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Pros and Cons of Drug Use

If steroids use or abuse had any positive long term effect (as in visual muscle size),I’d be the first one to take them. However being effective only for a short while (and yes, years, even 10 years) is a short, very short while.

Proof? Where are all the yesteryear champions? Where’s Dorian, where’s Arnold, where’s…? Yet you and me, would be at it (or at least I would be) at it for as long as my body is able to lift weights. Steroids are extremely effective; extremely powerful, yet they are nothing more than a drag race, a race of a ¼ mile and it’s all over. Give me something for the long haul and I’d be very interested indeed. Hence I’m always challenging myself to learn about new ways to volumise my muscle cells naturally.


Fadi.
 
62 years young
I think you may have missed my point completely, (my fault for not been clearer).

What I meant to say is that if taking steroids gave you the muscles you wanted, it would be great to stop there, maintain those muscles for the long term. However for steroids to work, they would need to be taken regularly, hence why pro bodybuilders are on them for the duration of their bodybuilding careers.

You may say well that's not fair, and that I'm asking too much of steroids. And you would be right on the second count, as I am asking for something that would work long term (without necessarily turning you into a pro bodybuilder) yet provide you with enough muscles long term.

I'll give you a hint of where I'm going with this. You see there is something that works long term, for as long as you train properly and eat accordingly. That "thing" is insulin. Your endogenous as opposed to any exogenous insulin that is. To help along the way, carbs would have to enter the equation. It's all about manipulation of this most powerful anabolic hormone, and provision of the proper nutrients that would fuel the process, after a catalyst (as in the proper muscle stimulus) has been achieved.

Now that's part of what I meant by "long term". Thank you for reading.


Fadi.
 
I think you may have missed my point completely, (my fault for not been clearer).

What I meant to say is that if taking steroids gave you the muscles you wanted, it would be great to stop there, maintain those muscles for the long term. However for steroids to work, they would need to be taken regularly, hence why pro bodybuilders are on them for the duration of their bodybuilding careers.

You may say well that's not fair, and that I'm asking too much of steroids. And you would be right on the second count, as I am asking for something that would work long term (without necessarily turning you into a pro bodybuilder) yet provide you with enough muscles long term.

I'll give you a hint of where I'm going with this. You see there is something that works long term, for as long as you train properly and eat accordingly. That "thing" is insulin. Your endogenous as opposed to any exogenous insulin that is. To help along the way, carbs would have to enter the equation. It's all about manipulation of this most powerful anabolic hormone, and provision of the proper nutrients that would fuel the process, after a catalyst (as in the proper muscle stimulus) has been achieved.

Now that's part of what I meant by "long term". Thank you for reading.


Fadi.

If your muscle gains are within your body's natural limits then you will keep the muscle mass for the majority of your life as long as you keep up with the exercise and diet. Your body can't distinguish between muscle gained on steroids and muscle gained naturally
 
Great post Oni, I was just about to bring that question up myself. Anybody else concur with that? If one used steroids to hit their bodies natural limits could that be kept/maintained, provided training and nutrition were adequate?
 
If your muscle gains are within your body's natural limits then you will keep the muscle mass for the majority of your life as long as you keep up with the exercise and diet.
No argument there Oni.
Your body can't distinguish between muscle gained on steroids and muscle gained naturally
So what is the point you're making here Oni, please clarify. I personally have no idea whether the muscles can distinguish between the two different approaches. So I’ll keep quite here until such a time I have some evidence for such a statement or until someone can clarify it/explain it for me. Thank you Oni.


Fadi.
 
Great post Oni, I was just about to bring that question up myself. Anybody else concur with that? If one used steroids to hit their bodies natural limits could that be kept/maintained, provided training and nutrition were adequate?
Ah, now I get it. The answer is no, otherwise you would not see pro bodybuilders shrink back to normal size again, training/dieting or not. Steroids work at the cellular level. In layman's term, they (the roids) make all your biochemistry work much much more efficiently with nothing wasted (catabolic) and all gained (anabolic).

used steroids to hit their bodies natural limits
You see Tyrone; you can't have it both ways Sir. Either you're hitting your limit naturally (i.e. no steroids), or you're going beyond what you can naturally achieve without the drugs.

could that be kept/maintained, provided training and nutrition
Again on the same point and why my answer is in the negative. I'm sure you've heard of PCT, now that has nothing to do with training and/or nutrition and all to do with the body regaining its natural hormone homeostasis. If steroids were natural (in the huge amount bodybuilders take them), then there would not be a need for the body to shut down its own manufacturing of them and a need to kick start it back again after each cycle. SO as you can see Tyrone and Oni, it takes more, (much more) than simply training and watching one's diet.

