Total testosterone of 290 at 21 years old. Options?

:up:

TungstenMan,

I’m 42 and have experienced issues with my testosterone levels. I eat a very clean diet and exercise daily. I went to the doctor (big waste of time), took herbal supplements (waste of $$$), etc. Long story short, I was iodine deficient. This is why my levels were below 300. How did I determine that I was deficient in iodine? I checked my temperature first thing in the morning. Didn’t brush teeth or get out of bed. Simply reached over grabbed the oral thermometer from the night stand and checked to see in my temperature was 97.6F or above. In the late afternoon, I would check again to see in my temp was 98.2F or above. My low temps coupled with chronic fatigue suggested that I may be iodine deficient. Therefore, I supplemented for approximately 1 month taking iodine tablets, 12.5-25mg. Note iodine is not something to be taken lightly, so I started with 1 x 12.5mg tablet per day and after a few days my energy level increased. So I upped the dosage to 2 x 12.5.mg per day. If you want more details on iodine google “tnation iodine” and do some reading. You’ll find a lengthy article that has a lot of good info.

Also, are you lifting heavy weights or doing sprints with limited recovery? I have more energy when I exercise vigorously (achieve concentric muscular failure and/or run so hard that I’m constantly out of breath).

IMO, you’re way too young to go on TRT. You should first determine where the issue is occurring. Is it your thyroid (iodine)? Testicles (not enough cholesterol in your diet)?

Hope this helps.

Good luck,
Chuck

Thank for the reply man. I’m not sure what my temperature is but I have iodine so I just took 6 drops of nascent iodine which has 4 mg of iodine. I have the doctor’s appointment in roughly 3 weeks so I’ll see if anything improves by then. I always try to do heavy weights in the gym and one of my problems is endurance because after a few sets my whole boy just feels exhausted. I typically feel “fine” before but after 10 minutes in the gym I’m left wiped and feel like a 15 year old girl. I haven’t really gotten stronger but my gym partner who started to come with me several months ago is now just as strong as I am (he was weaker before). It’s not a lack of eating either since I gained (and lost later because I felt fat) weight. I eat enough fats for sure.

Maybe your training regimen needs some modifications. I would open a new thread about that.

I’ve actually quit going to the gym for now after I got the 290 test result. I’ve watched my friend pass me up despite the fact we would both do the same exercises and I’d eat more than him. I only quit because it was depressing feeling like a 70 year old man working out. I’ll start training again once I get the testosterone problem fixed though.

Legs exercises should help with testosterone (squats).

Be careful with iodine. I would first check body temps and do extensive research before supplementing. In my case, I tried a number of different things to boost my levels. They all failed, so I tried more extreme measures (iodine supplementation) after hours of research.

Have the doctor give you a full panel of tests. You’ll have to do some research on what tests to request. However, this is very important. IMO, you need to pinpoint where the problem is. Also, I wouldn’t go on TRT. That stuff is for men over 40. You’re 21! You should be breaking world records and taking on harems of beautiful women. Obviously, something is out of whack with your endocrine system. You’ll have to do a lot of research to figure out where your specific issue lies. Also, I believe that it’s naive to rely heavily on a doctor. Clearly, they are the medical experts. However, they have limited time and lots of other patients. You’ll need to guide the conversation. For example, a lot of the doctors in the US are terribly ignorant about testosterone. In my case, the doctor was going to say that my testosterone level was fine at 293 since it was > 200. That’s idiotic! The average total t for my age group is 597. I pointed this out and demanded a bunch of tests. They compiled, and I got more information to diagnose the problem.

Nice post Chuck.

I’ll be careful with the iodine and I’ll make sure the doctor does as many tests as possible. Then yea I’m 21 and I have zero sex drive at the moment most likely do to the 290 level. I believe the average is 750 for my age group but that includes out of shape guys and I read obesity can lower testosterone levels drastically so maybe the average for healthy males my age is 800 to 900? Maybe I have had some unexplained problem for the past five years now. I don’t know but taking more tests should reveal a problem if there is one. I’m just not sure if I want to try to fix it via alternative means. My “normal” level appears to be at 400 which is perfectly fine by most doctor’s standards then if I raise my level from 290 to 400 and it won’t go up anymore I’ll still be denied treatment even though it’s 50% of the normal value for my age. Obviously living with a level of 400 at 21 and watching it drop year by year doesn’t sound very appealing considering I still had bad erection issues with libido problems at 400 (worse now at 290 obviously as I’ve said in earlier posts). I only have some of May, June, July then part of August to try to fix this problem before I’d most likely have to start all over again in terms of finding a doctor because I’ll have to go back to school. My libido has actually gotten worse in the past few days which is “good” I guess (in terms of getting replacement shots).

