Estrogen blockers

[Alone]

Are there alternatives to Nolvadex/Clomid that aren't prescription only?

 

[SociallyChallenged]

Are there alternatives to Nolvadex/Clomid that aren't prescription only?

Why are you asking about estrogen blockers? Are you trying to increase testosterone in your body? If so, why are you interested in that? What's your experience level, etc? Messing with hormones, unless necessary due to anomaly, is a terrible idea.

 

[Alone]

Someone I work with was a personal trainer, and he's offering to help me at the gym. He's suggesting I start on a test cycle, but says I need some estrogen blockers to help with the gyno issues.

I'm by no means experienced in this subject, but he's going to hold my hand during the process and help me learn.

 

[SociallyChallenged]

Someone I work with was a personal trainer, and he's offering to help me at the gym. He's suggesting I start on a test cycle, but says I need some estrogen blockers to help with the gyno issues.

I'm by no means experienced in this subject, but he's going to hold my hand during the process and help me learn.

Are you serious? Personal trainers require a certificate... it takes 3 months to get. Med school takes something like 7 or 8 years. Your friend is an imbecile for trying to tell you to take anything, especially testosterone or estrogen blockers. Gynecomastia is something you need to see a doctor for.

You're not experienced so don't trust someone without a M.D. This person is seriously risking your HEALTH and your lifetime testosterone production by suggesting you take something like this. After your friend saying this, I would actually get the hell away from him. If you want to get in shape, you need nothing but some knowledge, drive, and weights. Do NOT go start a testosterone cycle because some guy with 3 months of insufficient training told you to.

 

[glenn beck]

Someone I work with was a personal trainer, and he's offering to help me at the gym. He's suggesting I start on a test cycle, but says I need some estrogen blockers to help with the gyno issues.

I'm by no means experienced in this subject, but he's going to hold my hand during the process and help me learn.

simple answer "no", If you have gynaecomastia issues you need a physician not a trainer c'mon please think logically on this one

 

[Alone]

I don't have gyno issues; I'm trying to avoid them as best I can.

And SC, I appreciate your advice but I trust this guy. He ran a gym for six years and was in body building competitions. He explained the risks to me, and I still want to give it a shot.

 

[crt1530]

 

[Whisper]

I don't have gyno issues; I'm trying to avoid them as best I can.

And SC, I appreciate your advice but I trust this guy. He ran a gym for six years and was in body building competitions. He explained the risks to me, and I still want to give it a shot.

Simply because he owned a gym and also entered bodybuilding competitions does not mean he's an expert, especially when it comes to something as complicated as human physiology. Beyond that, just because it worked for him and/or his clients in the past does not necessarily mean it will be helpful for you, or that he/his clients won't pay long-term consequences for potential short-term gains.

As others have said, when it comes to hormones, don't trust anyone short of an MD.

Why exactly is he even suggesting such a radical course of action to begin with? People train for years, and obtain meaningfully significant progress, without taking so much as a "regular" supplement, let alone trying hormone therapy.

 

[Alone]

The issue with me is that I can't keep a regular diet/workout plan. I'm in the military and for the time being we're forced to eat fatty, deep-fried mess food, and our work hours are constantly changing. We often do shift work, longer shifts than usual, and often miss sleep. Not to mention random training exercises which require us to work on two hours of sleep per two days, and sometimes worse.

I know diet and sleep are crucial to getting in shape. The fact that I can't get either, nor can I get regular workouts is detrimental to my progress. I've come to rely on drastic measures to get the results I want.

I'm not satisfied with where I'm at, and for the next year my situation won't change.

 

[Bateluer]

I've come to rely on drastic measures to get the results I want.

I can relate to your situation, having been in the military myself, but when you start using 'drastic measures' like what you are proposing, you're asking for trouble. Being in the military, you also get free medical care, take advantage of it.

Knowing some gym rats/owners like I do, there's no way in hell I would ever take any form of health advice from them. Form and exercise advice, yes, but not medical advise related to a health issue.

Also, what branch of service are you in? I'm not certain about other branches, but the USAF AFI on Physical Training requires units to allot time for PT.

