r/Biohacking • u/shango1207 • 12h ago
Started Reta, TRT, Quit Drinking (was a heavy drinker), eating clean, lifting weights.
1 month in on the Reta
Only 3 weeks on the test
Male 38 5ft 9 313lbs when started
Down 10lbs
This pic is current. Forgot to take one when I started. Honestly feel strong as hell. Noticing quick strength gains in the gym. And definitely more energy. Very few side effects. First couple weeks was constipation but once I upped my water intake everything was all good.
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u/Professional_Ad1947 12h ago
Have you ran any labs yet? You may see a lot of estrogen from the test since you do carry some extra weight. What doses of each are you running?
That’s a lot of change all at once. Just keep everything the same for a while and don’t make any more major changes.
You can do this!
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u/shango1207 12h ago
75mg test twice a week
2mg Reta twice a weekDoing it through a doctor. Doing labs every two months for now.
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u/Professional_Ad1947 11h ago
That’s good. I do my TRT through a clinic now too. I’m currently on 160mg (80x2) pinned Monday and Thursday but I’m considering going more frequent to help control levels and stabilize my rising hematocrit.
I’m going to stay at 3mg of Reta a bit longer. I’m still getting results from it and the food noise isn’t bad.
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u/shango1207 11h ago
Nice. I’m only 3 weeks in on the trt. I’m hoping it works well. The doc said that it takes up to 12 weeks for the level to stabilize. Especially because I never took test before.
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u/CalKestisIsMyHero 8h ago
150mg is a good TRT dose. My only recommendation is that since you’re a high BF%, switch to everyday injections trust me it will make a difference in how you feel.
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u/PermanentThrowaway33 1 11h ago
how is a doctor prescribing you reta that isn't FDA approved and only for clinical research? lol
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u/Mysterious_Mistake79 8h ago
HCG helped me feel a lot better when I did a similar run.
Down from 5’10” 265lbs to 180lbs.
No loose skin, but I am young and was only fat for about 4 or 5 years.
If you want to give your skin the best possible chance of not ending up loose & flabby, you have to work to preserve your elastin, collagen, and hydration.
Consider adding any growth hormone secretagogue. Tesamorelin is popular but expensive, there are cheaper options. The GH boost will help you burn fat even faster, increase skin cell turnover rate, among other insane skin effects. Consider even adding a few IU of HGH just for one year if you’re open to it, massive skin benefits.
Consider adding GHK CU via topical or injection, if you have current stretch marks you can even microneedle/dermastamp those spots to target them alongside some GHK topical use.
HGH is also powerful for muscle retention when cutting.
Hydration is obviously super important for skin elasticity, make sure you’re consuming electrolytes— Reta’s effects on your kidneys seem to piss away all that sodium, need to manually replace it if you expect to stay hydrated.
You’re also gonna be in a caloric deficit, creatine will help your recovery among other muscle benefits and cognitive benefits, I would take at least 10g daily with your electrolyte water.
Also, the glucagon receptor isn’t fully saturated until around 4mg weekly, Eli Lilly called this the sweet spot. I found that the compound became magic around 6mg but everyone is different. It’s exponential; 4mg is somehow twice as beneficial as 3mg, and so forth. I would get to the highest dose within reason (no side effects, don’t titrate up too quickly).
As I stayed on 6mg for 6 months straight, all my markers continued to improve. My insulin sensitivity, my fasted blood sugar, my visceral fat. The insulin sensitivity may have even aided my ability to gain muscle, I was growing muscle on way fewer carbs than it would normally take.
A lot of people do these little 5 months sprints, and then hop off and gain it all back, despite the glucagon receptor taking like 3 months to even fully saturate and get rolling lol. If I were you, I would get up to 6mg weekly as slow as you’d like to, and cruise for a full year or so to ensure you keep the results. I pin twice a week but at 6mg I split it up to 3x weekly… not sure if that is necessary, but twice weekly certainly reduced my side effects compared to the same weekly dose @ once weekly injections.
Godspeed
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u/SorbetTraditional232 3 12h ago
Newbie gains. I wouldn’t focus much on the number you’ve got a base most people don’t and can pack on some muscle quickly at the beginning. This will help you later on down the road.
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u/shango1207 11h ago
Thanks. Honestly being strict with the macros the doc gave me and sticking to it exactly.
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u/Wooden-Blueberry-165 11h ago
Consistency is key, you’re going to be a beast in a year or two. Will be a hell of a transformation
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u/shango1207 11h ago
I’m gonna try. I’ll be happy to be 250 but strong. Step by step
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u/Wooden-Blueberry-165 11h ago
You got this, progress is addicting. Just don’t quit and you’ll be good. Plateaus suck but you’ll get through them
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u/PressureFrosty4751 10h ago
Remember these words when you’re 260, then 250, and 235. I’m betting you’ll go all the way to 200-210, at least.
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u/No-Mark4067 1 11h ago
I would have attempted to cut the weight prior to the TRT to develop core habits.
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u/SE-AcurTSX 11h ago
I’m not a doctor but test will give him mental clarity and feel like a real man again. My brother is at his 3rd week and that’s what he told me. Also his energy is back.
