# Who monitors blood glucose while on GH?



## Spear (Jul 4, 2021)

I just was kind of curious, as i've heard of people saying they take metformin while runnin growth, I have never had an issue with blood sugar levels, but wondering if I should monitor?


----------



## sfw509 (Jul 4, 2021)

I cant imagine it would hurt. I dont think its possible to have too much data when running gear. And since everyone is different knowing how you respond could help with dosing.


----------



## Spear (Jul 4, 2021)

sfw509 said:


> I cant imagine it would hurt. I dont think its possible to have too much data when running gear. And since everyone is different knowing how you respond could help with dosing.


Amazon will be bringing me a monitor then. Time to check this out.


----------



## sfw509 (Jul 4, 2021)

I have a Contour Next One meter. It was like $30 and the strips are not that bad, about $30 for 100.


----------



## Spear (Jul 4, 2021)

sfw509 said:


> I have a Contour Next One meter. It was like $30 and the strips are not that bad, about $30 for 100.


Yeah I got something for about the price, comes with strips and everything needed.


----------



## lifter6973 (Jul 4, 2021)

How much GH are you taking per day @Spear?  If it is not more than 3 or 4 IUs per day you likely have nothing to worry about. Still checking for peace of mind is not a bad idea. You never know.


----------



## Trump (Jul 4, 2021)

At 2iu a day I checked  maybe once a month when i remembered never any issues


----------



## lfod14 (Jul 4, 2021)

Spear said:


> I just was kind of curious, as i've heard of people saying they take metformin while runnin growth, I have never had an issue with blood sugar levels, but wondering if I should monitor?


People obsess about that, I'm a former T2D and I don't even check it anymore, no point. If you're diets not shit and you're not eating a massive overdose of carbs daily than you're not going to start going insulin resistant from low dose growth. Plus, taking snapshot measurements doesn't tell you anything, only an A1C does, which you can also do at home but really not needed.


----------



## Spear (Jul 4, 2021)

lifter6973 said:


> How much GH are you taking per day @Spear?  If it is not more than 3 or 4 IUs per day you likely have nothing to worry about. Still checking for peace of mind is not a bad idea. You never know.


Im currently running 4iu a day. 2 in the am, 2 in the afternoon 


lfod14 said:


> People obsess about that, I'm a former T2D and I don't even check it anymore, no point. If you're diets not shit and you're not eating a massive overdose of carbs daily than you're not going to start going insulin resistant from low dose growth. Plus, taking snapshot measurements doesn't tell you anything, only an A1C does, which you can also do at home but really not needed.


Cool, makes me feel better about not having checked before. I started seeing lots of people talking about glucose levels while on growth and started getting a little concerned. My body fat is at a good level, and my diet is quite clean.


----------



## Forthewin1123 (Jul 5, 2021)

I agree with the comment up farther.. blood sugar is mostly dose dependent.. higher tje dose ..higher the blood sugar.. higher the dose higher the insulin sensitivity gets worse.. 
  I don't know for sure bit insulin and hgh are synergistic.. may habe to do with how gh affects insulin sensitivity.. the 2 together work great together..from what I've read.. never touched insulin.. I do run metformin on bulks with or without gh..


----------



## CJ (Jul 5, 2021)

Forthewin1123 said:


> ...... I don't know for sure bit insulin and hgh are synergistic.. may habe to do with how gh affects insulin sensitivity.. the 2 together work great together..from what I've read.. never touched insulin.. I do run metformin on bulks with or without gh..


I've always heard the exact opposite, that they're antagonists. Basically the insulin blunts/stops the fatty acid mobilization that GH causes.


----------



## Forthewin1123 (Jul 5, 2021)

CJ275 said:


> I've always heard the exact opposite, that they're antagonists. Basically the insulin blunts/stops the fatty acid mobilization that GH causes.





	

		
			
		

		
	
this was a quick Google search.. vigorous Steve on YouTube is a good one to listen too


----------



## CJ (Jul 5, 2021)

Forthewin1123 said:


> View attachment 12386
> 
> 
> 
> ...