Sorry if I have misunderstood you mate, you can always clarify your statement so I or anyone else may have a clearer understanding. Thank you.


Fadi.
 
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Tom Hafey is a good example of health and fitness

832662-tom-hafey.jpg


In two words: Rugged/manly. Thanks Andy


Fadi.
 
Ah, now I get it. The answer is no, otherwise you would not see pro bodybuilders shrink back to normal size again, training/dieting or not. Steroids work at the cellular level. In layman's term, they (the roids) make all your biochemistry work much much more efficiently with nothing wasted (catabolic) and all gained (anabolic).


You see Tyrone; you can't have it both ways Sir. Either you're hitting your limit naturally (i.e. no steroids), or you're going beyond what you can naturally achieve without the drugs.

Again on the same point and why my answer is in the negative. I'm sure you've heard of PCT, now that has nothing to do with training and/or nutrition and all to do with the body regaining its natural hormone homeostasis. If steroids were natural (in the huge amount bodybuilders take them), then there would not be a need for the body to shut down its own manufacturing of them and a need to kick start it back again after each cycle. SO as you can see Tyrone and Oni, it takes more, (much more) than simply training and watching one's diet.

Sorry if I have misunderstood you mate, you can always clarify your statement so I or anyone else may have a clearer understanding. Thank you.


Fadi.

Natural limits being the amount of protein your body can synthesize for muscle maintenance. I've used steroids to get stronger, build muscle and train harder than I would ever have been able to off the gear, but I am still well within my body's natural limits of maintaining muscle mass. Ronnie Coleman got to about 220lbs ripped without gear iirc. Now if he had a twin that used roids to get to say 200lbs, it would have been within the bodies limit of protein synthesis for maintaining and building muscle so after coming off the gear he would have been able to maintain that muscle for as long as his body was producing natural testosterone and he kept his diet and training up and even be able to increase his mass further without steroids.

However, many people will do a cycle or two then shrink back down afterward. I think this is because their body simply isn't used to having that much mass 'naturally' because their body never gets to improve it's own natural rate of protein synthesis. So all in all it's how you take your steroids. I am a strong believer that people who want to stay on the drugs long term to do 8 weeks on, 2 weeks PCT, 8 weeks on, 2 weeks PCT etc this way you never shrink down, your body gets used to having a lot of mass and increases it's efficiency of protein synthesis for maintaining muscle mass and your HPTA always stays in check
 
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Please, Nobody take Oni's advice when it comes to the use or abuse of AAS.

It's called blasting and cruising, it's a legit technique and is used by the vast majority of powerlifters and bodybuilders that need to stay on the gear all year round. Do some research mate
 
Do your research mate. That is NOT blasting and cruising.

The blast/cruise technique is used by 2 types of people
1- Guys on HRT
2- Guys who stay on for long periods of time.

Its where you run (for example) 1g of test for 12 weeks, then drop down to 200mg for a few weeks, then bump it buck up to 1g. You dont run a PCT.

Another option in bridging between cycles.
12 weeks test at 1g, then 2-4 weeks dbol, then back onto 12 weeks test at 1g

These are not cycles that Im recommending, but showing you, and everybody else, what the blast/cruise method is.


Please stop giving out advice.
 
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Do your research mate. That is NOT blasting and cruising.

Read the DoggCrapp articles on Cycles for Pennies regarding 'super supplements'

