Jan
If you’re like most people, your body changes with age. Apart from this, diseases and certain medical conditions can severely affect hormonal balance, causing changes like loss of muscle. Ultimately, testosterone is one hormone that starts reducing due to these factors.
In such cases, you’ll experience a slump in sex drive, mood swings, and others. But what if you could find a way to reverse these issues and fix them at their root. Simply put, what if you could increase your testosterone levels safely?
Hormone replacement therapy (HRT), such as testosterone replacement therapy (TRT), could be the ideal solution you need. To this end, some of the most effective forms of steroids you can use are testosterone enanthate.
This post explores why this testosterone type is unique among the other classes on the market.
What is Testosterone Enanthate?
Testosterone enanthate, also called testosterone heptanoate, is an androgenic and anabolic steroid that treats low testosterone levels. Like other anabolic drugs, it helps build muscles and enhance physical performance. You can find it under brand names like Syntest enanthate, Xyosted, Androfil, Delatestryl, and several others.
This form of testosterone has been in use as far back as the 1950s. It is a schedule III drug only accessible by prescription in some countries. As an AAS drug, it plays a key role after use. Firstly, it induces testosterone production in the body, and it is also a derivative of the testosterone hormone.
Apart from enanthate, another type of testosterone that shares this property is cypionate. But it is by no means the equal of enanthate. Read on to find out why.
Differences between Testosterone Enanthate And Testosterone Cypionate
Testosterone enanthate and cypionate are both used in bodybuilding to gain mass. However, the first difference is their origin. While enanthate is a European, testosterone cypionate is an English steroid. In the U.S, for instance, enanthate is more commonly used because cypionate supply is limited. But even in other countries like Canada, testosterone enanthate is more widely used, and there are other reasons.
For one, enanthate’s release time is slightly shorter since it has a faster and more active half-life when compared to cypionate. The reason behind this rapid-action property of testosterone enanthate is the carbon ester group. There’s a 7-carbon ester chain on the enanthate, but there is an 8-carbon ester chain on cypionate. This difference results in a more active life span of testosterone enanthate.
To further explain this difference, the ester group of each testosterone also gives its level of solubility in water or oil. Hence, more carbons in the ester groups mean less water-soluble and more oil soluble. Since testosterone enanthate is one carbon atom lighter than cypionate, you’ll get more testosterone per gram, and it also dissolves faster in aqueous solutions.
Other Types of Injectable Testosterone Products
Testosterone Suspension
This testosterone type lacks ester and is famous as a powerful mass agent in bodybuilding circles. It is also water-based and the most potent form of injectable steroid you can buy, producing massive physique transformations. However, achieving optimal results means administering frequent intramuscular injections because it only stays in the body for several hours. Using a 25 to 50mg dose twice or three times each week can help elevate testosterone levels. Users say the injections are usually quite painful, and the risks surpass the benefits due to their robust nature.
Testosterone Propionate
This is a gradual-acting anabolic steroid having a short half-life of 4.5. It enables users to run short cycles between 8 to 10 weeks long or as short as six weeks. Owing to the fast-releasing nature of this testosterone type, you’ll need a shorter time to hit the right blood plasma level, typically within hours following injection. Meanwhile, your body will only need three days to metabolize it. Like any other drug, it’s vital to weigh the pros and cons of testosterone propionate before trying.
To stay on the safe side, it’s recommended to stick to the more popular enanthate and only buy syntest enanthate from trusted retailers or suppliers online.
How Testosterone Enanthate Affects Your Body?
Having clarified what makes testosterone enanthate special at the chemical level, let’s now look at how it influences your body after use. Firstly, it’s worth remembering that testosterone is among the most vital hormones in a man’s body. Due to its properties, this drug serves a TRT.
However, studies show that short-term use, typically 6 to 12 weeks, can produce a drastic boost in physical strength. Testosterone enanthate was administered once per week to 16 healthy young males in this research. Researchers reported a significant growth in strength by week three and increased body mass by week 6.
Dosage
Testosterone enanthate appears as a clear or slightly yellow fluid, typically provided in a 5ml or 10ml glass vial. You can inject it into the buttock muscle once within four weeks. Lower doses, used for shorter periods, are generally more advisable to prevent a sudden and drastic difference in hormone levels, possible mood swings, and other side effects.
Some different doses according to specific users are the following:
- Male hypogonadism – 50 – 400mg every 2 to four weeks
- Delayed male puberty – 5 – 200mg every 2 to 4 weeks
- Transgender hormone therapy – 50 – 200mg each week or 100 – 200mg every two weeks
- Metastatic breast cancer – 200 – 400mg taken 2 to four weeks
Generally, speaking bodybuilders would use slightly higher doses.
Possible Side Effects
It’s crucial to learn about the potential side effects before you seriously consider using testosterone enanthate for any reason, be it as TRT for low testosterone or bodybuilding. Although your chances of experiencing severe side effects are considerably lower with this testosterone type, you still have to know about more side effects.
Before are some of them:
- Headaches
- Anxiety or depression
- Oily skin and acne
- Swelling or pain at injection site
- Generalized tingling
- Dizziness
- Decreased or increased sex drive
- Weight gain
- Thinning hair
The level of side effects you experience depends mainly on your dosage.
Conclusion
Using testosterone enanthate brings positive benefits for men with low testosterone levels. This drug can also treat several conditions, such as hormone therapy in transgender masculine people. In the bodybuilding world, too, it brings lots of positive effects and minimal risks, not to mention the relatively affordable price. These are some of the few reasons testosterone enanthate is among the most sought-after types of testosterone. But remember, it only counts if you can purchase from a reputable supplier.
References
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsxm.2019.11.270
https://www.accessdata.fda.gov/drugsatfda_docs/label/2016/009165s034lbl.pdf
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/17530941/
https://doi.org/10.21037/tau.2016.09.04
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2701485/