I was talking more in terms of use of GH for fat loss.


----------



## CJ (Jul 5, 2021)

Good read on how GH affects glucose/insulin. Human studies, so it's relevant. 

"Effects of growth hormone on glucose metabolism and insulin resistance in human" https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5642081/


----------



## Forthewin1123 (Jul 5, 2021)

CJ275 said:


> I was talking more in terms of use of GH for fat loss.


I didn't catch that from.yojr post.. insulin doesn't promote fat loss.. that's obvious..


----------



## CJ (Jul 5, 2021)

Forthewin1123 said:


> I didn't catch that from.yojr post.. insulin doesn't promote fat loss.. that's obvious..


Yeah, it was my bad. I wasn't clear.


----------



## Forthewin1123 (Jul 5, 2021)

CJ275 said:


> Yeah, it was my bad. I wasn't clear.


All good man..


----------



## Spear (Jul 6, 2021)

Just checked it about 2 hours after I ate. It was at 81.


----------



## Badleroybrown (Jul 8, 2021)

Spear said:


> Im currently running 4iu a day. 2 in the am, 2 in the afternoon
> 
> Cool, makes me feel better about not having checked before. I started seeing lots of people talking about glucose levels while on growth and started getting a little concerned. My body fat is at a good level, and my diet is quite clean.


I would not worry about it at 4 it’s a day.. I was running 6-8 for about 2 months last year and the. I started off with 2 then 4 and progressed up to 8. No problems with blood sugar but my hands and feet where numb daily..


----------



## HollyWoodCole (Jul 8, 2021)

I was just reading about how some orals and even some injectables can cause people to temporarily go hypoglycemic.  After reading through the list of symptoms I'm pretty sure this has happened to me in the past.

I plan on running an oral sometime soon and will be checking glucose in the process.


----------



## Spear (Jul 8, 2021)

HollyWoodCole said:


> I was just reading about how some orals and even some injectables can cause people to temporarily go hypoglycemic.  After reading through the list of symptoms I'm pretty sure this has happened to me in the past.
> 
> I plan on running an oral sometime soon and will be checking glucose in the process.


I purchased a CareTouch system from amazon, came with everything you need, with like 100 test strips, and pins, I think the entire kit was like 25 bucks.


----------



## HollyWoodCole (Jul 8, 2021)

Spear said:


> I purchased a CareTouch system from amazon, came with everything you need, with like 100 test strips, and pins, I think the entire kit was like 25 bucks.


I was given an older (but still nice) one by my Mom since she's diabetic.


----------



## Spear (Jul 8, 2021)

HollyWoodCole said:


> I was given an older (but still nice) one by my Mom since she's diabetic.


Wanna have a contest of who can get the biggest number?


----------



## HollyWoodCole (Jul 8, 2021)

Spear said:


> Wanna have a contest of who can get the biggest number?


Well if what I was reading is correct I think my number would actually be pretty low lol


----------



## Spear (Jul 8, 2021)

HollyWoodCole said:


> Well if what I was reading is correct I think my number would actually be pretty low lol


Yeah, but this gives us a reason to eat a ton of candy! haha


----------



## HollyWoodCole (Jul 8, 2021)

Hah, I am planning on keeping a couple of 'rescue cokes' around in case mine does drop.  

I haven't bought soda in forever, will be kind of odd to go get it.


----------



## Send0 (Jul 10, 2021)

I happen to be on GH, and happen to check my glucose several times a day, but these are unrelated. I only check because I have some insulin resistance that became painfully obvious as I upped my calories and carbs intake.

Thanks to taking measurements, I was able to better dial in my diet to begin to reset my insulin sensitivity.

I'm a firm believer in data, and tracking that data over long periods of time (i.e. years). To everyone in reading this thread... While you don't need to measure your glucose while on low dose GH, why wouldn't you do it? If nothing else you'll have a baseline for the future if you need it. The cost is cheap, and the prick from the lancet doesn't hurt at all.


----------



## Spear (Jul 10, 2021)

I agree with you, Send. It’s nice to know that my glucose levels were in normal range. It’s also nice watching to see when they drop back down after eating meals and what not. It’s cool getting a glimpse of what’s happening inside of my body.


