Attention! The administration of the project does not approve or encourage you to use anabolic steroids. The use of anabolic steroids can cause irreparable harm to your health. This article is for informational purposes only.
Post cycle therapy is a complex of drugs and measures used after a course of anabolic steroids (AS), and aimed at restoring the work of the hypothalamus-pituitary-gonadal (HPG) axis, and as a result, the production of one’s own testosterone. Competently made up and started in time, post cycle therapy (PCT) will allow you to restore your hormonal system after a steroid cycle. After using ANY steroid, you need a PCT. This is an indisputable fact. And those “experienced” athletes who will advise you that “everything will recover by itself” or “PCT using tribulus” are just idiots. Don’t listen to them.
Content
- When to start Post Cycle Therapy
- Antiestrogens on post cycle therapy and their mechanism of action
- Clomiphene (clomed) or tamoxifen on post cycle therapy?
- Clomiphene dosages for post cycle therapy
- Mesterolone (proviron) during post cycle therapy
- Aromatase inhibitors on post cycle therapy
- Tribulus on post cycle therapy
- Zinc and vitamin E on post cycle therapy
- Video about post cycle therapy
When to start Post Cycle Therapy
If with short esters, everything is pretty clear. For example, after testosterone propionate, post cycle therapy should begin 7 days after the last injection. Then with long esters, everything is much more complicated, and it will be more correct to determine the time of the start of PCT by taking blood tests.
Antiestrogens on post cycle therapy and their mechanism of action
The main drugs on the correct post cycle therapy are antiestrogens – clomiphene (clomed), tamoxifen (tamox), toremifene, raloxifene.
All these drugs are needed to block estradiol receptors. After blocking the receptors in the hypothalamus and pituitary gland, when the body stops “seeing” estradiol, the active production of gonadotropin will begin, which, when it enters the pituitary gland cells, will activate the production of luteinizing hormone (LH) and follicle stimulating hormone (FSH). And gonadotropins, in turn, will activate the production of testosterone and spermatogenesis in the testicles. Later, testosterone will be converted to estradiol, but since the upper links of the hypothalamus-pituitary-testes chain still do not see it, the circle will begin again: gonadotropin – LH, FSH – testosterone and spermatogenesis. And so time after time.
Over time (and it will take at least 3 weeks), the body will get used to this rhythm of production and stabilize. After that, you need to stop taking the antiestrogen, controlling the situation with blood tests. During this period, it is very important to keep estradiol and prolactin under control, and not allow strong jumps, because they can interfere with the consolidation of the results achieved.
Clomiphene (clomed) or tamoxifen on post cycle therapy?
Of the four antiestrogens presented above, clomiphene, tamoxifen or toremifene are the most popular. Toremifene is the less preferred choice as it is the weakest of the options. Therefore, the choice usually consists of clomiphene or tamoxifen.
And most athletes choose tamoxifen, naturally because of the lower price. But tamoxifen is much more toxic than clomiphene. Also, in 33% of male patients taking tamoxifen, there is a decrease in libido and a deterioration in the quality of erections. Tamoxifen is able to increase sex hormone-binding globulin (SHBG) levels much more than clomiphene. And tamoxifen is able to increase the number of progesterone receptors. Which may be reflected in an increase in the probability of side effects after the use of progestogens (nandrolone or trenbolone). That is why after the use of these drugs, recovery on tamoxifen is not necessary, and it is better to stop your choice on clomiphene.
In addition to the low price, the advantages of tamoxifen also include the fact that it blocks estradiol receptors throughout the body, and clomiphene does this only in relation to the hypothalamus and pituitary gland. In this regard, taking tamoxifen can play into your hands, for example, to prevent the development of gynecomastia.
Sometimes, it is necessary and possible to use two antiestrogen together, but this is very rarely required. For example, if recovery is predicted after a very long steroid course. And combining two antiestrogen, without good reason, is not worth it.
