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Written by Dave Palumbo
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Tuesday, 06 April 2004 |
I have been following a high-protein, moderate-fat and low-carbohydrate diet for about four months. I’m taking 1,000 milligrams Sustanon and 300 milligrams Equipoise per week. I am also taking 4 IU of growth hormone (GH) every morning. Last week, I went to the doctor and had blood work done and all my labs were normal with the exception of my TFT (thyroid function test). The doctor said I have high thyroxin (T4) levels and low T3 levels. What does all this mean and what should I do to remedy this situation? I’m growing well, I have high energy and I train like an animal. Should I be worried? In order for me to properly answer your question, it’s important that you have a basic understanding of the dynamics of the thyroid gland. When properly stimulated by the pituitary gland (via the release of thyroid stimulating hormone—TSH), the thyroid gland secretes a hormone known as thyroxin (T4). T4 is an inactive form of thyroid hormone and consequently, it must be converted into the active isomer known as T3 (triiodothyronine) in order to perform its metabolic duties throughout the body. T4 (inactive thyroid hormone) gets converted to T3 (active thyroid hormone) by a special converting enzyme system that can be influenced by several metabolic factors. It’s these factors that have, ultimately, contributed to your skewed thyroid function tests. Low-carbohydrate diets lead to low insulin secretion and, while being effective at helping to shed excess body fat, ultimately lead to decreased T4 to T3 conversion. To remedy this situation, I tell my clients to have a “cheat meal” once per week (make sure it’s only a meal, not a day). This caloric burst (specifically, in carbohydrates) leads to severe insulin spikes, which ensure the proper conversion of T4 to T3. Likewise, the persistent use of GH (over extended periods of time) may also suppress the conversion of T4 to T3— thus slowing down the metabolic rate. When your body converts less T4 to T3, blood work values are likely to Reveal high T4 levels and low T3 levels, which is exactly what your blood work determined. Is this situation something you need to worry about? I don’t think so. The only time you should be concerned with low T3 levels is if you simultaneously have low T4 values. In this particular instance, since both T4 and T3 levels are low, chances are the thyroid gland is not producing adequate amounts of thyroid hormone. However, given your history of good muscle gains, high energy levels and strong gym workouts, I would suggest that you add a cheat meal into your diet regimen (once a week). That should do the trick! What is this new Nutropin Depot growth hormone all about? Is it worth purchasing? Is it superior to the original?The Nutropin Depot formulation consists of micronized particles of recombinant GH embedded in biocompatible, biodegradable, polylactide-coglycolide (PLG) microspheres. Nutropin Depot is packaged in vials as a sterile, white to off-white, preservative-free, free-flowing powder. Before administration, the powder is suspended in Diluent for Nutropin Depot (a sterile aqueous solution). Nutropin Depot comes in 13.5, 18 and 22.5-milligam vials (1mg = 2.2IU). Upon mixing the vial with the sterile diluent (water), it takes several minutes for the thick, viscous, GH mixture to completely mix. Once solubilized, the Nutropin Depot mixture can be subcutaneously injected and it will go on to form a solid implant that will release GH from the microspheres into the bloodstream (by diffusion). Although no studies have been performed that address the distribution, elimination, or metabolism of Nutropin Depot, once released and absorbed, the GH is believed to be distributed and eliminated in a manner similar to daily-injection somatropin. After reading several articles on Nutropin Depot and talking to a few bodybuilders who have used it, I have concluded that daily injections of GH are far superior to this sustained release formulation. First of all, dosages cannot be manipulated on a daily basis— your body receives the exact same dosage every single day. Secondly, the implant leaves a “lump” under the skin for over a month that can, ultimately, lead to scar tissue buildup (bodybuilders have enough of that already). Thirdly, I see Nutropin Depot as the lazy way of taking GH. If you are so busy you cannot remember to take your daily GH injection, you’re obviously not that interested in increased muscle gains. I don’t know a single bodybuilder who has ever missed a GH dose! I would like your advice about a first cycle. First of all, I want to thank you for being one of the few people who tells it like it is. You make it so much easier for young bodybuilders to sort through all the bullshit and learn what will get them where they want to go. My orthopedic doctor told me I have "lax" joints. I find that sometimes stability is lacking in my shoulders and knees. After reading an interview with you about leg training, I got custom orthotics for my horribly flat feet. Your recommendation was right on the money and my knee pain has been greatly reduced. However, I have come to accept that this nagging pain will be there regardless of what I do. My doctor said the bigger and stronger I get, the worse my condition will get. My questions are: 1) Is there anything I can do for my problem? 2) I’m 19 and plan on doing my first cycle. I want to do a “stack” that will help my joints. I read that GH is very helpful, but I think it’s too early for me to even think about using it. What do you recommend? I plan on using Anadrol (50mg/day for the first 25 days), Sustanon 250 (250mg/week building up to 750mg/week) and Deca (400mg/week).Actually, the bigger your muscles get, the more stable your joints will be. I have the same problem of “lax” joints (some refer to it as being “double-jointed”) and the bigger my legs got (quads and adductors), the “tighter” and more stable my knees felt, and the less pain I experienced. It was as if all the new muscle stabilized my knee joint. As far as my shoulder joints are concerned, they are in terrible condition. From all the years of heavy lifting with a "lax" shoulder joint, I wore away all the cartilage surrounding the capsule of the shoulder joint. I am suffering now; however, I have learned to work around my sore joints and I always make sure to use good form (this is especially important for individuals with “loose” joints).Your planned anabolic steroid cycle is a bit too aggressive for a first cycle. Most teenagers, like you, have a hard enough time consuming six meals a day as it is. The use of Anadrol-50 will make that goal a nightmare. Anadrol completely kills your appetite and while you may be able to force yourself to eat, you are not going to enjoy the food and ultimately, you will find yourself falling short of your nutritional requirements for growth. Stick to taking 500-750 milligrams of testosterone (Sustanon-250 is fine) per week and combine that with 400 milligrams of Deca Durabolin per week. That particular combination (assuming you eat correctly) should enable you to easily gain 15-25 pounds during your first 12-week cycle. The Deca Durabolin component possesses the added benefit of helping reduce inflammation around sore joints. This should make leg training a much more “comfortable” situation (as long as you enjoy the torturous pain of heavy barbell squats!).
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Performance Nutrition 
