Article about the use of HCG during a cycle

[diegomuscles]

This goes to the experienced lifters in this forum. What is your opinion?

http://www.primordialperformance.com...les.html?id=47

Cheers,

Diego

[ilimzn]

Originally Posted by diegomuscles

This goes to the experienced lifters in this forum. What is your opinion?

http://www.primordialperformance.com...les.html?id=47

Cheers,

Diego

FINALLY someone who has shed some light on this matter.
Infact, most cycles where HCG is used as PCT result in a possibility of even longer recovery because of oscillations in the hormonal axis resulting from testes stimulation bu massive doses of HCG. This happens 'around' the normal mechanism of regulation and perturbes it.
My opinion AND experience is that the article quoted is right on the money. 99% of everything written on steroids basically goes along the lines 'take this and this and tha... and the kitchen sink... type steroids and other anabolic agents' and yet this si the 10 simple % of a steroid cycle. If you want to stay safe and actually have some benefits, 9/10 of your effort in making up a cycle is about moderating the effects and preventing, or failing that, controlling the side effects. In the end it does not come to how big you can grow while on, but what you can keep - and looking at it this way, is the saner, safer and in fact possibly even beneficial to your health, way of looking at them.
Of course, if you are a competitor and your only concern is to look the best (whatever that is) in a given place on a given date on a stage, then you are also responsible for the risks associated with that - along with other health risks involved in dieting, dehydration etc.

[FuzzyKB]

[COLOR="Wheat"]
One of the largest problems with any of these substances is not the substances themselves but instead how they are used. If a person using these drugs were to test themselves and use good judgment problems would indeed be minimized. HGC is but one of many things used by many in PCT. The problem is that it is usually done incorrectly.

I receive male HRT under a MD's guidance because without it my levels are subnormal. I also receive HGC as part of that therapy. The main problem is that many use the HGC in the same manner that they used the other things to proceed it. They first slam the pituitary axis with a compound that is recognized, and as a result, major downregulation of of production takes place. They then slam in the HGC in the same manner. In both cases you get really highly and artificially boosted T levels. But you also get a pituitary that does not know what to do so it goes into a refractory mode first from the exogenous T and then again from the HGC. The idea is to create stimulation that is gentle, and not to slam trying to get nuclear T levels just in a different way.

Now with the availability of labs that will work without an MD a great deal more can be done as far as monitoring. The greater the level over the top end of recorded norms the greater the chances for major problems from the drugs themselves or in recovery after a cycle of these drugs.

The other thing are the combinations that some people use. I will not talk about what I personally believe in in that area, but I can state with little doubt that there are combinations used by the best of MD's that will do everything any bodybuilder wants and will drop risk for problems by a wide margin.

Living proof are the many HIV patients out there who are taking in some cases very large dosages for wasting syndrome. These men are not developing prostate glands the size of basketballs, they are not all going bald, and they are not experiencing roid rage or any other mythical problems. The reason for this is that these men are still in their own way maintaining a balance. In some people who naturally have high genetic testosterone levels it is not necessary at all, and several other Rx items would be beneficial.

I take a neutral position on the use of anabolics. There are definitely people who because of medical history who should not have them, and on the other side there are also many who greatly over-react to mythical dangers that do not exist as well.

The biggest thing I can state is that before anyone makes the decision to use these kinds of compounds, they need to spend several years studying them. They need to fully understand what the risks are, how to minimize the risks, and how to lead a healthy life when they are using them.

It is not as simple as taking a pill or darting a loaded syringe. Dietary changes and many others come into the picture as well. One also must monitor several parts of the blood chemistry. For example A/S in some men can cause the formation of extra red blood cells and this can cause problems. There are many other things that can change in blood chemistry from these compounds. The things that can be changed are easy to find on the internet and the information is there if you dig deep enough. Again, education is the key and it is absolutely necessary to keep the average guy from doing damage. [/COLOR]

[BIGJOEY]

HCG
(HUMAN CHORIONIC GONADOTROPIN)

