YouTube Summary Starting this week I'm adding YouTube summaries, quick 5 minute recaps of the weekly progress. Not verbatim readings, just hitting the main points. Subscribe at https://www.youtube.com/@Dark.Rebuild if you prefer video format. I would have started last week but my voice was trashed from that bug I caught from the kids. ::youtube[{"videoId":"Im6BB7pSIfY"}] ## Current Stats - **Week 20 Weight:** 262.2 lbs - **Weekly Loss:** 2.4 lbs - **Total Progress:** -74.2 lbs - **Retatrutide:** 12mg (Split dosing Monday and Thursday) - **HGH:** 4iu daily (AM fasted before gym) - **Testosterone Cypionate:** 150mg weekly (3x 50mg) - **5-Amino-1MQ:** 100mg daily (50mg AM before gym, 50mg mid-day) - **GHK-Cu:** 2.5mg daily - **TB-500:** 1mg daily (NEW - added for lower back tweak) ::gallery[{"images":["https://retatrutidelog.com/uploads/f01ba18a-d9e6-43e4-b085-dacf08cb9d10.png","https://retatrutidelog.com/uploads/74f0b2eb-e220-45ec-ad96-053cee96eea5.png","https://retatrutidelog.com/uploads/5a10d95c-0054-4bb8-97af-61c4344d4238.png","https://retatrutidelog.com/uploads/db57ccd9-506d-41ee-8b6f-07c6c79cdeb3.png"],"captions":["","","",""]}] Another great week for the scale and, in my opinion, for the mirror. My progress photos look relaxed and flat, but I'm really liking the direction I'm steadily making progress toward. If this rate keeps up, I'll only be in the 260s for 2 more weeks. I'm absolutely floored that I have this kind of progress still coming and what seems to be the perfect balance between activity and food intake to be rapidly changing so much. It's hard not to think of it as magic, but it's important to remember results may vary and it is a tool. Just like anything in life, you get out what you put in. It's important to have your diet and exercise locked in to maximize your ride on peptides. If you've made the effort to educate yourself on peptides and how to acquire them, make sure you spend some time planning your diet and exercise plan to help put the sharpest edge on your recomp. ## First Full Week With Post-Workout Carbs This was my first full week adding carbs directly after lifting in the morning. I'm still getting up at 4:15 AM, pinning 4iu HGH, and then drinking a [White Monster Zero Ultra](https://amzn.to/3ZWvKCj) as a pre-workout and for the 2g of taurine. This has really been working for me. I did try eating some rice cakes and protein before the gym, but I found that I lagged in my lifting when not fasted. It's almost like my body starts shifting focus to digestive flow rather than lifting. **Post-workout breakfast (1-2 hours after gym):** - 4 whole eggs - 1/2 cup cottage cheese - 1/2 cup plain white rice (workout days only) The rice addition is working well for recovery. ## Training Schedule Changes & Lower Back Tweak This was another busy week for me, but I still managed to make it to the gym every day. I made a slight shift in my lifting plan: **New schedule:** - Removed Wednesday rest day - Moved Friday's lifts to Wednesday - Moved Saturday's lifts to Friday - Added moderate Sunday session for traps and posterior-focused work **The injury:** I tweaked my lower back this week doing RDLs on Tuesday. Because of the tweak, I pulled RDLs from the plan likely for a couple weeks and added **1mg TB-500 daily** to the 2.5mg GHK-Cu. Even just after a few injections, I already don't feel the pain and discomfort I had the first couple of days after doing it on Tuesday. I'm out of BPC-157 or I would have added that to the mix as well, but this combination seems to be working. ## Labs Results: Metabolic Markers Massively Improved I went and did labs on Monday morning. I used Quest Labs this time, as I mentioned last week, it ended up being a little cheaper. Got huge changes in my metabolic markers, and the TRT numbers finally came back too. ### HbA1c: Out of Pre-Diabetic Range **Hemoglobin A1c pulled hard out of the pre-diabetic zone:** 12 weeks ago: **5.8%** (pre-diabetic range) This week: **5.1%** (normal range) To me, that's a huge victory. That's not just weight loss - that's a fundamental improvement in glucose metabolism and insulin sensitivity. ### Lipids & Cholesterol: Still High But Not Concerned Lipids and cholesterol are still in the high ranges, but I'm not overly concerned with them yet. It's very common with rapid weight loss, and 74.2 pounds in 20 weeks is fairly rapid, so I take it as a sign right now that my