For my enhanced trainees the situation is a little different. Alot of this is all done by
personal preference and how you morally stand on the super supplement issue. The most
important thing to remember is during a cycle that there comes a time where your endo
test is dropping (well its always dropping but read ahead) and estro side effects are
coming on fast. Most of the time this big ratio skewering is most prominent between
weeks 3 and 8. And to pinpoint it further I would suggest that right around weeks 5-7 is
the key time. Alot of my trainees can actually feel this point during their cycles. Your
appetite starts lessening, you feel a change in androgen benefits according to your body
(hardness decreases slightly, smoothing out, lethargy), your temper increases (most likely
due to the estro/test skewered ratio--(the same bitchiness alot of guys get when they use
clomid)--and your attitude toward workouts and destroying the logbook starts decreasing
more and more (over many weeks).....You really have to know your body well to
recognize these signs but someone who has been around the block for awhile will
definitely. So what do most guys do at this point that dont follow my methods? They up
the dose slightly and it gets them gaining again but also most likely is going to make it
living hell when they get off finally. (If they get off is what i should say---and that right
there raises more problems....if you fix these problems by continually upping the dose
over time, where are you going to go? How much toxicity and abuse will you be putting
yourself thru a year down the road to continue making gains? Thats why I kind of
chuckle when I hear guys say "**** that I make my best gains after week 5 or so and thats
why i do 16 week cycles"--well of course you do you upped the dose and every time you
up the dose youll override that endo test drop and continue making gains. In the long run
where is that going to leave you though? Your going to have to abuse the hell out of
yourself to put more muscle mass on your body. So what do you do? Your job is to
decide in the context of my methods what is best for you. If thats one cycle a year so be
it. If thats being on continually for years and years thats your choice. All I ask is that you
do one simple thing. Always keep this following thought in the back of your mind with
whatever path you choose thats right for you concerning super supplements. YOU MUST
DO EVERYTHING IN YOUR POWER TO TRY TO KEEP YOURSELF
REGULATED HPTA WISE. Whats the best way to do that? Never use super
supplements. Whats the best way to do that if you do use super supplements? Use
everything at your disposal to send signals to the hpta at intermittent times. Ive stated
many times what i think someone who is using 1 or 2 cycles a year should do, 4-8 weeks
blasting and 2 weeks cruising
. So if it was one cycle and one only this year you would do
something akin to 4-8 weeks on, 2 weeks antiestrogens and hcg and then 4-8 weeks on
again and pct therapy again and off. That basically is a 8-16 week cycle thats going to be
very easy to keep muscle mass when you get off instead of the guys who hammer
themself for 4 months straight and cross their fingers when they get off with clomid that
they dont disengrate (laughable because it happens 90% of the time) ........So Ive already
hit on that limited super supplement usage that people do above too many times to count
over the last 3 years............and to be brutally honest theres alot of guys (elite pros, top
amateurs and advanced bodybuilders) that are running year round and I know those guys
want to hear what Im going to say on this. SO DONT GET YOUR GODDAMN
PANTIES IN A WAD IF THIS GOES AGAINST WHAT YOU PERSONALLY FEEL
IS RIGHT AND MORALLY SOUND YOU HOLIER THAN THOU PROHORMONE
ABUSERS AND ONCE A YEAR CYCLERS. Examples of some athletes in Europe or
Mexico (where this is all legal)
7 weeks on 2 weeks cruising
6 weeks on 1 week cruising
8 weeks on 2 weeks cruising
7 weeks on 7-10days cruising
It basically comes down to choices of the individual. Some guys cruisings are arim, nolv,
hcg and clomid. Some guys refuse to get completely off and do arim nolv hcg clom and
50mg of test prop eod during the cruises. I know of one who does arim nolv hcg clom,
the low dose test 50mg and anavar during the cruises and he does that for 3 weeks after
blasting for 7-8. Every blasting your trying to get to a new muscular level, every cruising
your trying to regulate yourself somewhat by sending signals to the HPTA and
maintaining or if your lucky slightly increasing muscle size. It needs to be done that way
if your going to stay on for extended periods otherwise your going to have one terrible
time coming off. Now if I see one freaking guy posting that this is DC's
recommendations on other boards, IM GOING TO GO OFF! I wrote up something like
this 4 years ago as it pertained to elite athletes who were running year round anyway and
then for the next 3 years I heard idiots telling people that I recommended year round
cycling. I recommend letting whatever an individual chooses himself to do and i work in
those parameters and try to suggest a better way. Do I believe blasting and cruising works
much better both for muscle gains and keeping the hpta regulated than just bludgeoning
yourself year round, ....HELL YES I DO. In fact if you break down things, there isnt
much difference in "time on""time off" of someone doing 4 months on and 2 months off
(pct included) and doing it this way--its almost exactly the same. The difference is the
above way i described doesnt give you that YO YO effect where you always trying to
gain back muscle mass you lost with each cycle. If you are reading this and believe pros
and top amateurs are coming off when they are at the Pro Ironman in February, The
arnold in March, The Night of Champions in May, The USA's in the end of July, The
olympia in the early fall, and the GNC in the fall, along with flex magazine photo shoots,
multiple appearances, and 5-20 guest posings spread out also during the year--AND YET
ALWAYS LOOKING BIG HARD JACKED AND NEVER LOOKING SMALLER OR
SMOOTHER.....then you need to wake up and smell the Java because your clueless. It
aint happening. When is the last time you saw a pro and thought "wow he looks off, he is
alot smaller and really smooth too" --I am pretty sure Ronnie took a break this year
because of his look earlier in the year but the majority of others? Look at all the shows
above spread out over the year and add in maybe one to two shows they are competing in
this year (with 4 month contest preps) and you tell me when they are getting off. They
arent or if they are its definitely not 2 months completely (off and clean) like Ive seen
many post its more like a week here or a week there. There is a massive rock hard
amateur superheavyweight with the initials D.P. who strongly advocates 4 months on and
2 months completely off--very strongly advocates the 2 months completely off.
When is
the last time you have seen him look small and smoother? Theres 100's of pics on his site
showing him at various times the last 5 years or so at different shows, guest posings,
appearances and he competes twice a year too (theres 8 months on right there). Do you
see one pic where he looks off? So the bottom line is this, blasting and cruising is
individualistic and it is based on being natural or enhanced and it is based on when both
individuals (nat/enhan) start feeling burnt out from the war with the logbook. I step
peoples diets down a notch during cruisings (especially the enhanced because their
skewered test/est ratio at that time isnt optimal) and I make everyones training more of
maintenance to prep them for another blasting. Whether nat or enhanced if you try to go
year round with this brutal war with the logbook, it wont work, you have to take 2 steps
forward and a half step back and regroup your mindset, fortitude and desire to go the
extra mile here.
 
