Steroids & You - Part I - Introduction

TRP - Lifting, Steroids & You PART 1 - Introduction

Thought I would do my part to give back to the community who has been very helpful to me in the past. Please excuse my poor grammatical structure and probable typos; I also do not know really how to format a post on reddit. other knowledgable people, please feel free to add/modify and suggest. I will type up Part II soon, I didn't realize how much this would take to write already.

Summary

One of the biggest revelations in my 20s came after I had lost a significant amount of weight to around 10-12% bodyfat, and had trained multiple years to find myself realizing that, though I was certainly in the Top 15% of all 'average male body types', I simply was not the guy on the cover of Muscle & Fitness; I was not Christian Bale adding 50lbs of muscle mass to be Batman, nor was I The Rock, with traps that started at my ears. These bodytypes are sold to you as a pinnacle of achievement; something only the very best, the highly committed and dedicated will ever reach. And while there is no question that celebrities put in their time at the gym, or that professional atheletes 'work hard' to look the way they do (body genetics will has some limits, no matter what) - the vast majority of people with truly awe-inspiring physiques are on, or have been on, steroids. Not only do steroids help people grow big, but they are present in almost all levels of professional sport - from cycling to golf to gymnastics, the benefits of steroid use are impossible to deny. Though stigmatized as 'cheating' in the media, it is without question a huge role in many pro sports. With this post, I'll try and break down how someone considering steroids may want to approach them.

To Begin With...

Firstly, much like many TRP things, understand that what the media has sold you versus the reality of things are vastly different. Recreational steroids, though often illegal depending on where you're from, are very safe when properly used. A smart steroid user has a doctor he trusts that can do his bloodwork before, during, and after a steroid cycle; rarely will a practicing family MD encourage you, but they can help you do things safely. Keep this in mind.

Many people who have taken steroids will advise you of a few things - suggestions include that you a) should be at your 'genetic peak' before starting steroids, and that b) you should be at least 18 (some say 21; either

way, an arbitrary time) or so years old. The reasoning for a) is that steroids really should supplement your gains and push them farther then you naturally could - truly, a lot can be achieved naturally. B is written because there is some literature that suggests supplementing artificial testosterone can slow/stop natural development, growth plates, and a whole host of other sides in an 'undeveloped' body. I'm not here to preach on that one way or the other, but it is something you should research and decide on for yourself. I do feel that you should have a solid plan in place, and know what you're doing 100% in the gym, before touching any type of gear - if you ever hope to keep your gains from steroids, you better have a strong plan and a stronger education to how your body is reacting to avoid not only wasting your time/money, but also to avoid injury. Steroids can provide large muscle gains very quickly, but if your connective tissue is still not developed to handle it, you can cause permanent damage.

as I type this, I start to realize I do have a lot of knowledge on the subject, but there is going to be more then I will be able to type up that you should know before taking steroids. My apologies if I am not thorough enough - I'm going to keep it basic and perhaps link out to more detailed articles more then I can provide here

Side Effects & Myths, and a Few Notes

• 'roid rage', is a made up state of being for shitting on steroid users; it does not exist.
• you will not lose hair because of steroids; you will increase the speed at which you will lose hair if you are someone genetically predisposed to do so. There are means to combat this, but nothing is 100%
• Acne - similar with hair loss
• You will not necessarily get 'huge' - a beginning steroid user looking to add mass for aesthetic purposes can safely add 10-15lbs of muscle on a single cycle and retain it for the majority of time they spend training. Often, they can blow up 25-30lbs at the peak of a cycle, but much of this is water retention and is lost during post-cycle recovery. 'Freakish' large pro BB types you see in shows and such are bodies built around years of various steroid cocktails and hard, heavy training; you will not achieve that after one cycle no matter how much you try.
• Side effects such as bitch tits (gyno; essentially growing breast tissue because your body is creating large amounts of estrogen to go with this new level of testosterone) and shutdown (body stops producing test naturally because there is an abundance artificially) are very real - but completely avoidable with PROPER PCT (post-cycle therapy - AKA more drugs).
• you need to know your nutrition. If you want to get bloated and 'puffy', you can just eat everything in sight, and sure you'll blow up huge - but my personal recommendation for your first cycle would be approximately 1000-1500 calories above maintinence per day. If you don't know what that means, then you aren't ready to touch steroids to begin with. In fact, I would argue your nutrition on steroids is even more important then when off.
• you really should know what you are injecting into your body...why your body is reacting a certain way, and what each chemical is doing/why you are taking it. This will not only take the fear out of steroids, but make for the safest experience possible.
• starting off fat and taking steroids is going to be far more work when you are off cycle, and likely to lose most of the mass you put on when you try to diet off the pounds. Chances are, you will need to cut (diet) a little bit once your steroid cycle is done anyways, so if you are already fat before this, you're really wasting your time. It's also likely you don't know shit about your diet nor training anyways if this is the case.

^ see, this here? There's a ton more to expand upon already. Maybe just ask questions below and I'll do my best to advise or point to some links.

What A Beginner steroid Cycle (Should - IMO) Consist Of

a) 1 injectable steroid (usually testosterone) of approximately 500mg/wk, for 12 weeks. ONLY 1 steroid at a time for a beginner - if your body reacts poorly and you are 'stacking' multiple things, it's harder to determine the issue. Testosterone is used because it is the easiest, safest, and occurs naturally in the body. b) 13/14 week of nothing; allow your body to remove naturally the steroid during this time. c) 16/17 (sometimes 18/19) weeks of recovery drugs - Nolvadex usually, which is your SERM (Selective Estrogen Receptor Modulator). Essentially, getting your body back to normal. d) arimadex during for gynecomastia concerns (again, this is something proper research will help you determine if you need or not)

You will not be taking pill-form steroids to start off. Liver-toxic steroids are more difficult (IMO) to gauge, control, and holding onto the gains far more difficult then traditional testosterone. If you are not ready to inject yourself, you are not ready for steroids, period.

I will revisit some of this, then discuss training, usage and what to expect for Part II. I hope this serves as a decent introduction however, I feel like it doesn't read nearly as well as some of the articles I see on here but hopefully a decent start.