"estrogen blockers" don't work for women

Hi all,

I'm new to these forums, so I thought I'd say howdy real quick. I've done a lot of reading about all aspects of exercise & nutrition (I'm a senior exercise science major & personal trainer), so I'd like to help out whenever I can. But...I have a couple questions also! :)

The main thing I'm having problems with is trying to get my body to cooperate with me. I've put on about 5 lbs of muscle in the past year, which is a good amount for a woman...but I want to add more. I've reached a plateau!! My progress is very slow no matter how I do my workouts & nutrition. I've been looking to supplements to try to get my estrogen down. After reading about a lot of them, I found out that "estrogen blockers" really only block estrogen in MEN!!! Grr!!! The way they work is to stimulate LH (luteinizing hormone, a.k.a. follicle stimulating hormone). In guys, this causes sperm producation and an increase in testosterone. In women, it increases *estrogen* and causes ovulation. Using steroids and/or prohormones is not an option for me; I don't want all that acne or the more serious side effects.

I'm going to start taking DIM (diindoylmethane, I think) once I find a high-quality brand. From what I read about it, DIM will help reduce the "bad" catabolic estrogen metabolites and increase my free testosterone. But since I only make a tiny amount of test to begin with, I imagine that the main effect will be to help me lean out.

I'm looking for something that will help me increase my test levels just a little bit, so I get the anabolic benefits but without the androgenic side effects. Tribulus terrestris, longjack, etc will NOT work on me because I am a female!! :( Any ideas?

Kay

PS- As you can probably tell, I'm pissed off that the guys who make the supplements call tribulus, longjack, etc "estrogen blockers" because in reality, they are not!! They only block estrogen in HALF of the population, and it just shows how they don't even consider a female's body chemistry & her needs. They are just in their own little world!! Anyway...I apologize for seeming so angry...hehe

I am not too sure but you may want to look into some AI's - aromatase inhibitors.
Rebound XT and ATD.
6oxo mimics this - but its very weak imho.

Prescription wise AI's - adex but its wayyy suppressive
Letro is decent.

However, I am not sure abt its effects in women so please ask the more knowlegible members here.
If this post is stupid lmk, i will delete it.

Hi,

I've done a little reading about reboundXT and oxo6...they both work via the LH pathway (for us women, that means more estrogen). I don't know about the other ones....so I will start reading up on them soon. Thank you for the info!

Kay

PS- Please don't delete your post...the point of these forums is for us to have conversations...and for all of us to learn from each other!! :)

Hi kinetic... Im glad you posted your question, I have been asking basically the same things, just not as good as you!! I hope you get some good answers here, because I had even considered Trib, until I just read your post. I really need more muscle mass too, and I too am so mad that most of the supps to gain mass are for men, that leaves us women wondering what to do, so it seems we are on our own! Im going to keep checking, hopefully we get good tips!

WELL I DONT KNOW WHERE YOU GET YOUR INFO FROM ESTROGEN BLOCKERS DO WORK FOR WOMAN IM PROOF! I TAKE THEM PRE CONTEST (6 OXO) WHEN I WAS ON THEM THE LAST TIME ABOUT 1.5 YEARS AGO I GOT MY HORMONE LEVELS CHECKED. MY TESTSTERONE WAS ELAVATED BEYOND THE NORMAL RANGE FOR WOMEN. eSTROGEN WAS ON THE LOW END OF NORMAL. WHEN YOU TAKE ESTROGEN BLOCKERS IT DOES RAISE YOUR TEST LEVELS.

As Far As Putting On The Most Amount Of Mass Possible. Its Simple. Dont Do Cardio. Train In The 4-6 Rep Range And Eat Good Quality Bodybuilding Foods. Eat 1.5 Grams Of Protien Per Pound Of Bodyweight. Weight Train 5 Days A Week And Take A Whole Week Off From Lifting Every 8-10 Weeks. Most Important: Take Your Sets To Absolute Failure Most Women Dont. Let Me Know If You Have Any Questions. Ive Put On 10 Lbs Of Muscle In The Past Year. I Compete And Didnt Have Enough Mass. I Did Exactly This A Whaloa 10 More Pound Of Hard Earned Muscle!

Wow Figure8, thats great! I hope I can gain more muscle mass. I stopped all cardio, which is fine for me because I hate it. When you say go to complete failure in the 6-8 range, does that mean you cant possibly do another rep? if so, do you do another set? Could you list your supps you used to gain that mass? Im going to order some supps, but just want to know what to buy! thanks so much....

Thanks for the tips! ...
I stopped all cardio several months ago, and I go to complete muscle failure also. Whenever I can grab someone for a spot, I also do 2 or 3 forced reps or negatives. I've been staying in the 4-6 rep range for about 6 weeks, but now I went back up to 8 to 10 reps just to give my body a break...I plan on going back to lower reps soon...

So basically I think that supplements are the only thing I have left to improve with. So 6oxo works well? How do you find out what your test and estrogen levels are?

Kay

I had my levels checked at the doctors. As far as supplemets go the only ones I take that have anything to do with putting on mass are glutamine and whey protien isolate. I only took the 6-oxos pre contest I wouldnt just take them. This may seem silly make sure you have a good big meal right after your workout. Carbs and protien. This is also the time to have stuff like sugar or honey if you want. any carbs eaten after your workout go straight to your muscles and replace the glycogen. There not stored as fat!

[QUOTE=dizzygrinch]Wow Figure8, thats great! I hope I can gain more muscle mass. I stopped all cardio, which is fine for me because I hate it. When you say go to complete failure in the 6-8 range, does that mean you cant possibly do another rep? if so, do you do another set? Could you list your supps you used to gain that mass? Im going to order some supps, but just want to know what to buy! thanks so much....[/QUOTE]
every set should be taken to failure and yes that means you cant do another rep. As far as how many sets you do is based on how long youve been working out. The best supplement to gain mass is protein! chicken egg whites some lean beef. 1.5 grams per pound of bodyweight

Oh and skip the dim, its worhtless my finance said! 6 oxo is much better, though you dont need a estrogen blocker if your not competing, why mess with your body!

[QUOTE=Figure8]Oh and skip the dim, its worhtless my finance said! 6 oxo is much better, though you dont need a estrogen blocker if your not competing, why mess with your body![/QUOTE]
agreed...however there is stuff wayyy better than 6oxo.

[QUOTE=Krzna]agreed...however there is stuff wayyy better than 6oxo.[/QUOTE]

would you be that kind and name it?

[QUOTE=ogiddion]would you be that kind and name it?[/QUOTE]
Rebound Xt.