Alright so yesterday I began my second cycle. 400mg/day for 6-8 weeks. Will carb backload every night (even on non training days) and drink a lot of coconut water to ensure that I have enough potassium :)
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Alright so yesterday I began my second cycle. 400mg/day for 6-8 weeks. Will carb backload every night (even on non training days) and drink a lot of coconut water to ensure that I have enough potassium :)
Things are going pretty well with this cycle. Had some increased anxiety for the first few days like last time but nothing major. Most noticeably, my brain fog has lifted almost completely the last two days. I had already forgotten that this is how I'm actually supposed to feel like. Feels phenomenal. While I'm sure the fog might come back again during a downswing, this is the first time it has completely lifted in the nine or so months of dealing with PFS.
Also have massive scalp itch at times (feels like my scalp is on fire), increased pumps and more strength in the gym. No aggression or notable sexual benefits yet.
Something I've been wondering for a while now:
What's a good time to start backloading? I usually start eating carbs at around 5.30 PM. Is that fine or should I wait until later in the night?
My OCDness with recovery is crazy, even the thought that I could be eating carbs "too early" gives me anxiety
I think CDs recommendation is that you backload only in the evening - ie after 7 / your dinner meal
I started no later than 6pm each day that I backloaded.
Thanks Maxout.
Cortisol drops the longer you're awake. And we don't want to eat when cortisol is high. So the later we eat and spike our insulin. the lower our cortisol will be, the better.
I'd make it dependent on when you go to bed with the carb backloading. Would try to not eat like 4h before going to bed(brainhealth reasons).
Short and simple, high cortisol(high lipolysis) = high fatburning , so long food not available, high concentration of your fat gets burned
High cortisol + high insulin = your food you take in gets used suddenly into high fatstorage
That's the really short version, there's tons of other things going on with oxidative stress, fixing and balancing cortisol levels and other weird shiet when eating high carb during specific times.
The mainfocus should be probably to not eat pre 1pm, from then on cortisol is already significantly lower compared to all the hours earlier. But keeps steadily dropping till like 3am.
Everything's still going well. My zest for life is pretty much back in full force, and it feels great after not having that for almost a year. Been feeling almost euphoric the last few days, my brain's probably been starved of some chemicals for ages that it is now receiving again. Hopefully this is a new baseline.
Also, I tried to help out a guy on PH by giving him a link to my thread here to see the progress I'm making, and a moderator ended up editing my post to remove the link I gave. Also, another user was PMing me threatening to DDoS this site because according to him, everyone here, including myself are just alternate accounts of CDnuts, trying to scam people. The bitterness on that site is just insane. I wish there was a way to help out the new guys there who believe all that bullshit. Oh well, the recovery section here and people's improvements speak for themselves.
I noticed a big improvement in that symptom after my first cycle. Just keep on the protocol man :)
zest for life is baack lets goooooooo! :D
And I feel the same, I sometimes just checkin on the new ppl posting on pph and a bit to giggle about the attitude, but it shots up fast my anxiety about this XD. And it's just sad this extreme discouragement new people get. Every thread with at least one guy just being like "it probably will get worse if u do ANYTHING" and "I got worse for a decade", 'there's no hopee m8". Fills me with hate(and laughter when I'm not on that side xd), but I can't write there since I was banned for "3 months", but now I can't even login on my old acc anymore. Fuk that whole place, I spread my word on reddit and some ppl keep adding me from there.
As greek said last time to a guy asking for swole, sth along the line of "idk cd's page, solve sth" ahaha, yee ofc xd.
Latest improvement: low stress tolerance seems to FINALLY be gone. Fucking hated that symptom.
I'm at the point now where life is pretty much livable. Ten months post crash, seven months on protocol. I'm genuinely enjoying life for the first time in what feels like forever. Seven months ago I could barely leave the house due to massive anxiety and brain fog. Hopefully that inspires some of the newcomers to just stay on the path.
However, I still have that anxiousness about possibly making myself worse. I have to remind myself quite often that as long as I keep on keeping on with the protocol, I'll continue to improve, not worsen. And even though I know this to be true from experience, I STILL get these feelings. It's like my mind's playing tricks on me.
I can see myself being at least 90% recovered after two more cycles at the most, and it's a great feeling.
I’m new here but I believe part of it is physical issues and a big part is the anxiety coming from all the despair we’ve witnessed on other sites. But I’ve made some improvements already without being on a protocol and not being the most healthy, I’m excited to see how I can improve further.
So glad to hear you're improving! I'm sorry but I wasn't able to find the post where you explained what you were cycling? Some sort of prohormone? I looked at cdnut's website (TMO) and could not find any protocol related to a pro-hormone.
I am interested because I have made significant improvement myself since taking the drug back in 2011. When I first started, there was no known protocols aside from one guy who recovered on RAW/paleo with HIT-style weightlifting. I followed that protocol for sometime and made decent progress. But these days I still feel something is lacking, I don't have as much energy as my peers and counterparts, and I often suffer from anxiety. I also have some neuropathic pain and joint pain.
Anything you could recommend would be of value. Your quick recovery is very heartening.
It's a DHT prohormone called Androhard by Musclegelz. All the information about prohormones is in a sticky post on this forum.
Best advice I can give you is to just make the protocol your way of life and keep following it. It's a double edged sword though because since the protocol is just how I live my life, I don't even feel like I'm "doing" anything to recover. It causes me to second guess everything.
Thanks for the reply! Hmm I can't seem to find the sticky, I'll keep looking though.
Has this helped you with anxiety/panic attacks? These are the only symptoms that are really still stuck with me.
Upon searching for the product, the active in it appears to be androsterone. I have tried idealab's androsterone before, and I remember it working quite well for the first few days. It gave me a big masculine energy as well as better libido. The problem I had with it was that eventually it made me feel tired and emotionless, and my joints hurt as well. I think that was because it was inhibiting estrogen too much.
