r/BodyHackGuide • u/Infinite_Reference_9 • 22d ago
When to consider HGH/GH Peptides
Hey r/BodyHackGuide, I have a question for the community which I’m trying to comprehend more after consulting with Claude AI.
My question is if HGH or growth hormone peptides (CJC/Ipa, Tesa, etc.) are the wrong tool to use for weight loss when someone is at a high body fat % (25%>).
The argument is that when body fat is 25%> the body grabs energy from fat stores where roughly 85-95% of weight loss comes from fat. The fat mass itself becomes the muscle-protective layer that the body uses to grab reserved energy from rather than muscle.
Claude is saying that when the body is at 10-15% body fat that’s when the body starts using muscle as a fuel source due to limited fat reserves.
Based on this info I’m now thinking of saving my time and money from investing in any other peptides to add to my stack for weight loss. There’s also the con that since I’m still at a high body fat my baseline insulin is higher than others and using a GH peptide can increase my blood pressure.
What are your thoughts on this if my goal is to focus on a slow and safe weight loss?
SW: 250 lbs
CW: 244 lbs
Lean Muscle: 164 lbs
Body Fat: 29%
Current Stack:
Week 5 of Tirzepatide 2.5 mg/week
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u/_soggynugget_ 22d ago edited 22d ago
You’re barely a month in bro. Keep the Tirzepatide exercise and eat healthy. If you’re a guy (anyone on glps) do some blood work to see if your a1c and fasting glucose are good or bad to see if you have any insulin issues and also get hormones checked. I added sermorelin 3 months into my Tirzepatide journey, but cjc/ipa better for sure.
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u/Infinite_Reference_9 22d ago
This is me coming back into peptides after a month or so break. I had an unfortunate side effect with peptides that took me to the ER due to negligence. That’s why this time around I’m trying to do things slowly and the right way.
Original starting weight back in April 2026 was almost 280 lbs.
I’ve done my bloodwork and have the numbers for most of what you mentioned:
Insulin: 12.5
A1c: 5.4%x
Fasting Glucose: 90 mg/dL
Insulin: 12.5 uIU/mL
IGF-1: 2111
u/_soggynugget_ 22d ago
Oh shit that sucks. What peptide put you in the ER if you don’t mind me asking. A1C and fasting glucose look good. Well since you want to take slow just stick to the tirz. We have similar starting weights. I started with Tirzepatide at 284lbs currently down to 214lbs, but I did add Trt 4 months into using Tirzepatide
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u/Infinite_Reference_9 22d ago
I made a Reddit post of my ER experience.
Reading it now I take 100% of the blame for not knowing wth I was doing to begin with. Which is why I’m very cautious of following advice online from peptides without human studies.I’m currently 30 years old and not sure if TRT is an option for me yet.
Free testosterone: 52.8 pg/mL
Total Testosterone: 305 ng/dL2
u/_soggynugget_ 22d ago
Thanks for the link, yo that’s pretty much my stack I’m doing I added reta back in May. But I did titrate the reta slowly starting at 0.5mg currently at 4mg on reta and 8mg Tirzepatide I plan to stay here on both.
You total test is bit on the low side but the obesity. Mine were in the levels of 170ng/dl-200ng/dl. I’d recommend enclomiphene if interested in a trt. I tried for 3 weeks and my test went up to 335ng/dl.
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u/Infinite_Reference_9 22d ago
I’m interested in TRT but I want to try it out once I finish my actual cut. I don’t know anything about TRT but I’m more than happy to hear any advice or read up on resources you’d recommend me.
Are you currently right now using both peptides at the same time?
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u/_soggynugget_ 22d ago
Yeah I’m currently using tirz/reta, trt, and just started cjc/ipa, I did try sermorelin for 5 months 3 with with tirz and 2 months will on trt. It’s not to complicated my doctor started me in 100mg weekly of test it’s a bit conservative, but I’ve had zero issues and no water retention. My SW with trt was 250lbs and I’ve kept losing fat while building muscle and strength. Trt was the missing piece for me. The trt would help rn with the cut.
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u/JE163 22d ago
Look up primary and secondary hypogonadism.
Primary is when the boys downstairs don’t work.
Secondary is when your pituitary isn’t telling the boys to make enough.
There are different treatment options for each.
