Last updated on June 19, 2023
Question:
Hello sir,
I have a question to ask about, and some information to add about my pubertal development, and general development regarding the transformation from a teenager to a young adult.
The overall case is that I am 19 and a half, and my Tanner stage result from accurate answers to the following questions on your site makes it to be at stage 4.5 sometimes as high as 4.6, depending upon the questions.
But my curiosity starts to worry me. Am I considered to be a late bloomer? I feel like my development has progressed slowly. I have taken this test for almost three years now. When I was 17 years old, then my result was 3.9. But your site says that any stage lasts a maximum of 2 years, but I have been in stage 4 for almost 3 years, and I have barely progressed half through, so I am concerned. I am simply concerned because the navigation is to hit stage 5 at the age of 20 at the latest age written on your website, but I have the impression of hitting that stage when I turn 22 or 23 of age, meaning I will finish the entire stage 5 when I am like 30 years old, or maybe at age 28-29 at best case scenario. But the whole stage thing bothers me because I feel I progress slowly.
I am 177.5 cm tall. My morning height is 179.3 cm, and my low height is 177.5. My extreme low is 177 cm. For example, I hit my extreme low after an intense workout in my local gym, where I can do up to 10 full leg exercises in a few hours or so. And in general, I don’t feel disappointed about my height, even though I am below the average in my country.
Here are my answers to the questions. I know you aren’t a doctor, but I want to be as honest and as accurate as possible. I started puberty at 14 or at 14.5 at most.
- Age 19.5
- I have grown 3.5 cm in the last year and a half because I was 174 cm at 18.
- I am taller than I was last year
- I had more body fat for a while, but I have slimmed down again, I look slim. I weigh just under 200 pounds, but I am mesomorphic and muscular since I train six times weekly in the gym.
- My voice is consistently deeper than it was in my childhood.
- My body proportions are almost like an adult, but I’m more narrow in the shoulders than an adult’s.
- My half-height point is above the base of my penis but definitely below my navel
- My shoe size seems to have stopped increasing. My feet have grown one-fourth of an inch in the last year and a half. So I think it’s growing a few mm
- I have noticeable hair on my legs and arms
- I have hair on my upper lip
- I need to shave my face more than once a week or so
- I could grow sideburns
- I have at least some facial hair on my cheeks
- I have some hair growing around my nipples
- I have hair growing on my chest
- I usually shave my facial hair every tenth day. Sometimes once after two weeks.
- I have some hair under my arms, but it is not thick. I have a typical amount of underarm hair for adults of my lineage.
- There is a distinct ring around my nipples. The nipples are firm and stick out a bit. My ring is clearly noticeable. I can feel muscle developing under my nipples — definitely since I train.
- There is a distinct strip of hair, which is easy to see, growing between my genitals and my navel (belly button). The hairs can be harder to see from a far distance, but when I get very close to a mirror, then it’s clearly visible.
- There are hairs growing across my entire groin that are thick and curly. The pubic hairs are not fine, going beyond the folds at the top of my thighs and spread across my inner thighs, underneath my scrotum. (The inner thighs are the areas that touch when you put your legs together.)
- I could grow decent sideburns, a mustache, and perhaps a goatee, but definitely not a full beard. I can’t grow a full beard yet. But I am nearly there if I let my beard grow out for a few months. But I might be able to grow a full thick beard during my mid-twenties.
- My face doesn’t have a baby face look anymore, but my chin is not really much more pronounced and square in shape yet.
- My acne is still there, but it seems to be fading. I do get acne here and there, but it was worse a few years ago.
- All my childhood teeth have been replaced by adult teeth (28 teeth). My dentist said that there are no signs of growth in my wisdom teeth and I am almost 20.
- My scrotum distinctly hangs down when I am warm. It does almost happen, and sometimes my scrotum can look swollen, and tight as if I freeze.
- I get erections frequently, both at night and during the day. I don’t get any sudden erections anymore. I got these when I was 14-17 years old, I haven’t since then randomly got one. I only experience erections sometimes in the morning, but I haven’t ever had any wet dreams, ever.
- My penis has gotten longer when I’m erect in the last year or two. It has grown a few cm in the last two years.
- My penis has gotten wider when I’m erect in the last year or two. It went from being light to dark, so my penis has changed its color. My width has grown 2 cm in the last few years.
- The head of my penis (the glans) has gotten darker (redder) in color. The head of my penis (the glans) has a rougher texture than before. The head of my penis (the glans) flares out at the base of the glans when I am erect. I experienced this two years ago.
- My body fat percentage is 19-20.
- My fully erect penis is 6.5 inches. My flaccid penis size can vary a bit, sometimes it’s 10 cm, and sometimes it’s 11.5 cm. My flaccid girth is 10.5 cm and 13 cm when fully erect.
- The width of my testicles is 1.4-1.6 cm. The length of my testicles is 3.5 cm. The volume is 8-9 maybe between 7-10 ml.
- When I get sexually aroused my penis sometimes drips clear fluid. I have ejaculated semen. I started to ejaculate at 14.5, and I started to drip fluid when I was like 17.5 or 18. But I don’t drip much, it’s only a minimal amount that sits on the hole where I pee.
- I am at stage 4.5 I guess.
So that was it.
Answer:
From your description, I would say that you are at stage 5 or very close to it. The odd item is your testicle size. They are lower than would be expected given the maturity of the rest of you. Either that means genetically, you just happen to have smaller testicles or your measurement is off. Using your answers, I got 4.7 on the calculator. If I say your testicles are a bit bigger, I got 4.8.
This is consistent with what you mentioned. You were at the start of stage 4 at age 18. You’ll be at stage 5 during the time you are 20. You were in stage 2 at age 14. Your rapid growth, then, would have started at age 16. You did start on the late side and would be considered a late bloomer.
Since stage 5 is adulthood, it doesn’t technically have time that it lasts, though changes continue to come in early stage 5 (shoulder width, hair growth, and mental development).
Question:
Hi again.
I am mailing you another email to comment and to write down my thoughts and opinions of your reply to my long mail.
When I take the test myself, I always answer as accurately as possible, and I always get a result of Tanner stage 4.5. So I guess I am halfway through stage 4. And yeah, I have measured my testicles, and they are of a smaller size than the average person. So that’s a fact.
I was at the beginning of Tanner stage 4 when I was 17-18 years old, and currently, I am less than 5 months away from turning 20, and now I am more than halfway through, so would you estimate me to be able to grow a bit more in height?
Since I turned 17, I was 5 ‘7. And at 18, I was 5’8.5. And currently, at 19 and 7.5 months, I am 5’10. So would you estimate me to reach 5’10 3/4 (or about or around 180 cm)? I have used the KGB method to estimate my height, and I always get an estimation of ending my full height at 180 cm. Because my parents were, at their peak, 6’1.5 (father) and 5’3.5 (mother). But nowadays my parents have lost some height. Overall, I am expecting to finish growing in my early twenties. And I estimate myself to reach Tanner stage 5 at 21 or at 22 and at 30, I will definitely be completely done developing overall.
Answer:
During stage 4, the rate at which you grow slows down until it eventually stops when you reach stage 5. Thus, toward the end of stage 4, everyone only grows a small amount.
Response:
Thank you for the explanation.