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Thread: Def's Journey

  1. #41
    SwoleSource Member Feedback Score 0 covfefe42's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by DefRecover View Post
    Hey all

    Just a quick update. I am at about the 6 month mark now.

    I have made noticeable improvements in exercise, muscle mass but still struggling with gut and sleep. Libido will, of course, be the last thing to come back online.

    I am noticing that the days I do heavy weights sessions (usually 3pm) that I sleep worse for some reason. I would have thought this should be the opposite. Am I pushing myself too hard??

    I also notice that if I have a blow out, eg got pretty wasted on Fri, that it sets me back for a good week or so. Once my wedding is over, that all stops for a while...

    Otherwise, still doing herbs, cold showers, paleo, and most other aspects of paleo.

    Cheers

    Def
    Hey man I have pretty similar symptoms to you (mainly gut issues, libido and sleep). I also noticed that getting drunk seems to set me back a week as well.

    As far as weight sessions making your sleep worse, I want to say that's happened to me as well, but there were also other things going on so I can't make a clear correlation between the two just yet. Will definitely start tracking that though and see what the effects are

    Otherwise keep it up man, seems like you're making good progress!

  2. #42
    SwoleSource Member Feedback Score 0 DefRecover's Avatar
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    Update and some questions

    Lads

    Sorry for the long silence. Looks like a number of new faces around here - so welcome to all.

    I have just come back from my wedding and honeymoon. This has meant the last few months has been pretty patchy on the protocol with the silly season, then (multiple) stag parties, a multiple day destination wedding and then honeymoon. In short, lots of non paleo food, gluten, booze, late nights, less exercise, no herbs while travelling etc - the anti protocol!

    The good news is that none of this seems to have set me back much if at all. I am now back into the protocol full swing again. About 9 months in, my main remaining issues are low / no libido, digestion problems and sleep. Even the sleep seems to be getting SLIGHTLY better. Most nights I can sleep from 11pm to 5am, but then I often wake up and have trouble getting to sleep again, usually drifting off around 6/6.30am not long before my alarm goes off! There is definitely a correlation between my digestion and sleep, so once I get the digestion sorted I am hoping everything else will click into place...

    Otherwise things are pretty decent. I didn’t lose much strength in the gym and seem to have maintained my muscle mass. No mental issues really (other than libido). I do have a couple of questions though:

    1) herb shelf life - what is the lifespan of our herbs once they have been opened? I have about 10 which I have been cycling and still have quite a lot left of each. However, my tongkat, eleuthero, and he shou wu have started clumping together and are no longer really powders. Does this mean they have gone bad? Is it ok to keep using the herbs when they are in this state? I am assuming this is because of exposure to moisture or air? How do you guys store your herbs - in the plastic zip lock bags they come in or airtight jars or something?

    2) pine pollen powder - pretty much every time I take pine pollen powder it seems to throw my digestion off, which in turn wrecks my sleep. Has anyone else experienced this? Should I switch to the tincture instead? I am still cycling it but it is either a crazy coincidence or the pine pollen isn’t sitting well with me.

    3) weights - pretty much every time I lift weights it seems to throw off my sleep. I typically sleep much lighter with more wake ups than non weights days. I assume this is some kind of cortisol issue - even though I try not to over exert myself. I generally lift at 3pm which is far from the recommended at least 2 hours before sleep. Should I switch to morning sessions? Any other ideas?

    4) baby - yep the b word. Now we are married, the girl wants to start trying for a kid. Do you think it is ok for us to try and reproduce whilst I am not fully recovered from PFS? I wonder whether it might reduce fertility and, even if you can get one past the keeper, will it affect the health of the baby? Thoughts? While I am 42, the wife is only 29, so I probably have a little time...

    Cheers

    Def

  3. #43
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    Quote Originally Posted by DefRecover View Post
    Lads

    Sorry for the long silence. Looks like a number of new faces around here - so welcome to all.

    I have just come back from my wedding and honeymoon. This has meant the last few months has been pretty patchy on the protocol with the silly season, then (multiple) stag parties, a multiple day destination wedding and then honeymoon. In short, lots of non paleo food, gluten, booze, late nights, less exercise, no herbs while travelling etc - the anti protocol!

