# NakTak's progress



## Naktakala (Jan 25, 2021)

NikNak's progress journal


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## Naktakala (Jan 25, 2021)

Hey everyone. Above is a Fit3D scan of myself taken January 13, 2021. Below that is my calorie tracking and weight chart spanning back to August 28th. The story behind this is as follows:


During March of 2020 I was faced with lots of Visa issues and stress. My diet was horrible and I discontinued my TRT for a long time, walking around with T-levels at bottom of normal range <300. Stress was killing me and I was eating way too little (breakfast cereal and chicken+brocolli+potatoe dinners). My health markers were bad. Liver had elevated AST/ALT (well ... slightly), my HDL was low, tryglicerides high, blood pressure averaged (138/85). I didn't feel good, I had reflux, no appetite, no energy. Yet, I stuck to going to the gym and doing 20 min of cardio everyday. I was stuck with highly fluctuating weight, binge sprees, and aches and pains all the time due to the low amount of nutrients.


A good friend caught all these indications and pushed me in a direction. He suggested I go back on TRT and control my estrogen better (the original reason for leaving TRT). He also pointed me to reverse diets (youtube videos). I figured I'd give it a go... It did not go well. The reflux killed me and funny enough I had a weird sympton: Anal itching. I then asked my doctor to have my gut microbiome tested. Indeed they found a bacterial infection called heliobacter (apparently not very rare) that caused my reduced appetite, digestive issues and itching. This marks August 28th 2020 where I started an aggressive antibiotic course (like in STRONG, it made me puke and gave me the poops). The antibiotics was a 4 week course and about 1 week after the course ended my belly started coming to life again. So all this was week -2 to +3. 


Still not on TRT:
At week +3 my food intake started increasing and I was going CARNIVORE. I stopped cardio. I ate as much as I can. My weight slowly increased (note: I was deathly afraid of gaining more fat) until it flattened out just below 270 lbs, at which point I kept increasing calories to find my actual Total Daily Energy Expenditure (TDEE). This peaked at about week 9. Anything above 3200 cals really felt like I was putting fat away (like in real sensitivity in the flabby parts and other stuff) so I stopped here. Please note that from weeks +3 to +9 my whole life changed with more energy, better mood, better sleep. I felt like a human being again and as by some miracle my health markers improved, my blood pressure was all of a sudden 122/67.


It was time for the weight loss:
I started with modest calorie restriction, a DEXA scan at week +9 and went back on TRT at week +10 with a dose of 150 mg/week cypionate and aggressive anastrozole (1mg every other day). I did everything religiously. Felt no strength gains but the weight came off and at week +14 the old unused TRT doses intimidated me so I self-increased the does to 375mg/week. Effectively doing a mini-cycle with caloric restriction. 4 weeks after that I was pleased to see significant muscle gain and strength gains. My bodyfat visually also decreased but I was discouraged because my weight fluctuated. I hit hard with anastrozole but strength was lost and my ligaments hurt like crap. I extra-focused on my diet to keep it iso-caloric. Muscle mass and strength still increased.


DEXA scan at week +18. January 13, 2021.
The scan affirmed a victory for me. It showed 11 lbs fat loss and 5 lbs LBM gained. I am almost dead certain that the muscle gained was the last 4 weeks on my increased T.


Where I am at now:
Two weeks after the DEXA scan my weight kept increasing. Changes in the diet were minimal but I did reduce my anastrazole dose which led to more estrogen that I felt in the form of better pumps and no-more ligament pain. I can see more mass on my traps and legs but I am a little discouraged at the weight-changes. I increased my calories (still clean) for a couple of days and will give my new regiment another week.


Testosterone Cypionate 375 mg/week
Anastrozole 0.25mg every other day


Measurement technique:
- Calorie counting (MyFitnessPal)
- Daily weight (after first morning pee, in me jammies)
- Waist measurement minimum each week


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## Naktakala (Jan 25, 2021)

Example diet:
This changes my minute amounts every day but I just show it here for those interested in Carnivore-composition. I have some zero-sugar sauces and stuff that is equivalent to mayonaise or olive-oil so for details just shoot me a question.


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## The Tater (Jan 25, 2021)

That’s a lot of information to digest. What made you decide to try a carnivore diet? How did it affect your lipid profile? Trt really changed my life. Made me excited to start everyday. My type 2 diabetes is well controlled and life is good. I wish you continued success and look forward to watching your progress.

also, what does your bloodwork look like on 375mg test cyp as far as total test?


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## Naktakala (Jan 25, 2021)

The carnivore diet: I actually started just normal low calorie but appetite control was hard. And the cholesterol fear was there. A friend of mine is a cardiologist and he enlightened me that saturated fat is not as evil as people thought. Given my goals he suggested keto which I tried. It worked but recovery from workouts was not on par. Then i tried pure carnivore. That lacked energy in the gym with no carbs (i train the mornings). Now I am somewhere in-between carnivore and keto and I love the way i can get feedback from keto pee sticks and blood glucose monitoring. 

Typically in the afternoon my glucose is sub 90 and ketones are high (peeing on strip). This is the sweet spot for me since i feel full of energy and i am not hungry all the time. Ketosis is awesome to get rid of that starvation feeling.

Cholesterol improved. I dont really look at LDL as much as I look at HDL and triglycerides.

HDL went from 40ish to above 70 even with test so high. Triglycerides went from 145 to an awesome 15!!! Given the amount of fat I eat I am amazed. Blood sugar control is also great right now. My glucose is under 100 within 30 of my highcarb post workout meal attesting to great insulation sensitivity.

Hope that answers the question.

I would like to add that I have always known I dont like carbs and preferred meat. My wife is the opposite of me but she is super fit. I am embracing it now and loving it whilst understanding that it's not for everyone.


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## Naktakala (Jan 25, 2021)

Oh forgot to say. That I havent looked at my testosterone levels at 300mg per week cause I shouldn't be on that dose for trt. I have been at my normal dose of 175 mg per week for more than a week now so I am expecting my next bloodwork in 4 weeks or so to show about 800-900 like it did before my mini-cycle.


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## CohibaRobusto (Jan 25, 2021)

Interesting. What are you doing in the gym these days, what does your workout routine look like?

I will follow along, hope to see you reach your goals!


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## FlyingPapaya (Jan 25, 2021)

Yeah I'm interested in what type of lifting your doing, the end goal and such.

Keep at it!


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## Naktakala (Feb 14, 2021)

Update:




Hey guys. Above charts are my updates. Following notes apply:
- Diet was very consistent
- I reduced my Anastrozole down to 0.25mg every 5 days, which led to weight fluctuations but better pumps and less tendon-pain
- I also included my waist measurements which really highlights that my weight was not indicative of my fat loss
- Seeing reduction in bodyfat where my bicep meets the shoulder and my veins are starting to show


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