Long term side effects of steriods, are there any?

Anonymous

i hear what your sayin bro, but i've plateau'd for so long now (which is a pretty big reason for me), but i also need to ask why am i depressed right now? because i have 1 passion for BB'ing and sports, and i'm getting down because i'm not seeing any more progress, and i feel like i'm wasting my time and money and i'm going in circles!

now if i take AS, and i start making progress i will become happy with my training again, this gives me confidence! and i won't be depressed with my training no more, i'll be happy with my training, happy with life

its like when i'm cutting i'm happier, because i can see progress, when i bulk i'm not, because i see fat gain and no muscle gain no matter how hard i try, i believe i'm at my genetic limits already

i know its sad having to resort to AS, 'i never wanted this for you'.. oops i mean me! (haha) but that is why i've waited so long

i thought my reasoning for using AS was a pretty good one, if its not i'd like to know what a good reason is (apart from comptetitive sports use)

peace

GTForce

Bottom line...guys with great physiques (like me, all modesty aside) have great physiques because they simply love to lift. Of course, some guys have awesome builds because of genetics...but that is not the case with most (nor myself).

It sounds as though you are tying your love of training directly to your physical appearance. Perhaps you could try powerlifting for a year or two. Concentrate on becoming as strong as possible without worrying so much about your physique. Seeing your strength improve and becoming one of the strongest guys in your gym will definitely improve your confidence. Also, if you get significantly stronger you are bound to get thicker and more dense. Keep in mind that you ARE probably still making progress, it is just that after training for a while the gains slow down. It is not like in the beginning when you see progress every month. The improvements are still there, the gains haven't ceased altogether, they've just slowed.

You could also pursue boxing or mixed martial arts. Plenty of those guys have awesome physiques. In addition, it may provide your mind and body with a new challenge which may re-ignite a passion towards training. Furthermore, knowing you could handle yourself in any physical confrontation would absolutely improve a young man's confidence.

Finally, be sure you have exhausted all avenues of natural muscle growth. I see a lot of guys who complain that they can no longer make progress...even though they are "on the same program that always worked in the past", and you find out they have been on that program for 2 years!!! Your body needs variety. Switch up your training split, for example try training back and hamstrings on one day and pair quads with abs. Too many guys ignore hams and calves on leg day, so split them up. Speaking of legs, most guys simply do not train their legs hard enough. If you want to add an inch to your arms, then add 100 lbs. to your squat. I know that sounds strange, but just try it, you'll see what I mean. Try different supplements, change gyms, get a new training partner, re-evaluate your diet, train less, train more, if you train at night...try morning etc, etc, etc...

After one year, if you still haven't seen any significant progress, then ask for some test enanthate and equipoise for Christmas next year.
Seriously, at that point you will have been training naturally for 5 years and you will be 21 years old. I still think it would be better to wait until 24-25, but I realize that seems like a far way away when you are 20. At least if you wait another year you will have least "paid your dues" with 5 years of natural training. Moreover, you will be able to spend a year researching gear. This is very important, you should be very well educated on steroids before you ever consider using them.

GettinSwole

I'm in agreement with GT on this one. Granted AAS are definitely a big help for breaching plateaus, but a plateau is different for you right now. Really your plateau is just that you're not going up as fast as you did when you first started. You always go up fast when u first start and it's nice to see that progress happen so fast. It's not always going to be that way though. Gains begin to slow down and as crappy as it is, you can only use your diet to help you out. Right now you don't need to do AAS. If I had it all to do over, I wouldn't have even done my first PH cycle until I was 22, but I did it while I was 21 and now I'm on gear. I'll also let you in on a secret and I'm sure everyone will agree -
Once ppl learn of you doing steroids... nothing you do means anything... not the hard work, not the sweating, not the perfect diet, nothing. To them, only the steroids matter and it'll always be thrown in your face that you wouldn't be the way you are without them. If you're ok w/ all that, hit 'em up when you're 21