----------



## Badleroybrown (Jul 11, 2021)

HollyWoodCole said:


> I was just reading about how some orals and even some injectables can cause people to temporarily go hypoglycemic.  After reading through the list of symptoms I'm pretty sure this has happened to me in the past.
> 
> I plan on running an oral sometime soon and will be checking glucose in the process.


I think the only time I felt like going hypo was when I was running trenbolene last year. I would be at work and all of the sudden start getting  the shakes and then dry mout. I would have to stop at the nearest store and suck down some carbs fast and slow.


----------



## OZinPHIL (Jul 11, 2021)

Spear said:


> I just was kind of curious, as i've heard of people saying they take metformin while runnin growth, I have never had an issue with blood sugar levels, but wondering if I should monitor?


I strongly advise against using Metformin unless you are an overweight diabetic, it is counter-productive for bodybuilding purposes, Metformin activates the AMPK pathway through LKB1, eventually causing inhibition of the mTOR pathway and thus a reduction in protein synthesis and cellular proliferation (IGF-1)

Try using Berberine, studies have shown its just as effective as Metformin, Tony Huge rips people off with his slin pills, Berberine is the main ingredient lol


----------



## CJ (Jul 11, 2021)

HollyWoodCole said:


> I was just reading about how some orals and even some injectables can cause people to temporarily go hypoglycemic.  After reading through the list of symptoms I'm pretty sure this has happened to me in the past.
> 
> I plan on running an oral sometime soon and will be checking glucose in the process.


Happens to me sometimes, including yesterday. I check my blood glucose for fun when it happens. Yesterday wasn't too bad, low 70's.


----------



## Spear (Jul 11, 2021)

OZinPHIL said:


> I strongly advise against using Metformin unless you are an overweight diabetic, it is counter-productive for bodybuilding purposes, Metformin activates the AMPK pathway through LKB1, eventually causing inhibition of the mTOR pathway and thus a reduction in protein synthesis and cellular proliferation (IGF-1)
> 
> Try using Berberine, studies have shown its just as effective as Metformin, Tony Huge rips people off with his slin pills, Berberine is the main ingredient lol


I have no issues with glucose levels. I wasn’t considering metformin, was just considering monitoring my levels. Which I did start doing, and so far everything is well within normal range. 

did you only read the first post? Lol


----------



## Send0 (Jul 11, 2021)

OZinPHIL said:


> I strongly advise against using Metformin unless you are an overweight diabetic, it is counter-productive for bodybuilding purposes, Metformin activates the AMPK pathway through LKB1, eventually causing inhibition of the mTOR pathway and thus a reduction in protein synthesis and cellular proliferation (IGF-1)
> 
> Try using Berberine, studies have shown its just as effective as Metformin, Tony Huge rips people off with his slin pills, Berberine is the main ingredient lol


Berberine also works through the AMPK and mTOR pathways... However it's thought that berberine doesn't have as big of an impact as metformin.

With that said, I question how much gains are really being left on the table if we use something that inhibits mTOR. Especially when we factor in how testosterone, or any steroids for that matter, upregulate AR and in turn lead to increased mTOR activation. After all, the vast majority of us are no where near an IFBB pro physique.

I speculate that under the context of high normal exogenous testosterone, or if a person is blasting, that any inhibition from metformin or berberine is negligible for hypertrophy.

I stress this is my own speculation based on several unrelated research papers. Meaning I haven't found a specific study that represents this exact scenario, and I'm drawing my conclusions from studies that focus on testosterone's effect on AR, mTOR, and it's regulatory effects... as well as other separate studies that look at Berberine and metformin and their impact on mTOR.


----------



## OZinPHIL (Jul 12, 2021)

Spear said:


> I have no issues with glucose levels. I wasn’t considering metformin, was just considering monitoring my levels. Which I did start doing, and so far everything is well within normal range.
> 
> did you only read the first post? Lol


No I read the whole thread but thought I'd explain to you how Metformin works considering you Mentioned it 😐


----------