    The good news is that none of this seems to have set me back much if at all. I am now back into the protocol full swing again. About 9 months in, my main remaining issues are low / no libido, digestion problems and sleep. Even the sleep seems to be getting SLIGHTLY better. Most nights I can sleep from 11pm to 5am, but then I often wake up and have trouble getting to sleep again, usually drifting off around 6/6.30am not long before my alarm goes off! There is definitely a correlation between my digestion and sleep, so once I get the digestion sorted I am hoping everything else will click into place...

    Otherwise things are pretty decent. I didn’t lose much strength in the gym and seem to have maintained my muscle mass. No mental issues really (other than libido). I do have a couple of questions though:

    1) herb shelf life - what is the lifespan of our herbs once they have been opened? I have about 10 which I have been cycling and still have quite a lot left of each. However, my tongkat, eleuthero, and he shou wu have started clumping together and are no longer really powders. Does this mean they have gone bad? Is it ok to keep using the herbs when they are in this state? I am assuming this is because of exposure to moisture or air? How do you guys store your herbs - in the plastic zip lock bags they come in or airtight jars or something?

    2) pine pollen powder - pretty much every time I take pine pollen powder it seems to throw my digestion off, which in turn wrecks my sleep. Has anyone else experienced this? Should I switch to the tincture instead? I am still cycling it but it is either a crazy coincidence or the pine pollen isn’t sitting well with me.

    3) weights - pretty much every time I lift weights it seems to throw off my sleep. I typically sleep much lighter with more wake ups than non weights days. I assume this is some kind of cortisol issue - even though I try not to over exert myself. I generally lift at 3pm which is far from the recommended at least 2 hours before sleep. Should I switch to morning sessions? Any other ideas?

    4) baby - yep the b word. Now we are married, the girl wants to start trying for a kid. Do you think it is ok for us to try and reproduce whilst I am not fully recovered from PFS? I wonder whether it might reduce fertility and, even if you can get one past the keeper, will it affect the health of the baby? Thoughts? While I am 42, the wife is only 29, so I probably have a little time...

    Cheers

    Def

    Congrats on your wedding brother! Glad to hear that this shit hasn't kept you from getting married. As far as your questions, I'm not the guy to answer honestly. I'll wait for one of the more knowledgable guys see your post so they can answer correctly.

    I had one question for you, when you say digestion is off, what does that mean exactly? I've been wondering if my gut is a big issue for a while, so I'm going to start focusing more on gut health, but I don't know exactly what equates to "bad digestion" in a PFS sense. I guess if I really was struggling with digestion, I would know? Someone once asked if they were suffering from brain fog, the answer was pretty clear. "If you were, you'd know".

    Anyways, my advise on having a baby, don't let this thing prevent you from living your life. Keep on keeping on with the protocol and you'll improve further, don't allow PFS to postpone your life.

  4. #44
    SwoleSource Member Feedback Score 0 DefRecover's Avatar
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    Thanks T25!

    My main gut issue is that I get quite a bit of cramping and gas build up. It is definitely worse when I eat foods out, so may be an intolerance to something but I have no idea what it is. I think it is this gas build up that might trigger the vagus nerve and wake me up at night.

    Def

  5. #45
    Established Member Feedback Score 0 Hulk Smash's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by DefRecover View Post
    Lads

    Sorry for the long silence. Looks like a number of new faces around here - so welcome to all.

    I have just come back from my wedding and honeymoon. This has meant the last few months has been pretty patchy on the protocol with the silly season, then (multiple) stag parties, a multiple day destination wedding and then honeymoon. In short, lots of non paleo food, gluten, booze, late nights, less exercise, no herbs while travelling etc - the anti protocol!

    The good news is that none of this seems to have set me back much if at all. I am now back into the protocol full swing again. About 9 months in, my main remaining issues are low / no libido, digestion problems and sleep. Even the sleep seems to be getting SLIGHTLY better. Most nights I can sleep from 11pm to 5am, but then I often wake up and have trouble getting to sleep again, usually drifting off around 6/6.30am not long before my alarm goes off! There is definitely a correlation between my digestion and sleep, so once I get the digestion sorted I am hoping everything else will click into place...