Mate, the first bold is somebody's opinion, and actually so is the second.

And where does it state that running PCT between blasts is the correct protocol like you said?

I will repeat my self again.
Please do nit give advice on AAS. You ran a double oral cycle, dbol and A Bombs because you didn't want to get big.
I hope that's enough for people to realise you have no idea about anything.

I don't think I have to reply anymore.
 
Mate, the first bold is somebody's opinion, and actually so is the second.

And where does it state that running PCT between blasts is the correct protocol like you said?

I will repeat my self again.
Please do nit give advice on AAS. You ran a double oral cycle, dbol and A Bombs because you didn't want to get big.
I hope that's enough for people to realise you have no idea about anything.

I don't think I have to reply anymore.

Right, so you're saying that you know better than Dante, who has been training people with this method for over 15 years? You have not shown a single bit of evidence disproving anything I've said whatsoever. Your only arguments are "that's retarded" or "that's stupid". So why don't you start providing evidence to back up what you're saying? It clearly states that PCT is ran between blasts. It even states that the majority of bodybuilders in mexico and europe use this method. Did you even read it?

Can you please explain for everyone here why 8 weeks on, 2 weeks off is a bad idea?

EDIT: I'd also like to add that how big you get on a cycle is 100% based on your diet. Calories in / calories out. I could run tren and not get big as long as my protein and calorie intake is below what is needed for muscle growth. I was eating 3000kcal a day and cycling over 200 miles a week. Do you really think that I'd grow that much, even on anabolics? A lot of cyclists are on equipoise which is an amazing mass builder, so why are they not all huge and jacked?
 
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Ah, now I get it. The answer is no, otherwise you would not see pro bodybuilders shrink back to normal size again, training/dieting or not. Steroids work at the cellular level. In layman's term, they (the roids) make all your biochemistry work much much more efficiently with nothing wasted (catabolic) and all gained (anabolic).


You see Tyrone; you can't have it both ways Sir. Either you're hitting your limit naturally (i.e. no steroids), or you're going beyond what you can naturally achieve without the drugs.

Again on the same point and why my answer is in the negative. I'm sure you've heard of PCT, now that has nothing to do with training and/or nutrition and all to do with the body regaining its natural hormone homeostasis. If steroids were natural (in the huge amount bodybuilders take them), then there would not be a need for the body to shut down its own manufacturing of them and a need to kick start it back again after each cycle. SO as you can see Tyrone and Oni, it takes more, (much more) than simply training and watching one's diet.

