DMZ + OL Dermatrest Log - 2nd Cycle

[blongo804]

Glad to hear it is going well for you. You are putting on some decent weight there man! And yoou feel good which is a bonus. How is the libido?

Seriously packing on some weight. I'm shocked actually being that I'm only 4 weeks in! The crazy thing is, I'm more vascular and muscle bellies are clearly fuller too! I sometimes look/feel a bit bloated, but I don't really care to have a chiseled set of abs lol. Water intake is fairly high so that might explain some of the bloat.

Libido is actually still fine. I'd say it's no better or worse than usual. It's not really ever super high, but I did notice when it was dead by the end of my DMZ solo cycle lol.

 

[RickyBlobby]

Seriously packing on some weight. I'm shocked actually being that I'm only 4 weeks in! The crazy thing is, I'm more vascular and muscle bellies are clearly fuller too! I sometimes look/feel a bit bloated, but I don't really care to have a chiseled set of abs lol. Water intake is fairly high so that might explain some of the bloat.

Libido is actually still fine. I'd say it's no better or worse than usual. It's not really ever super high, but I did notice when it was dead by the end of my DMZ solo cycle lol.

Awesome. Glad to hear its going well. Trest makes me a slut if I'm not careful lol. Its like it puts you on every womans radar. Crazy

 

[blongo804]

Awesome. Glad to hear its going well. Trest makes me a slut if I'm not careful lol. Its like it puts you on every womans radar. Crazy

I've seen you say that before! haha

I do feel a good sense of well-being, confidence is high, stuff like that. Gym aggression is through the roof. Trest may be to blame for all of that at least!

 

[hairygrandpa]

Awesome. Glad to hear its going well. Trest makes me a slut if I'm not careful lol. Its like it puts you on every womans radar. Crazy

Especially if it makes you lactate.

 

[jrock645]

Glad you’re having better luck with the lethargy than I did. It was unbearable for me.

 

[blongo804]

Glad you’re having better luck with the lethargy than I did. It was unbearable for me.

Ugh. I may have spoken too soon. Woke up today and yesterday feeling like I didn't have enough sleep. I feel a little more awake today, but yesterday I was "sleepy" feeling by the end of my workout, which we also won't talk about..

Last night came home from work, cracked open a C4 carbonated (200mg caffeine) and fell asleep while drinking it. I had about a third of the can left when I woke up.... Yikes lol.

Sooo not sure what's bringing this on. Could be androgenic lethargy, could be not enough sleep, harder workouts, or a combo of all?!

Posting a small update below!

 

[blongo804]

Small Update:

Really just a weigh in update today. I'm kind of hurting today after my Mon/Tues workout. I think the two bench days (Mon/Fri) + one overhead press day (Tues) a week is taking a toll on my elbows and shoulders. Ugh.. I'll take it easy on them and just do some floor presses on Friday rather than feet up bench.

Weight:

I'm actually pretty happy with this. +1.4lbs in a week. I had a feeling my 210lbs weight was a little bloated on Monday morning, so this is fine.

If this is anything like my last cycle, once I hit 210lbs I had a really hard time getting over it. I'd get up to 210, then dry out to 207-208 in a day or two. I'm going to make sure that doesn't happen this time. I really want to get to 215-220 to see how my lifts climb, so let's get there!!

My new Dermatrest bottle is arriving tomorrow. I'm going to bump it back to 100mg ed for a week, see what happens and go from there. I have confidence it will go better this time.

 

[blongo804]

Update:

Feeling a bit better today compared to Tuesday, lethargy wise. Had squats on schedule and they went very smooth. Did two clean sets of three at 255lbs compared to 245 for 2x2 last week. These felt the same if not better than last week so I was really happy with that. Bumped it up to 275 for a single and 300 for a single since I've recently been trying to hit something really close to my max and still feeling out this new squat method. 300lbs actually flew pretty quick and I still haven't whipped out my lever belt yet. Planning to practice with that next week and finally go for 315 if I feel comfortable enough.

Random note, I finally ordered a pair of Mark Bell's "Biggie Compression Cuff" for bench and overhead press. I have one that was always a bit tight, and I only have ONE because when I first ordered I didn't realize they don't come in pairs. Anyway, ordered a size up this time because it's time to finally protect these elbows more. Hoping these will help relieve some current elbow pain because the tight one worked wonders.

As for the cycle, I think this Saturday will begin week 5. I've officially started 100mg trest again as of 2/13. I'm also still slowly upping my calories. Here's my macros as of now which are a bit higher than they were in the beginning..
~380-400g carbs
~100-105g fat
~230-240 protein

If we're gonna grow, gotta keep the food intake up! The awesome thing is, I currently look full yet lean at the same time. Cuts are coming out better all around, veins are out more than ever - awesome stuff. We'll see what difference 100mg trest ed does in terms of everything.

Side Effect

I do want to point out one side effect that I think is in full effect. It's an obvious one, but I do think blood pressure is up a bit. Although it was 300lbs on my back, while squatting I think my head was about to explode today. Eyes got decently red, eyes started tearing, and face flushed out. It lasted probably less than a minute after the rep was complete, but that still seemed unusual to me.

 

[blongo804]

Small Update:

Boring day at work and just feel like whipping up a little update for everyone.

Definitely feeling better today compared to the beginning of the weak. At times I feel like the lethargy is trying to get me, but most times I feel okay.

I had an insaaane pump at the gym today and strength felt limitless. It was only an isolation day working some weak points out, but isolations usually = bigger pump and that was totally the case.

I will say - the lower back pumps are definitely there as usually reported on a cycle. I worked up to some heavier rack pulls and my lower back was getting numb from the pump really quick. It definitely wasn't a pain, it was just some crazy tightness that pretty much forced me into an upright position. It's already gone away, so no worry there.

Looking forward to this weekend of rest as usual though. Just going to rest, eat, rest, eat, sleep, repeat lol. It's also a 3-day weekend so really excited to hit the gym Monday without worrying about work too!

Trest is going fine at 100mg ed. Literally no extra side effects to note from that.

I should point out one other side effect I've had this cycle though that is bringing back nightmares from my first DMZ cycle.

CRAMPS.

