6 week halo bulking log

[unreal89]

Nice sounds good

 

[stespiel]

Nips look a little swollen today. Should I up my forma to 2/day? I also have letro.

 

[UncleSarm]

Nips look a little swollen today. Should I up my forma to 2/day? I also have letro.

Boob pics please! :banana:

 

[Demgainz]

Is it the dermacrine that is making your nips swollen? I have not seen many instances where halo has contributed to any type of gyno. I guess it is user dependent as well.

 

[stespiel]

Is it the dermacrine that is making your nips swollen? I have not seen many instances where halo has contributed to any type of gyno. I guess it is user dependent as well.

Didn't even think about that. I guess maybe? I did up it recently to 4/day.

 

[stespiel]

WEEK 4 DAY 1

I'm at 164.6lbs which is up 5 lbs from last week.. that's up 11.6lbs from the start. I'm happy with that, and I'm only halfway through! Strength is up still, feeling good in the gym. Definitely looking and feeling bigger. Also haven't gained much around my waist from what it looks like. Also.. I was at the doc Saturday and my bp was 120/70 so no bp issues whatsoever.

As far as sides.. the nips definitely looked swollen over the weekend when I was warm. It hadn't occurred to me it might be the extra derma I've been applying to fight lethargy (thanks demgainz). So yesterday I did 0 pumps of derma and 2 pumps forma. Does anyone have any recommendations on how to approach the next few days with my derma and forma? If not, I'm just going to slowly taper the derma back in.

Hopping on a redeye tonight to UK, so I'm going to do my best to power through week 4 and keep up the intensity overseas.

 

[stespiel]

WEEK 4 DAY 4

I've been in London for work since Monday and I've actually been able to hit the gym every day. I'm definitely light on my daily cals but I'm doing the best I can. I'll weigh myself when I get back Friday but I'm guessing I haven't really put on weight this week. I just really hope I haven't lost weight.

Nips seem to be okay. I'm still going really light on the derma and a little heavier on the fermeron. Today I'm going to bump the derma back up a bit.

I think that's it for now.

 

[stespiel]

WEEK 5 DAY 1

This morning I weighed in at 167.4 which is up 2.8lbs from last week and up 14.4lbs from day 1. Last week wasn't ideal being overseas for a few reasons: a) I wasn't hydrating enough b) I was eating ****ty food with probably a lot of sodium c) I had a few beers and d) I wasn't training as hard as I would be at home. I'm thinking I'm holding on to quite a bit of water now because of that.. definitely looking a little soft. I'm going to really step it up this week to get back in it.

Also the nips still look puffy but there's no soreness or tenderness at all. I'm wondering if it's just this extra water retention. I was going back and forth about integrating a little letro but I'm going to wait it out. I've cut the dermacrine out completely and have been doing 2 pumps of formerol ED just in case.

 

[UncleSarm]

Nice progress! How much of the 14.4 lbs do you reckon you'll keep after PCT?

 

[stespiel]

Nice progress! How much of the 14.4 lbs do you reckon you'll keep after PCT?

This is my first cycle so I'm not sure. Also, I still have two weeks left so hoping to keep going up ?

 

[georgetown]

This is my first cycle so I'm not sure. Also, I still have two weeks left so hoping to keep going up ��

Nice job so far, you gonna post pics after cycle?

 

[stespiel]

Nice job so far, you gonna post pics after cycle?

for sure. i'm going to post before/after shots + blood work. i'll be getting another panel at the end of my cycle then again at the end of PCT.

 

[stespiel]

WEEK 5 DAY 4

The nips are less puffy I think.. so maybe the 2x/day formeron plus cutting out the dermacrine helped. If it was the dermacrine that caused it, damn that sh*t works. I'll keep doing that protocol unless/until I get low T sides. If I'm cutting out my derma does that increase my risk of rebound during/after PCT?

Also.. I think I overshot my TDEE with my macros because I'm almost 15lbs up from day 1 and it's still week 5--definitely a lot stronger and look much bigger (especially my legs) but definitely not leaner. I'm going to treat my last 10 days as more of a recomp. I added a little dandelion root plus I'm going to do more cardio and cut my carbs a bit. I still feel like I have some extra bloat from my week overseas (sodium, beer, etc.).

If I can stay between 165-170 while cutting a bit of fat and water my last 10 days, I'll be super happy at the end of this.

Side note, my resting heart rate normally is around 60bpm. Lately it's been around 50. I think it's fine, just an observation, and not really sure why (normally I thought peoples' heart rate went up on this stuff).

 

[stespiel]

WEEK 6 DAY 1

Weighed in at just under 166 today.. looking a bit leaner from last week too. I dunno about the nips, they seem to be puffy off and on, I think it might just depend on my body temp. I'm almost in to PCT anyway so I guess I'll just hold out and hopefully the nolva clears it up?? I suppose it could just be bloat or fat or whatever, who knows.

