New Member-41, Trying to decide whether to do this

[scoobydont]

Hello everyone, I am a 41 year old male, avid runner, biker and amateur but fairly competitive endurance athlete. I average 10-11 hours of pretty-intense cardio a week. I noticed that over the past five years my libido has decreased significantly-it's still there but nothing like it used to be-and my mood has been down. I also had a stress fracture in my femur from running 85 miles a week. Anyways, I got a blood test and my total T was 252ng/dl. Doctor said "you could cut the cardio by 75 percent and your levels would probably go back up to normal on their own over a few months, or you could try 10mg/day subcutaneous testosterone cypionate, but be advised, this is probably a life-long commitment." I really enjoy all the running and biking, and if I do this I am going to be ineligible for a lot of races if they ever come back, because I couldn't get a theraputic use exemption because my doctor thinks my low-T is being cause by all the exercise. My body fat is already very low, and you can probably imagine so is my waist circumference and BMI. My cholesterol and PSA are normal. My TSH was a little high, also probably from all the exercise. I have the prescription, but I am still hesitant. I'd love to hear others opinions on what I should do. Thanks!

 

[Golfboy307]

I posted on the other thread but here is my advice somewhat on the other side at Age 53: before you commit to TRT, you should cut back your mileage and training and see what your levels are in a few months. Excessive hard training affects your body, with both benefits and side effects. You are now entering the age where the side effects may not be worth it. It will get tougher as you go from 40 to 50 on your body. With that low of T, your E2 also may be low, which can lead to stress fractures. Yes, you can go on TRT, but as a competitor you will be ineligible for high level racing. I am middle of the pack guy, so I didn't care.

If you do try TRT, make sure you commit to several months to see if you feel better once your levels have stabilized. 100mg per week, spread over 2-3 doses is a great place to start.

Not an easy decision, but I am happier at exercising now that I am not running 2-3 marathons per year and training all of the time. Food for thought.

 

[Loki]

I will keep it short and sweet.

YES!

I can't even imagine how it would feel with T that low. You have no idea how bad you feel now until you get your T levels in check...

 

[scoobydont]

Yes, my E2 was also very low, 9 pg/ml. I am definitely an endurance exercise addict. Basically a doctor told me have the male equivalent of when female endurance athletes train so hard their periods stop. It's tough because I really love the 6-7 hours of sleep, two workouts a day bike run swim life style. As far as how I feel, I don't feel that bad honestly. Libido is low, but well, this is going to sound crazy but I like exercise way more than sex. My energy levels are ok. My upper body strength has gone down a little over the last 5 years-I used to be able to do 30 strict pull ups and now I can do 16-18, but I don't feel that bad. I got a big ego boost from winning or placing high up in the masters division in races in the past year and a half-just this past year I've run a 16 minute 5k, a 1:15 half marathon and a 4:50 mile. That said I have a lot of joint pain, a little bit of hip arthritis, osteitis pubis, and occasional sciatica that remind me how old I am. I don't know what TRT will do to all of this-It's not like my times are even testosterone dependent, all female pro runners are faster than me. Will it fix my joint pain and make running pain free again? Should I try quitting endurance exercise, eat more, lift weights three times a week for two months and get retested? At 252 ng/dl, I'm definitely a candidate for TRT but again if I take it I'll be ineligible for certified races because me deficiency is a result of training so no therapeautic use exemption for me. Arrg.

 

[fifty]

You will win more races on TRT.

US Masters Star Kevin Castille Banned Four Years for Steroid Use

Castille, who holds world 45+ records of 14:11 and 29:44 on the track, was banned after testing positive at the 2019 USATF Masters 10K Champs.

www.letsrun.com

 

[Vince]

It will be interesting to see if you took 3 to 7 days off of training. And then get your levels checked.At least you would know what affect your endurance training is having on you. It may not be affecting your testosterone levels at all or it may be having a huge impact.

 

[scoobydont]

It will be interesting to see if you took 3 to 7 days off of training. And then get your levels checked.At least you would know what affect your endurance training is having on you. It may not be affecting your testosterone levels at all or it may be having a huge impact.

I could definitely try that, but from what I've read it can take a few months of reduced training to make levels come back (if they are going to, and it's true that they might not). I got my levels tested 3 years ago when I was not training as much, and I was at 465 ng/dl. I have a friend who is an endocrinologist who I talked this over with (not the prescriber for the TRT) she told me to cut back on training eat more, stop skipping desert etc, and put on 5 lbs of body fat and she though my levels would go back to the mid 400s.

 

[scoobydont]

You will win more races on TRT.

US Masters Star Kevin Castille Banned Four Years for Steroid Use

Castille, who holds world 45+ records of 14:11 and 29:44 on the track, was banned after testing positive at the 2019 USATF Masters 10K Champs.

www.letsrun.com

I might, but I would be breaking the rules, and if I attracted enough attention to get tested (unlikely because I mostly do smaller, local races) I would get a ban just like him.

 

[Vince]

I could definitely try that, but from what I've read it can take a few months of reduced training to make levels come back (if they are going to, and it's true that they might not). I got my levels tested 3 years ago when I was not training as much, and I was at 465 ng/dl. I have a friend who is an endocrinologist who I talked this over with (not the prescriber for the TRT) she told me to cut back on training eat more, stop skipping desert etc, and put on 5 lbs of body fat and she though my levels would go back to the mid 400s.

I wouldn’t consider mid 400s a good level. If that is the best you can do, I would seriously consider trt. I’m sure having good testosterone levels, would help in your recovery. It would be that much easier to enjoy your training.

 

[Golfboy307]

Wow, those are some really fast times. You are serious Masters contender! I can tell you that for me going on TRT has not done much for the little bits of pain and minor injuries that come with hard training. However, it does give you a bunch more energy, VO capacity hence why it is illegal in the major competitions. My times got much better after I started, and I was able to put on some muscle again.

If you stay in that 200-400 level for the next several years, with low e2, you may run into more problems health wise regardless of your training levels.

There aren't any races right now, nor the foreseeable future, so if you wanted to give it a shot (no pun intended) for several months you can see if you notice a difference.