If my body is in a position that it's not happy about too long, I get an insane cramp there. For example, washing the bottom of my right foot today - my foot curled a little and instantly cramped up bad lol. Or for example, washing my calves can also put my calves in a cramping position. It's hard to describe, but the cramps are real!

 

[blongo804]

Update:

I'm overdue for a bigger update so here goes! Prepare for story time!

WEIGHT as of 2/18/19:

That's a gain of...19.6lbs since starting the cycle on 1/12/19. All I gotta say is.. lol

In all seriousness, I can feel the water weight. I'm getting a little fluffy no doubt, but my strength is unreal, to me, at this weight. More explained below!

Current cycle is still:
45mg DMZ ED
100mg split in 50mg morning/50mg night DermaTrest ED

Current Macros:
~250g protein
~370g carb
~110g fat

I'm literally just making small increases each week in carbs. Some of the carb food has a little bit of fat in it too so my dietary fat just keeps slowly rising as well. I don't see that as a bad thing. I have no digestion issues of sort.

Current "physique":

This was really only a core flex + trap pop pose. Not really flexing, just mostly relaxed here.

==========

GYM thoughts:

With all that said, my gym strength is seriously through the roof. Yesterday I did a set of 4 @ 225lb bench, followed by 2x3 @ 225lb, followed by a double at 235lbs. All this was actually relatively easy too, which I never thought I'd say. Just prior to starting this cycle (or maybe right at the beginning?), my 225lb bench attempt was really lousy. Weak, wobbly, had to "touch and go" it. Now i'm +20lbs body weight and repping it, so take that however it is. I have new elbow cuffs coming in today which will be good for my 1RM PR attempt in 2 weeks. Hoping to hit 250-260lbs for a single! Otherwise everything else feels great in the gym until I get a lower back pump.. Deadlifts are really hard because of this so i'll probably drop them for now. Oh, almost forgot, my I hit 315lbs on squat for 2 singles. Finally got my goal squat and it only took me making my own safety squat bar! I'll have to get a video of this, not only to show off the killer depth I get, but just to show what I'm talking about for those unaware.

==========

OTHER thoughts:

Suppression is there for sure, but libido is still good. For example, on Saturday my fiance and I were having a little "fun" and the next day I had slight nut pain lol. I feel 100% today, but I think it just took a noticeable amount of time to recover, which is not typical.

As mentioned, cramps and pump pain is there. It sucks, but I can work with it.

The extra weight it a bit to handle. In the gym I find myself gasping for air a little more, but at the same time, I also feel like I can keep lifting forever with certain movements and I'm pushing myself more than usual too. I just need slightly longer breaks between sets is all.

Besides obvious suppression that any is expected with really any anabolic, NO obvious side effects from DermaTrest. Zero, zilch. Loving this cycle because I also get no sides from DMZ. I'm not even notably lethargic, just had a few days of it here and there, but nothing I would really say is out of the ordinary. Who's not lethargic sometimes?

I'm currently almost 5 1/2 weeks in now. This may be ballsy and not recommended, but I'm going to stick with this cycle as long as the sides stay away. I have maybe 2-3 weeks left of DMZ stock, and 3-4 weeks of trest left. I have enough support supps, enough SERM, enough AI (still haven't used), enough Inhibit-P, etc. So follow me on my journey as I push my suppression to its limits, test for estro sides, and likely get yelled at by someone here for cycling DMZ and trest so long lol. I have a feeling my liver will be just fine. My urine is still clear and I literally don't abuse it with alcohol ever. Should be okay, right? Right!

Hope everyone likes the story. Again, I try to be thorough with this in case there's any newbs like me who want to try anabolics as well. I really don't recommend them for anyone, especially at an age before you're fully "developed". Take at your own risk assuming anything can happen.

 

[blongo804]

Small Update:

Since it's my "official" weigh in day.. This morning's weigh in:

I'm pretty happy with this. I didn't mention it, but yesterday I was 213.8 so it seems I'm now hovering around 213. This is NOT easy though.. I'm practically shoveling food down my throat. This is definitely a "PR" weight for me lol although I'm really trying to get to 220 before the cycle ends. Not sure why besides just seeing how strong I am at that weight. We'll see if I get there.

Random notes:
- Fellow gym guy/previous amateur bodybuilder I work with complimented my vascularity today. Didn't even go to the gym this morning since it's my off day. Score!

- I keep forgetting to mention this one.. Since being able to properly "back" squat again, my quads have been popping! Leg wise I can hardly fit into my jeans. I had to switch out of my "comfy" jeans I was planning to wear out to dinner this past Saturday because my legs were suffocating.. My fiance even said "where did those legs come from?" while those jeans were still on LOL. My quads were popping right out of them. I will say, I think I genetically have decent legs. I've always had clear, hard calf muscles, a decent quad sweep, etc.. It's just now my quads are really popping and look solid. I'll try to get some pics. I'm not saying they're some bodybuilder crazy quads with cuts all over, but they're definitely bigger/more defined than usual.

 

[blongo804]

Quick Update:

Working set of 3x3 265lb squats today. Followed that up with a 295lb single, 315 single, 325 single and 330 single. At this point I'm just trying to get an idea of my squat max. I'd say I found the 90-95% mark with the 330lb single, so I'm going to back off now and just keep killing the working sets. I keep attempting 5-10lbs over the previous week and it's been going well. I'm really happy with the 330lb single because that's now a 25lb PR and I still haven't whipped out the lever belt.

 

[RickyBlobby]

Trest for president

 

[blongo804]

Small Update:

As usual... Can't wait to rest this weekend. I'm whooped, but great things happened this week!

Lots of PR's leading up to today and more were hit. At the end of my last cycle, I worked up to a 220 single on incline barbell bench (weighing around 208). That day I probably had 225 in me but I remember by the time I got to 220 I was taxed. Today I tested out my new Slingshot biggie elbow cuffs because my old one doesn't fit (fortunately because it's too small now lol). This size fits great and feels amazing. Seriously anyone with elbow pain when pressing - get yourself these. The $40-50 shipped price for the pair is sooooo worth it. They do dig into your skin a bit to the point of almost bleeding, but its a small price to pay for the support they provide. If only shoulders can have something like this lol.

