tugs, just because the side effects caused from supraphysiological doses of AAS may be "temporary," it is actually quite possible that the underlying pathologies these drugs may be causing in your body will be permanent. That's what I was driving at in my response.
It's pretty much universally accepted that elevated cholesterol, elevated triglycerides, and a skewed hdl/ldl profile collectively represent one of four significant predictors of CAD - the most common cause of cardiovascular disease and death. So the question becomes, "How long does it take for a poor lipid profile to adversely affect one's long-term health?" Unfortunately, no one is able to predict that "x" number of days/weeks/months/years lived under the influence of an abnormal lipid profile will cause irreversable damage. So we all take a chance and run cycles with ridiculously high levels of androgens, multiple synthetic compounds, and a host of other ancillaries to combat the visible side effects for extended periods of time. When the sides disappear post-cycle, we're relieved and tell everyone that the problems are only temporary.
My diet is about as clean as a high calorie diet can possibly be. I haven't eaten fast food in nearly 9 years. I stopped eating ALL fried foods two years ago. I eat salmon and oatmeal every single day. I have never consumed a single alcoholic beverage or smoked anything in my
entire life. Until a few weeks ago, it had been almost 3 years since I ate any ground beef. And you know what, a few weeks after coming off a deca/test/dbol staggered moderately dosed cycle, my cholesterol still checked in at 190, HDL 25, and LDL 141. The total cholesterol reading is 50-60 points higher than baseline, and the ratio for a 32 year old is absolutely pathetic. So even controlling my diet to what many would consider an extreme degree, it
still wasn't enough to counter the adverse effects from AAS.
How often do you see a bunch of fit guys in their 20's and 30's sitting in a cardiologist's office waiting for an echocardiogram, or parked at the department of nephrology at a research center waiting for a renal ultrasound. Me? Well I have never seen this. So we trust our own propaganda that sides are controllable and that we're living a healthy lifestyle when, in reality, we may actually be contributing to our own demise. My point is that without periodic semi-invasive procedures, it's just not possible to track the minute physiological effects that AAS users are experiencing. But no one gets them done because no one believes they're necessary because everyone is assymptomatic (until it's too late).
And this brings me to my approach to AAS use. Let's start by looking at some facts:
(1) Testosterone is a natural hormone that is extremely beneficial to our overall health as long as it stays within physiological levels. In fact, the World Health Organization has toyed with the idea of administering exo test as a form of male contraception.
(2) Supraphysiological levels of testosterone will have a deleterious affect on many biomarkers used to assess the general health of an individual.
(3) Nearly every synthetic androgen (e.g., oxandrolone, stanozolol, etc.) will adversely affect many biomarkers, even at very low doses. There have been so many studies that I have read on this very subject. I couldn't hardly believe it but one study indicated that within 10-12 weeks of administering a low dose of oxandrolone, the test subjects' lipid profiles were so bad that the researchers actually switched the subjects to 100mg/wk (I think) of nandrolone, which interestingly significantly improved their lipid profiles.
(4) Mg for mg, nandrolone is 2.4X more anabolic than testosterone (pretty sure that's the right statistic).
Here are some observations that I have made over the past 9 years of training:
(1) Adding a significant amount of LBM (I'm talking 100+ pounds) takes a very, very long time of consistent training, eating, and recovering. Prepare to spend 12-15 years of your life working on this one.
(2) If everyone gained 20 pounds of LBM with each 10-12 week cycle and kept 12-15 pounds post cycle, we would all be professional bodybuilders after juicing for 3 years. Clearly, this is not happening, no matter how much gear we use. The truth is we're not gaining 20 pounds of ripped, dry, LBM with each cycle...more like 2-5 pounds. A net gain of 20 pounds of LBM is
enormous and would represent a 2" increase in your quads, 2-3" increase in your arms, and 3-5" increase in your chest. Any experienced lifter will tell you that's just not gonna happen in 10 weeks, more like 4-5 years.
(3) Echoing doggcrapp's sentiments, if you don't look like a weight trainer during your teenage years, without ever actually lifting a weight, LOL, then don't waste your money, time, and health trying to make it as a pro bodybuilder today. Ever check out the pics of Lee Priest at 17or Jay Cutler as a teen? They are absolutely SICK. These guys started so far ahead of the rest of the world, it makes you want to say, "It's just not fair!" Even with their genetics, look at how long it has taken them to build the degree of musculature necessary to compete in today's IFBB environment.
Now some info about me: I'm 32 years old, at 5'10" and ~245lbs. @ 9-10% bf, I've put on some decent mass after almost 9 years of training, my physiology is
extremely receptive to AAS, I have all the children I want, I value my health tremendously, and I want to make sure that I'm around for my family in 30 years.
I never rely on drugs for muscle gains. I rely on my training, nutrition, and rest for my gains. I rely on the drugs to hasten my recovery from my training. This approach is completely opposite that used by the majority of AAS cyclers. If you possess this attitude, you will never
abuse AAS, you will simply use them as a tool in your development.
As I've already mentioned, I recently came off a 4 month cycle and experienced a dramatic transformation. My weight may have only increased by 10-15 pounds, but everything looked awesome. I had really nice vascularity throughout my quads, chest was fuller, back super thick...just better muscle maturity throughout. And this is very common among long-term users. Check out
http://anabolicreview.com/vbulletin/showthread.php?threadid=26298&highlight=length+cycle+debate for other cyclers' experiences with extended cycles.
However, I wasn't thrilled with some of the sides I was experiencing, mostly from the highly androgenous testosterone and dbol. Without a doubt, many of the side effects resulting from AAS use do not contribute to one's long-term health, quite the opposite.
So, taking the above-listed facts and observations into account, I have decided to never use the traditional cycle again. Instead, from now on, I will maintain a testosterone level at the high-normal end of the scale through exo administration as my base. I will add a low dosage of Deca (perhaps 200mg/wk) to that base and run that continuously. Nandrolone appears to have the longest track record of problem-free medical use. Further, many HRT docs are comfortable enough with Deca to prescribe it to their patients. That means a lot to me. Depending on my powerlifting meet requirements, I will cycle the testosterone above the physiological scale, combined possibly with an oral (e.g., dbol) for as little time as possible. I intend to maintain testicular form and function through periodic hcg use, but I also have no interest at this point in ever normalizing my HPTA since I fully subscribe to the idea behind HRT. I have no doubt whatsoever that I will continue to make significant improvements to my physique.
After 6 months or so, I intend to have a full blood workup to analyze some key health predictors. Additionally, I will continue to follow up with specialists who are monitoring my organs. Periodic echocardiograms, ultrasounds, etc. will indicate whether the drugs are adversely affecting my physiology.
Obviously, this strategy won't work for many of you. Perhaps you don't have any children yet and need to preserve some degree of homeostasis. Others may not respond well to low dosages. Everyone has his reasons. Personally, I don't earn my living with my body. I do offer personal training services which is why I built my gym, but the bulk of the bread comes from the corporate world. So I have very little to gain and everything to lose by potentially ruining my health through irrational AAS use/abuse.
I have been thinking about this for about a month, now. And I'm glad I was given an opportunity to share my thoughts. If anyone wants to discuss this, fire away. I feel that this topic is more relevant than many may believe.