You can find stated half-life of ~8 hours and ~24 hours. Obviously different criteria. Because it binds to aromatase, the half-life of the effect is going to be very different from the half-life of the drug. It gets bound to proteins in the blood and I can’t tell is a paper is detecting protein bound drug and have not seen what the bio-availability of protein bound drug is. There is talk that half-life is short for men VS women. We always have to be open to variability and should be on the lookout for dosing that is to high and dose refinement via E2 labs is really needed.
I have seen guys getting good results from 12.5mg EOD dosing.
25mg could easily be too much. The amount of aromasin in your body takes a few days to reach steady state and cab be a time delay in seeing E2 getting too low, then you are stuck with the drug in your system that takes time to drop if you reduce dose.
For anyone who dropped into this thread: Anastrozole is typically suggested as only 1mg per week is typically needed, sometimes 1/4mg per week. In many settings, anastrozole is least cost. Aromasin has so much hype that does not make sense; when then does one need so much more of it? Rarely, guys do not get balanced on an anastrozole and feel better on aromasin. Some find aromasin ineffective. Variability rules sometimes.
I have used 12.5mg EOD day before for 2 weeks and found it to be insufficient. It was the first A.I I ever used, at 4 weeks in of my Testosterone injections. I then dosed it every day at 12.5mg for a week, and I still wasn’t low enough on the E2 - was still bloated, emotional, puffy, and felt like a brick.
I’ve been taking 25mg per day, split into 2 12.5mg doses in the AM and PM, for 6 days now. This’ll get me in range. The last time I used 25mg per day (On 250mg Testosterone per week) my E2 was 25 pg/ml. Will verify with bloods this Saturday. But I certainly won’t crush it on this dosage.
In terms of symptoms - no improvement from where I was. I have dropped 2-3 kg of water weight though, but still feel slightly bloated. I have read that it takes 10 days for the drug to reach peak steady state levels. Not looking anywhere near as fat or puffy now I’m back on an A.I.
The lack of improvement in how I feel is still disappointing. I am hoping it just takes time for the body to adjust to the lowered E2 levels - otherwise I’m shit out of luck if this isn’t the issue.
Update: It’s been 10 days that I’ve been on 12.5mg Aromasin twice a day, one in the AM and one in the PM. Total 25mg per day.
My E2 Estradiol result came back today. It’s now 83pmol/L, which is 22.6pg/ml. The test was done using an LCMS sensitive assay. Perfect.
I am currently pinning 87.5mg M W F, for a total of 262.5mg per week. Again, I know this is beyond replacement.
So far not a lot of improvement but mood has felt stable today. Also, I am leaner and am not bloated at all. The difference there has been very noticeable.
Also taking Kelp, which has 250mcg of Iodine in it. However I might switch to iodized salt, as I think the Kelp is causing intestinal issues (constipation).
I will keep everything the same now, and see how things go over the next 5-6 weeks. Any and all suggestions appreciated along the way.
Okay mate, thanks for your input. Perhaps you crushed your estrogen though when you took your A.I?
I can’t not use an A.I in my current situation, as my E2 skyrockets fast. I gain weight very very quickly, and my face puffs up. I also tend to feel hot and heavy all the time, and my mood deteriorates. This leads me to believe I need an A.I.
I’ve been talking to a few docs online, and have seen another anecdotal report of a guy on cycle who feels amazing with E2 between 80-100pmol. I am convinced 80-100pmol is the sweet spot, which is smack bang in the 20-30 range I see spouted online.
Is 250mcg of Iodine per day via Kelp enough? I get selenium through canned tuna, beef, Greek yoghurt, milk.
I have read in your thyroid basics sticky that Iodine Replacement doses are much much higher. I am unsure whether to up my dosage or whether 250mcg per day is sufficient. Not sure how bad my deficiency is?
Regarding morning and afternoon temps - I have been measuring consistently. I am never above 97.0F. Ever.
Furthermore, really unsure whether to use T4 still and hope it converts to fT3, and that rT3 doesn’t interfere. I haven’t had any trauma this year at all and haven’t dieted in 7 months.
That said, my free T3/T4 numbers seem good anyway? But TSH is very high at 6. I don’t know if T4 would help even if it worked?
Again, have read the thyroid basics sticky. I am still uncertain of which approach I need to take in regards to thyroid. My current one seems on the right track but further instruction would be appreciated.