Anyway, today I planned to do my usual "feet up" bench, but the whopping two benches I have access to were both taken for too long so I went to incline. I did the following sets: 5x95, 5x135, 5x185, 3x215, 1x225, 1x230, 23x135 as a finisher. That's a 5lb and 10lb PR in the same session and the 23x135 is definitely a rep PR. I probably could've hit 26-28 but had a right leg and lat cramp halfway through lol. The 230lb rep seriously moved faster/easier than the 225 too. I couldn't believe it. If I planned accordingly, I probably could've hit 235-240, but I had a feeling I was done with the heavy stuff. Really, really happy with this and my elbows feel great thanks to the cuffs.

I really hope I can keep this up. Not the daily PR's, just the overall strength I'm hoping I don't lose in PCT or post-PCT. Just going to keep my eating up and I may also add Performax MassMax to PCT alongside the SERM. I had fantastic natty progress with that stuff, gaining about 8lbs in 8 weeks with no waist gain in a small 3-500 calorie surplus. I'm also not using creatine right now (I know, shame on me!) so I'm going to get on that wonderful stuff again. Honestly I just get lazy with creatine and stop taking it sometimes lol.

Hope everyone has a great weekend!

 

[blongo804]

Small Update:

Just want to throw a quick, small update out for everyone. I"m assuming I'll have more to post Wednesday when I also post my weigh in scale picture.

Training

So I had a big dumb idea thinking it would be a good to start a new periodization style program today. Basically it's a 6-week, 4-day program that includes compound lifts, starts light + high rep, ends with heavy weight + low rep, and something I've had huge success with in the past. I've really only been doing 3x3 or 3x5 with compounds, hanging around 80-90% of my max lately, so I didn't realize how unprepared I was for today which had 3 sets of 12 squats/bench at 65% of my max, making it 215lb squats 3x12, 165lb bench 3x12. The benching was fine, but squats were deadly. The leg pump was way too much and my now heavier self cannot handle this rep scheme, cardio-wise. I think I'm also getting a little sick unfortunately.

Sooo yeah, just going to stick with what I've been doing because it has been working. Not sure why I thought it'd be a good idea to change it up, but this is typical me coming up with a big dumb idea lol.

That's all I really have to report on training today. Nothing really great happened - mostly disappointed really because I feel like this was a wasted day. Probably going to make up for it on Friday or Saturday.

Side Effect
One other note - on Saturday I stayed at my buddy's apartment for a gaming night since my fiance was out of town with her old college roomates for the night. Usually I dose DermaTrest 50mg in the morning, 50mg at night before bed. I didn't want to bring it with me, so I did 100mg in one shot. BAD idea. The nips were not happy and this was my first time really feeling any sides from DT. I brought prami and exem over with me just in case this didn't go away, but it did end up going away on its own. My nips got really sensitive to the point it hurt to have a shirt on, plus they got mad erect to the point they can probably cut ice lol. All is well, but having prami/exem on hand did make me feel much better knowing I have them.

That's all for today. I'll be back for Wednesday's weigh in!

 

[BarryScott]

Squatting for over ten reps sucks at the best of times. Interesting how splitting the dosage has helped avoid sides.

 

[blongo804]

Squatting for over ten reps sucks at the best of times. Interesting how splitting the dosage has helped avoid sides.

It seriously does. Not only is it way more taxing than it should be, but I genuinely have more fun doing heavy weight/low rep sets. I've been doing 3x3 working sets for squats and feeling way more accomplished the last few weeks. Screw high rep schemes lol. They started and ended today!!

And yeah, splitting the dosage seems to be doing the trick for me. Literally the only thing different I did on that particular day was do both doses at once. It may also be that I'm so deep into the cycle now that it's easier to get sides like this? Not 100% sure, but it sure did catch me by surprise!

 

[blongo804]

Update:

Just wanna throw another update out there while I have some more to say and it's slow at work right now.

I did change my macros for the week and going forward. I was getting a little worried about how high my dietary fat was getting at .5g/lb and even slightly over, so I dropped that down and added more carbs/protein to make up for the lack of calories from fat. Current macros are as follows and I don't anticipate them changing much besides going up a little in more carbs/protein in maybe 2 weeks.

~410g carbs
~85g fat
~265g protein

That's just about 2g/lb carbs, .4g/lb fat, 1.25g/lb protein. I'm really happy with that ratio.

Although it's not my "official" weigh-in day, I did weigh myself this morning and yesterday.

Weight 2/25: 213.8
Weight 2/26: 214.8 (+21.2lbs since starting cycle on 1/12/19)

PR weigh in this morning! lol. I've literally never been this heavy, but I'm feeling properly full and actually less bloated already without so much dietary fat. Good stuff!

Also had a huge conventional deadlift PR today with straps. Prior to today, my 1RM in straps was 425 that I hit probably 6+ months ago. Today I hit 455 for a pretty easy single while doing tons of deadlift work prior to it including 10x225, something x275, 5x315, 1x365, 1x405, all strapless/beltless. Again, more greatness! This cycle has been fantastic. I'm prayin' I figure out a way to keep 90%+ of this. Hopefully my diet + MassMax keeps me on the right track. I seriously loved 8 weeks of MassMax and I'm NOT a believer in natural supplement hype.

At this rate, I'm thinking PCT will start on 3/9. I have enough DMZ to get me through to Friday, but I think I have enough Trest to get me through the end of next week. This will give me about 7 weeks on DMZ, 8 weeks on Dermatrest.

 

[blongo804]

Weigh-in:

PR weigh-in!

+21.4lbs vs starting weight.

Not a whole lot else to report that I haven't already said.

Tomorrow is the end of DMZ sadly. Since I have enough trest left for another week or two, it'll be interesting to see what it does on its on own.

I will say, it still hasn't settled in that my deadlift is 30lbs higher than my last 1RM. Not that 455lbs is even close to where I want to be, but dang it feels good considering I don't train actual conventional DL's too hard. It just makes me feel like everything else I'm doing is working. Typically I do block pulls, deficit RDL's, stiff leg DL's, basically everything but an actual conventional DL lol. Of course the isolations and other compound moves like squat, bench, and OHP all help in their own way too.

