optimal testosterone

Ok so if levels between 500 and 1100 are optimal that is a fair amount of ground between . So what is the advantages and disadvantages between being at the upper end of this range vs the lower?
What health and lifestyle factors are changed within this range?
Well for most guys 500 plus is enough to avoid low test symptoms like hot flushes, extreme low energy , very low libido,ed etc. However there is more to it than that .
Test is muscle building by dose so higher levels will tend to build more muscle all other factors being equal.
But what of health and lifestyle these are prime concerns.

So here is the argument for upper normal .

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Other doctors take this argument even further, advocating that TRT should be used to make men as vigorous as possible, regardless of age. Dr. Jeffry Life, the buff 72-year-old star of many shirtless ads, became the poster boy for the Las Vegas–based Cenegenics Medical Institute precisely because his tremendous physique demonstrates how synthetic testosterone can help men defy expectations of frailty and physical decline. Dr. Elizabeth Yurth, catering to Colorado's sports-enthusiast crowd at the Boulder Longevity Institute, says testosterone is "high-performance medicine" for people who don't want to grow old: "They want to be riding their bikes at 80." Her typical patient is a guy in his 40s or 50s who "can't keep up with his bike-riding buddies" – or with his wife in the bedroom. Testosterone can help change all that.
But it could also be argued that Yurth and Life are simply bringing men back up to the testosterone levels enjoyed by their forefathers. Population-wide, testosterone levels have dropped markedly in the past 20 years – 16 percent in 65- to 69-year-old men, for example. Obesity plays a role, since body fat helps turn testosterone into estrogen. But even when the research is corrected for weight and smoking, it suggests that other factors may be at play – environmental toxins, perhaps. A study from the University of California, for example, found that atrazine, a common pesticide, is so high in estrogen that it can transform an adult male frog into a fully reproducing female.
Some doctors, like Life, believe that medicine's current standard of "low" – defined as anything under 300 ng/dL, with 500 to 700 considered healthy for men under age 40 – is too low and that men should aim for a higher optimal target. Life likes to boost patients' testosterone to 800 to 1,000 ng/dL, pointing to studies that show that men with testosterone levels in the upper 25 percent of normal have a lower risk of chronic disease. "The typical story," Life explains, "is that you go first to a traditional MD and say, 'You know, I'm losing my edge. I'm going to the gym, but I dread it, and I'm losing muscle mass and strength, even though I'm working out, and I'm getting belly fat.' So they give you a blood test, and your hormone levels come back at 300. You're told you're normal, so you walk out thinking, 'I got normal testosterone. What's up?' What they won't tell you is that you're really a D student." And even if a doctor will treat you, Life adds, "he'll shoot for a new target of 350 to 400, making you a C student."

Actually I would argue that level below 300 are an f student .

So there is of course evidence that there are some health negatives to high normal test for instance prostate cancer .
The evidence on some other health issues is more mixed however and there is actually evidence supporting health benefits for high normal test . So do i just say go for it try to get your test to 1000 ? well no and the reason why is very interesting and little discussed. Coming up next post the reason you may want mid normal rather than high normal test..

Ok so in addition to this the evidence on risk taking behaviour extends to number of broken bones etc .

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se with higher levels of testosterone are more inclined to smoke, drink alcohol excessively and indulge in risky behavior that leads to injury. The biggest detriment to health by far is the tendency for high testosterone men to smoke.
In a study published 1997, researchers studied testosterone and health in a sample of 4,393 men between the ages of 32 and 44 who had served in the military between 1965 and 1971. The men were interviewed and medically examined. Testosterone was measured in plasma from blood drawn at 8am. Concentrations ranged from 53 to 1,500 ng/dl with an average of 679. Comparison of men with slightly below average levels of testosterone (400ng/dl) with men with slightly above average levels (800ng/dl) revealed significant differences in health indicators.
Men at the higher level were 45% less likely to have high blood pressure, 72% less likely to have experienced a heart attack, 8% less likely to have 3 or more colds in a year, and 45% less likely to rate their health as fair or poor.
On the other hand, men at higher levels were 25% more likely to report one or more injuries, 32% more likely to imbibe 5 or more drinks in a single day and 151% more likely to smoke.
It is not yet fully understood how testosterone benefits health or leads to behavior detrimental to health. It is clear, however, that men with higher testosterone levels are at higher risk for negative health outcomes. But there are many men with higher testosterone who don't engage in health risk behavior and who do realize testosterone-related health benefits.

