HOY-Because I HAD to try it...

[rono]

Hi All, (10/13/2022)

So, this is not so fun right now... but there is a mix of good and bad news.

Just finished another full cycle with he 5 days on and 1 day off. Been on the sub for 2.5 months.

Good news:

• Mood is pretty good
  
• Mental clarity is pretty good
  
• Motivation is ok (could be a lot better) 
  
• Distraction isn't too bad, but it's not great
  
• Able to perform sexually
  
• Weight is staying constant - it had dropped and I was certain I was losing muscle mass, now I'm staying pat
  
• Resting heartrate is great
  
• Blood pressure is in the sweet spot, 
  

Bad news:

• low sex drive - I don't even think about sex unless it is 'time' and I have to -- so not like me in the past, just glad I can perform
  
• Strength is terrible -- for a couple weeks I was unmotivated to work out, BUT I still did. Early on, I was tearing up the gym and getting back to my pre-covid strength. Now my strength has dropped at least 20%
  
• Endurance is down
  
• Pain in my shoulders in spite of the fact I'm doing less exercise with less weights.
  
• Exercise is becoming a drag because of the decreased strength, endurance and pain... I'm wondering if I should take a break from even trying because I'm seeing the opposite of progress. It's not a plateau--I've seen these before, this is worse. I'm suddenly struggling to lift weights that I was able to lift easily right after my bout with covid.
  

I've tried the things Shannon suggested, talking to my subconscious and trying to get it to execute and it doesn't seem to be responding. 

This is starting to feel like a see-saw. I can have the beneficial sexual effects and strength OR I can choose mental clarity. 

@Shannon: I'm getting frustrated cause of the lack of positive change (and the negative changes in strength), so far I'm still trying, but I'm starting to wonder if I should try adding back in some parts of my doctor's longevity protocol.

What do you think about me going back on:

1. Peptides that encourage your body to boost Growth Hormone
   
2. Peptides that help induce deep sleep
   
3. Testosterone injections - could do a low-level like 200mg rather than 500mg 2x/wk
   
4. HCG - could do half doses to see if it picks up the slack
   

I'm concerned now-- I'm watching my body change from cut and strong-looking gradually to 'old man belly' and weak-looking shoulders and legs. At my age will this experiment lose me ground I can't get back?

When I started the experiment I had high hopes and expectations. Now I'm wondering when the magic will happen. 

Maybe I just need a pep talk, or some tweak to my process? If I don't see any change in the next couple days, I'll start experimenting with changing the volume around since lowering it modified the effect and got me the mental clarity back, maybe alternating days low volume one night higher volume another night will coax more effects out.

Cheers,
RonO