Indyman's Journey

A bit of random browsing and I found a super interesting paper on pumping, "Optimal pressure in penile rehabilitation with a vacuum erection device: evidence based on a rat model" (Optimal pressure in penile rehabilitation with a vacuum erection device: evidence based on a rat model - PubMed click on the DOI link for the full paper). Long story short, they concluded that -200mmHg (or around -8"Hg) is the optimal pumping pressure.

I need to point out that this is not aimed at PE but rather rehabilitation. Unfortunately they didn’t test any lower pressures, as I would like to know the results at our typical -5"Hg. Either way I find all this interesting as this is the first time I’ve seen a published pressure recommendation.

I have deced to try gprent’s incremental pumping routine, as it aligns nicely with the study "…I spend the first 5 minutes at 5”hg, the next 5 to 10 minutes at 6”hg, the next 5 to 10 minutes at 7”hg and the remainder of the time at 8”hg. This is a continuous 35 minute session with no breaks…"

Additionally, I am including dickerschwanz prehstretching of the tunica (Pre-Stretching Tunica to allow more Girth Expansion). For now this is a simple manual stretch SD for 5 mins under IR. Though at some time I might evolve this further to FIR extending as per my previous cycle.

I’ll also be adjusting my logging to be more freestyle, checking in when I’ve found something interesting or reporting stats.

I am back and with another interesting publication, "Optimal vacuum erectile device therapy regimen for penile rehabilitation in a bilateral cavernous nerve crush rat model" (Optimal vacuum erectile device therapy regimen for penile rehabilitation in a bilateral cavernous nerve crush rat model - PubMed). From the same authors as the previous paper which stated -200mmHg was the ideal pumping pressure, this paper investigates the ideal pumping regimen. Again, this is a rehabilitation focused publication, though there are mentions of length.

Using the ideal pressure, they found that durations over 4mins continuous application resulted in plateaued length. Only detrimental effects occurred past this. They also determined that a 5on-2off-5on (minutes) regimen provided the best therapy.

Again, these results seem to somewhat align with gprent’s linear routine; each pressure stage is held for 5mins so we never overly "plateau". At each new stage we enable more expansion. In a way, this reminds me of Kyrpa and Tutt’s stress-relaxation methodology for length.

Just a brief comment on the previous week (mon/wed/fri) of pumping. Each session followed the structure:

5mins manual stretch SD under IR lamp
Linear pumping, from 3”Hg to 6”Hg over 20mins
10mins soft clamping

I am unsure how much the pre-stretching added to a session. My plan is to repeat the session structure this week to condition myself a littler better, then next week replace it with the FIR extending from the previous length cycle (say 30 mins, bringing a whole session to 1hour). I’ll take note of IPL, pack height, and some other metrics I can’t think of right now.

Curious are you doing a cooldown? Or plan to with the proposed extending?

Great question! I should be far more specific with regards to heating.

My time in the pump is heated from the get-go with a traditional heat pad (non-FIR). There is no cooldown phase during pumping at all - I immediately go from the heated tube to a soft clamp. I count the soft clamping as my cooldown phase, as it is unheated. Not ideal, but I can’t think how to make a more gradual thermal transition.

However, I had not considered the heating & cooling part of extending prior to pumping until you mentioned it. My first instinct is that it’s best to avoid multiple hot and cold phases in a single session. I will likely skip the extending cooldown phase and switch immediately and quickly to a pre-heated tube.

Edit: Actually it is easy to cooldown in the tube - just remove the heat source, since the tube cools slowly.

Okay so let me share my thinking and see what you think. I think the idea of extending first before the pump is to pre stretch the tissues and more specifically the septum to facilitate the expansion of the tunica that occurs with the pump. Therefore I would think you would want to do the cooldown at the end of extending to lock in the session stretch from the extending, before proceeding with the pump.

Decided that instead of Mon/Wed/Fri schedule, I will switch to Tue/Thur/Sat.