Lastly, not sure if I mentioned it or not, but this log will continue throughout PCT, so stick around!

 

[jrock645]

That’s a lot of weight you put on man... good job!

 

[PoSiTiVeFLoW]

Weigh-in:

PR weigh-in!

View attachment 180037

+21.4lbs vs starting weight.

Not a whole lot else to report that I haven't already said.

Tomorrow is the end of DMZ sadly. Since I have enough trest left for another week or two, it'll be interesting to see what it does on its on own.

I will say, it still hasn't settled in that my deadlift is 30lbs higher than my last 1RM. Not that 455lbs is even close to where I want to be, but dang it feels good considering I don't train actual conventional DL's too hard. It just makes me feel like everything else I'm doing is working. Typically I do block pulls, deficit RDL's, stiff leg DL's, basically everything but an actual conventional DL lol. Of course the isolations and other compound moves like squat, bench, and OHP all help in their own way too.

Lastly, not sure if I mentioned it or not, but this log will continue throughout PCT, so stick around!

Wow was this German Pharma DMZ or PRE?

 

[blongo804]

That’s a lot of weight you put on man... good job!

Thank you sir! This is well-beyond expectations at this point and I'm not even done yet!

Wow was this German Pharma DMZ or PRE?

PFlow, the last few weeks have been on the German Pharma DMZ you sent me, but I started the cycle using DMZ capped by a member here actually. Not sure if he wants his username thrown out there, but he hooked me up big time with his DMZ and the trest.

 

[blongo804]

Update:

End of week update, but still one more workout scheduled for tomorrow. Definitely staying lighter/pumpier tomorrow - aiming to kill shoulders and triceps (two of my weakest parts).

Sooo.. Apparently I'm finally in the 1000lb club without realizing it! As of Tuesday when I did the 455 DL, I had a 1030 total (330s, 245b, 425dl w/o straps, 455dl w/straps). Woo!

With that said, records are meant to be broken, especially in the same week apparently.. Story time!

I was feeling real good today, just doing my typical "feet up" bench session, hit a couple small sets at 225lbs since last time was 220lbs . I did 1x225 to test, 3x225 top set and got disrupted..

A friend came over and asked "what program you on now??", clearly looking me up and down suspiciously LOL. Told him how I've been training and he was like "so what's your bench goal?", told him 275lb short term, 315lb and upward long term. He was like "I think you have at least 260lbs already", and I think I blacked out from there and thought to myself..challenge accepted!

Since I wasn't actually benching normal, I started with 225 for a single.. easy. 245lb single... easy. Went for 260, asked for a hand off for this one and spot, and it honestly flew WAY faster than I thought it would. I've said it before and I'll say it again, but I truly feel like I have unlimited stamina and strength right now as long as I'm not repping sets out at 70%+. Thank you trest and DMZ!

With how fast 260lbs moved, I was pressured again and my friend says "oh please you have 275lbs now".. Ugh... I took a good 5 minute rest and went for it. The hand off was a little sketch because this time a different friend did it. I think he handed it off a little too much so the bar went flying between him and I both ripping it off the rack. The starting bar position was a little more forward than it should've been so it through me off a touch. I KILLED it anyway. The rep would've been a little cleaner if the hand off was, but I can't believe it went up!!

I'll end story time there. Not much else to report that's unusual. Current s/b/d total is 1060 now. Not huge, but insanely better than 6-12 months ago.

DMZ is officially over as the last dose was taken last night. I might get a little ballsy and up the trest dose to 125 or 150mg ed in split doses. We'll see.

Body weight this morning was 214.4. If you made it this far, have an awesome weekend everyone! Couldn't have asked for a better Friday!!

 

[Segansational]

Congrats on both the weight increase and the multiple PRs.

 

[blongo804]

Congrats on both the weight increase and the multiple PRs.

Thanks man!

Had another accidental 1RM PR today. I was really in the zone and felt great, so I couldn't resist this one. I'll make a full update on Monday as usual.

 

[BarryScott]

Would be good to see some after photos to compare and see how far you've come appearance-wise.

 

[blongo804]

Would be good to see some after photos to compare and see how far you've come appearance-wise.

Definitely will throw some pictures up! I wish I took some RIGHT before cycle pictures, but I think I have some from recent enough that make sense. Prior to starting this cycle not much was really happening. I was mostly focusing on slowly maintaining strength and shedding some water weight off about 2 months leading up to this.

Without seeing pictures and just eyeing myself up in the mirror, I feel like I'm just an overall bigger version of my before-cycle self, just wider and fuller. We'll see what the pics say.

I know one thing for sure - I'm an insanely stronger version of myself.. Like mind blowingly strong compared to what I'm used to lol.

 

[blongo804]

Update:

Hey everyone! I'm thinking i'll be out of Dermatrest this week, and this Saturday will also mark 8 weeks on cycle. I think I'm good lol.

Saturday's session went way beyond expectations. Something was working some magic. It might've been my preworkout concoction, but the pump was UNREAL. My arms felt like they were ready to explode and I was extremely in the zone. I went in expecting to kill shoulders/triceps and started the day with, what was supposed to be lighter overhead press. Well light turned into medium turned into a new 1RM of 185lbs for a very clean single. I failed this attempt about 2 weeks ago, and this rep looked/felt night and day different. Absolutely killed it!!

But..with that comes issues unfortunately. My left shoulder and elbow are really feeling it after the 275lb bench single on Friday and that overhead press PR the very next day. Benching today was painful but I fought through it for now. Ended up with a clean 5 sets of 3 at 225lb bench. Pre-cycle I was happy to hit ONE rep for a set or two at 225lbs, so it's safe to say my bench is vastly improved.

I'm thinking next week I'm going to deload a bit and not touch the barbell just to let me shoulders/elbows heal up. I'm really pushing myself to the limit here, trying to make the most of this cycle, so my body isn't too happy.

"Unofficial" weigh-in this morning: 214.8. I had a really clean weekend of eating and my weight this morning showed as this was the same weight as I was on Friday I believe. I've upped carbs a bit starting today, so we'll see if I can PR on body weight before the cycle ends!

