TRT vs PCT Basics
I’m going to start off by saying I’m no expert. I learn something new everyday. I’m also NOT calling anyone out…this is a quick and dirty generalized short article on TRT and PCT. Keep in mind that there are special outlier folks that defy the biological clock but you can’t prove the rule with an exception. I am not including the female types either as that is way out of my wheelhouse.
The range on what is considered “normal” T levels for men is a mile wide. The medical community, in general, doesn’t really care about our T levels and wanting us to feel vibrant at any age. As a man ages, the T levels will drop off.
Let’s start with PCT…Post Cycle Therapy. It means just what it says. A therapy of various ancillary compounds after a cycle of performance enhancing compounds to restart your bodies natural production of testosterone and all associated systems. I’m not going into the actual protocols as there are many and they are so individualized. PCT would be appropriate for a young man (not getting into the age to start AAS) that is cycling on and off AAS for performance enhancement. The PCT protocol would be to restart their system after cycling off. Then in a perfect world, the young man would go about his life for a length of time (not getting into that either) or forever under his “own power”. Everything I’ve read and know says it’s a gamble along with the amount of time it may take. Keeping 100% of the gains probably isn’t going to happen.
My opinion is that there is an age where PCT is just not practical unless the individual wants to go about life with what the medical community deems “acceptable” levels. For instance a man in his late 30s- mid 40s that has been cycling on and off for 15-20 years could possibly PCT off to a normal (age appropriate)T level…which would be considered low by our communities standards.
Still my opinion…young men under the age of 35ish (my opinion) or so should make every effort to properly PCT. there are a multitude of reasons… fertility, finances, station in life, quality of life, etc.
Now for TRT… this is not recommended for young men unless there is some sort of complete unavoidable shutdown. There are 25 year olds that are perfectly fine with doing massive cycles and not coming off for a long time and then go on TRT for the rest of their life but they’re, unknowingly, making a deal that will be hard to live with. Lets face it, guys are going to end up with low T anyways…why rush it.
TRT is best administered by a physician, preferably a forward thinking doctor. It can be self administered but will require much due diligence and out of pocket expense. There is a big difference between “cycling” and TRT. The term “blast and cruise” is not TRT either. The cruise part might be at a TRT level dose but soon as the blast rolls around, the TRT is over.
Something else that is overlooked often with TRT is diet. Every effort should be made to dial in your diet before and during TRT. These compounds are not complete miracle makers and will require effort to get the optimal results.
In closing, PCT is for after a cycle to get your body running on its own power. TRT is for those that are permanently shutdown. Remember TRT IS FOREVER…I repeat FOREVER or until the individual is ready to accept low T levels FOREVER.
I can’t take total credit for this article. It’s basically a summary of all the advice given by the great guys on UGM.
Please feel free to add anything you deem appropriate.
@Bigmurph edit as you see fit sir
I’m going to start off by saying I’m no expert. I learn something new everyday. I’m also NOT calling anyone out…this is a quick and dirty generalized short article on TRT and PCT. Keep in mind that there are special outlier folks that defy the biological clock but you can’t prove the rule with an exception. I am not including the female types either as that is way out of my wheelhouse.
The range on what is considered “normal” T levels for men is a mile wide. The medical community, in general, doesn’t really care about our T levels and wanting us to feel vibrant at any age. As a man ages, the T levels will drop off.
Let’s start with PCT…Post Cycle Therapy. It means just what it says. A therapy of various ancillary compounds after a cycle of performance enhancing compounds to restart your bodies natural production of testosterone and all associated systems. I’m not going into the actual protocols as there are many and they are so individualized. PCT would be appropriate for a young man (not getting into the age to start AAS) that is cycling on and off AAS for performance enhancement. The PCT protocol would be to restart their system after cycling off. Then in a perfect world, the young man would go about his life for a length of time (not getting into that either) or forever under his “own power”. Everything I’ve read and know says it’s a gamble along with the amount of time it may take. Keeping 100% of the gains probably isn’t going to happen.
My opinion is that there is an age where PCT is just not practical unless the individual wants to go about life with what the medical community deems “acceptable” levels. For instance a man in his late 30s- mid 40s that has been cycling on and off for 15-20 years could possibly PCT off to a normal (age appropriate)T level…which would be considered low by our communities standards.
Still my opinion…young men under the age of 35ish (my opinion) or so should make every effort to properly PCT. there are a multitude of reasons… fertility, finances, station in life, quality of life, etc.
Now for TRT… this is not recommended for young men unless there is some sort of complete unavoidable shutdown. There are 25 year olds that are perfectly fine with doing massive cycles and not coming off for a long time and then go on TRT for the rest of their life but they’re, unknowingly, making a deal that will be hard to live with. Lets face it, guys are going to end up with low T anyways…why rush it.
TRT is best administered by a physician, preferably a forward thinking doctor. It can be self administered but will require much due diligence and out of pocket expense. There is a big difference between “cycling” and TRT. The term “blast and cruise” is not TRT either. The cruise part might be at a TRT level dose but soon as the blast rolls around, the TRT is over.
Something else that is overlooked often with TRT is diet. Every effort should be made to dial in your diet before and during TRT. These compounds are not complete miracle makers and will require effort to get the optimal results.
In closing, PCT is for after a cycle to get your body running on its own power. TRT is for those that are permanently shutdown. Remember TRT IS FOREVER…I repeat FOREVER or until the individual is ready to accept low T levels FOREVER.
I can’t take total credit for this article. It’s basically a summary of all the advice given by the great guys on UGM.
Please feel free to add anything you deem appropriate.
@Bigmurph edit as you see fit sir
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