3 Years of AAS. What I Learned Before Coming Off.

[Deleted member 106824]

If there is one thing I regret in my years of steroid use, abuse, and completely off time would be just one thing- the off time lol

I only wish I was told from the beginning that pct is complete bullshit, and to only take very brief breaks (4 weeksish using hcg at 500mcg EOD or so) or just cruise in increments of whatever is necessary at the time along with hcg.

Agreed. I think I would be further along muscularly and would have had less health concerns if I 1.) didn't use so many orals and 2.) blasted and cruised the entire time.

Of my 3 years on and off I really only made significant progress for 1-1.5 years of that because the rest of the time was b.s.ing with PCT. I know some people out there have made that method work but it didn't not work for me at all and I just kept spinning my wheels. Not to mention all the money spent on the PCT drugs and extra blood work involved. If one is going to jump on I'd say blast and cruise with just injectables. And again, for me cruise = true TRT.




FYI, just got my blood work back and for the first time in almost 2 years all of my liver enzymes are completely normal they haven't been bad in a long time either but ALT was always slightly elevated regardless of the liver support I was taking, so I was very happy to see they're now all in range.

Now I can really just focus on the heart stuff.....still trying to pinpoint what is causing this mild intermittent pressure I feel.

 

[DoWork]

What are the odds of completely regaining endocrine function after 1.5 years of blast and cruise? Would intermittent use of hcg over that period make a significant difference?

aka DoWork on Professional Muscle
aka Venison Steaks on Muscle Chemistry

 

[typhoon]

How did all of that affect your IBD? I have colitis and have cycled test and test/eq only a few times. I never had any issues-it actually helped my symptoms. Only when i came off did I go into a slight flare up.

 

[Deleted member 106824]

How did all of that affect your IBD? I have colitis and have cycled test and test/eq only a few times. I never had any issues-it actually helped my symptoms. Only when i came off did I go into a slight flare up.

Personally I noticed no change. My IBD definitely affected my cycle...my last cycle I ever did was not too productive and that was largely because I had my worst flare to date for about half of it, followed by 2 months on corticosteroids. But as for the cycle affecting my IBD, I never noticed any issue. If anything I'd say the test could help balance out some of the harmful treatment options for IBD (mainly the corticosteroids)...I would be much less 'OK' with that form of treatment if I wasn't at least on TRT.

 

[Archer]

I used MLG a lot as well.... Hit more than miss so I stayed lol I home brew now, way way better, anyway thanks for the experiences !!

 

[Cito33189]

Coming off is awesome. I feel like that's what makes your grow.

 

[Mini Truck]

Well Done Pumped!

Pumped,

You did a very good job with this thread.
Very well written, insightful, detailed and informative.

I'm sure very few know you're going to school to become an MD.

Hopefully your friend will listen.

Remember, just on HRT, you will still make progress.
Plus I know you well, your pics would surprise a lot of people.
Just keep to your game plan, my friend.

This was a tip from Homonuculus regarding heart health.

-MT

Himalaya Heart Care:
[ame="http://www.amazon.com/Himalaya-Healthcare-HeartCare-Regulator-240-Vcaps/dp/B000H84VZA"]Amazon.com: Himalaya Herbal Healthcare HeartCare/Abana, Heart Regulator, 240-Vcaps, 500 mg: Health & Personal Care@@AMEPARAM@@http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41N-PrqcjpL.@@AMEPARAM@@41N-PrqcjpL[/ame]

 

[Deleted member 106824]

Pumped,

You did a very good job with this thread.
Very well written, insightful, detailed and informative.

I'm sure very few know you're going to school to become an MD.

Hopefully your friend will listen.

Remember, just on HRT, you will still make progress.
Plus I know you well, your pics would surprise a lot of people.
Just keep to your game plan, my friend.

This was a tip from Homonuculus regarding heart health.

-MT

Himalaya Heart Care:
Amazon.com: Himalaya Herbal Healthcare HeartCare/Abana, Heart Regulator, 240-Vcaps, 500 mg: Health & Personal Care

Thank you MT, that means a lot

I am very interested to see how my progress is once I finish dieting and start slowly working my way up again in June.