 

[blongo804]

Update:

SAD, VERY SAD update!

I'm sickened by this turn of events!

I wake up Monday at 214.8. A little surprised, but not really because my diet was super clean over the weekend. Woke up yesterday at 215.4 thinking "okay, good!". Woke up this morning and see this terrible number.

Really not sure what happened because my macros have been spot on. I'm guessing I'm hanging around TDEE rather than in a small surplus. Currently eating:

410g carbs
280g protein
87g fat

With that said, I found something else I'm going to add to my days going forward. Gaspari SizeOn! This will give me extra calories and force me to start taking creatine. Supposedly there's 4g creatine in there (prop blend, but this is what I found on the Internet), so i'll either stick with 4g/day or bump it closer to 10g/day for the heck of it because why not.

Eating SizeOn will bump my carbs to ~450g and protein to 287g.

Regarding the sudden 2lb weight loss - maybe it's water already? It may or may not be a coincidence that I just stopped DMZ about a week ago and I suddenly am my lowest weight in 2 weeks or so. Oh well - just going to keep eating and lifting hard/heavy!

 

[blongo804]

Small Update:

Not a whole lot to report except how the gym went this morning.

Today is leg day and I was really excited to squat. I got great sleep last night, woke up really refreshed feeling, and my body just felt overall good besides my shoulders if they go into the wrong position.

Anyway, for legs I like to usually use a pre that's not super "pump" based + stims. I prefer something a little more well-rounded, so I went with Scivation's Quake paired with NutraBio's Alpha EAA for my intra. This combo was amazing. I had long lasting energy, great focus (still zoned out right now), and strength felt spot on. I actually didn't feel winded the entire workout!

So for squats today, I finally brought my lever belt along with me just to practice with it. I think I've only ever used it on time for squats, for practice, probably about a year ago lol. I honestly have never needed it, but now that I'm moving proper weight, I think the need is coming up a bit. I don't think my core is super weak but who doesn't like a little extra bracing!

Squat sets: 135x3, 135x3 (belt on starting here), 185x3, 225x1, 275x1, 315x1. Throughout all of these sets, I felt amazing. Bracing against the belt gave me great confidence and I felt really strong. Next up I attempted 335 for a single and nailed it. That makes it a 5lb PR over my beltless 330x1 PR from ~2 Saturday's ago. With how 335 moved and with how I was feeling, I was up for trying for a little heavier. Next set was my 345 attempt and I killed it with awesome speed out of the hole. Bare in mind, this is still with my ghetto lifting strap safety squat bar method with the bar in "high bar" position, which has never been my strongest position. I'm mind blown right now and SO happy about this. Lastly, I dropped the weight down to 275 for a quick set of 4 and called it a day for squats. Finished up with seated leg extensions and lying leg curls for mad reps.

All in all, I can't be any happier with this cycle. Believe me when I say i'll be doing everything I can to keep these gains.

Besides nolva in PCT, I have a bottle of Sustain Alpha and CEL M-Test on the way. As I previously mentioned, I may still add in MassMax as well, but I was just hooked up big time with Sustain Alpha and CEL M-Test. I'll also be adding in good ol creatine at an upwards of 10g/day.

 

[blongo804]

Small Update:

Gym was awesome today. Worked on some weak points and didn't do any barbell benching to try and let me shoulders heal. They're almost there, but once the blood gets flowing, they get really tight.

DermaTrest won't be gone by tomorrow so we're gonna keep this going! I'm thinking by maybe Monday i'll be out of trest? Tough to judge apparently. Either way i'll let everyone know when I start PCT.

Weight this morning was still 213.4, so hasn't gone up or down since Wednesday, which i'll consider a win. I'm going to continue at the same macros until at least next Friday and see what happens, but man I'm not sure how much higher I can take this, especially without the anabolics. 500g carbs? More dietary fat? More protein? More everything?! Guess we'll find out, but I have great confidence in my current diet/eating schedule/food.

Still in awe of my 345 squat yesterday.. Feelsgoodman

 

[blongo804]

Update:

Hey bros! Hope everyone had a nice weekend. I took the full weekend off from training for once to help my shoulders recover and I'm really glad I did.

I didn't check my weight this morning because I was so focused/excited on getting to the gym and killing it. I had pure tunnel vision and I didn't even take my pre yet at the time lol.

Weekend eating was spot on with my macro plan again. My mindset is pretty perfect right now and I think it's better than ever. I'm also keeping my macros the same as my post on 3/6:

450g carbs
287g protein
87g fat

Going to stick with that all week and see what happens. Definitely feeling a bit of bloat, but how can you not at 450g carbs? lol. The insane thing is, my weight *feels* the same at these macros, but we'll see what the scale says Wednesday morning.

Anyway, training today was awesome. I'm actually adjusting my workout schedule this week to try something else. The general lifts/plan will stay the same, but it'll be a 5 day split rather than 4 day.

M - Chest/tricep focus with Bench as compound move
T - Back/bicep focus with Deadlift as compound move
W - Shoulder focus with Overhead Press as compound move
Th - Leg focus with Squat as compound move
F - Weak point isolation day with laying dumbbell or smith machine chest press mixed in to keep helping my bench

This will give my shoulders a better break between sessions. Rather than bench Monday and OHP the very next day, I can now rest my shoulders on Tuesday for OHP on Wednesday. We'll see how this goes.

Bench today was fantastic since my shoulders felt 90%+. My working sets were 3x3 @ 235lbs where last week I did 3x3 @ 225lbs. I then went for 255lbs for a single and nailed it. I like to hit a single of something around 90% of my max every week or two just to keep the feeling of that weight in my mind. I don't find it too daunting on my body doing this, but it does help mentally. 255lbs is 93% of my max, so a little higher than I'd like yet the weight moved very well.

Finished out with some incline dumbbell bench, tricep rope pulldowns, cable flyes, smith machine shrugs, and these: https://www.t-nation.com/training/tip-the-best-chest-exercise-youve-never-tried (which felt awesome).

Lastly, still using Dermatrest but it's reaaaally close to being gone. Maybe by Wednesday? Best of all, no bad sides to report still, including no high prolactin/estrogen sides! I love this stuff!!

