Testosterone Propionate Profile

Testosterone Propionate Profile

Pharmaceutical Name: Testosterone (with propionate ester)
Molecular weight of base: 288.429
Molecular weight of ester: 74.0792 (propionic acid, 3 carbons)
Chemical structure: 4-androstene-3-one,17beta-ol
Active Life: 2-3 days
Anabolic/Androgenic Ratio: 100/100


Often considered the mildest of the testosterone esters (1,2), testosterone propionate offers some unique advantages to the other testosterones with longer acting esters. However like the other testosterone compounds, testosterone propionate offers the same benefits in a medical sense. It is only the dosing schedule of the drug that changes, although the propionate ester may cause certain unique reactions in some individuals that will be detailed later in this profile.

The main advantage of testosterone propionate over other testosterone esters is that it's effects will be realized much quicker than with other compounds. Due to the quick release of the hormone users often report anecdotally that they will begin to notice the effects of the compound within the first 5-7 days of first administering the drug in some cases. However with this advantage comes the requirement that a user inject the compound every day or every other day to maintain stable blood levels of the drug. This frequent injection schedule often deters many inexperienced users from using the propionate ester in their first few cycles.

Some users believe that testosterone propionate should be reserved for "cutting" cycles and is not appropriate for those cycles in which a user is hoping to build mass. However this is a misnomer as the ester of the compound can not alter it's physiological effects. Depending on the diet and training routine of the user, testosterone propionate can be used quite effectively for either mass building or cutting cycles. This belief that propionate should only be used for cutting cycles may originate from the fact that a majority of users anecdotally report that they have far less water retention while using testosterone propionate in comparison to other longer acting testosterone esters. This lack of water retention and bloat would seemingly make the user appear leaner and therefore may lead the individual to believe that they are indeed reducing their body fat, while the water retention that they experience with the longer acting esters may make them think that they are gaining body fat when that is not the case.

However, a minority of users also report that they hold more water while using testosterone propionate than either testosterone cypionate or enanthate. This again demonstrates that individuals react quite differently to various compounds.


Use/Dosing

Levels of the compound will peak after 24-36 hours of administering the drug and begin tapering from there (1,3). Therefore most individuals will inject testosterone propionate every day or every other day. This dosing schedule allows an individual to maintain a fairly consistent blood level of the compound, with injections every day obviously providing the more stable of the two options.

As with the other testosterone esters, the doses of the drug that are taken by users varies to a great degree depending on the experience and goals of the user. This also includes women administering testosterone. Women may find that testosterone propionate is the most manageable of the testosterone esters, along with possibly testosterone suspension or non-estered compounds, due to the fact that it is fast acting and that the dosing and administration of the compound can be quickly altered if negative side effects become overly burdensome. With longer acting esters these adjustments are much more difficult to make rapidly and side effects could become more pronounced and/or exaggerated. For this reason, females who use testosterone may want to begin with testosterone propionate when choosing which ester to use.

Many users will also often "kick start" their cycles that use long acting estered compounds with testosterone propionate so that they begin experiencing anabolic and androgenic effects much quicker in their cycles, without having to endure injections every day or every other day throughout their cycle. This "kick start" will usually last for three to five weeks until the long acting estered compounds have reached their peak blood concentrations. To do this, the user simply administers the testosterone propionate along with the long acting estered compounds.

Individuals may also end their cycles with testosterone propionate and/or other short acting esters so that their start time for their post cycle therapy is much closer to their last injection and blood levels remain more stable until the end of the steroid cycle.


Side Effects/Risks

Since testosterone propionate is indeed simply another form of injectable testosterone, the side effects associated with it are for the most part those commonly encountered with any type of testoserone compound. For more specific information about these, including those that may effect women, see the testosterone enanthate profile in this forum. In this section the side effects, and the characteristics of them, that are unique to testosterone propionate alone will be dealt with.

Far more than the other testosterone esters, for the possible exception of Sustanon, users of testosterone propionate will often complain of injection site irratation and swelling (2). Some individuals find that the reaction that they experience with the ester is so bad in fact that they will have to cease administration of the compound. As well, due to the frequent injections of the compound and the possibility of injection site irritation, it is advisible that users rotate injection sites as frequently as possible so that no complications arise.

Some users also anecdotally report that they are much more likely to experience low grade fevers when using testosterone propionate in comparison to other testosterone compounds. This symptom will usually only persist for a few days to a week or more, but can sometimes last far longer.

As should be expected with an ester such as propionate, suppression of endogenous testosterone production will occur quite soon after the intial administration of the drug (1,3). The usual protocal of post-cycle therapy and possibly the use of human chorionic gonadotropin during the cycle should be followed, but no special considerations need to be taken into account because of this.


References


1. Fujioka M., Shinohara Y., Baba S., et al. Pharmacokinetic properties of testosterone propionate in normal men. J Clin Endocrinol Metab 63 (1986), pp. 1361-4

2. Llewellyn, William, Anabolics 2004, 2003-4, Molecular Nutrition, pp.160-2

3. Pope, H.G, Kouri, E.M., & Hudson, J.I. Effects of supraphysiologic doses of testosterone on mood and aggression in normal men: A randomized controlled trial. Archives of General Psychiatry, 2000, 57, pp. 133-140