body is moving fat around as fast as it can. I will continue to monitor by checking my labs on a 12-week cadence. Yes, 12 weeks from my last DEXA scan I'll get another one, and the same for blood labs. ![Labs Screenshot](https://retatrutidelog.com/uploads/aded3c49-b809-4446-bb74-f909adf4051b.png) ### Increasing Fish Oil Dosage One thing I'm changing is increasing the amount of daily fish oils I'm taking. I'm bumping up from only taking 2 caps to: **AM (after breakfast):** 3 caps [Nutricost Fish Oil Omega 3](https://amzn.to/4a9Uci6) **PM (with sleep supplement):** 3 caps [Nutricost Fish Oil Omega 3](https://amzn.to/4a9Uci6) This lines up with taking my [Earth Elixir 4-in-1 sleep supplement](https://amzn.to/3LY6Ere) that I posted about in [this post about fixing retatrutide insomnia](https://retatrutidelog.com/posts/fixing-retatrutide-insomnia-deep-sleep-supplement). Note: This is above the recommended dosing on the fish oil packaging, but I wanted to take in a total of 3-4g per day, and with the split dose they use, this is what I figured I needed to take to get that dosage. ### Testosterone Results This lined up with labs required for check-in with [AlphaMD](https://www.alphamd.org/referral/1VYxf), where I posted about the [onboarding process](https://retatrutidelog.com/posts/starting-trt-alphamd-onboarding-experience). If you're interested in starting TRT and looking for a reasonably priced clinic to have an actual prescription and not UGL-sourced testosterone, use my referral code for $30 off your first month: https://www.alphamd.org/referral/1VYxf **TRT Lab Results:** | Marker | First Test | Current | Change | |--------|-----------|---------|--------| | **Total Testosterone** | 243 ng/dL | 681 ng/dL | +438 | | **Free Testosterone** | 48 pg/mL | 138.6 pg/mL | +90.6 | | **Estradiol (E2)** | Not tested | 37 pg/mL | - | I am not taking an AI with TRT. From these numbers, granted I haven't spoken with my doctor yet, it appears I don't really have an aromatization problem even with higher body fat, and I might metabolize testosterone a bit fast. But I'm feeling better than I did when total and free T were tanked. I'm having positive experiences with recovery from the gym and I would say mild libido changes, not my main focus, but it's one everyone seems to bring up with TRT discussions. I have these uploaded with AlphaMD and waiting for a follow-up call to get scheduled. ## RENPHO Scale Report: Week 20 Body Composition ![RENPHO Report Week 20](https://retatrutidelog.com/uploads/7027cf1c-b31b-49a4-8cb1-bd52e2fee13f.png) The [RENPHO smart scale](https://amzn.to/47unhTA) continues to track trends. I'm going to keep assuming that it's tracking close to what the DEXA scan showed. But the main metric I'm watching from this report is the fat mass and that it goes down. I'm not going to worry so much about the total loss on the scale, but that the fat mass continues its downward trend. I think they'll be linked up for the next ~40 lbs or so, but I'm mentally preparing for my scale progress to maybe slow a bit. ## StepUp Challenge: Now We're Up to 7 Members! Welcome to our newest member!
Group Name retatrutidelog
Number of current members 7
Date Range 2025-11-15 to 2025-11-22
Sum of total steps of all members 404,680 steps
Avg daily steps of all members 7,226 steps/day
Total distance covered by group 183.95 miles [296.04 kms]
Weekly Wrap-up: 404K+ steps and 183+ miles covered with 7 members. Average daily steps: 7,226/day. Group keeps growing!
If you'd like to join our group, you can use the [direct group invite](https://join.thestepupapp.com/zW07S5) or read about [why I started this challenge](https://retatrutidelog.com/posts/my-step-count-is-trash-started-a-group-to-fix-it). ::subscribe[{"variant":"default"}] --- **Disclaimer:** The information provided on this site is for **educational and informational purposes only** and reflects my **personal experiences and opinions**. It is **not** intended as medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Retatrutide is an **investigational drug** that is **not approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration** for any use outside of clinical trials. Always consult a licensed healthcare professional before making any decisions regarding medications, supplements, or medical treatments. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. Some links on this site may be affiliate links.