Hey guys. Here’s an idea I have for a low-key bulking cycle. I’m not looking to blow up too fast, just a nice boost. I’m 27 years old, 175lbs, been training for about five years, more seriously in the last year. Just started with a pro coach to get some more hands-on instruction. I did a cycle in Feb-March with Test E 500mg/week, which was fine, but my diet wasn’t great and my training definitely could have been better. My intention with lowering the dosage is to really focus on good diet and training and not use the gear as too much of a crutch, and not be too hard on my system. So this is what I’m thinking:
10 Week Cycle:
Test E 250mg/week
Deca 300mg/week
Anavar 50mg/day
Question 1) Would taking Anavar be superfluous in addition to the test and deca? Do I really need it?
Question 2) Do I need to run an AI with these numbers? If so, at what dosage and frequency?
Question 3) I have some HCG on hand that I’d like to incorporate; I’ve never used it. I understand it can be useful towards the end of the cycle to avoid a big crash, which would be ideal.
Question 4) Is a standard Nolvadex PCT adequate for this kind of cycle?
I’m still about 6 weeks out from starting, so I have plenty of time to figure this out. Let me know what y’all think.
First, good concept, good doses given history. Just wanted to start on a positive before…
We all should really only add one new compound at a time but you are adding two known as mild on the system. Had to say that for the idiots who will find a way to twist what I say.
1 Is anavar superfluous? No not at all. However I refer you to above statement. Will anavar make or break this cycle? No. Having a DHT based compound in a Deca or npp stack is a good idea and can help combat the old Deca dick. I must say I have years of experience and multiple Trinity stack cycles under my belt (one from each of the three AAS families). I have never ran Deca simply because of the fact I am scared to have a limp dick. But I am planning a npp run soon. Just wanted to make sure I have that in there so you know where your response is coming from. For the record I love Tren (decas dry cousin) but like I said scared of Deca. Go figure.
The disclaimer for this answer is, we only KNOW if we are at a healthy estrogen level IF we have blood work. Now your doses are lower but I would still have some on hand. Something to think about, Deca is a progesterone or progestenic. That causes it’s own kind of gyno. As far as I understand if the estrogen is low then it’s much harder for the progesterone gyno to happen, again this is one of the reasons I shy away from Deca. Look up cabergoline, pramipexole, and bromocriptine they help you deal with the progestenic activity. When I take tren (also a progestenic activity) I use 600mgs of vitamin B6 per day, it helps. To be on the safe side if I were you I would take the B6 no matter what and seriously consider an AI. A real mild dose should be good. You can try research chemicals for those other three if your “source” does not carry them. At the very least know where to order from before you start the cycle and if something flares then order. Also keep your eyes open for leaky nipples, the progesterone does something and triggers or something to the prolactin and bam we can squirt milk out of our nipples. That can happen without any gyno like puffy growth, but is rarer without it. As far as an AI dose at 250 mgs a week of test, I think 0.25 mgs of arimidex with your shot should suffice. But I refer you to the opening of the paragraph.
3HGC, two schools of thought. One take throughout cycle to prevent shutdown the other is a big blast the week or so before PCT. The throughout cycle is the newer method most seem to use. I would read up on both. I find my wallet ends up making up my mind more than I would like so. Ultimately it’s a personal choice and no way to KNOW until you are trying to recover.
Is Nolvadex enough? Well how was your recovery from the first cycle? Unfortunately there is no way to know if you will have issues until you are HAVING the issue. Again Deca is one of those roulette compounds, most have no issues then that one guy has a limp dick for life, permanently shutdown and stuck on trt for some screwy “six week Deca wonder cycle.” If you are worried then have some extra Nolvadex on hand, you can always run it an extra week or two. I have seen studies where it continued to increase natural testosterone production for up to three months, but don’t just go take it for three months it can desensitize you to it.
Now that I answered directly and hopefully caught your attention. Most folks recommend a ratio of 2 to 1 with test and Deca. Meaning twice as much test than Deca. They say it helps combat the Deca dick. Again I am too chicken shit to run Deca but I have read and read and read. Not to mention the group of like minded gym junkies I associate with.
I do flat out recommend as strongly as possible to run test another two weeks past the Deca. Also if you can afford it really think about Deca for 12 weeks and test for 14 or even another week or two. I wouldn’t go past that though. Just with esters attached you won’t even get to the good stuff until week 4-5 and it won’t really sing until 7-8.
If you can only do ten weeks of each then make sure you wait three weeks to started PCT. If you cut the Deca a week or two before test then it is just a two week wait for PCT. Go read up on esters and half life if you don’t understand why you wait three weeks for Deca.
Also I didn’t see a time frame for the anavar so I assume it’s for the whole cycle. That is a bit long for any oral even a mild one like var. Go get some TUDCA to flush your liver or if you can’t then at least get milk thistle. It’s available at Wally world and neighborhood pharmacy supplement shelves.
Hard to go wrong with test/deca/var as a stack. I’ve used deca therapeutically at 100mg/w and found it to be very beneficial. I’m thinking 300mg/w will give you a nice boost without being too overwhelming in the side effects department. That said, you don’t actually have a foundational compound upon which you can build a cycle. I love the low dose plans I’ve seen and have in fact run one with just test at TRT and 20-30mg of dbol. Good strength, no sides, decent increase in size. But I’m on TRT, which means I don’t have to worry about what gets lost during pct. For you it’s a different animal.
That deca dose is fine, but the length is not nearly enough to justify the recovery period. You will be cutting it off about three weeks after it hits you full force. Deca takes a longer time to show you results, which is why guys who want shorter nandrolone cycles generally use NPP instead. I ran deca for 16 weeks and it wasn’t until week six that I started to feel the joint relief from it. If I had stopped at week 10 I would have been disappointed with how brief the actual benefit was. Now muscle growth and joint relief are different things, so perhaps my personal experience is not as relevant to your plans. But longer esters almost always require longer cycles. You would get more out of 10 weeks of NPP vs 10 weeks of deca, net-net.
I ran Anavar for 14 weeks—as prescribed by my doctor—and had zero issues with liver or cholesterol. But I have naturally great cholesterol levels. So another person could run it for six weeks and absolutely wreck their numbers. It’s very individual. I would err on the side of caution and not run it out for the full 10 weeks if I were you. Eight would be the max, and even that might be pushing it. Before you do anything you’ll need to have blood work done and have a good understanding of your baselines. Otherwise it’s just a little dangerous to run this stuff and guess along the way.
Thanks for the info guys. The more I do research, the more I think want to drop the deca altogether. I’m not in a position to have blood work done (no health insurance at the moment), which is one reason why I want to keep the gear levels low. My new idea is to run Test E 250mg/week for 12 weeks, run dbol 50mg/day weeks 1-4, adex .5mg twice a week weeks 1-6, HCG 250iu twice a week weeks 6-12. Standard Nolva PCT. I have the adex stopping at week six bc after dbol is phased out I won’t really need it at those test levels, right?