maintaing after cycle

matttx · Sep 3, 2009

whats the trick on maintaining when coming off?

jimmyjones · Sep 3, 2009

Stay consistent with the training and diet?

xxsuprman22xx · Sep 3, 2009

depends...if you're cycling a couple grams and come off...theres no way you'll maintain that size. However, to keep as much as you can...eat, train, and rest like you're on.

matttx · Sep 3, 2009

just a basic cyle of 500mg/wk. i dont understand how you can lose so much of it so fast. its impossible to keep at the same weight when you come off.

is there a trick?

triathloncoach · Sep 3, 2009

After Cycle

You may drop significant water weight. You may feel joint pain and your lifting may be less psychologically fun. Even if you lose, you should net out ahead of where you were.

sharkey · Sep 3, 2009

matttx said:
just a basic cyle of 500mg/wk. i dont understand how you can lose so much of it so fast. its impossible to keep at the same weight when you come off.

is there a trick?

Proper PCT helps. The weight you lose should not be that much and it's all the water you were retaining. (It's not real muscle weight.) So PCT helps with regulating your natural hormone levels.

swedemiester77 · Sep 3, 2009

I am finally going to try HCG throughout the cycle in hopes of maintaining after. Is this something you are doing (have done) as well?

maldorf · Sep 3, 2009

None of the pct I ever tried really helped all that much. I think the loss is inevitable.

jalsmiley · Sep 4, 2009

others will say different but i have my own theory derived from personal experience with an endocrinologist and fertility doc that i was seeing...my goal was to have a baby after cycling...i had no sperm count and zero natural test levels, clomid...useless...what was precribed was hcg at 1000-1500mcg every 3 days for 3 weeks, and then taper down evenly til hit about 100mcg every 3 days..taper was over 2months> got wife pregnant, had perfect test levels and high sperm count...the good test levels were pretty immediate and maintained...i was not lifting that hard during this...but i will be applying this method to next cycle and charting my kept gains....i am very optimistic about keeping most of the gains minus the water...obviously not all which is impossible...
another answer to your question is the everyone is different and keeps more or less the others .. some take longer for natural test to recover and you will read all these crazy scientific sounding explainations from posts on here(which is funny because there is no clinical scientific backup to any of them, it is all speculation and with how complicated the hormonal system is as explained to me by my endocrynologist....all are probably way off!

matttx · Sep 4, 2009

i have ran HCG during one cycle, and really didnt notice a faster recovery time. i do have terrible joint pain when coming off.

i just dont understand how some people get so big and maintain it during off season..

jalsmiley · Sep 4, 2009

i have heard of others using hcg during...but just logically i dont see the need...you are worried about after the cycle....unless during and then you are continueing to run it beyond the cycle too...but during just seems wasteful

Ness · Sep 4, 2009

jalsmiley said:
i have heard of others using hcg during...but just logically i dont see the need...you are worried about after the cycle....unless during and then you are continueing to run it beyond the cycle too...but during just seems wasteful

Well HCG is extremely logical and, imo, mandatory during cycles for other reasons other than recovery.

hawkmoon · Sep 4, 2009

I've always held on to the majority of my gains, but my overall look changes when off. I become a little less round and a little more flat.
Strength stays about the same, staying lean is harder.

I really think it is up to the individual to do due diligence and eat and train as properly as possible. Generally speaking, I think if you lose everything the gear was masking poor dietary and training habits, and/or an individual's genetics may simply not allow them to carry a lot of muscle naturally.

max_rep · Sep 4, 2009

i agree with hawkmoon

efw · Sep 4, 2009

Keeping your gains is hard to completely gauge on some levels. If this was your 1st cycle and you do not plan on another one soon, just keep eating and training like you have and follow a good protocol such as clomid, aromasin, Tribestan, Humanofort and you should be fine. Alot of it depends on financial situation as well and what you have to spend on products when your "off". I retain and even improve upon gains when "off" if you really get creative with igf, peptides, serms, research chems , clen, etc.......

1bigun11 · Sep 4, 2009

It takes a certain level of testosterone (or derivatives) to build to a certain level of muscle. It takes less from that to maintain the gains. If you drop below that maintenance level, you are going to lose muscle. Your natural levels arent enough to maintain it after a while.

Its just that simple really, which is why the pros never come off. Other wise you are just cycling on and off, spending your next cycle trying to get up to where you were at the end of your last one, and about the time you get there its time to get off, lose all your gains, and start pct all over again.

Its a frustrating process, and i dont play it any more. I dont go completely off anymore. I just lower the dosage to what it takes to maintain, give my liver a little rest, then jump back in.

Im not saying you should do it; just saying thats what i do now and I like it a hell of a lot better.

matttx · Sep 6, 2009

1bigun11 said:
It takes a certain level of testosterone (or derivatives) to build to a certain level of muscle. It takes less from that to maintain the gains. If you drop below that maintenance level, you are going to lose muscle. Your natural levels arent enough to maintain it after a while.

Its just that simple really, which is why the pros never come off. Other wise you are just cycling on and off, spending your next cycle trying to get up to where you were at the end of your last one, and about the time you get there its time to get off, lose all your gains, and start pct all over again.

Its a frustrating process, and i dont play it any more. I dont go completely off anymore. I just lower the dosage to what it takes to maintain, give my liver a little rest, then jump back in.

Im not saying you should do it; just saying thats what i do now and I like it a hell of a lot better.

thats what i was thinking of doing..or just get off for good. i dont see a point in doing a cycle, then losing ur gains, then cycling, losing again..etc.

alecaf · Sep 6, 2009

loosing is inevitable. Its also indivdual, as to say everyone is different. Some loose more than others --> genetics. HCG thruout helps "feel" better when coming off, no loss of sexdrive and test levels are probably not as low.

tkav1980 · Sep 6, 2009

here is the secrete to maintaining when off, up cals, up rest periods, train with higher intensity and lower volume, and eat eat eat eat. hell you could end up like baldnazi and even pack on some serious aditional mass. you should not think of anything but this. no reason to give yourself an unnecessary mind fuck.

vets hopefully you see where im trying to take this train of thought.

weight · Sep 6, 2009

tkav1980 said:
here is the secrete to maintaining when off, up cals, up rest periods, train with higher intensity and lower volume, and eat eat eat eat. hell you could end up like baldnazi and even pack on some serious aditional mass. you should not think of anything but this. no reason to give yourself an unnecessary mind fuck.

vets hopefully you see where im trying to take this train of thought.

has bald nazi ever posted any pics of him having visable abs?