Ok so i have already arguded that 400 is a bit low and 800 is hardly skyrocket but still very interesting .

The last paragraph bares more comment /
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It is not yet fully understood how testosterone benefits health or leads to behavior detrimental to health. It is clear, however, that men with higher testosterone levels are at higher risk for negative health outcomes. But there are many men with higher testosterone who don't engage in health risk behavior and who do realize testosterone-related health benefits.
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So it seems to me if you are a lifetime non smoker you are unlikely to suddenly start smoking because your test went up . On the other hand you may drink more or drive your car faster etc.

Now given what I have written on this thread many guys may wish to increase their test level .
I caution guys that trt has risks and i do believe natural increase is a far better option.

https://www.pegym.com/forums/erectil...tml?highlight=

Any comments.

Its the idiots running around injecting test and going out and drinking and taking coke that give steroids a bad name. I had low test in my 20s confirmed by a blood test . Symptoms were things like = no energy , no motivation , crap sex drive , skinnyfat look , catching colds and getting sick all the time . Started Trt and within 4 weeks I had all this extra energy and desire to get into the gym . My sex drive went through the roof , strength doubled , built a great physique and shedded a lot of fat . Cant remember the last time I had the cold . People treat me different now I get a lot more respect in person and a lot more female attention :)

It doesn't make u drink more or drive the car faster lol that's a load of crap .. so is roid rage .. them people are already nuts . Most guys I know , I'm talking some big juice bodybuilders on all sorts of gear year round are some of the most down to earth, quiet, helpful people u can meet.

I have had between 300 - 4000+ test in me at times over a 10 year period and always felt better on my TRT dose which peaks my levels around 1000 . That's when I feel brilliant and loving life , anything over that and the sides get harder to manage ,Anything under 500 and I feel out of whack shitty.

Low test normally comes with low estrogen which has its own bad sides like bone wasting.
If trt is done properly at the right dosages used with HCG for testicle size and function aswell as arimidex to keep estrogen in the low 20s Then that is a hell of a lot healthier than running around with low test , not only for ur physical wellbeing but also mental . Having the hormones optimized through regular blood tests just making sure everything is staying were it should be is the ticket to a long and healthy life .. The risky activity bit is true , that's how I ended up here with an injured penis haha . Seen a Pelvic floor pt today and she said my pelvic floor is a mess .. one session and I'm already feeling relief in 2 years .. I hope this will cure me

Ok so you feel and function better between 500 and 100o.

You admit to risky activity but I suspect supra normal levels lower ability to evaluate risk. You may well be driving more aggressively than you realise and the bodybuilder attitude to drug taking is a worry.

In any case your post largely bares out what I have been saying.

Just a note here some guys will have test levels and issues that require medical intervention thus hrt /trt. In many cases though natural methods can be used to get test up over the 500 mark and drugs are not required.

Yes me personally around 1000 feels great . The only risky activity that I was involved in was manic sex , that's all I used to think about before this injury . I was a predator , stalking gyms and online for talent . After the injury happened I stopped going to the gym , lost over a stone and my confidence hit the dirt .

Some people might act the maggot while on steroids but I think its more there personality to begin with . There is some guys walking around my gym with massive egos .. they are normally the ones that also speed in there motors and get wasted on drink and coke at the weekends and start fights . The guys I mix with are good decent down to earth folk with a passion for bodybuilding , the complete opposite. So I would say its person dependant .

Pegasus is right unless you have a medical problem like I have its not worth it . Its very hard to dial in and there is a lot of ups and downs . Its like chemical warfare trying to keep things in that sweet spot especially without blood work . I have had my estrogen so high I have cried listening to songs or so low my joints were clicking like snapping your fingers .. horrible sides lol . Once controlled I'm feeling great .

There are many ways to naturally raise your testosterone like following a high fat diet , supplementing with vit D and zinc , weightlifting . Then by bringing down your estrogen levels through things like broccoli , dark leafy veg , the supplement dim plus zinc is known to work .