Reported Characteristics

Active-Life: 64 hours
Drug Class: leutenizing Hormone (LH) - Gonadotropin
Average Reported Dosage: Men 2000-5000 i.u. injected every 5th day
Acne: Yes
Water Retention: Yes, HCG is a female hormone.
Liver Toxic: None
Aromatization: None, however due to HCG use testosterone levels increased and
aromatize was a potential side effect
HCG is used medically to positively influence ovulation in women, and to help
produce estrogen. It is also utilized in fertility medicine to aid in ovulation.
Male bodybuilders used HCG for another important reason. HCG is almost
exactly the same amino acid sequence as Luteinizing Hormone (LH). LH is normally
produced in the pituitary gland which is then circulated to the testes where it contacts the
Leydig cells. The Leydig cells then produce androgens such as testosterone. Obviously
this means so-called natural bodybuilders reported use of HCG to increase endogenous
(natural) testosterone levels. According to some clinical studies this works so well that an
injection of 1500-2000 i.u. of HCG has increased plasma testosterone levels 200-300%
over normal levels. For those males who utilized high aromatizing AAS, HCG was a
"partial" cure for restarting natural testosterone production either mid or post-cycles.
When administering exogenous (occurring outside the body) androgens, such as
AAS, the body's endocrine system shuts down (partially of completely) natural androgen
production in an attempt to maintain homeostasis. This is simply because the
hypothalamus senses the excess estrogens from AAS aromatization (and to a lesser
degree elevated androgen levels) and signals the pituitary (hypophysis) to partially or
completely stop producing LH and FSH (follicle stimulating hormone). Since the Leydig
cells in the testes do not receive the signal from LH, they partially or completely shut
down testosterone production. Sperm production is also reduced as a result of FSH downregulation.
Because the testes are not producing androgens and/or sperm at their normal
level, the testes shrink. This often causes a drop in libido too. Many heavy AAS users
reported sexual dysfunction for a brief (Brief?) period post-cycle.
So what did the men do about ?the boy?s?? HCG injections act as a replacement
for the LH normally produced by the pituitary gland which normally stimulates androgen
and sperm production by the testes. When 2000-5000 i.u. of HCG was injected every 5th
day for 2-3 weeks, mid or post-cycle, the testes began to function again. Also an increase
in total testosterone was realized and athletes often made some of their best gains at this
point. It also helped to keep the "significant other" significantly happy! When HCG was
administered beginning the last week of an AAS cycle and for an additional 1-2 weeks
post-cycle, testes function normalized again and much of the common post- AAS cycle
muscle mass and strength loss was avoided. However, our athletes were not out of the
woods (with acceptable wood) quite yet. Earlier, I mentioned that HCG has been a
utilized as a "partial cure" for the shut-down of the hypothalamus-pituitary-testes-axis
(HPTA). HCG only "replaces" natural LH. The pituitary and hypothalamus part of the
HPTA still sense no reason to produce gonadotropins and restore normal LH/FSH
production. So ending HCG administration sometimes only brought on another crash. But
staying on HCG for more than 3 weeks without at least a month off between HCG cycles
could cause permanent gonadal dysfunction and/or a desensitizing of Leydig Cells. Male
bodybuilders commonly used Clomid or Cyclofenil with HCG (*See Clomid for more
info). Available literature shows that Clomid stimulates the pituitary to release more
gonadotropin so a quicker and elevated level of LH and FSH are realized. By following
an AAS cycle with 2000-5000 i.u. HCG every 5th day for 2-3 weeks and ingesting
Clomid for the last 10-15 days of HCG administration many athletes noted that muscle
mass and strength losses post AAS cycle were significantly avoided. Many athletes also
used Clenbuterol at this point. (*See Clenbuterol for more info)

*It should be noted that administration of HCG will increase plasma testosterone
levels 200-300% or more. Therefore all of the negative side effects of testosterone injections
can apply to a lesser degree.

TRADE NAMES
A.P.I. 5000I,U., 10,000 I,U, 20,000 I,U, AMPULE
BIOGONADYL 500I.U., 2000-I.U. AMPULE
CHORAGON 1500 I.U., 5000 I.U. AMPULE
CHOREX 5000-I.U., 10,000 I.U. AMPULE
CHORON 10 1000 I.U., 10,000 I.U. AMPULE
GESTYL 1000-I.U. AMPULE
GONADOTRPHON 5500-I.U., 0000 I.U., 5000-I.U.
GONADOTRAFON LH 125-I.U., 250-I.U. 1000-I.U.
GONADOTRAFON LH 2000-I.U., 5000-I.U. AMPULE
GONADOTRPYL 5000 I.U. AMPULE
HAVATROPIN 10,000 AMPULE
HCG 5000 I.U., 10,000 I.U. AMPULE
PREGNYL 10,000 I.U. AMPULE
PREGNYL 1500 I.U., 5000 I.U. AMPULE
PROFASI 10,000 I.U. AMPULE,
There are several other HCG brands including veterinary. HCG always comes in
two vials: one contains a packed powder and the other contains sterile water. Once the
product is mixed (swirled not shaken) it must be refrigerated. HCG was often what bogus
Growth Hormone (GH) vials contained. A simple test for real GH was to buy a
pregnancy test kit and drop a few drops into the test. If your test read pregnant, you are
also screwed. This is because most test kits test for elevated gonadotropins and HCG will

test as such, but GH will not.