Sorry if I have misunderstood you mate, you can always clarify your statement so I or anyone else may have a clearer understanding. Thank you.


Fadi.

Of course pro bodybuilders shrink back to 'normal size', because they are unnaturally large in the first place. They all push their bodies much further than anyone could ever achieve naturally; the human body clearly isn't designed to carry that much muscle.

Okay, lets just lay out an example.

If I weighed 75kg, but lets just say the natural limit imposed by my body maintaining muscle mass was about 90kg. If I could hit 90kg by training and eating and lifting naturally and keep my gains, could I also run a cycle and get to 90kg (UN-naturally, if you will), and still keep the gains?
 
Of course pro bodybuilders shrink back to 'normal size', because they are unnaturally large in the first place. They all push their bodies much further than anyone could ever achieve naturally; the human body clearly isn't designed to carry that much muscle.

Okay, lets just lay out an example.

If I weighed 75kg, but lets just say the natural limit imposed by my body maintaining muscle mass was about 90kg. If I could hit 90kg by training and eating and lifting naturally and keep my gains, could I also run a cycle and get to 90kg (UN-naturally, if you will), and still keep the gains?

I read an article on either t-nation or elitefts about this (can't find it) and the long and short of it is that it depends on your training experience. If you have trained hard and solid for 5 years I see no reason why you wouldn't be able to keep your gains as long as you're within your genetically pre-determined limits
 
Right, so you're saying that you know better than Dante, who has been training people with this method for over 15 years? You have not shown a single bit of evidence disproving anything I've said whatsoever. Your only arguments are "that's retarded" or "that's stupid". So why don't you start providing evidence to back up what you're saying? It clearly states that PCT is ran between blasts. It even states that the majority of bodybuilders in mexico and europe use this method. Did you even read it?

Can you please explain for everyone here why 8 weeks on, 2 weeks off is a bad idea?

EDIT: I'd also like to add that how big you get on a cycle is 100% based on your diet. Calories in / calories out. I could run tren and not get big as long as my protein and calorie intake is below what is needed for muscle growth. I was eating 3000kcal a day and cycling over 200 miles a week. Do you really think that I'd grow that much, even on anabolics? A lot of cyclists are on equipoise which is an amazing mass builder, so why are they not all huge and jacked?

Firstly, that article is SO poorly written, I skipped parts.
The Article suggests that 4-6 on than an AI, then back on 4-6 weeks on again.

What the fuck is the point in that?

Its makes no mention of compounds or doses.

The only "evidence" you have posted is an "article" that has no references to ANYTHING.
That holds as much worth as me saying doing squats with one eye closed will raised testosterone by 567%

Lets take a look at what happens when somebody takes your (or Dante's) advice of running 4 weeks on, 2 weeks off, and then 4 weeks on again with testosterone enanthate.

Peak blood levels are reached around week 2 (1):

Enanthate:
Also referred to as heptanoic acid; enanthic acid; enanthylic acid; heptylic acid; heptoic acid; Oenanthylic acid; Oenanthic acid. Enanthate is one of the most prominent esters used in steroid manufacture (most commonly seen with testosterone but is also used in other compounds like Primobolan Depot). Enanthate will release a steady (yet fluctuating as all esters are) level of hormone for approximately 10-14 days. Although in medicine, enanthate compounds are often injected on a bi-weekly or monthly basis, athletes will inject at least weekly to help maintain a uniform blood level.

but in almost all experiences, gains dont come on till week 4. Now you want me to come off? And do a pct for 2 weeks, even though Test E has an active half life of 2 weeks (2)?

Active life: 15 days

This means, whilst im running this PCT, im still shut down anyway because of all the exogenous testosterone thats floating around in my body. POINTLESS.
Then you say to get back on for 4 weeks and run another PCT?

People who run a blast and cruise method, like I stated run a gram, cruise for a few weeks at 200mg, then run a gram again. Not run a PCT and go again. That might be A method, but that is NOT blast/cruise.

or

people bridge their cycles.

For anybody else reading, the recommended time between cycles is time on +PCT = time off.
So a 12 week cycle + 2 weeks off + PCT is 18 weeks before you SHOULD go again.



(1) What is it about the cypionate ester that makes it take 5-6 weeks? [Archive] - Anabolic Steroids - Steroid.com / Anabolic Review Forums
(2)Testosterone Enanthate - Steroid .com
 
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