Going to hit it hard this week and finish strong. I'll be getting my blood tested this week and will post results.

 

[TKC432]

WEEK 6 DAY 1

Weighed in at just under 166 today.. looking a bit leaner from last week too. I dunno about the nips, they seem to be puffy off and on, I think it might just depend on my body temp. I'm almost in to PCT anyway so I guess I'll just hold out and hopefully the nolva clears it up?? I suppose it could just be bloat or fat or whatever, who knows.

Going to hit it hard this week and finish strong. I'll be getting my blood tested this week and will post results.

Awesome progress. Getting things in order to start my Halo/Dermatrest cycle soon. Gonna run this one for 8 weeks. Not my first rodeo and I have always wanted to take Halo on an 8 week ride. With Dermatrest as a test base I know I can keep the lethargy at bay. Interested to see how your blood test looks after this 6 week run of yours

 

[stespiel]

Awesome progress. Getting things in order to start my Halo/Dermatrest cycle soon. Gonna run this one for 8 weeks. Not my first rodeo and I have always wanted to take Halo on an 8 week ride. With Dermatrest as a test base I know I can keep the lethargy at bay. Interested to see how your blood test looks after this 6 week run of yours

Thanks man. Yeah I got my lab req today so I should have blood results either tomorrow or Friday.

 

[stespiel]

WEEK 6 DAY 3

Almost done with my cycle. Still feeling good, but definitely back to feeling lethargic in the afternoon.. guessing my test is down since I backed off to 1 pump derma eod.

The last week or so I've been leaning out a bit but have mostly been staying around the same weight.

Blood results coming either tomorrow or Friday.. will post those with before/after photos and updated stats soon.

 

[UncleSarm]

Looks like you gained some pounds and maybe dropped some bf%. Awesome job.

 

[stespiel]

Looks like you gained some pounds and maybe dropped some bf%. Awesome job.

Yes thanks man. It has been successful so far, just gotta get through pct now. Got my blood drawn this morning and will post results tomorrow.

 

[stespiel]

WEEK 6 DAY 5

Just uploaded my blood results and before/after pics. I just updated the original post so it's not buried here in the thread.

Surprises: the cycle CRUSHED my HDL, like literally just obliterated. My HDL was 88 before, it's now 12. LDL is high but just barely out of reference range. BUN is high (probably due to increased dietary protein intake) and ALT is a little high (liver overworking). My bilirubin, though within reference range, went way down which makes sense because my **** has been lighter for a while.

I dumped before/after blood results in a spreadsheet too:
docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/14tEQh5GCFxYbDDDWRsjmp6droE8u5BE0j3zFbYzA8m0/edit?usp=sharing
(delete the space in that link or it won't work).

I gained 13.8lbs over the 6 week cycle and stayed the same bf%. That's about 10lb increase in lean body mass. My legs and ass got way thicker, and I gained about an inch on almost every measurement. I also updated these in my original post.

 

[Demgainz]

Good work man. Good increases. Congrats. I hope you recover well.

 

[UncleSarm]

WEEK 6 DAY 5

Just uploaded my blood results and before/after pics. I just updated the original post so it's not buried here in the thread.

Surprises: the cycle CRUSHED my HDL, like literally just obliterated. My HDL was 88 before, it's now 12. LDL is high but just barely out of reference range. BUN is high (probably due to increased dietary protein intake) and ALT is a little high (liver overworking). My bilirubin, though within reference range, went way down which makes sense because my **** has been lighter for a while.

I dumped before/after blood results in a spreadsheet too:
docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/14tEQh5GCFxYbDDDWRsjmp6droE8u5BE0j3zFbYzA8m0/edit?usp=sharing
(delete the space in that link or it won't work).

I gained 13.8lbs over the 6 week cycle and stayed the same bf%. That's about 10lb increase in lean body mass. My legs and ass got way thicker, and I gained about an inch on almost every measurement. I also updated these in my original post.

There was no appreciable change in LH and FSH levels, so your recovery should be fast and easy. In fact you could probably do an OTC PCT.
Awesome though! 13.8 lbs in 6 weeks in just over 2 lbs per week. How much do you reckon you'll keep? I'm not familiar with Halo at all.

 

[wicked442]

Nice improvements. I don't know about the 9% bf but definitely a good run. Did you have any lethargy?

 

[stespiel]

There was no appreciable change in LH and FSH levels, so your recovery should be fast and easy. In fact you could probably do an OTC PCT.
Awesome though! 13.8 lbs in 6 weeks in just over 2 lbs per week. How much do you reckon you'll keep? I'm not familiar with Halo at all.

I hadn't thought about that, thanks for the observation. I'll fire up another thread to get others' thought too.

Halo is supposed to be very dry so if I play my cards right I should keep most of it.

