[Will B]

I’ve also considered this having been prone to an acne break out or two earlier on which have now seemed to stop, I’d put it down to a few things:

– Lower doses than you’d expect (particularly test) and receptiveness to them over time
– Sun. Honestly not to be underrated, sun & sunbeds over winter clears my skin of all excema and spots. A lot of the US pros live in hot sunny climates. Sea is also good. Both dry out the skin
– If neither of the above then good skin care regimes into shows, Accutane and ultimately masking with the tan

[Will B]

JH – what are your carbs / cals at on normal training days now bud? Love the 1000g refeeds btw tried one myself over the weekend, couldnt overcome the mental aspect and stopped at about 600g lol

[Will B]

Cheers JP – v useful to know mate. Always seen cardio as a straight calorie reduction tool and as a true cardio hater (been a while since the rugger days) always prefer to have half a meal less. 3.3k also good to know, making me consider my own calorie deficit may be too aggressive.

[Will B]

JP – talking of condition, what is your cardio at (if any) champ? Also wondering what total cals are you macros are taking you to this close? I’m a similar weight to you – but 6’5 – and find I need to take cals all the way down to 2-2.5k, not great with the appetite!

[Will B]

Thank you both for the responses!

@Christoph Great insight there. Always been slightly reticent to delve into HGH given age / height (I’ve heard it can make things grow – don’t want my size 12 feet any bigger!) and general expense, but might be a viable option. How much weight can you typically hold onto and would you recommend going straight into an off season bulk to offset some of the muscle deterioration?

@DrDean I typically push just as hard – and perhaps this is the problem; mindset in previous cycles has been volume = progress. Would you suggest lowering volume maximising recovery and looking to transition into off season during PCT, or once HPTA recovered / start another cycle? Interesting re. diet considerations – never looked hugely into this, other than increasing fats to support T levels, could this make a difference.

Cheers Both, really frustrating finding myself having to hit another cycle just to get back to base mass from the last PCT, feels like a perpetuating non-progressive cycle I am stuck in, where I am always ‘re-comping’ to keep BF down and reverse PCT fat gain rather than managing to push a decent off season.

WB