Just got my bloodwork back.. Test looks low to me
Hey guys,
I'm planning a cycle that will start in the next few weeks.. it will be heavy on lipids so went and got some bloodwork done. Looks like my lipids need some work (LDL is out of range), but I also noticed my Testosterone and SHBG levels were below mid-range.. are these levels too low?
Aside from Test, should I just start some Policosanol now to bring my LDL back down?
Lipid Studies: Desirable Range
Total Chol. 5.5 mmol/L
HDL Chol. 1.2 mmol/L (>1.0)
LDL Chol. *3.6 mmol/L (<2.5)
Triglyceride *1.6 mmol/L (<1.5)
LDL/HDL Ratio 3.0
Chol/HDL Ratio 4.6
Hormone Studies:
FSH 3 IU/L (1-8)
LH 4 IU/L (2-8)
Oestradiol 127 pmol/L (<150)
Androgen Studies:
Testosterone 12.8 nmol/L (8.0-30.0)
SHBG 24 nmol/L (17-66)
Free Test 306 pmol/L (170-500)
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Yeah your test is pretty low, low enough that you would normally be experiencing some sides of low T, if your not then great!
And my doc said the range for testosterone was 10-30 not 8-30 but ill have a look which ones right.
Edit:Lots of different answers to the normal range but generally 8.8/11 to 30/35 is normal
thanks crayon.. not really sure of low test sides, I seem to be able to put on muscle naturally without too much trouble. I am a bit tired/lethargic, but I also work long hours, so that could be it as well.
Research the sides low T can have and ask yourself if it sounds like a problem you have because it effects AlOT of different things. Being Tired and lethagic is an annoying side of low t but like you pointed out could be caused by life style more than hormones
Thanks Crayon.. had a peak around on a few sites just now and I'm pretty good on most counts (eg. libido, body hair grows almost too much, can hold muscle, etc)..the few that seem a little like me are bad sleeping patterns, ie. i wake during the night almost every hour. I'm lethargic during the day, but that could be because I don't sleep well... i've also got a relatively stressful job, so that zaps a bit of energy out. I train at midday so that usually wakes me up for the afternoon. It's harder for me to stay really lean around the waist as well.
It looks as though your body can still perform as you would want it too with this amount of test which is great so i wouldn't worry too much about it. But it is at the low end of the scale so you may face a few problems in the future so look out for those.
Your sleeping is probably stress related, try and relax before you sleep or do stress releasing exercises before bed or something
You're towards the lower side, but still kind of middle of the road. What's your age and cycle history?
Hey UncleYoked, thanks for the reply.
I'm 32 and have only run a really short cycle of SuperDrol about 5 years ago.
What has your doctor said about these numbers? I'm on TRT with very similar numbers. Mine are generally a little lower, but my cycle history is far more extensive than yours as well. Having low numbers won't stop you from running a cycle. In fact, it's a strong reason to do so. Test only cycle with proper pct followed by blood work. You could potentially stimulate your natural production and get your numbers up a little with a quality pct. But you're honestly heading towards TRT, or hrt whichever you choose to call it. There's morning wrong with TRT. It's just a little different lifestyle in terms of you technically never come off gear. But there are things you need to consider as well. Having kids being the biggest concern. You're not completely shut down, but with virtually no cycle history and st your age, you should be a little higher. Superdrol can be harsh and shut you down, and could very well be a contributing factor to a slow decline in test numbers. I'd recommend doing as much research as you can on TRT and living with low test values. There's tons of info that is very helpful. I'm also 32 and have been TRT for a while.
Just found some studies online that quote averages by age. According to both studies, my results will compare like this;
I'm having trouble understanding why my SHBG is so low, although I believe the lower the number the better it is, as it essentially means less of your free test is bound/unusable. I'm not sure if this is a good or a bad thing given these results, as if less of my free test is bound, then my free test figures should be higher (in theory)...
Now given the above, this would almost look like the ideal situation for a tamoxifen course pre-cycle. 10mg of tamox ed for around 3 weeks would have a significant effect on LH, Free and Total test levels. It would also help with my cholesterol profile. My only concern with tamox, is that estriadol also increases with your test levels, in some studies, to a greater extent than the increase in test. I understand that the e2 will not bind at the receptors (thanks to tamox), but I'm not sure what this will mean when coming off the tamox. On paper, I'm assuming my test levels would slowly decrease, and my e2 would also slowly decrease, however there will be a period of time where my e2 would be quite high, and the tamox would not be blocking it at the receptor... potentially causing problems. I'm also not sure as to what would happen when starting anavar after this, as it would further suppress my test (although it does have a mildly suppressive effect on e2 levels also). Would it be wiser to continue to run a really small amount of tamox on cycle, eg, 10mg eod (given the 7 days half-life this should still be ok?).. then when I drop the var, bump tamox up to 60 or 40 mg for the first week of PCT....
The doc said "oh your test is good, it's within range".. I don't think she realises that range caters for males from about 18-80, so being at the lower end of that range might be fine if I was 65, but at 30 I'm assuming I should be somewhere towards the middle. I'm looking for age based averages of test levels at the moment, as I'd like to go back to the doc with all the info if I can.. if you know of any links on average test levels by age I'd love to see them.
TRT is a concern for me. I do want to have kids, so it's something that needs a lot of careful though before hand.
I had a motorbike crash about 2 years ago which ruptured a testi. I had surgery which took it out, repaired it, then put it back in. It's going fine now, but I'm guessing it's not as efficient at producing test as the other one is, so if it's running at 50% efficiency, I'd estimate that I'm running at 75% efficiency total... if that makes sense.
I'm a little worried that running a cycle will result in lower averages of test once PCT has been completed... Unlike others that might be ok with losing 10% or so, I don't really have much to play with..
How are you feeling overall? I went through a whole host of issues before going the TRT route. I started feeling sluggish and lazy, got depressed, gained a bunch of weight. If you're still feeling relatively well, then I wouldn't worry about your numbers right now. Should you run a cycle, you will run the risk of shutting yourself down for good. But that risk is present for anyone who decides to pump exogenous test in their body. It is sonething to give serious thought to. I was able to get my wife pregnant last year relatively easy and, like I said, I've been TRT for a while.
Not too bad I guess. I do get a bit sluggish, weight is a little harder to get rid of, etc. I'm having problem with short term memory as well, but long term memory seems ok. Eg I'll have an in depth conversation with someone at work, walk back to my desk and forget completely everything that was just said.. I even take notes and still can't make sense of them! Other than that though, most things seem to be ok. My libido is a fair bit lower than it was 2 years ago, but it's not non-existant.