 

[blongo804]

Hopefully some are still following along!

Question - since PCT is definitely starting this week, maybe as soon as Thursday, 3/14, what do you guys suggest I do with my eating? Stay where I'm at? I'd like to try my best to keep all gains, but don't want to get any puffier. I'm definitely feeling watery lately, which could be a number of things, so I'm kind of preparing to lose a lot here lol.

In preparation for PCT, I've already begun taking 10g of creatine daily. I have my CEL M-Test ready to go, Sustain Alpha ready to go, and of course the nolva.

Otherwise I'm planning to keep training the same, hard and heavy, and as of right now planning to eat the same.

In case anyone cares, here's my current, unimpressive physique in two different lightings. The left was taken today, the right was taken 3 days ago.

I do think my shoulders are popping better, vascularity is great being that this is many hours post workout. My baby lats also seem to be visible from the front in the left pic. Maybe that's just fat lol.. Not super happy with my chest or midsection, but hopefully I can dial in my macros to a point where I'm putting on legit size without fat. Guess it'll be a long road!

 

[blongo804]

Update:

Weigh in:

Pretty confused on this one. I guess DMZ was really helping me hold weight where solo trest is maybe helping me burn it off? lol

I really don't know how much more I can eat (450g carbs, 280g protein, 87g fat). I can add more carbs, sure, but my I've noticed my body fights really hard to be below 210. My last cycle I peaked at 212 at the end of it, dropped to 210 the next day, and went downward from there. I know body weight doesn't necessarily equal strength, so I'll probably just keep eating as I see the need. For example, if my lifts aren't progressing, i'll add a little more food. I don't need anymore fluff otherwise!!

Anyway, enough obsessing over my weight..

Today was shoulder annihilation, as planned, and it went very well. I hit yet another 5lb PR on standing overhead press - 190lbs! I'm shocked at how this is moving. OHP and bench have both been a nagging point for me, but both are flying nowadays. I feel like a 190lb OHP is mildly impressive at my body weight, but it would be really nice if I was able to rep that. Eventually! Otherwise all went great today. Shoulders got a nasty pump and then I killed traps because I've been isolating them way more often now. My traps were literally warm to the touch at the end of the superset I did.

Not much else to report. The Dermatrest is allllllllmost gone. Very close. Can't see it lasting past tomorrow.

 

[blongo804]

Day off today feels good on my mind and body.

Tomorrow is legs with some good squat volume planned. I'm thinking 3 sets of 3-5 at 275-285 (3x3 at 265 two weeks ago) and i'll knock out a couple 315 singles to stay around the 90% mark.

Saturday will be some weak points and super pump day. My body is feeling much better this week than last in regards to shoulder/elbow pain, so I'm really happy about that.

Lastly, I swear if tonight's dose of Dermatrest isn't the last, tomorrow morning's dose definitely will be. It's crazy how little appears to be in the bottle but it keeps lasting lol. PCT starts tomorrow or Saturday! This will put me at a full 9 week cycle if my calculations are right.. Whoops!

 

[blongo804]

Update:

All anabolics officially gonezo. PCT starts today. Had my first dose (3 caps) of CEL M-Test this morning, and will be dosing Sustain Alpha later along with 3 more caps of M-Test and 20mg nolva pre-bed.

Today squats went exactly as I hoped they would. I had a small goal in my mind yesterday that I wanted to hit today.

I worked up to my planned working sets of beltless 3x3 @ 275lbs. Then I attempted what I felt like I could hit - belted triple at 315lbs.. Nailed it! I probably had 2 more reps in the tank too, but didn't want to push it. After that was a paused 315 single, and two 325 singles, all with a belt because it feels so good.

Ended the workout with 3x8 275lb romanian DL's, a ton of leg extensions, and single leg dumbbell stiff leg DL's because they've been fun isolations. I really felt GREAT today. I think it was a combo of day off yesterday, great sleep last night, and Mega Pre Black kicking in hard. Awesome Friday!

That's all I got for now. PCT will be logged from here on.

 

[blongo804]

Popping in quick to say this Sustain Alpha is nasty compared to DermaTrest. It's like 10x the thickness and doesn't rub in nearly as easy. I looked like I rubbed sun tan lotion on my upper body by the time I was done lol.

But... Between that and M-Test (and maybe nolva?) my libido is already through the roof. I'm actually shocked at how different I feel already.

 

[jrock645]

Sustain alpha is good stuff. It’ll be part of every pct from now on for me.

 

[blongo804]

Sustain alpha is good stuff. It’ll be part of every pct from now on for me.

I'm seriously shocked at how different I feel on this stuff already. Between it and M-Test, things are feeling great. Of course the nolva may be playing the largest part of all, but still good stuff. New update coming below!

 

[blongo804]

Update:

Unofficial weigh in this morning: 212.2lbs

I think this marks the longest I've stayed above 210! With the macros I'm forcing down, I would hope my weight stays up.

So my current PCT of 4 pumps Sustain Alpha, 6 caps/day CEL M-Test and 20mg liquid nolva is really kicking in nicely. My libido is sky high and I overall feel great. Let's just say my fiance has even complimented me in some way or another..already. LOL.

Sustain is a little annoying overall though. The first two doses I did on my shoulders/traps like I was with dermatrest, but man this stuff needs a LOT of surface area for 4 pumps. I know on the bottle it suggests lower stomach/thighs, so last night I tried my thighs and put the leftover on my feet - this worked much better but still takes some patience rubbing it in. The biggest downside is the itchiness.. Man am I itchy lol. I will suck it up though because I think the effects have been great so far.

I trained Saturday, mostly some isolation/lighter work. Included some pin presses because it's been forever since I've done those. They're way harder than I remember. I worked up to a few sets of 4 at 215 which went well. Not much else to note there.

Today was classic bench day + tricep/chest isolations. I wanted to attempt the same 3x3 working set scheme with bench but 5lbs heavier than last week - 240lbs. I nailed it! Bench is just continuing its upward trend which is awesome. The only gear I had on was my elbow cuffs too. I was feeling good and wanted to hit my weekly "heavy" single (usually something 90%+). Loaded up 250lbs making this about a 91% effort and hit it..for 2! The first one felt way too easy so I just doubled it lol. I'm impressed with myself with bench.. Really happy! That 315 bench feels within my reach.. Hopefully a couple months.