Spot on with pre-stretching. Though in addition to stretching the septum, the longitudinal layer of the tunica is also hopefully stretched. That way the circular layer has less resistance, at least that’s the idea.

I understand your reasoning: If we cooldown and lock in the extension session, by the time we heat back up in the pump (and unlock if you will) we’ll be in a stretched/expanded state. I think this route is potentially “safer”, in that the cooldown during the extension is a controlled process. With my quick tube swithcing idea heat is lost and it is very uncontrolled, and potentially allows for rapid cooling - something Tutt has mentioned previously is best avoided (Tutt - Gaining volume with Kyrpa)

Our thinking is aligned you just explained it better. It’s just a matter of how to best execute on it. Interesting that we both arrived on the same reasoning and plan.

Hopefully that indicates that we are both on the correct path. Unfortunately I will not have the extra time to include the extending phase for the next two weeks, so I am sticking with the current routine for now.

I decided to incorporate 2x 10min soft clamping sessions (one morning, one late afternoon). I managed to hit a new IPL record of around 17.7cm, so this might be something on the right track.

Things were quite busy for around a month, so decided to take a little break.

Started yesterday with some light pumping (using the routine here: IndyMan - Indyman’s Journey). Also kept my 2x 10 min soft clamp sessions. Will try add in a long and low pressure session tonight (something like 3 or 4”Hg over 40mins, eventually building to 1.5 hours). I felt that previously I was doing too little in a week to gain, so the new routine will look something like
Mon: Linear + Soft Clamp
Tue: Long
Thu: Linear + Soft Clamp
Fri: Long
Sun: Random

I am curious how well mixing the two pumping approaches will work. I will also keep in the 5 min pre-stretching aspect, and try observe which session type results in greater IPL (if any).

This isn’t an update post, rather just a thoughts/idea to write down.

When pumping I usually use a water-based lubricant on the pump flange/rim to create the seal, with a small amount on the internal walls (up to around 3cm). I also put a little on the glans to help it not stick to the inner walls. Tonight I will try lube the entire shaft, as I am curious if there is skin “sticking” to the walls inhibiting IPL. It might also have an effect on how much of the cylinder is packed.

Was a good week last week, got every session planned except the bonus Sunday one. Will make a slight adjustment to the routine, switching the linear and long days around, as a long session on Friday is annoying. I might alternate every week which days I do soft clamping, just to mix things up.

In terms of progress I am not quite at my record 17.7cm IPL, but close, at 17.5cm. Packed length is around 4.5cm to 5cm though it’s tricky to tell exactly since it’s not evenly distributed (right side more packed than left). BPEL & MSEG measurements will likely be done only at the end of the month. From my previous discussion with Buckfever, I’ll likely start extending prior to pumping starting the next month.

Last week I only managed to get 3 sessions in and this week looks like it might be the same. While not ideal, it is not terrible either. Stick not packing the tube, though it does appear to be slowly increasing.

I took a BPFSL and MSEG on Sunday measuring a gain of 0.1 and 0.1 to 0.2 cm respectively, which for two weeks is great progress. While I am seeing progress I will not change the routine. Once stalling/plateau starts I will include extending prior to pumping using the same setup I used for my extending cycle, though perhaps not as intense initially.

New packed height record, 6cm. Tried something a little different with the linear routine - immediately pumped to -8”Hg and let it naturally relax down to -4”Hg over 2 minutes. Then resumed as per guide, starting from -4 to -7”Hg.

I’ll give this method a few more tries to see if it is the reason I packed more than usual.

Last week was not great, was busy and travelling enough to manage only 2 days of PE. To ensure that this is not becoming a trend, this week I will attempt 5 sessions. Partly to make up the lost time, partly to shock the system a bit. To further mix things up, this weeks pumping will only be linear routine.

Generally feeling things are going well, but only measurements will confirm. At the very least flaccid hang is definitely visibly improving, though it is not something I measure.