Weight gain on Testosterone

[John B. Parker]

Have not posted in a while. Just to update, within the last month, my endo switched me off of Clomid and onto injections. I am doing Test Cypionate 100mg weekly intramuscular, no labs scheduled for a while so not sure the impact on my levels. I was testing around 500 on the Clomid, but estriadiol was a little high and I was not really noticing any benefit. My endo is a slow and steady guy. OK, I can live with that. I may be experiencing more night time erections and some small improvement in erection quality in general. Not much else so far. I had been experiencing a hard time losing weight on the Clomid, but have gained nearly 10 lbs in the past month since starting injections, seriously not the direction I need to go. I have searched and seen several threads where Nelson has said that some men experience weight gain initially. There has been no change in dietary habilts. Generally low-carb with an occasional stumble, but no different than the past two years. As much as I would like to think it is muscle, I'm not delusional. I am looking for confirmation that this is indeed a possible temporary side effect and water weight gain and for some idea when it might begin to turn around.

 

[Nelson Vergel]

John

How is your blood pressure? Do you think you are holding water? What is the dose of T you are using?

 

[John B. Parker]

I have been taking Lisinopril for a while now and my bp was a little elevated on my last regular Dr visit last week, but bottom number still in the 80's, but had been in the 70's since going on medication. I am doing Test Cypionate 100mg weekly intramuscular. No labs scheduled until just before my next visit in August. I am sure that does not meet with your approval, but I'm a patient guy. Been dealing with this for many years already so a few weeks is no biggie. I don't know if I am holding water, I get swelling in my hands on occasion anyway and with warmer weather here not all that unusual.

 

[Gene Devine]

Water retention can be a sign of elevated estrogen levels.

Do you have any other symptoms of elevated Estrogen?

Check out the stickies in the forums to learn more about estrogen management...I have a paper in the stickies on just this subject.

 

[John B. Parker]

One of the reasons the Endo switched me off Clomid is he said that often it raised Estrogen as well as Test. He is not against AI's but very conservative. No idea what my E levels are since switching to injections and won't know until August. It would not surprise me if they stay up and will need to be dealt with. I will re-visit the stickies, thanks.

 

[Cooper]

I have had the same issues with weight. Numbers look great including E2 number, diet good, exercise on regular basis including cardio, but still not dropping any weight and still quite a bit of belly fat. This is while on injections. When I was on gel I followed same exercise routine, diet, etc ..... and I lost all my belly fat and was much leaner. Not sure why this but I do see others on injections experiencing same thing. I am thinking it may have something to do with higher DHT levels that gels seem to provide?

 

[James]

Hang in there John. I gained a whopping 20 pounds within 2 months of 160mg weekly injections of cyp with absolutely no change in diet/exercise. I muscled my way through it and have since lost 10 of the 20, still with no change in diet/exercise. Be patient.

 

[Nelson Vergel]

I have searched a lot for studies that explain why water retention is so much more common in some men than others when starting testosterone replacement. I have only found one that was done in men with low thyroid function who were exposed to growth hormone alone, testosterone alone and GH+T combination. They speculate that either GH or testosterone may affect water balance (increasing water outside the cells or extracellular water) by an effect on kidney tubules.

http://press.endocrine.org/doi/abs/10.1210/jc.2005-0553

I have been reading a few bodybuilding sites that say that increasing water intake may help decrease water retention. Also, some bodybuilders use diuretics once in a while to decrease water retention.

I find that when I consume more carbs than I should, my water retention considerably goes up. Eating meats, eggs, dark green vegetables, nuts, etc and avoiding sweets, sodas, white breads/crackers, high salt consumption and pasta also help me not hold water so much.

 

[gabearroyo1114]

This is exactly my problem, I got on TRT gained weight felt great and then stopped the TRT then gained all the weight back. Now I'm back on TRT trying to figure out to how to get back to how I was. Does anyone have an idea how I can get back to the way I was? I have been doing exactly the same everything nothing has changed.

 

[CoastWatcher]

This is exactly my problem, I got on TRT gained weight felt great and then stopped the TRT then gained all the weight back. Now I'm back on TRT trying to figure out to how to get back to how I was. Does anyone have an idea how I can get back to the way I was? I have been doing exactly the same everything nothing has changed.

Can you start another thread, and share any labs? Provide your TRT protocol?

 

[Helboi]

I too experienced weight gain. But my appetite went up to match for the first 2 months of TRT (gained a good 15 pounds). I was eating like a teenager again, particularly milk...I swear I could down a half gallon day. I think in my case I had been at low T so long (my initial test was 61!!!) that my muscle and bone density had taken a serious hit and all of the milk protein and extra calories were needed to build me back up.

 

[sebco]

I started a week and a half ago and I have gained a good 4 pounds. I've tracking my calories for months, so i know my diet hasn't change at all, and I am doing same routine as before.
I don't think is water retention or at least I haven't notice any swelling neither on fingers or my ankles. I've notice that the weight gain always comes the day after my injections. I do two subq injections a week of 80 cc of t cyp and 500 UI of HCG.

 

[Henry]

Damn, I guess I'm different. I actually lost weight. I was at 228 and went down to 188.

But I had the bellyfat issues that came with low T and once I got on, it took a while, but the bellyfat went away.