Okay... Sorry for taking so long to respond to this but things have been busy at work lately. My question wasn't whether or not to complete PCT or your opinion on this matter, but rather just why I should wait between the end of my cycle and PCT.
Just to preface this... I know there's a lot of testosterone pumping through most of the people reading this forum. That being said, I'm not trying to sound like I'm preaching at you or attacking you and I understand that everyone has a different approach to how they prefer to use AAS and that's perfectly fine; it's your body, do as you please. What I am trying to do is give others a firsthand account of my experience with refusing to use a PCT program while also providing some education to those who are interested as to why PCT is a health-conscious decision that can be beneficial for their future. Sometimes, preventative measures are important for ensuring good quality of life down the road... Take the necessary precautions now and don't end up regretting your decisions later. Of course, this is all assuming that you're not going for your IFBB pro card trying to be the next Mr. Olympia.
Lol, my stance on pct is that it's pointless to do if you plan on using gear for a long period of your life. If you're just dabbling then by all means pct is OK. If you want to push the envelope and see what your body can really do, then pct isn't going to allow that.
Now then, as for waiting for the circulating compounds to dwindle in the blood is for a good reason. The body won't start producing test again, even when coerced with a serm, unless circulating androgen levels are below normal. Otherwise the negative feed back loop is active in the sense: high androgens, no more test is needed, nuts still shut down. Once levels get low enough then the body recognizes it needs to start production again. The time before pct begins is all based on the active life of the drugs in the body. Dropping longer esters like cyp and enanthate a couple weeks out allows blood levels to drop, but also means progress will stall out, gains may begin being lost although minimally. So the idea is to substitute in short life drugs during the time the longer active drugs are leaving the body. This can be done with injectable like test prop/ace/pp or with orals. This allows you to bridge that time so that the amount of time spent with low hormones is minimal.
1.) My experience with not implementing a PCT program: I am
estrogen sensitive and a long time ago, back in one of my previous cycles I actually did just what you suggested because I was naive at the time and my friend suggested not completing any PCT either... I was on 750 mg/week of Testosterone Enanthate and 150 mg/week of Trenbolone Acetate... I followed a simple taper off design and didn't complete any PCT. Well... guess what? A few weeks later I absolutely blew up... not in a good way. I was bloated, breathing heavy, retaining huge amounts of water and gaining large amounts of fat. I went from dry and lean to looking like a puffer fish... My face was red and swollen and it basically looked like I was constipated all the time... haha. I decided to get some bloodwork and sure enough my estrogen levels were through the roof, my testosterone levels were at the very bottom end of normal, and my liver enzymes were... well let's just say "not optimal". I went from 265 lbs at 11% body fat to around 255 lbs at 18% body fat in a matter of 2 months (these numbers are verified by DEXA just in case you were wondering)... training stayed the same and diet on point. Not to mention that I also had gyno issues post cycle as well with a few small knots developing and then luckily, after some time disappearing. Had I have implemented a proper PCT cycle, I'm sure that I would have retained a large amount of my gains (although some loss is inevitable) and I definitely would not have bloated up like an airbag due to my ridiculous estrogen levels.
2.) Clomiphene, as I'm sure you are well aware stimulates the release of GnRH from the hyopthalamus which then triggers release of FSH and LH from the anterior pituitary, causing the testes to produce testosterone... and yes, to a certain degree this does happen even when serum testosterone levels are augmented. However, this doesn't occur with other SERMs such as Tamoxifen, this is well documented in the literature. Beyond this, however, using a SERM directly after cycle would help with, if not prevent to some degree, estrogen rebound. I understand that it is "all about the T to E ratio" but, as your testosterone levels begin to drop, that doesn't necessarily mean that your estrogen levels drop as well in a linear fashion with testosterone. In fact, it's more likely that as your testosterone levels decline, your estrogen levels, while beginning to decline, do so at a slower rate. So, waiting the length of the half-life of whatever compound you're taking to begin PCT can theoretically be detrimental. Granted, your T to E ration could still be favorable, however, this doesn't negate the fact that if you're estrogen sensitive, you're still going to develop tremendous estrogenic side-effects from elevated estrogen levels. Hence why I'd consider starting PCT (at least some sort of SERM or AI) directly after the end of my cycle. Testosterone is still being converted to estrogen, but estrogen levels are declining at a slower rate and as such, at a certain point, without any AI or SERMs, your estrogen levels actually end up being higher than testosterone levels after a couple of half-lives (assuming you don't start any PCT and don't cruise in-between cycles). Obviously, having your T to E ratio flipped is not desirable.
3.) As someone with an extensive background in physiology I can assure you that PCT is indeed helpful... unless of course you plan on taking supraphysiological doses (even at a low dose of 200-400 mg/week it's far more than your body produces naturally) of exogenous hormones for extended periods of time (i.e. years...) which is extremely recommended against from a health standpoint. I understand the mentality behind the cycle and cruise concept for competitive bodybuilders that do this for a living... but for the person that values living to see their grandchildren over vanity (assuming again this isn't where someone derives their income from), PCT is a necessity. Plenty of gains have been retained, losses have been minimized and progress has been made while following a cycle on, PCT, short break interval and cycle on again; personally, I'm okay with losing a small amount of my gains to save my life later down the road. Not trying to preach at you, but after having held plenty of cadaver hearts that are the size of a small child and reading bloodwork with unbelievably high liver enzymes, cholesterol, etc. due to excessive exogenous hormone use... I'll stick with implementing a PCT protocol. I'm not making my income off of being a competitive bodybuilder, this is just an in-depth hobby for me and something I truly enjoy doing. Now, if this is your source of income and you are at a point where you believe you could be the next Jay Cutler or Phil Heath, then by all means do whatever necessary to become the best... just realize the expense it comes with.
Okay... I think that covers that. Again, not trying to argumentative but just trying to offer some experience and knowledge to those who are interested, not trying to command anyone to do anything... haha.
