No concerns re: atrophy, reasons to keep HCG in the mix?

A few notes: I'm just starting TRT and have been prescribed HCG as part of my protocol for the reasons outlined on this forum! I'm quite unconcerned with testicle size altogether (aesthetically I would be happy with being more... compact... in that department in general) and have no wish to have more children at my age and place in life.

Is it safe to minimize my hcg dosage, skip it altogether, or do I lose certain other benefits (i.e. pregnenolone production)? I'd also like normal or even improved ejaculatory function and am not sure how the hcg/atrophy dynamic affects this.

Finally, is it true that the hcg is going to keep overall testosterone higher because it is stimulating endogenous production? Doctor explained that overall test would be higher with hcg but I wasn't clear on the details.

Thanks in advance.

You could chose to just start TRT without HCG first and see how you feel in the first 3 months.

Some men eventually get concerned about testicle size since they may recede into the body while you are having sex. That can be painful. But this issue may only occur in men with small testes to start with.

There are other benefits to HCG besides improved fertility and reversal of testicular atrophy. They are all anecdotal since not a single study has measured them. These benefits include improve mood, stamina and sex drive. There are LH receptors all through our bodies including the brain.

Having said that, I think starting with TRT alone first may be a practical decision for those not concerned about testicular size and fertility. You can always bring it later into the protocol.

Gene and others on here use small doses of HCG at 125 IU per day of 250 IU twice or three times per week.

I am a 22 year testosterone user, so those doses do little for me. I use 500 IU twice per week plus TRT as shown in this video:

https://www.excelmale.com/?s=149-Ho...o-Preserve-Fertility-Libido-and-Testicle-Size

SouthCT - I am going to assume you read my link and paper on HCG.

Probably the biggest reason, besides keeping your testes alive, for the use of HCG, is that it is critical for activating the P450 Side Chain Cleavage Enzyme.

This enzyme is responsible for converting Cholesterol into Pregnenelone.

Pregnenelone is the "mother of all hormones" and supports all three metabolic pathways.

Without it all hormonal pathways are compromised.

Sure you can supplement Pregnenelone and DHEA but if you don't metabolize it correctly...guess what?