From all this, we can conclude that clomid will still be preferable to post cycle therapy than tamoxifen. The price difference is not so high, but your liver and other organs will thank you if you choose clomiphene for post cycle therapy.
Clomiphene dosages for post cycle therapy
Depending on the number of drugs used on the steroid cycle, as well as their dosages, clomipehen should be taken in different amounts and for different durations.
The average scheme for taking clomiphene, depending on the severity of the steroid course:
Very heavy course – 3 days of 150 mg / 12 days of 100 mg / 15 days of 50 mg / 15 days of 25 mg.
Heavy course – 15 days at 100 mg / 15 days at 50 mg / 15 days at 25 mg.
Medium course – 30 days at 50 mg / 15 days at 25 mg.
Light course – 15 days at 50 mg / 15 days at 25 mg / 15 days at 25 mg (every 2 days).
Very light course – 15 days at 50 mg / 15 days at 25 mg.
The degree of severity for each course is individual. For example, a course such as turinabol solo, with a dosage of 40 mg per day and lasting for 6-8 weeks, can be classified as a light course in terms of severity. If testosterone, for example, propionate, is added to this course at a dosage of 350 mg per week, then the severity of the course will already be medium, or even closer to heavy.
Mesterolone (proviron) during post cycle therapy
You can find a large number of articles in the Internet, the authors of which advise the use of mesterolone (proviron) during post cycle therapy. But mesterolone is an androgen, this is even written in the instructions for use. No androgen can restore the work of the hypothalamus-pituitary-gonadal axis. Androgen can only overwhelm it. Therefore, the use of mesterolone (proviron) during post cycle therapy is meaningless, because your body will be in a state of “on a steroid course”.
Aromatase inhibitors on post cycle therapy
The use of aromatase inhibitors on post cycle therapy is just as pointless as the use of mesterolone on PCT. There are a lot of articles in the Internet that the use of letrozole (the most popular and strong aromatase inhibitor) helps to restore testosterone production. These articles are supported by a number of studies. And indeed it is. But these studies were conducted on people in old age, overweight people, or completely healthy people. Yes, indeed, the use of letrozole leads to an increase in testosterone production, stimulates the production of LH and reduces estradiol. This has been shown by research. That’s just they were carried out on people whose body was not “killed” with the use of anabolic steroids. These were ordinary people with low testosterone, either due to age or an increased percentage of body fat.
If your hormonal system is suppressed by taking steroids, you can restore it only by taking antiestrogens, and not by reducing estradiol. And if you still decide to restore it with aromatase inhibitors, you will get: erectile dysfunction, bad mood, poor appetite, increased cholesterol levels, depression, weakness, joint pain. All these are satellites of a low level of estradiol in the blood.
It is worth noting that if after correct post cycle therapy (using antiestrogen) you still have high estradiol, then the use of aromatase inhibitors is the place to be. As a rule, after completion of PCT and having a high level of estradiol in the blood, an aromatase inhibitor is prescribed for a period of several weeks (2-3 weeks). Naturally, the dosage is selected based on the blood analyzes.
Tribulus on post cycle therapy
There are quite a few articles in the Internet, the authors of which advise doing post cycle therapy on tribulus solo. Yes indeed, tribulus facilitates the production of testosterone. But only in a healthy person, whose hormonal system is “not killed” by taking steroids. Tribulus can be used on PCT, but only as an aid. The basis of any PCT should be an antiestrogen.
The dosage of tribulus is usually prescribed in the range of 1000-1500 mg, in terms of saponins.
Zinc and vitamin E on post cycle therapy
These vitamins and minerals, along with tribulus, are also good for post cycle therapy as an aid. Zinc is a mineral that has a positive effect on testosterone production. Vitamin E is a vitamin that stimulates spermatogenesis and is an antioxidant. The dosage of zinc is usually prescribed in the region of 50 mg.
The dosage of vitamin E is in the region of 400-500 IU.
