First Cycle

[GIcez]

I'm not going to be officially starting my first cycle for another month and a half or so but I figured I'd get this post started and lay down my plans. I'm currently cutting and still gaining quite a bit of strength since I had been out of the gym for a couple months earlier this year. I'll update with current photos and lifts once I get closer to the cycle. I train for powerlifting and am currently running 5/3/1

Stats:

6'2 191lbs

InBody scan shows 6% body fat. I'm fairly lean but I have a hard time believing 6% yet it's supposedly a pretty accurate machine

 

Current lifts (lbs) all AMRAP sets:

OHP: 135x9

Deadlift: 440x8

Bench: 230x12

Squat: 300x13


First Cycle:

500mg Test E/w for 16 weeks

Aromasin on hand for AI

PCT 2 weeks after last shot: Nolvadex 40/40/20/20/20/20

23g drawing needle and 27g 1 1/4in pinning needle

My bloodwork also came in with interesting results. It shows my test levels at 8.4nmol/l which is borderline low yet I dont feel any of the symptoms of low T. I generally feel great, motivation is high, muscle and strength increasing and body fat stays low. Certainly curious what this will mean for my first cycle and the effect it'll have on me. I'm even considering lowering the weekly test dose based on this, like 300-350mg instead of 500mg. Thoughts?

Edited August 12, 2019 by GIcez

[ARUSH]

Looks like you did your homework.   Personally I'd keep my test at 500 for the cycle.   The first cycle is always the best.   Eat big and bring the intensity and you will be blow away.   

I get impatient pinning with a 25gauge needle and usually pin with a 23 gauge and  load with a 21g but hey if your oil flows through a 27gauge all the more power to you.   

[Guardian Dispensaries]

I agree, you did your homework.  I would add Nova throughout your cycle. Everybody reacts different to test and how the body absorbs the extra e. Taking the nova wont effect the results but will prevent any extra sides of rising e levels. I'm glad you have arom on hand just in case. Good luck bro ! 

Also see if you can get 18g needle for drawing and 23 or 22g for injecting. 

[ARUSH]

You are right about not being 6 % bodyfat though.  I'd give you at least in the 10-12% minimum.   I know you say you're currently cutting but are you going on a bulk with this first cycle?   How old are you?

[GIcez]

47 minutes ago, ARUSH said:

You are right about not being 6 % bodyfat though.  I'd give you at least in the 10-12% minimum.   I know you say you're currently cutting but are you going on a bulk with this first cycle?   How old are you?

I'm 28 and yes I'm absolutely going to bulk. The goal is to increase my lifts and put on mass.

Also, I'm gonna give the 27g needles a try and see how that goes. Honestly want to get away with the smallest needle I can and the MCT oil looks quite thin

[GIcez]

11 hours ago, Guardian Dispensaries said:

I agree, you did your homework.  I would add Nova throughout your cycle. Everybody reacts different to test and how the body absorbs the extra e. Taking the nova wont effect the results but will prevent any extra sides of rising e levels. I'm glad you have arom on hand just in case. Good luck bro ! 

Also see if you can get 18g needle for drawing and 23 or 22g for injecting. 

How would you dose Nolva on cycle? I'm considering this right now as it seems like a good idea to keep estrogen as high as tolerable to maximize gains. Also preemptively keeping any potential gyno at bay is certainly ideal.

[Guardian Dispensaries]

Hey bro, i would take 10 mg every other day. 

[ARUSH]

On 8/13/2019 at 8:49 AM, GIcez said:

I'm 28 and yes I'm absolutely going to bulk. The goal is to increase my lifts and put on mass.

Also, I'm gonna give the 27g needles a try and see how that goes. Honestly want to get away with the smallest needle I can and the MCT oil looks quite thin

Hey bro,  that's completely cool.   Here's a tip.   Even though a lot of us here have a lot of experience with all this and try and guide new people based on our experiences,   there's only one way to know what's best for you.   And that's to try it for yourself.

[Local Dipshit]

Lots of good advice here, but I’d run with 25ga pins as the 27’s you’ll probably be having a long ass time getting anything over a ml in. I use 25 and they’re perfect. 

[NorthernLifters]

Well done on doing your research and compiling a detailed post. I'll be follow up along. I am also going to promote you because you seem like a knowledgeable fellow and your log will help others 

Thank you to everyone who has been providing they input, 

[ARUSH]

Congrats on the promotion

[ARUSH]

On 8/12/2019 at 11:01 PM, Guardian Dispensaries said:

I agree, you did your homework.  I would add Nova throughout your cycle. Everybody reacts different to test and how the body absorbs the extra e. Taking the nova wont effect the results but will prevent any extra sides of rising e levels. I'm glad you have arom on hand just in case. Good luck bro ! 

Also see if you can get 18g needle for drawing and 23 or 22g for injecting. 

The only thing impersonally dont agree with is this.    

I dont have much time to elaborate right now but here's  a few points to support my c

Comment.  

1:Nolva can drop you IGF-1

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11299809

Here's some reading material for you

 

2:Nolva can cause hair lost

3:even though nolvadex is awesome for pct it can lower your libido  

 

That's just a few reasons I dont and wouldnt use nolvadex during your cycle.   

PS ok I'll admit it's too late for reason two I have none left lol

[Livin'Large]

On 8/14/2019 at 10:43 AM, ElectricRocker said:

Lots of good advice here, but I’d run with 25ga pins as the 27’s you’ll probably be having a long ass time getting anything over a ml in. I use 25 and they’re perfect. 

