Reflections and Progress: thoughtfulgold

Hi TG,

you’re suggesting to get a silicone sleeve for the above, and that without it, it will go entirely different.
What’s the purpose & benefit of the sleeve, and do you think it should be used in general with pumping, or is it for this particular routine?

Thank you!

Both sections marked with “**” explain this. This is directly stated.

It is known that if edema/fluid buildup forms you cannot do a high pressure manual exercise. There is danger involved if this is attempted. A pumping sleeve removes edema risk for many pumpers. If you do not have a sleeve and do long duration pumping it is highly likely you will experience fluid buildup and be unable to safely perform the ULI#3 after pumping. At least safely.

Some pumpers still may experience fluid buildup with the sleeve. This warning is so that you do not perform a high pressure manual exercise on a penis with fluid build up from pumping. Without a sleeve the chances are you will experience a fluid buildup problem performing the pumping part of this routine. This negates the routine purpose.

Pumping in general you don’t need a sleeve. As you will be able to simply use shorter duration and lower pressure to avoid fluid buildup. It is stressed for this routine so the fluid buildup is avoided despite this pumping routine generally being a known cause of fluid buildup.

You can use a sleeve for general pumping. But pumping to your own limits and comfort is just as effective without a sleeve if you want to avoid fluid buildup.

Oh I see. I didn’t connect the sleeve with the avoidance of fluid buildup, but I see what you mean.

Thanks!

Some may look at my stats (8.75x6” at this posting) and ask:

“Why more girth, TG?”

As the following routine is an advanced pumping and ULI#3 combo, thoughtfulgold Advanced Routine #1: Pumping with ULI#3 it is geared towards girth. And girth in a serious way (in theory). And 6” MSEG is big girth, and I taper much thicker towards the base.

The thing is, my penis is curved. And curved due to deformities in my left CC that occurred during my development as a young child with a botched circumcision. So, the aesthetic of my penis is my concern. It isn’t bulbous or terribly mishapen but it is curved and in a pronounced way that makes me unhappy. My MSEG is a good deal different than my base girth also and I want to get some more consistent girth throughout the shaft.

“But TG, isn't that likely to increase girth substantially throughout the penis to a point that is excessive?”

Maybe. Gains at this stage of PE aren’t as cut and dried. Plus, the exercises and devices I’m using aren’t targeting the base as much as the middle and upper portions. Gain patterns for newer PE practitioners are different than those with more experience. Typically this manifests in gains in length and girth regardless of what device or exercises are used for newbies even after the “newbie gains” phase is over. More experienced practicioners will have much slower gains that may only affect certain parts of the penis regardless of trauma used. I worked on a targeted routine for tunica and CC work because I know that my gain pattern doesn’t see much gains in those areas anymore and those are most likely to suit my purpose.

“What about your future partners? Aren't you looking at possibly reaching a problematic level of girth for them?”

The shortest answer is “screw them, this is about me.” The longer answer is this is a self-image issue. That I acknowledge the possible and real logistical issues a penis thicker than 6” mid shaft sometimes poses. That, despite the possible problem it could be that I’m more concerned with my reflection in the mirror each day than pleasing a partner who may or may not even have issues with such a size who doesn’t even exist at the time of this post. My aesthetic appearance is why I got into PE. It still is a primary driver. That’s my journey.

I’ll keep an eye on girth, as it is likely to increase slowly and I will set a limit but it’s not about them. A partner will of course have a preference but I can’t cater to someone who is theoretical. Nor will I cater to someone who prefers something other than what I have to offer, should a partner cross my path. I’ve tried that, it is a poor choice as only I will be in my life guaranteed for the rest of it.

There are other reasons and factors for my continued PE journey. I’ll touch on them another time. The layers and purposes are varied but…this is the simplest one for the girth that I may end up with.

I was chatting with a user today and I realize, I never directly touched on the role that your mind plays in Penis Enlargement. This is extremely important and will dictate any gains you see or losses you experience.

First, never start or continue PE while in the depths of depression. Nothing good will come of it. Placing your self-concept and self-image in the hands of what are fickle at best gods of PE to give you gains is a fast way to get disappointed. In my own past, doing this left me injured and depressed for weeks at a time even when I wasn’t depressed. One user that I spoke to regarding his own depression and its effect on his PE journey is detailed here: 6 weeks into newbie routine and dick is shrinking. What am I doing wrong? and this is my main point. Depression and PE does not mix. It goes worse than you can even imagine.

