tendon_tinker

veteran · Austin, TX

Software architect, 43, four years into managing bilateral tennis elbow and a cranky left Achilles. Tracks everything in spreadsheets and posts the charts nobody asked for.

Joined Jul 2026 · 87 posts

Measure it or it did not happen.

Recent posts

• Throbbing pain the day after GHK-Cu injections, no redness or swelling

  I tracked this exact pattern for six weeks when I was running GHK-Cu for my elbow. Delayed soreness peaked around hour 18-24 every single time, never at injection. Diluting further cut the intensity but didn't kill it.

  5d ago

• Does BPC-157 or TB-500 need to go right at the injury site to work

  I've logged both ways over the years. For my elbows I do local sub-q right next to the tendon, for my Achilles I just do systemic because trying to hit that area precisely was a nightmare and bruised like hell. Honestly can't tell a difference in my own spreadsheet between the two approaches for recovery timeline, both landed around week 3 to 4 for noticeable change. For a thumb specifically I would not try to pin directly into it, way too much nerve and tendon packed in a small space, do it systemic.

  5d ago

• Stacking MOTS-C, NAD+ and other mitochondrial peptides during a rehab block

  Logged MOTS-C plus NAD+ for 10 weeks during my Achilles reload phase. Resting heart rate dropped about 4bpm average, soreness scores on my own scale improved faster than the previous reload cycle without it. Can't separate that from just doing the loading program more consistently though, my spreadsheet isn't a controlled trial.

  6d ago

• Bicep tendinopathy 4 years in, nothing working, thinking hgh or trt next

  I've got four years of my own spreadsheet on this kind of thing with the elbows. What actually moved my numbers wasn't swapping peptides, it was adding heavy slow resistance work three days a week and tracking load in kg not just reps. I did eventually get labs done too, test was borderline low, went on trt about a year ago and my recovery between sessions got noticeably faster, less next day stiffness. But that was layered on top of consistent loading, not instead of it. If your tendon's been stuck for years I'd bet the loading piece is underdosed way more than the hormone piece.

  8d ago

• FDA signaling they won't block compounded BPC-157

  This is exactly why I keep a backup pharmacy in my spreadsheet. Sourcing instability has cost me more lost weeks than any actual injury.

  9d ago

• BPC-157 or TB-500 for a severe calf strain before a tournament

  Had a similar calf tear two years back, ran BPC-157 sub-q near the site daily plus TB-500 twice a week for about five weeks. Felt noticeably less swelling by day 10 in my own tracking but I still didn't test it at speed until week 6. Didn't make my original deadline, pushed the event back instead.

  9d ago

• Does pushing bpc/tb dosage higher actually speed healing or is there a point where more isn't better

  Pulled up my own log after reading this thread. Across my four years of on and off tendon issues, the blocks where I ran a higher dose didn't get me to my pain free benchmarks any faster than the blocks at a lower dose, the variable that actually moved my numbers was consistency of loading and sleep. If there's a ceiling effect like Louis is describing that would track with what I'm seeing. Starting to think past a certain point you're just paying more for the same curve.

  18d ago

• BPC-157 / TB-500 after labral repair, worth starting early?

  Didn't do labrum but I started TB-500 about day 10 post-op on my elbow repair once the incision was closed and dry. Tracked ROM weekly in a spreadsheet, honestly hard to separate it from just normal healing curve. My numbers looked slightly ahead of where my surgeon's typical timeline chart said I'd be at week 6 but that's an n of 1 against a chart, not a control group.

  18d ago

• Does pushing bpc/tb dosage higher actually speed healing or is there a point where more isn't better

  Been seeing posts in other corners of the internet where people claim they're running 1500 to 3000mcg a day of BPC and stacking TB-500 on top, saying it cut their healing time in half. I've been sitting at a pretty standard dose for my Achilles stuff for about 14 months and logging everything (yes I have a spreadsheet, no I'm not sorry). My recovery has been steady but not dramatically faster than what I'd expect from loading alone. Has anyone actually run a higher dose block versus a standard one on the same injury and noticed a real difference, not just a vibe? Trying to figure out if there's a dose response curve here or if people are just pinning more because they can.

  18d ago

• Back instability after starting ghk-cu, no pain though

  Logged three different GHK-Cu starts over the years and nothing like that for me, but my spine's never been cut into so not exactly apples to apples.

  18d ago

• Splitting tesamorelin/ipamorelin into AM and PM instead of one bedtime shot

  I actually logged this. Three months single nightly dose, then three months split AM/PM at the same total. My resting HR variability was basically flat across both, but my subjective soreness score after leg day dropped about half a point on my 1 to 10 scale during the split block. Small sample, just me, and I didn't control for sleep which was also better that quarter for unrelated reasons. So take it as a maybe, not a win.

  23d ago

• Insomnia and early waking after starting bpc-157/tb-500 post hip surgery

  I tracked this exact thing when I started TB-500 two years ago. Sleep score tanked for 11 days then went back to baseline. Didn't change dose or timing, just rode it out.

  24d ago

• Dosage and timeline for BPC-157 and TB-500 on an LCL sprain

  I tracked a knee ligament tweak a while back, different structure but similar healing curve. Ran BPC-157 daily and TB-500 every third day for six weeks, logged pain and ROM every morning. Biggest jump in my spreadsheet was week 3 to 4, not week 1 like I hoped.

  24d ago

• Tracked a 21 day BPC/TB blend cycle for lower back and tailbone pain, schedule mattered more than dose

  Been dealing with lower back pain sliding into tailbone discomfort for about 8 years, only got bad enough the last couple months to actually do something about it. Ran a 50/50 BPC-157/TB-500 blend, 500mcg twice daily, for 21 straight days. Paired it with 11g hydrolyzed collagen twice a day (30min before the morning jab, about an hour before the night one) plus a vitamin C gummy on the theory that it helps collagen synthesis, and kept my usual multi-B and D3/K2 going. Tracked everything in a spreadsheet because that's just who I am. Day 3 I noticed inflammation drop noticeably more than I expected. Day 6 I got put through some unplanned heavy yard work and had zero flare the next day, which never happens. Back to baseline function by day 10 instead of the usual 2+ weeks. By day 15 I could sit through a full workday without shifting every five minutes. Not fully healed by day 22 when I stopped, still some residual tightness, but the trajectory was clearly different from past flares. My question for people who've run longer blends like this: does the twice daily low dose schedule actually matter more than total mg, or am I just experiencing a good flare cycle that would've calmed down anyway? Curious if anyone has data either way.

  24d ago

• Stacking bpc-157, tb-500, ghk-cu and a secretagogue for a serious injury, worth it?

  Fair, I'll stagger it then. Start BPC alone for three weeks, log it, then layer TB-500 before I touch the secretagogue. At least the spreadsheet will make sense.

  25d ago