The real dilemma I’m facing is this. First lets make three assumptions. 1) Lets say there’s a solid line for a person being declared low T and that line is at 300 (generous assumption, a lot of doctors choose 250 or 200 in your doctor’s case). 2) Lets also assume that if someone has low testosterone they will be prescribed replacement therapy (also fair). 3) Finally lets assume if someone is prescribed replacement therapy they will be replaced to a level of 800 on average (kind of fair because as long as a person’s lab tests remain normal doctors tend to aim for this level although some doctors are afraid of going to a normal level and instead opt for 500 to 600 especially in older men but since I’m 21 lets say 800 is a fair value). Obviously by making these three fair assumptions a serious issue arises. This issue of course originates with statement one. Lets say the doctor and I try to raise my levels to a normal value using alternative methods. Then I get a second blood test and the level comes back at 280. The doctor will declare I have low testosterone and I will be prescribed replacement therapy to get my level up to 800. The final result? My level is now 175% higher! Now in a parallel universe lets also say the doctor and I try to raise my levels to a normal value using alternative methods (good idea right?). I get a second blood test in the parallel universe and my level comes back at 380. The doctor will declare I do not have low testosterone and I will not be prescribed replacement therapy because the alternative methods worked. My level is now 31% higher. In which case am I better off in? I don’t think anyone here would agree I’m better off in the second case with my level naturally raised to 380 given that I’ll still have low testosterone symptoms of reduced libido, erection problems, tiredness in the gym, etc.

The above example makes me question if it’s even worth it to try to raise my level using alternative means. As you guys can see even if in the best case scenario I can raise my level to 450 (arbitrary number less than 500) through alternative means it would still be less than the 800 from replacement therapy (some doctors want their patients to be at the upper end of normal so 1,100 to 1,200 (this level is not uncommon for men aged 21 either.)). So now you guys know my dilemma. Should I attempt to keep my testosterone level low so I can get replacement therapy to get a level of 800 (hopefully 1,100 to 1,200) or should I attempt to raise my level through alternative means with my doctor and most likely get a level of 400 again? I say 400 again because lets be honest, the chance of increasing it from 290 to even 600 is probably very very low, increasing it to 800 is like wining the lottery and increasing it to 1,000 is zero. I really haven’t read any stories of guys more than doubling their testosterone level permanently who aren’t trying to sell an e-book on the “secret” for $39.99 (I mean considering I’m physically fit already. If I was 400 lbs I could easily double or even triple my testosterone level by simply losing weight). Now you guys know what I’m thinking about and my reasoning.

So you must not be taking in a lot of salt or you’re supplementing regular salt with sea salt.

If you want to know more about iodine the best person to chat with is Dr David Brownstein who you can google. Did you look at the other links I sent earlier?

Ok thanks and yes I’ve seen the links you posted. I’ve tried them both and they didn’t work. I’ve spent so much money on supplements that I’m embarrassed to give a number. Supplements are a waste of money in my opinion.

I’m 35 and have a decent total T level at times but a low free T level. I was given options on what to do. One of which was a combination of clomid and HCG. They were only 80% sure it would work. I opted for a low T dose + HCG. I have not had my numbers tested again since starting, but I can tell a huge difference. Sex drive is up. I sleep better. I have more energy. My erections are harder (I’m restarting PE now that this has happened). I’m generally happier. One of the big things I hope to see is a decrease in body fat, which was one of my two major complaints when I first started seeing the doctor.

Not saying you should look at TRT as a young guy, but there may be some legitimate things wrong. Find a clinic that specializes in this (they are popping up all over the place). Get both T and estrogen measured. Take their suggestions and make a plan.

FYI, I found two supplements that ever seemed to help me. Suma Root and a supplement called Status. Both of these seemed to give me a T boost. I’m holding off on using the rest of my status until my next blood test .

I’m getting my blood tested again next week and I discontinued all supplements starting a week ago. I just want the most accurate reflection of my total. Although I must say I definitely think my total is under 290 now based on how I’m feeling.

Did you get morning wood before your replacement therapy and if so how hard was it? Then how is it currently with your therapy? I currently don’t get any morning erections but occasionally I get a semi in morning. I think the last time I got hard morning wood was probably 4-5 years ago.

Thank you

My levels were really low, but are now well above normal for my age of 55. I get real good morning wood now and it rises to the occasion as and when needed. I follow a regimen of supplements that work well bud.