Second, your body chemical balance is everything. If you ignore the effect that PE will have on your endorphins you are going to get some surprises, some good and some bad. Some people enjoy the feelings that stretching will give, find that it increases testosterone or dopamine and that they feel pleasure from PE, even the non-masturbatory portions. But, like any chemical high, once it’s gone you will come down. You have to realize how much of any exercise or device that you can use. Some people pump for pleasure, but desensitize themselves. I mean there’s any number of ways you can overdo and have too much of a good thing. I touch on what to do about that here Hiatus- Recentering the body from the penis outward in a prior post.

Third, please remember that PE is not your life. You can’t center your day around your routine. You can’t center your entire sex life around PE, as opportunities are often unpredictable and if you are turning down sex in favor of PE you have to question your PE motives and purpose. Seeing gains makes it easy to get obsessed with PE, tuning the routine, maximizing gains in a small amount of time. Some guys seem to compete with others and all of this is well and good…being inspired is great! But…your life shouldn’t suffer, your free time shouldn’t be consumed with thoughts of PE or performance of routines. The ‘gym rat’ is reflected often in a similar beast that I call the ‘PE rat’ who is always pushing for another method and means to do more with his routine and journey. After a point, it becomes too much for anyone to bear and it encroaches on the quality of life that you live. If your device budget rages out of control, your schedule book has more time marked for PE than social engagements…It’s just knowing when moderation is moderate or too much.

Because, the more time you place into PE the more your successes and failures will impact your mood and overall feeling of well-being. This is not a gamble I wish to make or ever see go well for too long. Learning this lesson personally is only part of the long journey that PE has been for me. Hopefully, you can understand it from reading and won’t learn this one first-hand.

After a couple of days of my heavy pumping routine it’s time for a measurement and rating of the routines I’ve been working.

Overall, EQ has been up and night wood has come back. I’ve never been big on night wood, certain issues prevented nocturnal emissions so night wood has always been rare. These are excellent signs. The night wood has been more consistent since using the Lightweight Routine #1-Stretching and so it is a good thing to do, even when not on the heavy pumping routine.

Measurements? Haven’t done an official since August, though I’ve checked from time to time. So far?
8.75” BPEL
+0” (but it feels more solid, the EQ wasn’t 100%, which I usually try for. I suspect a gain of maybe .25” but I don’t want to jinx it. It’ll take a week to get a solid number for an update but jumping the gun isn’t the goal here.)

6.125” MSEG
+.125” (the 1/8” gain is where I tend to fluctuate however it feels stable at this point. Maybe greater than 1/8” gain but EQ wasn’t 100% as stated prior)

Signature will not change from 8.75x6” until measurements are observed to be stable several times, as is proper. I’ve gotten my hopes up before, not playing that game again. Hopefully within the week I’ll see some measurable gains and update my signature. Which I haven’t seen in probably 6 months now.

thoughtfulgold

Firstly I reacently read your thread thoughtfulgold’s Penis Enlargement as “Scheduled Trauma” theory and am very impressed. Got me to move to a two day on one day off routine and early results are promising.

>Some pumpers still may experience fluid buildup with the sleeve. This warning is so that you do not perform a high pressure manual exercise on a penis with fluid build up from pumping. Without a sleeve the chances are you will experience a fluid buildup problem performing the pumping part of this routine. This negates the routine purpose.

>Pumping in general you don’t need a sleeve. As you will be able to simply use shorter duration and lower pressure to avoid fluid buildup. It is stressed for this routine so the fluid buildup is avoided despite this pumping routine generally being a known cause of fluid buildup.

>You can use a sleeve for general pumping. But pumping to your own limits and comfort is just as effective without a sleeve if you want to avoid fluid buildup.

