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I'm looking for a few good men (the T microdosing protocol)
Published over 1 year ago • 8 min read
Men—especially those over 35—this email is for you. It’s about a microdosing protocol for testosterone that may change your life like it changed mine. This is a long email but it's worth a few minutes of your time.
If you've followed me for long you know that health and fitness is a life-long passion of mine—and for good reason. In my early 20's I suffered from a devastating chronic illness. Desperate for answers, I spent thousands of hours and over $100,000 researching and trying dozens of treatments (including some wacky ones).
Long story short, I slowly regained my health. But I didn't stop there—my quest to recover from illness evolved into a pursuit of optimal health and longevity. Now at 53 I’m feeling and performing better than ever.
I want to help other men do the same!
How it started—sick at age 22—vs. how it's going—feeling and performing better than ever at 53.
Modern life is an assault on our health from every direction. The results are all around us—by almost any measure health is in sharp decline. Rates of chronic illness are skyrocketing.
Optimal health isn't a workout or a diet, it's a lifestyle—a million little things done right. There are no silver bullets… but today I’m going to tell you about the closest thing to it.
It’s no secret that male testosterone levels decline with age... and fall off a cliff after 40.
But in recent years things have become much worse: T levels for men of all ages are down somewhere between 25% and 50% since the 1980’s, meaning that the average 22 y.o. man today has a T level roughly equal to that of a 67 y.o. man in 2000. To say it's alarming is an understatement. Testosterone is vital for a man's health—in many ways it's his life force.
T levels are dropping faster and further than ever—it’s a silent epidemic that is impacting men’s health and society at large far more than we recognize.
Millions of men suffer from the symptoms of low T:
—Low energy & fatigue —Reduced libido & ED —Poor sleep & exercise recovery —Depression, anxiety, & irritability —Brain fog & difficulty concentrating —Loss of muscle mass & bad workouts —Depressed immune system (allergies & frequent colds)
If you’re experiencing these symptoms you have a choice:
Accept a steady decline in physical and cognitive performance
Do something about it
There's no shame in getting older and losing a step... but I unapologetically choose door #2. I want to feel and perform my best for as long as possible.
There are lots of things you can do about declining vitality, starting with the obvious: Get a full medical evaluation from a doctor who practices functional or longevity medicine (stay away from mainstream MDs), drop excess weight, get hard core about diet, and exercise vigorously and regularly.
These are things everybody should do regardless of their health status, but if your T levels are low then lifestyle changes usually aren’t enough.
SIDE NOTE
Many men have their T levels tested and are told by their doctor that they're “normal” when their numbers are on the lower end of the lab range (Total T below ~500). Remember, the lab range is based on statistical averages for men of all ages and all states of health and the "normal" lab ranges have also trended down over time. For example, LabCorp changed its reference interval from 348-1197 ng/dL to 264-916 ng/dL. To feel and perform your best you want a T level similar to that of a healthy (not average) 30 year old—typically 800 to 1000. This is an oversimplification of a complex subject but it's a good rule of thumb.
There are many supplements and prescription medications that stimulate your body to produce more T. These can improve your lab numbers but most people don’t see lasting improvement in their symptoms. I tried everything under the sun but like many other men I eventually realized…
If your T levels are suboptimal the most effective option is Testosterone Replacement Therapy (TRT), which restores healthy physiological levels via exogenous (not made by the body) testosterone.
SIDE NOTE
It’s important to point out that TRT is NOT the same as “taking steroids” like bodybuilders, who take massive doses of T to achieve supraphysiological levels (total T of 2000 or even much higher) and also “stack” T with other hormones. I’m talking about taking tiny doses of T to restore a healthy physiological level and relieve symptoms so you can feel and perform your best into your 60’s and beyond.
To be clear TRT isn’t a panacea but for men with low T levels and symptoms it’s pretty darn close. In my opinion it's the best bang for the buck for overall health and longevity. It's the ONLY medical intervention I use. (You can read more about my TRT journey here.)
For most men with low T, TRT is like a rising tide that floats all boats—they:
—Feel and look better (skin looks younger and feels more elastic) —Are more confident and optimistic (depression and anxiety often disappear) —Think faster and more clearly ("It's like my brain's clock speed doubled") —Lose weight while building lean muscle mass —Get sick less often —Perform better athletically, cognitively, and sexually —Have a higher overall quality of life
SIDE NOTE
There's a growing body of evidence that TRT is beneficial for heart health and longevity. In studies, TRT—when properly administered—is associated with reduced all-cause mortality in men with low testosterone. Normalizing T levels can lower risks of heart attack, stroke, and death.