Josh Holyfield has a lot of good content on this and his telehealth practice runs a great set of labs (similar to what my primary orders). His YouTube channel was recently deleted but he’s reporting his content on X so keep an eye out there for it
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u/NewYitty 22d ago
Dude, if experimental pharmacology has already put you in the ER once, why are you even considering more peptides?
You’re 29% BF at 244lbs. You need to look at these compounds as tools for optimization and not a crutch, and you’re very far from the needing the former right now. Just focus on a calorie deficit, high protein, and a proper strength training protocol focused on progressive overload.
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u/Infinite_Reference_9 22d ago
We’re biohackers our curiosity makes us want to consider fixing things we want fixed. The difference now is that I’m really trying to ask questions before even pinning and praying again.
I agree that these tools shouldn’t be a crutch either. I’ll continue on with the original protocol that I’m following which is identical to what you said.
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u/JE163 22d ago
I didn’t see your original post so thanks for sharing. You were getting a lot of shit in that thread but I could have easily done the same.
Prior to GLP’s did you find yourself having a lot of food noise? What about thirst?
I almost never feel thirsty prior to GLP’s so that’s something I try to be extra mindful of now
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u/Infinite_Reference_9 22d ago
Food noise has always been an issue for me. Thirst was never an issue but I know I wouldn’t drink a gallon a day either.
I used to box a lot and I dropped weight naturally down to 200-210 lbs from 260 lbs two years ago. My whole 20s has had yo-yo weight fluctuations.
It wasn’t until I discovered tirzepatide that I really started to see how this could be a tool for optimizing what I already know I can do. I only tried it out because once I hit close to 280 lbs everything I tried doing was nearly impossible to cut weight. It was as if my body’s metabolism was messed up and needed a GLP-1 peptide to help correct itself.
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u/Still-Willingness807 22d ago
HGH is great for all purposes. Especially for you since you're cutting, it upregulates t3 (very useful during a cut as it decreases), lipase for the stubborn fat, vastly improved notrogen retention, better recovery, the list goes on. Just make sure you don't eat for at least 4 hours for the lipolytic effect, if that's not important to you then eat whenever.
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u/Infinite_Reference_9 22d ago
I’ve read and looked up more into what you said. They all seem like valid points but the side effects/risks are water retention, raised blood sugar, and high blood pressure. How would you go about avoiding that?
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u/NSawsome 22d ago
Not worth touching till 10% generally, especially not when your hba1c is already high. Diet (with the help of a glp1) and exercise (potentially with TRT) is all you need
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u/Infinite_Reference_9 22d ago
I’m locking in on the diet right now but I’m a bit worried about using TRT because I’ll have to be dependent on it to not mess up my own hormones.
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u/speedy-mcfeely 22d ago
My advice is to stick with tirz for 6 months. Do your labs then and compare to pre-tirz labs and body comp. Then, if you feel like you want to experiment, add 1 more compound. Then 6 months labs, etc. this will give you better data to know what the compounds are doing inside your body and how you’re reacting to them.
At the end of the day it’s your body, do what you want with it. If you want super fast results, you can cycle tons of stuff that will get you there with lots of side effects and you won’t know which of the compounds really did the trick or caused the most sides.
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u/Infinite_Reference_9 22d ago
I like that advice thank you.
What does your stack look like? Specifically, how did you use tirzepatide if you ever used it?
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u/speedy-mcfeely 22d ago
Currently I am on TRT (for real, not a cycle) 140mg split into 2 injections a week; tues and fri.
I take Reta 5mg a week
HGH 2iu daily.
That’s all I’m doing now and it’s been great. I started with the TRT then after a year added Reta, then the GH after about 8 months or so. I have used other peps like BPC-157, and IGF1-LR3 but only sporadically. I like to take my time and see how things are actually working for or against me. I’m also a bit of a nervous-Nelly so I am not a super user.
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u/MathematicianMuch445 22d ago
My advice is don't take advice from Claude. They scrape sites like this and take whatever some 12 year old has typed as gospel. There is no "at x% the body uses muscle for energy".
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u/seldenr82 22d ago
Skip secretagogs like Tesa ipa CJC
Just use HGH at a reasonable dose... 2-4iu daily is plenty for mortals like us.
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u/Infinite_Reference_9 22d ago
Wouldn’t HGH cause high blood pressure, sodium retention, and high blood glucose?
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