I use a dynamic water pumping routine and am convinced the silicone sleeve approach allows me to go longer with minimal fluid build up. I can get a bit in the leading edge of my foreskin but only because that sometimes pokes out in front of the sleeve. I always stop pumping when my discomfort level increases. Recently I find I can pump for about 90 minutes before that happens. The two on one off routine also keeps it healthy and plump between sessions. I do two sessions a day and occasionally three if the opportunity arises. I also use a condom over my glans with baby powder underneath to prevent blisters which seem more common with water pumping. Getting good glans expansion doing this and no blisters.

We seem to fluctuate on the same girth numbers. I’ll hit 6.25 on a few one off measurements, but mostly 6-6.125”.

My opinion is that size should be given as a range to begin with.

My signature should say BPEL = 7.5 - 8.1 MSEG 5.9-6.2.

I agree with the range. But I go with the most frequent or mean of said range.

I also think I’m having measuring device issues. I used to use a piece paracord for girth and now I use a 60” seamstress tape. Now, despite what appears to be a gain I’m showing next to nothing. This is irksome. This has been since my last measurement in September when I showed no gain at that time either.

Just curious, do you experience any discoloration from pumping? Aesthetics isn’t the main goal of PE for me, but when I tried pumping a few years ago, I would get these little blood spots (broken capillaries) that would then turn into large dark spots on my dick. I tried the Firegoat Rolls, but they either didn’t work for me or I started doing them too late. Either way, it took almost a year after I stopped pumping for my normal color to return. I’d love to get into pumping again but I’m not willing to risk the severe discoloration.

Honestly I am not equipped to empathize with you there. I don’t get discoloration I can detect, this is because I’m black so my penis is a dark enough brown that I would observe no discoloration after pumping.

austfred,

I’m glad my theory was useful to you. I only put into words what we all practice on some level. Added a bit.

I think your sleeve thread was the first one I commented on when I joined. I was convinced that the silicone sleeve could take pumping to the next level. I so far have found that to be the case, with your sleeve cutting advice also.

I get a touch of fluid in the leading bit of exposed foreskin and a bit of the base but not much at all.

I’ve done 90 minutes with and without the sleeve. I’ve compared and contrasted. With the sleeve I get more uniform expansion with no edema and EQ is better out of the tube and gains seem to happen faster. My glans expansion is very similar to how you describe yours. The sleeve seems to have intensified the routine in all the right ways. It is just annoying to put on and takes some getting used to.

I’ve never had a glans blister. I had one on the shaft 2 days ago. Just a small one, which resolved on my days off. 2 days on, 1 off keeps the penis fresh and more cooperative in my experience, especially when working with long duration and frequent pumping sessions. Fatigue is EASY to accumulate while pumping regularly.

This sleeve has helped me develop the routine I’m using now and will be integral to my 3rd portion of the routine I’ll start sometime next month.

thoughtfulgold

>I’m glad my theory was useful to you. I only put into words what we all practice on some level. Added a bit.

Yes but your thread puts it in a very convincing way and has a lot of useful detail. I have saved a copy and will revisit re rest periods. I am a firm believer in rest breaks but mainly take them when it is convenient (eg away travelling, illness etc). Have had some growth spurts after breaks though.

>I think your sleeve thread was the first one I commented on when I joined. I was convinced that the silicone sleeve could take pumping to the next level. I so far have found that to be the case, with your sleeve cutting advice also.

Glad you found it useful

>I get a touch of fluid in the leading bit of exposed foreskin and a bit of the base but not much at all.

Had a thought about the foreskin issue after this mornings pump session. The problem is with the anatomy. You do not want the sleeve to cover the Corona and the foreskin protrudes forward underneath to the front of the Frenulum. I find that is where I get the fluid build up. However it quickly subsides and does not seem to be a real issue.

>I’ve done 90 minutes with and without the sleeve. I’ve compared and contrasted. With the sleeve I get more uniform expansion with no edema and EQ is better out of the tube and gains seem to happen faster. My glans expansion is very similar to how you describe yours. The sleeve seems to have intensified the routine in all the right ways.

The issue I have is my glans is growing and now I have to work harder to enter my wife without hurting her. Once in though we are both happy.

>It is just annoying to put on and takes some getting used to.