Anyways, maybe this version would be better.
Oh I see, interesting!
This brings up a question. If keeping your estrogen low causes your estrogen receptors to be more sensitive, why doesn't the same thing occur with the androsterone gel? Wouldn't take an androgenic substance make the androgen receptors less sensitive, not more?
This is why I have been thinking of trying the licorice root approach. It temporarily inhibits 5ar and makes you feel tired and bad for a time. If taken just once a week or so, your body responds to it by making 5ar more effective. I have seen a couple full recoveries with this approach. A similar one is to eat brown rice, which likewise has a slight 5ar inhibiting effect, once every few days to build up the 5ar throughout the system. After months of doing this it is supposed to have a drastic effect.
I was confused by this MuscleGelz approach because I thought it might reduce androgen sensitivity similar to how taking testosterone-type steroids can screw with guy's libido if they stay on it too long.
Alright then I think I will give it a shot. I ordered a bottle of Androhard. I have been taking a lot of thyroid hormone and caffeine which I am currently weening off of. Anxiety is rough, though.
Anything else I should know before I start? Did the juice cleanse help much?
I'm doing really well. I haven't been updating here as much since I'm just back to living my life now and it's easier to forget about PFS.
Considering doing AndroHard + 4 Andro for my next cycle. Kinda worried about the suppression though since Jacknap said he got suppressed for like three weeks which I'd rather not mess with. We will see.
So I'm pretty much back to normal mentally, at least during upswings. However, I notice that when I'm with my friends or family, I feel like I can't relate to them like I used to pre-PFS, like I'm not all "there" with them. I can act like my old self around them, but I don't FEEL like my old self. It's like I'm in my own bubble when around them. Really strange feeling. Yet, when I'm alone or with my girlfriend (who I met during PFS), I often feel completely normal mentally. Has anyone else had this?
I'm at the point now where if I didn't improve further, I'd be grateful to live like this for the rest of my life. This specific symptom is just a mindfuck to me.
Could be psychological no? I think considering the fact that you've gone through such a bizarre experience, there'll be something lingering, or something off. I could imagine, especially if you haven't disclosed or spoken to them about what you've been through, that there'll always be some sense of discomfort, I'm 5 months post, and i kind of feel similar to you, although i found that speaking to my brother/family has somewhat normalized my presence around them, and this whole situation
Sorry, how many cycles of androhard have you done now? Is it 1 or 2?
I remember feeling like that around the ol' family, sometimes, before pfs. I think it's far easier to feel good around someone exciting, new, or stimulating, like a girlfriend. Family can feel a bit commonplace or humdrum, and since you're not quite at 100% yet, that disconnect is being emphasized.
I've heard some guys having a lot of success with 4-andro, and others not so much.
Personally I'm 1 week off of my first andro cycle and not feeling well at all! My mind feels super weird, thinking is difficult and everything around me feels bad. I do have less anxiety but damn, this is rough. Can't say if it's better or worse than before. Hopefully I just have to give it some more time.
Did you give your body enough time while cycling on the herbs before taking the Andro?
And did you do a cleanse before starting the regime?
If you're body/immune system is still very weak and out of balance then jumping into taking a powerful prohormone will make you feel worse.
Physically I felt pretty damn good on it. Way more strength and energy in the gym and I wasn't getting as tired at work. Mentally I felt like I was losing my mind at times. Couldn't concentrate, irritable, and dizzy. I have very sensitive biochemistry and usually get worst case reactions to things.
I did do a two week juice cleanse before the Andro. I have been strict about dieting for years but I have stayed away from the herbs because I am worried I might have a bad reaction to one of them. For isntance when I tried tribulus years back, I had an awful reaction that nearly sent me to the E.R., I was up all night wheezing. I think I may be allergic...
That's good your diet has been clean, you should bounce back in no time.
It might not be the actual herbs you're allergic too, but sometimes the Inactive ingredients in the pills as well as the capsules in of themselves. Some companies use capsules which have shit like sulphites, rice powder(gluten) and other needless shit.
I'm sure if you bought high quality pure organic herbs,you wouldn't have a reaction. Understandably if you're hestitant to use tribulus again, just swap it for another herb on the list but it's definitely recommended to cycle the herbs for a good time as they have a holistic balancing effect on the numerous hormonal and endocrine systems in the body.
I already feel roided up and only been cycling on them for two months now. After the third month, now I've finally got 2 weeks worth of different herbs to cycle, I will go on the Andro
Anyway get on those herbs once you feel more stable and look out for any allergens in the capsules if you're ordering outside of Lost Empire Herbs.
Or just take the powder out of the capsules, which I what I do, as don't want to be swelling plastic gel caps
Thanks for the advice. I am not clear on what you mean by once you have 2 weeks worth of different herbs to cycle, you will start Andro? Do you mean that once you only have 2 weeks worth left of herbs?
I am going to start orderring the herbs with what I can afford financially. All 21 would cost a pretty penny, but I will hoepfully be there by the end of this year.
lol I should have been more clear. I just meant that now I have been cycling 2 weeks worth of different herbs my body feels like it is primed to go on a cycle.
If finances are tight, just start off with 7 herbs then slowly build up from there by buying a new herb every week.
Ran out of pine pollen powder recently so been taking the tincture daily while waiting for my new order from LEH.
Is there an amount of the tincture that's "too much" to take? I've been taking up to four dropperfuls per day.
Wait so it is the capsules you take daily, and the tincture you take once every 21 days as per the rotation?
I bought the tincture but then I noticed it says to cycle it every 4-5 days with a 2 day break. Apparently it contains a small amount of testosterone and androsterone.