Anyway, that's about all I have for now. Just lifting heavy, eating consistent, and taking all PCT supps. Macros will remain the same for this week:

~280g protein
~450g carbs
~87g fat

 

[blongo804]

Thoughts:

Not a whole lot to report. Today went well, but couldn't do deadlifts due to the one and only deadlift platform being taken. I could've probably done them elsewhere, but I did rack pulls and bent over rows instead. They went nicely. Grip wasn't 100% there today - I think it's deload time, which will for sure be next week.

Next Tuesday i'll be in Florida for my brother's wedding from Tues-Sunday. I will either use the hotel gym or get a pass for the powerhouse gym that's 5 minutes from the hotel for a few days - either way, i'm going to just use that time to deload and relax mostly. I'll be shipping all supps to my brother tomorrow probably so PCT doesn't get interrupted too. I'll only keep Sustain Alpha here with me because I'd rather use that up until the day I leave. I have a new, spare bottle of nolva and can count out the M-Test, creatine, and whatever else i'll need.

Tomorrow we've got overhead press and shoulder isolations. I'm thinking i'll attempt 155 3x3 since I did 150 3x3 last week, but we'll see what my body is saying tomorrow. I've also got my "official" weigh in tomorrow. Fingers crossed i'm still holding weight! Honestly I feel a little less watery already, but fullness/vascularity/strength all remains which I'll consider a win for now.

 

[blongo804]

Update:

Weigh-in:

Down 2lbs in a week, which isn't horrendous. I feel like I have this under control as long as I can keep my eating mostly clean and high while in Florida next week too. I packed 50g of creatine, over 300g of protein powder, and just planning on eating as much protein as possible lol. Otherwise i'll keep food intake where it's at and have a good cheat meal this weekend to hopefully help.

Overall I feel a little drier, a little less bloated, and strength remains the same. Worked up to my planned 3x3 at 155lbs barbell overhead press today, a double at 175lbs and a single at 175lbs, hanging around my 90% mark. All felt great!

I'm still really happy with PCT although I haven't been in the best mood lately. Work has been really stressful and my fiance has had the stomach bug since Sunday. Ugh.

 

[blongo804]

Small Update:

Today was day 4 in a row at the gym, very unlike me, but I'm feeling pretty good and going with it. My fiance wanted to attempt the gym today too, so I wanted to be there for her in case she wasn't feeling well. Unfortunately she's still sick and had a rough workout. It sucks because last night she was actually feeling better then just woke up feeling like crap again.

Anyway, today was legs with a squat plan of 3x3 @ 285lbs that I hit very easily beltless with sleeves only. I then hit 315lbs beltless for two singles which both felt great. With my current diet and without the anabolics, I'm still feeling stronger and stronger. It's gotta be the food intake which has been really consistent and "high" for me. Interestingly enough, I actually feel like I'm tightening up really good. Any muscle I flex from my quads up to my traps just feels tight and full still. I really just think it's all in my diet and consistent heavy compound movement training. I've always included compounds, but never consistently heavy like this.

In summary, I just feel great. My lifts are moving up nicely, and my diet/macros are insanely easy to eat/digest. I wouldn't mind better shoulder mobility lol.

One interesting thought I have.. I've been noticing less bloat and more good tightness ever since dropping real milk from my diet. Throughout my cycle, I was having 8oz whole or 2% milk daily. I really think it wasn't digesting great at times and bloating me. I've since switched to unsweetened almond milk and added another 16g of peanut butter to my daily intake - bloat is diminishing quickly. It could be me losing water post-cycle, but I also think the milk played a role. Anyone else ever make a switch like this and notice any benefits?

 

[blongo804]

Small Update:

Weight this morning: 209.0

I like to weigh myself randomly, and this morning I felt particularly empty so I went for it. Unfortunately I'm down another pound in 2 days lol. This isn't a huge deal to me since strength is still there AND i'm looking drier/tighter, so screw it!

Anyway, mostly just a pump day today for my 5th day training in a row which is not typical of me. My elbows/shoulders felt good so I did do some alternative bench work. I usually use Friday's as my "feet up on bench" day, but today I wanted to try laying flat with my feet hovering in the air. I'm actually impressed with how this went. I worked up to 2x2 @ 225 and finished with a triple at 225. I was initially only doing 2 reps because I wasn't confident initially. I went full send on the final set!

To put this into perspective, before the cycle, my regular bench 225 was horrendous. I remember testing it about a week prior to starting the cycle and my butt lifted on a single rep.. Now I'm out here warming up with 225 with my feet in the air lol.

The pump was insaaaaane today. I used Build Fast Formula's FullBlitz and the stuff in that just gets the blood flowing. You can see my vascularity right through the long sleeve shirt I had on.

You can say PCT is going well so far. I'm still not concerned with the weight loss since strength is remaining, so "so be it" I guess!

Might be back in the gym tomorrow for more legs. Have a good weekend, peeps.

 

[blongo804]

Large Update:

Hope everyone had a great weekend! Gains were made over here!

I planned to have some controlled feasts this weekend and that I did. You'll see why below... Friday night was Texas Roadhouse. Pounded down 3 small potatoes with cheese/bacon, a few of their free buns, a large sweet potato with marshmallows, a cup of rice, and an 8oz chicken breast. Saturday I killed a small pizza, chicken parm hoagie, and some of my fiance's chicken caesar salad. Yesterday was chinese takeout - chicken and white rice - lots. Those were my biggest meals all weekend, just trying to hold some weight. Otherwise all meals throughout the days were light in everything/high in protein. Check out these little weigh-ins I did too because I was interested in knowing:

Saturday morning: 210lbs
Today: 208.2lbs

I'm lighter this morning than I was Friday. See why I was eating like I was? lol

Anyway, I trained legs and shoulders Saturday - my 6th training day in a row which is highly unlike me. All said and done, I mostly did a couple shoulder isolation moves, leg extensions, and heavy squats. I didn't do a lot of squats, but did work my way up to a new 1RM PR! Scheme was 135x1, 185x1, 225x1, 275x1 (sleeves), 315x1 (sleeves), 325x1 (sleeves) and my PR of 350x1 in sleeves and belt. Still using my straps to make a fake safety squat bar since shoulder mobility isn't there, but I do plan on working on that asap. I was really happy with 350 and it moved pretty quick. I probably had 10lbs left in the tank.