I am currently using what equates to a 2/3 sleeve and a 1/3 one left over from previously torn ones. I roll up the 2/3 one and fit it on the shaft about 1/3 of the way down with the leading edge towards the front. When unrolled it goes to the base without any drama. I then fit the baby powder and the condom and last the 1/3 sleeve from just behind the corona. That goes on easy. I also use a sealing ring at the base as my water cylinder is unflanged and you need it to keep the water in. It also works like a cock ring and I find I stay hard while pumping and only go flaccid after I take it off at the end to the session.

>I’ve never had a glans blister. I had one on the shaft 2 days ago. Just a small one, which resolved on my days off. 2 days on, 1 off keeps the penis fresh and more cooperative in my experience, especially when working with long duration and frequent pumping sessions. Fatigue is EASY to accumulate while pumping regularly.

I believe I got my glans blisters early on from water pumping. Gather moisture on the skin encourages blister formation which would explain why the drying action of the baby powder acts as a preventitive. Never heard of a shaft blister before. I wonder if it could be some sort of bruising or pinching of a fine blood vessel? Yes thanks for reinforcing the 2 day on 1 day off routine. Your explanation is the most convincing I have read to date. The only weakness in it is that it clashes with a weekly 7 day cycle which is convenient to a lot of us. I wonder if we should slip in an extra day rest somewhere?

Regards
Austfred

What I’ve been doing with my routine is increasing intensity. Say I do 2 days on, 1 off. My second set of 2 days on, the second day of that (which is day 5 of a week) I’ll take the routine to the upper limit then rest 2 days. That way the additional strain has an additional day to heal.

Same thing I’ve done recently with 1 on, 1 off. I take it higher on that last day and take 2 days off to reset my schedule properly.

This post is for those who don’t rest AND those who overdo it. I did both and learned the lesson fresh, even with my experience level. If you think you’re beyond it, you ain’t. Read on below.

The problem with good PE is the same as with any regimental physical exercise. You have to ride the closest possible to some level of fatigue to see some progress. You don’t have to tire yourself out and do exercises to failure (though some do and see gains, this is not recommended) but you have to ride it at least to some meaningful point of wear and require rest at least some of the time. You have to feel something and see some results and step your routine up eventually. Invariably, we start good almost all the time. But we push it and crash ourselves.

Some of the more potent routines have large fatigue risks. Like thoughtfulgold Advanced Routine #1: Pumping with ULI#3 that I’ve been up to recently. I know the risks of this routine. And yet and still, after doing the routine day I did another routine day. This went VERY well, explosive PIs throughout and through the next day of edging. So I went after not one day of edging but 2. On that second day of edging, the 4th day of a routine that’s already very potent and is designed for 1 on 1 off…I orgasmed. And now, day 1 of rest, I have turtling symptoms and I never have turtling symptoms. EQ is lowered, but there is no observable loss in size. Perhaps a loss in gains recently attained but…this was due to my own foolishness.

Sometimes, we need to listen to our brains. Your penis will tell you generally how much you can and cannot take. But your penis will not warn you if you’re overtraining until after the fact. This is where your brain comes in. I did a classic newbie mistake while honing a new routine. I slammed my face into a forced 2 days minimum of rest at a time where I may even have a date this coming week. I did this just like in my second year of PE when I was mostly free styling and finding different things to try for as long as I was willing to cope with them and pretty much demanding my body scream its limits at me when I was done being stupid.

Some of you call me “veteran”. I’m just a professional at trying all the stupid things with no compunctions. You have to be willing to try, to fail, to make notes, to understand what you did wrong and admit fault. And I did all of that.

I tried a high intensity routine, I ran it longer than I was supposed to, I then ran 2 days of edging on top of it (which takes me well outside of my normal rest cycle anyway) and orgasmed knowing that was a very poor choice. In the future, I’ll plan on some other things I can do to get me out of the house and away from my PE tools on rest days if I’m worried I’ll overdo it, this is me understanding what I did wrong and admitting fault…then learning from it.

You’d think I wouldn’t need to do things like this to stay productive but…you’d be wrong. Fact is, doesn’t matter how sharp you are. You can always hit the blade on a rock, dull the edge and have to start over before you’ve got a razor edge again.

Never get so full of yourself you forget what its like to be stupid, fail, and have no one to blame but yourself. Because pride comes before a fall and it will make you stupid, fail and you will have no one and nothing to blame but yourself.