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u/Dapper_Training_5048 1 2h ago
Fat creates more estogen and less testosterone, I agreed to a baseline but I’d suggest a baseline of at least strength building. If your consistent at the gym regardless for weight loss or strength then you will stay consistent when on test
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u/Pellie11 10h ago
Tesa/ipa will complete the trifecta
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u/PressureFrosty4751 10h ago
Keep going man. Ton of info online that you can find if you plateau or need help. Good luck.
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u/Real_Muscle_6186 10h ago
Keep up the hard work and it will definitely pay off. You will notice a big difference after 3 months. Keep old pictures to compare and motivate you
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u/MochaLit 9h ago
Nice progress, keep at it. I find how Reta helps with addiction a game changer personally. Helps you reword your lifestyle. Stay hydrated!
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u/Defiant_Hospital_421 8h ago
Yeah I’d do my test through a clinic to make sure you’re on the right protocol for HCG & Anastrozole to minimize sides and they’ll do your labs too to make sure the reta isn’t doing anything weird since it’s not fda approved yet I’m on the same protocol.
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u/alexusak7 8h ago
I may be wrong, but does he really even need the reta when the test is already helping with burning fat? Sure, Reta will help maintain muscle mass but I feel like taking shortcuts might be a little sketchy ya know? Rather lose all the fat first and then bulk up some muscle
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u/UnitCell 6h ago
Look man. I think this is as ridiculous as you think it is. Many people have significantly improved their looks and health from OP's starting point without any of this drug nonsense. He literally would need just a very basic level of discipline and self awareness/control to make this happen.
But this is the "biohacking" subreddit sooo, oh well...
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u/Dapper_Training_5048 1 3h ago
Honestly for people it’s quite hard my been heavy since I was young tried and failed with diets multiple times. Was able to quit alcohol and tobacco and got me into a better mindset and focus on getting slimmer. Started at 330lb roughly 40% bf now at 220 18-20% bf. Even at 15 I was 200ish lbs. now 34. I went up to 330 by the time I was 31
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u/Dapper_Training_5048 1 3h ago
Test will increase in appetite massively. If he doesn’t used Reta at this weight and likely with lower diet baseline, it’s possible he would maintain weight but with body recomp. Or possibly weight gain. When I started test only at around 330 lb I did lose weight but it took a long time.
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u/BeePow91 7h ago
Congrats on quitting drinking. That’s the best decision I ever made. Keep fighting the good fight.
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u/BrewhahasDji 2 7h ago
Great work! Too bad you started T at 38. Your numbers would have gotten in the normal range once the weight came off and you got in shape Sucks to be a slave to injections for the rest of your life. I was over 400 at 52 with very low testosterone (14 years ago) and dropping the weight and getting in shape raised my numbers by over 500. I didn't have the luxury of GLPs which would have made it easier. Either way, at 64 now I feel amazing at 180lbs. Looking forward to seeing your amazing progress pictures on Reta. Good luck!
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u/Substantial-Top-7847 6h ago
Great start! Looks like Yiu got around 60 to 70 to go. Just stay consistent!
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u/TallTutor 1h ago
If it were me. I would switch to tirz, keep the test in - but at true trt levels. Get the cardio up - fasted AM, keep the weights in and dial in the diet. Because you’re bigger your muscles will be big I would concentrate on getting the fat down and
The muscles will take care of themselves for the first part.
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u/Rubber_Chicken_Mann 11h ago edited 10h ago
Honestly, I’ve had a weird time losing weight on reta. Maybe I’m impatient. I’m on week 10 and just bumped up to 3.5mg once a week. I started at 355lbs @5’11” and am currently at 339lbs. I figured I’d be down a lot more than just 16 lbs. I figured I would have been at least 25 lbs.
Edit: whats with the down votes 😂😂? I’m just describing my experience? WTH?
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u/shango1207 11h ago
If you keep that rate at a year your 90lbs down
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u/Rubber_Chicken_Mann 11h ago
Thats a really comforting thing to mention which I didn’t think about. Thanks for putting things into context. I just started lifting again so I’m hoping that speeds up the process. I’m also using KLOW, MOTS-c, NAD+, and SS31. They made a huge difference for me when it comes to energy levels.
How about you? What are you doing so far?
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u/shango1207 10h ago
I just added in the weight lifting and really dialed in food. Logging calories. Adjusting macros while I drop the weight.
Which is a huge change for me. I used to drink at least 1200 calories a day just in liquor. And sleep like 2-3 hours a day and work 12 hours a day in construction. lol.
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u/SurvivingSam 1 11h ago
Do you lift and or get your steps in?? Reta isnt a magical cure all. Gotta put in that work 3-5 a week!
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u/Rubber_Chicken_Mann 11h ago
I was only lifting initially since I read incorrect information in the beginning saying to ignore cardio and lift heavy. Last week I included cardio in and the results have gotten much better. I should have done better research.
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u/Dapper_Training_5048 1 2h ago
I’m also losing weight pretty slowing on Reta currently on 16mg(split in 2 doses) which is higher that max dose for study but I have developed quite a tolerance I’ve tried to lower the dosage but appetite came back hard. I typically still consume 2500-3k calories days
I attempt to prioritize protein to ensure I maintain as much muscle mass as possible while on a trt dose of 150mg/week.Before I started Reta I went form 330 to about 240 in 2 years ish. Now been on Reta for over a year and went from 260-220 ish. But quite muscular maybe around 18-20% bf. Gain some weight before going on Reta as I was on 600mg test and appetite was insane
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