Agreed. Draw with a 1" 20Ga., and shoot with a 1" 25Ga. 

The 20 won't obliterate the stopper after multiple draws, and the 25 won't cause much, if any scar tissue.

If you can, throw in 25 mg of proviron ed to keep shbg low and it also keeps estrogen at bay. Just my opinion.

[Guardian Dispensaries]

14 hours ago, ARUSH said:

The only thing impersonally dont agree with is this.    

I dont have much time to elaborate right now but here's  a few points to support my c

Comment.  

1:Nolva can drop you IGF-1

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11299809

Here's some reading material for you

 

2:Nolva can cause hair lost

3:even though nolvadex is awesome for pct it can lower your libido

That's just a few reasons I dont and wouldnt use nolvadex during your cycle.   

PS ok I'll admit it's too late for reason two I have none left lol

Thats also great information, i guess it all depends how sensitive you are to e. I tend to get very sensitive nips and prone to gyno, so i always have it on hand a take once my test blasts are 500mg or over. 

[GainTrain]

I’ve only done a few cycles, I’m on my fourth. But every time I add a serm or ai my results decrease as does my “on” feeling. Then after a week or two my libido lowers. It’s my opinion they should be kept on hand but avoided if possible. 

[Guardian Dispensaries]

2 hours ago, GainTrain said:

I’ve only done a few cycles, I’m on my fourth. But every time I add a serm or ai my results decrease as does my “on” feeling. Then after a week or two my libido lowers. It’s my opinion they should be kept on hand but avoided if possible. 

Again it all depends. Some guys run 500mg or more of test on there cycles for 12 weeks, then run 250mg in between blasts. If you let you e get too high it can really fuck up all the hormone levels. Best thing to do as you said is to have them on hand and get you bloods tested to see where they are. 

[GainTrain]

Completely agree.

Ahhh. I loved my first cycle. Same as OP, 400-500 test for 10 weeks. What a game changer. It hits hard the first go or two!

[GIcez]

Little update since it's been awhile. Still going to run this cycle, in fact I'm planning my first pin this Sunday. Decided to delay it due to an elbow injury I got from BB benching. Tendonitis or some shit, not really sure what's going on there. Been able to flat DB bench recently without any issues though so I'm sticking with that atm. Gonna try messing around with form/technique to see if maybe I'm just doing it wrong. Anyway here are my pre cycle stats

183lbs

Squat 405x1

Deadlift 535x1

Flat DB Bench 110's 3x10

Excited to get started for my first cycle

[Rosconow]

You should blow up with 500mg test. I will echo some others on here though, and say inject with a 25 gauge. The speed/flow between a 25 to a 27 is quite a lot in my experience. Just my .02   . 

[GIcez]

Well, I'm official on steroids.

Had a friend pin my ass last night and there really wasn't much to it. Didn't feel the 27g needle at all but she did say it took quite a bit of effort to push the oil through. Gonna put an order in for 25g needles as you all have suggested to make things a little easier. Injection area is a little sore this morning but that's about it.

[GIcez]

First enhanced training session today, obviously still way too early to feel any difference. Running canditos 6 week powerlifting program with my own bodybuilding exercises afterwards.

Squat - 325 4x6

Deadlift - 410 2x6

Back/abs/legs bodybuilding accessories

Injection site feels like someones punched me in the ass but I guess that's what PIP is all about. Seems to be fading now though. Going to try warming the vial up and injecting more slowly next time to see if it helps at all.

 

Edited November 5, 2019 by GIcez

[GIcez]

Second pin was on Tuesday, pinned the other glute and still got PIP despite heating the vial and injecting more slowly. Must just be that virgin muscle PIP,  not much you can do. Right now I'm planning to rotate sites between glutes, VG and thighs. Really not looking forward to thigh PIP. RIP leg day

[MaskedMisery]

22 minutes ago, GIcez said:

Second pin was on Tuesday, pinned the other glute and still got PIP despite heating the vial and injecting more slowly. Must just be that virgin muscle PIP,  not much you can do. Right now I'm planning to rotate sites between glutes, VG and thighs. Really not looking forward to thigh PIP. RIP leg day

Are you still injecting with a 27g? My first cycle was almost the same as yours, PIP was insane the first couple of times, had to sleep in crazy positions to avoid any pain in my glutes. What did it for me is heating the vial and using the Z-Track method for injecting. After that, PIP became minimal and not as much annoying during the day

[Rosconow]

Yes good to mention the z-track. Just pull the skin over in one direction or the other then inject. When you pull the needle out and relax the skin, it will retract and you wont get any sub-q bleed, which results in pip everytime . 

[Guest]

I have nothing to add here as mentioned 25g pin  and the z-track is great I always use that way less chance of bleeding and you don’t lose a drop of that gear, all these gentlemen here have been through it follow the guidelines you learned here , an I applaud you for doing your homework that’s so nice to see a newbie not going in blind and then crying to us to fix their mistakes , but as others have said this is your show what works for us might not work for you , adjust accordingly and enjoy the ride man ! First cycle is always the best, I actually still enjoy a test only cycle now and then it feels great. And Congrats on the promotion brother you deserved it coming in here and taking the time to come educated . Hope to see you stay here , looking forward to seeing your progress.