    Otherwise things are pretty decent. I didn’t lose much strength in the gym and seem to have maintained my muscle mass. No mental issues really (other than libido). I do have a couple of questions though:

    1) herb shelf life - what is the lifespan of our herbs once they have been opened? I have about 10 which I have been cycling and still have quite a lot left of each. However, my tongkat, eleuthero, and he shou wu have started clumping together and are no longer really powders. Does this mean they have gone bad? Is it ok to keep using the herbs when they are in this state? I am assuming this is because of exposure to moisture or air? How do you guys store your herbs - in the plastic zip lock bags they come in or airtight jars or something?

    2) pine pollen powder - pretty much every time I take pine pollen powder it seems to throw my digestion off, which in turn wrecks my sleep. Has anyone else experienced this? Should I switch to the tincture instead? I am still cycling it but it is either a crazy coincidence or the pine pollen isn’t sitting well with me.

    3) weights - pretty much every time I lift weights it seems to throw off my sleep. I typically sleep much lighter with more wake ups than non weights days. I assume this is some kind of cortisol issue - even though I try not to over exert myself. I generally lift at 3pm which is far from the recommended at least 2 hours before sleep. Should I switch to morning sessions? Any other ideas?

    4) baby - yep the b word. Now we are married, the girl wants to start trying for a kid. Do you think it is ok for us to try and reproduce whilst I am not fully recovered from PFS? I wonder whether it might reduce fertility and, even if you can get one past the keeper, will it affect the health of the baby? Thoughts? While I am 42, the wife is only 29, so I probably have a little time...

    Cheers

    Def
    Congrats on getting married! Sounds like youre very close to 100%. In my humble and informed opinion, you may as well wait until you hit that full recovery milestone before making your baby. Just stay focused, you got this.

  6. #46
    SwoleSource Member Feedback Score 0 DefRecover's Avatar
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    Thanks for the wishes, Hulk!

    I think I still have some way to go - but definitely moving in the right direction. Progress has been a little slower than some, but then I haven’t been helping myself at times... Despite my advanced years 😉, I am still keen to try and get myself to better than my pre-fin baseline.

    Grateful for any other opinions from the vets on my questions!

    Cheers

    Def

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    SwoleSource Member Feedback Score 0 DefRecover's Avatar
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    I’ve checked the Lost Empire website.

    While I wasn’t able to find any specific information on how long herbs stay good (after opening), or herbs clumping, I do notice that they are now offering free miron jars with Tongkat Ali.

    Clearly other people must have experienced these issues as well... I think I will go buy some airtight jars. Sick of these bloody zip lock bags!

  8. #48
    Moderator Feedback Score 0 Cdsnuts's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by DefRecover View Post
    I’ve checked the Lost Empire website.

    While I wasn’t able to find any specific information on how long herbs stay good (after opening), or herbs clumping, I do notice that they are now offering free miron jars with Tongkat Ali.

    Clearly other people must have experienced these issues as well... I think I will go buy some airtight jars. Sick of these bloody zip lock bags!
    The herbs are fine when they clump together like this. It doesn't effect the potency of the herbs. But I agree....the zip lock bags are a pain in the ass!
    Total Male Optimization "People who say it can't be done shouldn't interrupt those that are doing it"

  9. #49
    SwoleSource Member Feedback Score 0 DefRecover's Avatar
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    So I am looking out my bathroom window this morning and see a guy in the adjacent apartment building, on his bed, on all fours, proudly sunning his balls with the window and curtains wide open.

    CD - WTF have you started...

  10. #50
    Moderator Feedback Score 0 Cdsnuts's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by DefRecover View Post
    So I am looking out my bathroom window this morning and see a guy in the adjacent apartment building, on his bed, on all fours, proudly sunning his balls with the window and curtains wide open.

    CD - WTF have you started...
    LOL....you have to be shitting me. Hey, my man is getting juiced!! Sorry for the visual.
    Total Male Optimization "People who say it can't be done shouldn't interrupt those that are doing it"

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