Steroids: The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly, By: Hugo Riveria
In this week’s article I decided to talk about steroids. The purpose of this article is not to teach you how to use them, nor to endorse or disapprove of their use. I mainly write it as an informational tool for those that are curious on the subject and also to eliminate certain misconceptions that surround these drugs. My goal is to write an unbiased report that would give the reader objective information of what these drugs are and what they can and cannot do. Everything that I will say is based on research and information that I have gathered from others that have used them. I cannot give any personal experience as I have never touched them.
What are they?
Anabolic steroids are a synthetic copy of the hormone testosterone. They have been the subject of much debate over the last few decades as well as misinformation. Athletes, especially bodybuilders, may feel lured towards them as these drugs do increase muscle size, strength, and stamina. One of the biggest misunderstandings that I find about steroids is that people say that if you take them they will kill you. The first thing that we need to understand is that steroids are drugs. All drugs when misused and abused have the potential to kill; it’s not only steroids. Even Tylenol and Aspirin can cause serious problems if you take them in large quantities. Another misconception out there is that they are easily accessible and that there is only one type of steroids. As far as accessibility, the truth is that they are illegal substances so your accessibility will be through the black market (good luck as far as quality). In addition, if you get caught in their possession you may face up to 5 years in a federal prison. On the issue of variety, there are many different types of steroid out there. There are injectible steroids and oral steroids. The injectible kind are generally more anabolic in nature and less damaging to organs like the liver. The oral versions are more androgenic in nature and cause more side effects than their injectible brothers as they have to be processed by the liver. Different steroids have different properties so there are some that have more tendencies to build muscle mass while others have a tendency to increase strength. As their properties vary, so do their side effects. Usually the stronger the steroid (especially if oral) the more side effects you can expect.
The Good
As I previously just mentioned, steroids do increase size and strength. In fact, they do so very significantly. One time I conducted a small research study in which I compared the gains of a bodybuilder on steroid with those of a natural bodybuilder (which in this study was me in order to ensure that all training and nutrition aspects were dialed in). The enhanced bodybuilder, who shall remain nameless, gained strength and muscle mass at an accelerated rate (in the order of sometimes as much as 50-60 pounds per week on the big basic exercises and around 40 pounds of muscle mass in 6 weeks; note: the subject was stacking 4 different types of testosterone at large dosages and his diet, training and rest were dialed in). Needless to say, 12 weeks later he entered a local contest and won hands down.
In addition to gains in strength and muscle mass they also seem to provide you with more energy and aggressiveness, things that are conducive to good workouts. Depending on the steroid used, you may also get cell volumizing effects that promote a bigger pump.
The Bad
Based on the fact that steroids give you all of these good effects that bodybuilders constantly look for, it is no surprise that they cause a psychological dependence. Think about it. If you have been taking them for the past 8 weeks, assuming good diet and training, chances are that you got very big and strong quick. You feel unstoppable after the 8 weeks of use. Suddenly you taper them off, up until you completely stop their use. A week later after cessation of use you notice that you are not getting good pumps, that your strength is diminishing regardless of your best effort and that your muscle mass is shrinking! Add to that the fact that for the first few weeks after cessation of use you will feel depressed due to low testosterone levels and it is no wonder that there are people out there that never get off from them.
The Ugly
Assuming that you knew what you were doing while you were using them (i.e. Getting blood work done while using them, using a mild steroid, ensuring that the dosage was not abusive and tapering off before complete cessation of use, not using them for more than 12 weeks max) chances are that the worst that will happen to you is the depression that will come after using them along with the loss of strength and muscle mass along with a small period of low natural testosterone production (in addition to side effects that may be encountered during use such as higher blood pressure and higher cholesterol levels). I have read articles that claim that if you use mild steroids and use them correctly you get to keep some of the mass. However, I have never met a steroid user that has kept much of anything after their use so I am not sure about the validity of that claim. So based, on my observations, assume total loss of gains.
If you do not know what you are doing (i.e. you used steroids with the most side effects, you abused the dosage, etc) then not only will you get bad side effects during the period of use, but you also will also get worst side effects after the use. Again, the degree of side effects is directly proportional to the dosage and type of the steroid and also dependent of the genetic propensity of the subject to get such side effects. Therefore, it would be impossible for me or anyone else to exactly predict what kind of side effects a user might encounter during a period of use. However, a few side effects come to mind for those that abuse these drugs:
1) Increased Liver Function.
2) Depression of Testosterone Levels.
3) Increase in Cholesterol Levels and Blood Pressure (Not conductive to good cardiovascular health).
4) Altered Thyroid Function.
5) Headeches.
6) Nose bleeds.
7) Cramps.
8) Development of breastlike tissue in men (Gynecomastia).
9) Insulin Insensitivity (Even though Deca Durabolin improves the insulin metabolism).
10) Androgenic Side effects such as thinning hair, enlarged prostate, oily skin, water retention, increased body hair, aggressiveness.
11) Stunted growth if you are a teenager.
12) Oral Steroid specific side effects: In addition to the above, the orals also tend to cause nausea, diarrhea, constipation, and vomiting.
13) May accelerate the growth of tumors.
I am not even going to go into the kind of side effects that females encounter when they decide to use these drugs. That could be a whole article by itself, but I think that most people could imagine what happens when you start introducing abnormal amounts of hormones from the opposite sex into your body.
Conclusion
Having said all of the above here is where I will put my two cents worth (Here comes the subjective part of this post). I am not going to say: "Do not use those drugs; they kill" as by now you should know better (and besides, for your information, there are drugs that are prescribed on a daily basis far more dangerous than steroids in my opinion). However, it seems to me that using steroids only provides a temporary solution to the challenge of acquiring muscle mass. At best, you get big for a few weeks but then it goes away; so what is the use? Besides, is it worth risking jail in order to gain a few pounds of muscle? Also, if you get the drugs from the black market, how can you be assured that the quality is good? How will you know that what you are putting into your body is steroids at all? How can you be sure that if you are using an injectible steroid you will be able to always inject it correctly and without causing either an infection on the site or pinching a nerve perhaps? Finally, how do you know that you don't have a propensity to develop cancer and that using the steroids will not trigger it? These are all things that you should think about if there ever comes a time when you are tempted to use the drugs. Building the body is a lifetime commitment that has to be practiced eagerly day in and day out with the utmost persistence. There are no shortcuts to a championship body. Only hard work combined with a smart training and nutrition system will take you where you want to go.
