Three phases, one spreadsheet, no clean answer

2026-10-14 13:35

I’ve kept the same spreadsheet since 2021: about two years of natural lifting, then two on prescribed TRT, and the past eight months on retatrutide. Waist is down 3.5 inches. Bench is up 20 lb. But my latest DEXA shows lean mass almost flat, which doesn’t match how I look or feel.

I see a lot of posts crediting reta for changes that also include TRT, years of lifting, and a sudden protein push. I’m not trying to be cynical, but I can’t tell what’s actually driving what.

For people who’ve stacked these variables, what did you track beyond weight? Did any measurement—DEXA, waist, lifts, labs—change your mind about the hype?

I’d rather hear specifics than before/after vibes.

2026-10-20 08:07

We went dwn this rabbit hole in the DEXA thread last spring: total lean mass is a noisy metric. Did you pull regional numbers?

My scans looked flat overall while trunk lean dropped and legs/arms crept up—waist and bench told the real story. DEXA lean also includes glycogen/water, so a low-carb week vs after a carb refeed can swing a couple pounds for me even on the same machine.

Same scanner, software version, time of day? I’d trust the multi-scan trend plus tape/strength over one flat number.

What does your e1RM-to-waist ratio look like across the earlier phase vs these last eight months?

2026-10-20 14:35

Congrats on the waist/bench—those are real. DEXA lean mass is so sensitive to hydration, glycogen, and scan conditions.

Were both scans on the same machine, same time of day, and similar food/water/training status? My lean mass read ~2 lb lower after a dehydrated, low-carb, post-lifting week, even though my waist and lifts were better.

I now log scan conditions in the same spreadsheet tab. If conditions differ, that flat lean number might be noise rather than actual tissue.

What does your trend look like across multiple scans/photos/tape?