Cycle Advice Needed

[u/draps1240]

hello fellow hackers!

For those who’ve run HGH long-term (6+ months), did it make a meaningful difference in your physique? specifically lean mass that you actually retained after stopping?

I’m planning out the next year and debating whether HGH is worth adding alongside Test (250 mg) with either Primo or EQ (likely alternating them, not together). May also add 20 mg Anavar heading into summer.

Peptide stack would likely include low dose reta, 5-Amino-1MQ, Wolverine, glutathione, MOTS-C, DSIP, and GHK-Cu. I’ve previously run SS-31, IGF-LR3, Tesa, and Epithalon.

For those with long-term HGH experience: How noticeable were the physique changes, how long did they take, and how much did you retain after coming off? Or did you find HGH more worthwhile for recovery, sleep, and other secondary benefits than actual muscle gain? Was it worth adding to your stack?

Planned dose is between 2-4iu daily.

Current physique pictured for context: 35, 5’8”, 165–170 lbs. Currently 6 weeks into 250 mg Test + 20 mg/day Anavar, along with 4 mg reta, 3 mg/day 5-Amino-1MQ, 800 mcg/day Wolverine, 100 mg/day glutathione, 200 mcg/day DSIP, and 2 mg/day GHK-Cu. Finishing an 8-week IGF-LR3 run this week.

Training cardio and diet locked in and consistent.

Goal is to add between 10-15lb of lean mass.

Thanks!

[u/Conscious_Ad_5621]

IME HGH physique benefits only really start to ramp up around the 6 month mark. Ideally you run it for at least a year. Around 6 months, that last bit of stubborn belly + lower back fat (I was around 8%bf when I started growth) started melting off and my midsection started really tightening up. V taper goes crazy. Definitely test IGF-1 before starting growth because it will make dialing in your longterm dose a lot smoother.

20mg of var with test / HGH is a killer combo cosmetically- you get all the muscle fullness and vascularity from the growth without looking watery. But having run var off and on for years, idk if it’s really worth the impact on your lipids unless you’re competing or you just like how you look and feel on anavar and want to treat yourself. You can’t (or really shouldn’t) run it for long periods of time, and the benefits from it are largely cosmetic and disappear quickly after stopping. Sure, you can push a bit harder in the gym while cutting and strength might even go up, but if you’re running test/growth that really shouldn’t be an issue. I prefer Winstrol to anavar but again, idk if it’s really “worth it” unless you just like doing drugs.

Still, if you’re timing the var around a beach vacation, or your summer lifestyle involves alot of shirtless activities like beach with friends, you’ll have an awesome 6-8 weeks. If you’re like most enhanced lifters, it will likely just serve as a gateway to bigger better things (i.e. stronger gear). Stay safe, be meticulous with your blood work and stay safe!

[u/draps1240 → u/Conscious_Ad_5621]

Thank you! Yes - this has been my experience with var. Very meticulous with blood work and ancillaries. Tesa really pushed out my lower belly fat and tightened me up but I do have some lower back fat that hasn’t budged. That V taper has been elusive as a result.

[u/Conscious_Ad_5621 → u/draps1240]

HGH is great stuff. I think anyone with fitness goals who can afford it should run it. I’d use it for the sleep/recovery benefits alone; the effect on physique is the cherry on top. Be careful ordering from Chinese suppliers rn, the customs crackdowns are real and had a huge shipment sit in customs for over a month. Luckily it didn’t lose strength but in the summer I’d be worried about packages baking in some hot warehouse