 

[Sust]

I hear these guys are looking for guinea pigs: http://www.dailytech.com/article.aspx?newsid=17082

The issue with me is that I can't keep a regular diet/workout plan. I'm in the military and for the time being we're forced to eat fatty, deep-fried mess food, and our work hours are constantly changing. We often do shift work, longer shifts than usual, and often miss sleep. Not to mention random training exercises which require us to work on two hours of sleep per two days, and sometimes worse.

I know diet and sleep are crucial to getting in shape. The fact that I can't get either, nor can I get regular workouts is detrimental to my progress. I've come to rely on drastic measures to get the results I want.

I'm not satisfied with where I'm at, and for the next year my situation won't change.

 

[brikis98]

 

[SociallyChallenged]

The issue with me is that I can't keep a regular diet/workout plan. I'm in the military and for the time being we're forced to eat fatty, deep-fried mess food, and our work hours are constantly changing. We often do shift work, longer shifts than usual, and often miss sleep. Not to mention random training exercises which require us to work on two hours of sleep per two days, and sometimes worse.

I know diet and sleep are crucial to getting in shape. The fact that I can't get either, nor can I get regular workouts is detrimental to my progress. I've come to rely on drastic measures to get the results I want.

I'm not satisfied with where I'm at, and for the next year my situation won't change.

Bodybuilding is a different game than being healthy. Not keeping a regular diet or workout plan is YOUR fault, not your body's fault. You're in the military. Great. Go check out CrossFit.com for support and see how so many military guys stay in great shape without anything but discipline. You've chosen this path and now you need to create a plan accordingly.

Testosterone isn't a miracle grow for muscle. You know what it allows you to do? Work out MORE, longer, and harder. It improves recovery. If you don't have time to work out now, testosterone won't do a damn thing for you. Bodybuilders dedicate hours upon hours upon hours per day to lifting while on test cycles. If you don't have time just for general fitness, this is just going to age your body, increase your risk for heart disease, etc. I don't think you understand the physiology of what you're going to do. I do.

I've studied effects of HGH, testosterone, supplements, etc on performance. For any of them to have a proven benefit, high LOADS on the muscle are required. If you can't load the muscle consistently, then you won't have hypertrophy. I'm in my last year as an exercise biology major at UC Davis. Sadly for you, I'm a more reliable source about fitness and general health than your bodybuilding friend. Owning a gym means you have money and patrons. It means you're a businessman. It does NOT mean you know anything about the body at the macro or micro level.

Tell this guy to suck it. Testosterone is illegal because guys like this tell people to pop it like its candy. It severely damages people. You know Jose Canseco? He doped in major league baseball and now can't even feel normal due to his body's haulted testosterone production. Side effects include: lethargy, impotence, increase body fat, decreased lean muscle mass, increased risk of osteoporosis, and increase in cardiovascular disease. Do you really want that because a guy... who owned a gym... told you to? He has no degree. No certification of understanding what these things do. No understanding period. He makes bodybuilders - the most inefficient trainers in the world. Don't be such a sheep. Think for yourself. Go visit CrossFit for some military exercise support. No excuses, man.

 

[SludgeFactory]

Are there alternatives to Nolvadex/Clomid that aren't prescription only?

Not that I know of, and I don't think it's something you would want to trust to some OTC herbal snake-oil bullshit anyway. Arimidex is another prescription drug, with a different mechanism of action (actually stops T from aromatizing to estrogen in the first place, rather than simply blocking estrogen from binding to receptors like Nolvadex does). More expensive though.

There are more appropriate forums where you can educate yourself on specifics, or get a better sense of the big picture. My conclusion after doing that is that most noobs looking for a magic bullet will ultimately end up wasting their money while exposing themselves to legal and health risks for basically nothing. If you can't stay locked in with a disciplined diet/lifting plan in the first place, drugs don't change that, and you won't get the results you could otherwise get and will also eventually slide right back where you started -- which I suspect happens to the majority of recreational users.

The most sensible people (IMO) tend to advocate spending several years finding your genetic limits before even seriously considering it. By then you should question why you still need to do it, how long you could continue using, at what cost to your health, what happens when you stop for good, etc.

Enough of the sermon though, educate yourself and make your own decisions.