 

[stespiel]

Nice improvements. I don't know about the 9% bf but definitely a good run. Did you have any lethargy?

Not sure what you mean by the bf comment?

I had lethargy off and on. It seemed to coincide with when I backed off on my dermacrine use. However, when I increased my dermacrine use my nips would get puffy, so toward the end I mostly stopped using dermacrine and just dealt with it. Basically I would just get really tired around 4pm every day and would take a 1hr nap and I'd be fine after that.

 

[wicked442]

Not sure what you mean by the bf comment?

I had lethargy off and on. It seemed to coincide with when I backed off on my dermacrine use. However, when I increased my dermacrine use my nips would get puffy, so toward the end I mostly stopped using dermacrine and just dealt with it. Basically I would just get really tired around 4pm every day and would take a 1hr nap and I'd be fine after that.

You don't look that lean. 12+ not sub 10.

 

[UncleSarm]

You don't look that lean. 12+ not sub 10.

mfg: You just called him ... fat??

You might as well kick him in the nuts! :nutkick:

 

[wicked442]

mfg: You just called him ... fat??

You might as well kick him in the nuts! :nutkick:

Definitely not fat bro. Great results for hard work. I just dont think bf is sub 10%. Imo.
:curbjob:

 

[stespiel]

You don't look that lean. 12+ not sub 10.

Oh yeah I mean I'm just using calipers so it probably isn't very accurate. But I think at least given he fact that I got the same measurements before and after mean my composition stayed roughly the same. Whether that's 9 or 13 I don't really care.

 

[stespiel]

My 2nd day into PCT, just under 170lbs.. I modified my PCT based on my blood work so now it looks like this:

nolva 10/10/5/5 (halved the dosage because my FSH and LH are fine, but still taking it because my nips are a little swollen)
cycle assist 4/4/4/4
ol sup3r pct 4/4/4/4 (this has AI and test boosters in it)
reduce xt 0/3/3/3/2
slo-niacin 1000mg ed (my HDL is 12 so need to get this back up)
5mg creatine ed
+fish oil
+multivitamin

I nixed the DAA because I think it's overkill given the test booster in the ol sup3r pct AND given the fact that my nips are swollen.

 

[stespiel]

Mid-first week PCT check in..

been getting terrible sleep lately, tossing and turning in bed. also very lethargic in the afternoons and sex drive is pretty low. I haven't lost any weight which is great.

 

[TKC432]

sounds like you're sufficiently shut-down. I would reconsider the dosage of your Nolva for the first week at least to try and kick things into gear a bit quicker.

 

[TKC432]

Personally I like to use Nolva and a low dose of Exemestane for my PCT .... I am sure others here have their go-to PCT protocol .... but this is what has worked best in the past for me ...

 

[stespiel]

sounds like you're sufficiently shut-down. I would reconsider the dosage of your Nolva for the first week at least to try and kick things into gear a bit quicker.

i think that's what the normal reaction would be but what do you actually mean by shut down? my lh and fsh are good and my t is in the 200's, so i think these sides would be expected right at the start of PCT before my lh and fsh were able to elevate my t to a point where i'm feeling solid again..

lethargy wasn't as bad yesterday so i may already be on the up & up, but i appreciate the advice i will definitely bump up the nolva if things don't continue to get better.

 

[unreal89]

Just saying I did trip sarm primeval labs for 5 weeks bridged into sdmz 3.0 and ran nolvadex 20 first day 10/10/10 recovered just fine.

 

[stespiel]

On my first day of my 2nd week of pct. lethargy is not bad anymore, balls are normal size now. The only thing is my libido is basically 0 which I'm guessing means my t is going up but my estradiol is low (makes sense between the sup3r pct and the nolva). Also started the reduce xt today.

Weight is around 166.

 

[unreal89]

My libido after sdmz 3.0 didn't come back until 3rd week of pct

 

[stespiel]

Almost halfway thru week two of pct. down to 165, libido is coming back. Might have to deal w some weight loss, will be on the road for the next week.

 

[jason267]

puffy nips and low libido is completely normal during and pct, because you messed with your hormones...it happens.
Things will slowly get back to normal.
Looks like you ran a proper cycle though, congrats!

Run the nolva at 20/20/10/10....who knows if its underdosed or not

 

[stespiel]

Haven't been able to workout or eat much over the last few days due to travel. Down to 164 but looking pretty lean. Off to London for the next week going to try to keep up the food intake and workouts as much as possible. Libido is decent, not 100% but getting there. I think the nips are looking better too maybe. Lethargy is pretty much gone.

 

[stespiel]

Seemed to have leveled out around 164 in my 4th week of pct. Lethargy is gone, libido is mostly back, balls are normal, poop is brown. I'll get my last lab next week to make sure everything is good. Overall it looks like I'll be able to keep around 10lbs from the cycle.