I believe that TRT will become a first line anti-aging and health optimization therapy for men over 40 in the next 10 years. But here's the problem with TRT:
It’s a (literal) pain in the ass to administer. Currently there are 3 primary ways to deliver T:
1) Injections: This is the most popular method. The standard protocol is 1-2 self-administered shots per week, injected intramuscularly (into muscles in the butt or legs). Injections are the most effective delivery method but come with the obvious hassle of needles.
2) Pellets: Small tablets resembling grains of rice are inserted below the skin (typically in the upper hip) via a minor surgical procedure every 3-6 months. Pellets work for some people but it’s hard to control the dose (and more specifically, the release rate of T) and the surgical procedure is expensive and invasive. I tried pellets for a year and didn't like it at all.
3) Cream: T in lotion form is rubbed on the skin (typically inner thigh or testicles) each morning. Some men like this method and it has the big advantage of mimicking the body’s natural daily production of T (more on that later) but it can be messy and difficult to reach clinically effective levels because the absorption rate is poor. Cream wasn't effective for me or most of the men I know who are on TRT.
I tried all 3 methods and like most men, eventually settled on injections. However, the vast majority of men on T injections are not on an optimal protocol.
The current standard protocol—which has been around for decades—uses…
T medication in a oil carrier—usually cottonseed oil. This is a BIG ISSUE that nobody is talking about. Seed oils are highly inflammatory and in this case you're injecting the oil directly into your body!
Needles that are unnecessarily big, causing discomfort.
Intramuscular injections, which are invasive and uncomfortable.
Weekly or biweekly injections of a fairly large dose, which doesn’t mimic the body’s natural production of T and can cause wild swings in levels (and side effects).
Like everyone else, I started on the standard protocol. But recently I converted to what I believe will soon become the new gold standard for TRT.
I call it testosterone microdosing.
Here are the key advantages of this protocol:
T medication in a medical grade MCT oil carrier, which is non-inflammatory and may actually provide its own health benefits. (This medication must be obtained from a specially licensed compounding pharmacy.)
Uses tiny 30-gauge, 5/16" long insulin syringes that you can barely feel.
Inject subcutaneously (just below the skin) which is much faster, more comfortable, and less invasive/risky.
MOST IMPORTANTLY, inject a tiny “microdose” daily in the morning to mimic the body’s natural production of testosterone. We’re talking about a typical dose of 0.06 milliliters (12mg) which is just a few drops. The dose so small that it’s hard to find syringes for it (more on this later).
A typical 0.06mL microdose of testosterone — it's just a few drops.
These may seem like small improvements but in combination of these 4 things are a game-changer. When I switched to this protocol I noticed an immediate improvement in how I felt and others have reported the same.
It's counter-intuitive but daily microdose injections are actually LESS hassle than weekly injections because they’re so fast and virtually painless. It's an easy two minute add to the morning routine.
More importantly, the microdosing protocol closely mimics the body's natural cycle of testosterone production. This is something that has been largely overlooked and unstudied but it makes common sense and anecdotally people seem to feel better. With daily microdosing I noticed that I could achieve the same T levels as bi-weekly shots on a 30% lower total weekly dose of T, which seems like a strong indication that daily small doses work better. With any medication you want to take the MINIMUM effective dose.
Our natural production of testosterone spikes in the morning and declines throughout the day. Microdosing mimics this cycle.
SIDE NOTE
I’m working with a team to design a new pre-loaded single-use syringe made specifically for T microdosing. It would be delivered from a pharmacy preloaded in 30 day packs and each morning shot would take about 15 seconds. Stay tuned!
A prototype microdose syringe. I'm currently working with medical device designers to create a cool-looking version that would come pre-loaded in 30 day packs.
This brings me to the point of this email:
I'm looking for a few good men.
If you’re experiencing symptoms of low T or are currently on T and interested in exploring the microdosing protocol, I’m working with a leading longevity MD on a new, modern program that makes everything easy:
—Full medical evaluation to determine if you would benefit from TRT. This will include testing of dozens of biomarkers and an in-depth review with an MD. —Home delivery of medication and syringes (everything you need to get started) —Supervision by a leading MD —Ongoing twice-yearly lab testing to monitor levels and fine tune treatment —Ongoing support from medical staff
I’m you’re interested in learning more CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP and I’ll get back to you soon. There's no obligation and it's completely confidential. At a minimum, let's get you tested to see if your T levels are low!
DISCLAIMER: I'm not a doctor and nothing in this email is medical advice. The contents of this email are based on my personal experience and many years of research. Always consult with a (good) doctor before beginning any medical treatment. And most importantly, do your own research—your health is YOUR responsibility and nobody else's!
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