Today was my first/last heavy day of the week until vacation tomorrow. I planned on 3x3 @ 245lbs for my bench working sets and I hit each set very nicely. The reps were more touch and go, but all very controlled reps. To note progress - this was my 1RM back in September '18 I believe before I lightened the load and stopped the high food intake at the time, so I'm really happy with this working weight. I did a bunch of other chest/triceps isolations and ended the day with trap bar farmer's carries, working up to 315lbs for a lap. I forget the distance off hand unfortunately, but a good distance.

The rest of the week is going to be doing what I can while in Florida. Hopefully some push ups, dumbbell and machine work with what I can, where I can, depending on how the hotel gym is or if there's a fair priced gym nearby.

Otherwise some PCT notes:
- Libido seems to be lower all the sudden. It was HUGE once trest ended and I began M-Test/Sustain Alpha, but now it's suddenly down. It might be the vacation stress from packing and getting all the stuff I need for the trip. My fiance was also sick with the stomach flu for a week straight. This all probably played a role.

- Heart rate/blood pressure seems to be leveling out. I'm having either low or no random heart palpitation feelings, and my arms/chest aren't constantly red anymore. Not that they were beet red, but red enough to the point my fiance said "why are you always red?" LOL

- Everything else feels good. Well-being is good, attitude is good, I feel calm, etc.

- Gains are clearly still present and rising.

- Fiance said my lower body/waist is coming down, noticeably, even with a shirt on. I found this interesting because I do feel like I'm drying/flattening out, but my overall size and vascularity is still there. As I've mentioned before, I really think my eating/training methods are on point right now for me personally. - OH and my lever belt felt loose on Saturday morning, so I have to adjust that a notch.

That's all I got for now. I'll be back next week!

 

[Segansational]

Enjoy the vacation!

 

[RickyBlobby]

Glad to hear everything is going good. Sounds like a successful cycle for sure!

 

[blongo804]

Enjoy the vacation!

Thank you! I sure did. It was a great mental and physical break, and the weather was really, really nice compared to our PA weather at the moment.

Glad to hear everything is going good. Sounds like a successful cycle for sure!

I do think the cycle was really successful. I feel like, compared to my DMZ cycle, I'm holding weight and strength gains much better.

Small update coming below!

 

[blongo804]

Small Update:

Back from vacation and back in the gym today because we don't miss Mondays around here!

Here's a quick weight update which I'm actually content with. This was this morning, empty stomach:

As far as vacation, training, supplementation - I was able to sneak a quick 30 minute dumbbell full body session in. Light weight, short rest between sets. Got a nasty pump from a full dose of VasoBlitz! Otherwise literally no training - just a lot of "cardio" from all the walking. I took my 20mg nolva every day except maybe one day I forgot to, as well as 10g creatine and 6 caps of CEL M-test nearly every day as well. If anything, I was probably missing some protein intake here and there, but I did what I could with the food in front of me lol. Killed a filet mignon AND a huge slab of swordfish at my brother's wedding though at least, and I had a good dose of chicken basically every lunch/dinner.

Yesterday I restarted 4 pumps of Sustain Alpha and dropped the nolva dose to 10mg/ed since I completed two weeks at 20mg/ed.

Today was typical bench day but I didn't want to push it too much. I did a pretty typical warm up and finished with the following heavier sets - (sets x reps) = 1x3x225, 1x1x235, 3x1x240. I felt a little on the weak side today, but all singles at 240 were clean. I'm expecting i'll need a full week of eating properly to get back in the groove.

Finished out the workout with chest/tricep/trap/delt isolation work - cable flyes, face pulls, tricep pulldowns, smith machine floor press, smith machine shrugs, other shrug variations. Felt nice getting a good pump again today for sure.

Overall I'm looking forward to getting back in my groove, eating my proper macros, etc. I have at least one, maybe two beach vacations coming up around August time and i'll be able to get back on a new cycle before that.. Watch out for a new thread sometime soon if you want to throw me suggestions. I really want to pack on good strength/mass while leaning out, but I'm still being a baby about pinning lol. I have ideas but will be looking for as many opinions as possible.

 

[blongo804]

Update:

Weight this morning is still 207.6! I'm simply back to consistently eating exactly what I was eating prior to vacation, and apparently that means i'll be holding around 207-209 if I had to guess, which is great news. Now for not so great news..

Yesterday the preworkout kicked in a bit too hard and I took deadlifts too far after being off for a week. I'm not going to make excuses but I'm guessing my form was off due to tightness and my overall lack of proper mobility nowadays. The excitement of being back in the gym and pre hitting too hard made me go to hard and now I'm paying for it...

I have clear as day sciatica/pinched nerve feeling issues today. I'm almost certain I've been feeling some disk pain here and there leading up to yesterday, but it never bothered enough to stop my training. Today it's hurting and I think it may be going down the right side of my right quad meaning squats today just weren't happening. I attempted to squat but that's when I found the quad pain, even after warming up a good bit with foam roller and stretching.

With that said, tomorrow i'll be off, Friday, probably Saturday and definitely Sunday, at the least. Just going to rest, stretch, and break out the TENS unit to see if that fixes me up. Long term - I really need to see someone to fix my mobility issues. I have tightness almost everywhere and I'm rapidly becoming unflexible.

More "bad" news - found out I may be suffering from a minor side of tamoxifen. I never put two and two together from my last cycle to this one, but during this PCT and last, I randomly wake up to excruciating cramping in either calf. I guess it's like a charlie horse type feeling, but utterly terrible feeling like wake up from my sleep screaming feeling. I NEVER get this ever. Doing some reading this morning and apparently it's a side. My calf is killing me right now but it eventually goes away throughout the day.

Oh well.. Rough week back after vacation. Just going to do what I can. Rest, relax, TENS unit, blast my back with hot water (wish I had a tub) and hope for the best.