Welcome, Caveman. So you're crawling out of that cave, eh? Been there.
Glad things are improving and your story is a testimony to how rapidly the body can recover in spite of decades of neglect. (Very sorry to hear about your daughter - can't imagine...)
Here are a few comments:
--I think you are going the right thing with the HRT assuming you are being properly monitored, i.e. prostate and estradiol. You are pretty overweight, so once they boost your weight, be sure that the estradiol is checked. There are many forum threads on the subject and I have info on my site if you are int'd.
--If you are still taking that much L-Arginine, i.e. 8 grams/day - that's a lot. And you should know that in one study, they had 6 heart patients die taking about that dosage. So I would be very careful taking that much and you should discuss it with your doctor.
That's not the only problem with taking L-Arginine. Please read the bottom of this link for more information:
http://www.peaktestosterone.com/Arginine--There is (generally) more effective alternative to L-Arginine called L-Citrulline. L-Citrulline boosts L-Arginine but through a more efficient pathway:
http://www.peaktestosterone.com/Citrulline_BenefitsIf your doctor approves it, do not take more than a gram or two as it is quite powerful. The supplement Neo40 is expensive but also has Citrulline plus Hawthorn Berry extract and will raise nitric oxide levels from what I have seen. It's not a "miracle worker" like Cialis but does seem to help:
http://www.peaktestosterone.com/Nathan_Bryan_Interviewhttps://www.peaktestosterone.com/forum/index.php?topic=68.0--Ginseng is another supplement that will help many men. Korean I am talking about. See this for a list of supplements worth considering:
http://www.peaktestosterone.com/Erectile_supplements--Now one important comment: always talk to your doc first and always consider supplements a short term alternative while you fix everything with lifestyle changes. A Low Fat Diet (or maybe Mediterranean) + Exercise + Weight Loss + HRT will do miracles for you.
--If you are going to try more than one supplement, I recommend trying one about every three weeks, i.e. rolling them in slowly. Every once in awhile, you can get a side effect from a supplement or it just may not do anything for you. If you implement them all at once, you have no idea which of the supplements is helping or caused problems, etc.
--Low Fat Diets, as long as there is no cheating, do VERY well with heart patients. They will certainly arrest arteriosclerosis and there is evidence they will likely reverse it as well. I just read a post recently here where one guy selling Lap Band surgeries criticized Low Fat Diets. Look at what one of the readers wrote:
"I owe my own life to the work of these pioneers (Ornish, etc.). Two and a half years ago (at 5 I was crippled with angina and could not walk 20 feet without resting. Now I am virtually symptom free (if I eat bad I feel bad!) and work out enthusiastically at my local gym. My change of diet HAS saved my life and I feel better than I have in years. My BP is now normal - after years of being high, my bowel movements (sorry!) are better than ever and none of this advice has cost me a penny! (I must admit hat out of gratitude I have bought a few of their books!) i "
http://www.randi.org/site/index.php/swift-blog/1575-the-ornish-myth.html --Try to not lose your muscle mass as you are dropping those pounds. Imo you should include ample protein, preferably from lower fat sources, and do some strength/resistance training (after talking to your docs). If you lose muscle mass, it gets harder and harder to lose and maintain weight.
And welcome to the forum. Btw, watchntv above is our Weight Loss Wild Man: he's lost 80 pounds and going for a 100 or so.
