapy and just pay cash, but I'd rather not.

A year or so later I had my levels checked again. It had almost doubled. It was around 660. I still feel like crap though, and holy schiznit, I have overuse injuries all the time now. I was off the bike for five months last year. I got back on the trainer this fall, and already I've gotten another sidelining problem.

Is a high testosterone, like above 1000, the key to feeling good and keeping your old, worn out body from breaking down?

 

[J.B. Weld]

The urologist I saw actually suggested I go to one of the "anti-aging clinics" in town where you can get pills for weight loss, botox injections, tanning, movie rentals, bait and tackle, as well as testosterone therapy and just pay cash, but I'd rather not.

lol, I can never tell if you're serious or just taking a piss.

I think I'd try alcohol, marijuana and psychedelics first. Less risky and probably more effective.

 

[Fleas]

This is probably the last thing I'd ever have checked.
If you didn't know about it, you would attribute whatever you are feeling to something else (obviously).
Besides, to what can you attribute the changes? Figure that out first.

-F

 

[mrpizza]

I am on shots. Had it checked, i was at 203. Major difference in energy and mood, not tired all the time, wife is quite happy too.

 

[KobayashiMaru]

This is probably the last thing I'd ever have checked.
If you didn't know about it, you would attribute whatever you are feeling to something else (obviously).

I don't know... I think a lot of guys (in our pursuit) understand testosterone and/or growth hormone influence your energy levels and recovery a great deal. I think most of us here are more focused on eating right, getting enough rest, and being way more active and healthy than the general population too. So, at a relatively young age, when you notice chronic issues with low energy and poor recovery, I'd think one would be smart to investigate their testosterone levels. It's pretty simple to look into; it just takes a vial of blood. I'd rather know than not.

 

[GlazedHam]

We did this topic like 10 years back. The thread title was something like "50 plus class is really fast". Skip the injections and optimize diet, sleep and exercise first. Maybe throw in 2xbody weight squats in the offseason?

 

[JackOfDiamonds]

What's considered a good level? Is there a chart of typical value vs. age?

 

[Cleared2land]

^^^^
Google might be a better source for the details

 

[milehi]

I'm good to go, and my wife is hot to trot. I bother her at least once a day and twice on Sunday.

 

[MUSTCLIME]

Talked to my dr about “low t”. He basically called added testosterone cancer fuel.

 

[KobayashiMaru]

What's considered a good level? Is there a chart of typical value vs. age?

300 nanograms per deciliter (ng/dl) and below is considered the mark that warrants medical therapy, regrdless of age. It naturally declines with age though, at least speaking in generalities.

I'm interested in "normal" vs optimal, in so far as where users notice the best results. My mid 600 score could be normal, but if a host of medical professionals and users find that higher is necessary for feeling right in the absence of other causes, I'm interested in those findings.

Some women athletes can have higher levels than some men. In the past, I think when some slightly built men were posing as women athletes, women olympians had to endure a visual check where doctors looked for male genetalia. That changed because it was too invasive, so they started using blood tests looking at androgen levels. There has been at least one real woman Olympian that was not allowed to compete because her testosterone was as high, or higher, than what would be "normal" for a man.

Normal, schmormal... What's ideal, who juices to get there, and what are your benefits?

 

[KobayashiMaru]

I'm good to go, and my wife is hot to trot. I bother her at least once a day and twice on Sunday.

Even with my low levels, my "needs" were never hindered. After 25 years, my wife is such a trooper, and I try to give her as much space as I can, but she wonders all the time when I'll hit a point where I'll give her a break. News flash... I know a handful of guys in their 80s and their wives are still wondering the same thing.

 

[twowheelmotion]

Frank Thomas and Doug Flutie need be chiming in here.

 

[Sparticus]

Just find yourself a frisky girlfriend.
=sParty

 

[_CJ]

If you feel like crap, maybe try looking at your diet instead. At a bare minimum, try reducing foods that cause inflammation. If you want to boost your testosterone and HGH naturally, switching to a low carb diet with animal proteins, high intensity interval training, intermittent fasting, and good quality deep sleep can all contribute.

.

 

[Suns_PSD]

I've had really really low T (naturally) and quite high T (unnaturally) and I barely feel any different at all.

The first time I was tested, I was MXing a lot, was the most ripped I'd ever been, and cycled through a different stripper chick about every other month, and I had a T level that is acceptable for Trans-females currently. It was literally like '7' units.

I definitely gain more muscle, even if I don't try, with higher T and my hair falls out. Otherwise, I feel the same.

 

[AEyogi]

You could talk to the clinic about Clomiphene (Clomid) as a first step before getting into shots. Exogenous testosterone will suppress your natural production, and you have to be concerned about estrogen levels rising as well. Clomid was developed for women's fertility, but in men it stimulates testosterone production and improves the testosterone/estradiol ratio. You could try it for three months, and see if you feel better and recover better from exercise, if it did not help, you can go off without consequence.

 

[numbnuts]

What's considered a good level? Is there a chart of typical value vs. age?

I believe these numbers are "unique to the person" in a way. So a 600 for someone could be amazing for one, mediocre for another. Or so I was told by my Doc neighbor.

 

[Crankout]

I started a thread on this a few yrs back, but learned that hitting the gym to lift and build some muscle mass was key. So is avoiding too much stress, booze, weed, bad foods...

Nor did I want to mess with my hormones with injections, etc.

 

[dysfunction]

serious or just taking a piss.

Who isn't serious about taking the piss.