Anonymous

GTF and swole.. thanks for the input i'll take it all into consideration

for me i'm conviced though that i have it all to gain on roids, i don't think anything could make me go back on my decision now, unless i make extremely good gains on 1-ad and s1+ and decide that the juice is not needed, but doubt i could resist at least one test/dbol cycle, i got my boy in the states telling me how amazing it is all the time and how much i'll blow up on it, and my juiced up buddy at the gym pesting me to join him on his 2 hour shoulder workouts and working out 2x a day callin me a pussy coz i only train 30min - 1 hour 5 times a week, its shit

if you want to hit the jackpot you gotta be prepared to gamble, no body got anywhere in this world without taking some sort of risks! i'm an entrepeneur what can i say!

peace

GTForce

I agree wholeheartedly with Gettin'Swole regarding the attitude of others. Once people find out about your steroid use then you can kiss any positive feedback goodbye. The only people who will comment, encourage, or congratulate you in any form whatsoever are other people who take steroids. The reason is simple : they will also be personally experienced with gear and will have discovered first-hand that gear is not some magic pill. It's funny...natural trainers or people who are lazy/uneducated/undisciplined with their training/diet/rest will always say, "I could like that if I was on gear."

I have not really experienced any negative feedback from my gear use. When I first started training as a "bodybuilder", as opposed to training for sports, I made incredible gains in my first couple of years. There were "whispers" around the gym and amongst my friends that I was using drugs. At first I bothered me but I had a chance top meet Skip Lacour at the IHRSA (International Health, Racquet & Sportclub Association) conference in 2000. We began a correspondence and I also ordered three amazing books by him, "Thinking Big", "Thinking Big 2" & "Bodybuilding Nutrition". Talking with Skip and reading his books let me concentrate on my own goals and stop worrying about what others thought or said. It also helped me stay "clean" for another 3 years. By the time I did a cycle, I had taken my physique, and strength levels, pretty darn close to my genetic max. Plus I had spent about about 100 hours total time reasearching gear before trying it. Further, I had been training for 15 years with the past 5 being totally focused on bodybuilding. I had tried every supplement out there and followed many different diet strategies and training techniques. Moreover, I was getting older and my natural hormones were starting to decline slightly (fortunately I had been blessed with a relatively high natural test level but everyone's declines with age).

The photo of me in the picture section was taken when I was clean. I had done 2 cycles in my life at that point (the shots were taken last fall). I am going to do a third this coming spring. No one has really noticed a drastic improvement because there hasn't been one. That is not to say that my cycles were not successful, they certainly were, but it really only gave me a 5-10% edge...which is pretty much what I expected. When a guy gains 25-30 pounds on a cycle then what that says to me is that he either is a genetic freak who responds exceptionally well to gear (there are some guys like that) or, more likely, the guy was nowhere near his genetic limit. Guys like that have a tremendously hard time off gear because they cannot mentally handle the difference. That is where addiction can start...and make no mistake - gear can be very addicting from an emotional/psychological point of view.

No one - and I mean no one - ever does just one cycle (unless they give up training altogether or they used for competition only and have stopped competing).

Best of luck Godfather...remember there are both successsful and unsuccessful entrepeneurs. Be safe and be smart. It is great to follow your dreams...just don't let your life become one.

Cheers, GTF

GTForce

If anyone is interested, check out www.SkipLaCour.com

That guy is very intelligent and inspirational.

spearman

GT, do you train using max OT style??

S

GTForce

I have tried it, but it is not suited to my body. I sustained injuries to my right shoulder and my left elbow when I tried emulating Skip's style of training.

What I do is tailor my training to my body (Skip is obviously genetically gifted) and employ LaCour's nutritional strategies as well as his mental approach. I find it difficult to be as disciplined and consistent as him with regards to eating, but even achieving 75% success tends to result in a great improvement. His mental approach is very helpful when I am feeling a lack of motivation.

I would suggest trying max OT and see if it is for you. It certainly has worked for Skip. He is 42 years old!!!

Cheers, GTF