I am already taking a ton for my heart (Taurine, ALCAR, CoQ10/Ubiquinol, Fish oil, D-Ribose, Magnesium, and Hawthorn Berry)....I'll add that Himalaya product now too, couldn't hurt!

 

[anarchocapitalist]

I've used steroids since the mid 90s.

If I could do it over again I honestly would have stayed natural. Tried to make gains naturally and kept a balanced life with various sports or spartan racing etc.

The one thing I didn't like about steroids was the ups and downs of cycling and staying on isn't cool either esp if you are a 20 year old kid whose potential might only be a state level.

I honestly feel that steroids are best used by competitive athletes who have a chance at something great or a 40 year old as a TRT replacement.

Each young person has to live their own life and learn there own lessons. But honestly there is no sense chancing down the biggest man dream. There is always someone bigger and better or willing to push their health for a trophy.

 

[Deleted member 106824]

I've used steroids since the mid 90s.

If I could do it over again I honestly would have stayed natural. Tried to make gains naturally and kept a balanced life with various sports or spartan racing etc.

The one thing I didn't like about steroids was the ups and downs of cycling and staying on isn't cool either esp if you are a 20 year old kid whose potential might only be a state level.

I honestly feel that steroids are best used by competitive athletes who have a chance at something great or a 40 year old as a TRT replacement.

Each young person has to live their own life and learn there own lessons. But honestly there is no sense chancing down the biggest man dream. There is always someone bigger and better or willing to push their health for a trophy.

Totally agree. I didn't even care much about competing, I just wanted to look great.

Some people say "who cares who's on steroids" and all the business with "fake nattys" today. But this is why I care. Whether or not we should care about what other people do the reality is many do and when I was young I just had no idea what was realistic. I used to see Christian Thibaudeau on Tnation and think his 5'9" 230lb shredded build was natural. Some may think that was naive but as a teenager who was never exposed to steroids and it was never talked about then how would I know better. Hell I know people now who think Mike O'Hearn's body is possible is naturally...it's absurd.

I remember saying I wanted to be 220lb at 10% within a few years naturally, and was almost depressed when I saw those "genetic max calculators" telling me that 210lb at 10% was the best I could hope for naturally with great genetics. Now I'd kill for that lol. I guess my point is, especially as a young person getting into this, many jump to steroids because they do not know what realistic expectations are for natural trainess and when they finally learn what is possible for most naturally (there are of course genetic exceptions) it's a hard pill to swallow. I am learning to accept that now, but not wanting to accept that was why I jumped on after 5 years of training naturally. I realized the body I dreamed of for 5-6 years wasn't possible without AAS.

I had a friend in college who was 5'6" 140lb shredded who genuinely wanted to become Mr. Olympia and when I told him the truth about what that involved he refused to believe it. He thought that it was not only possible but was also possible with just AAS (didn't believe he needed GH, insulin, insane genetics, etc.) and now he's jumped on gear too and is a shredded 160lb or so. Looks "good" for his height but I hope he realizes the reality of the situation before things get out of hand.

 

[inferno_x]

So if I'm understanding this correctly, you suggest not cycling unless intending to stay blasting and cruising. You lost all the gains you made during 1.5 years of numerous cycles when you stopped?

I'm asking as I'm considering my first cycle and am in a similar situation as you used to be, right now. I've been researching for 2 years and am ready to take the plunge. I was ready to start 2 days ago, using low dose test (125 a week), but there are just a few things holding me back now and I think I may not bother. I'm in my 20's so I'd rather not be stuck to cruising for the rest of my life.

Was considering maybe a Superdrol cycle. But you mentioned losing those gains too.

I'd really appreciate your opinion as you seem very level headed and objective, and I'd like to learn from your experiences.

 

[Deleted member 106824]

So if I'm understanding this correctly, you suggest not cycling unless intending to stay blasting and cruising. You lost all the gains you made during 1.5 years of numerous cycles when you stopped?

I'm asking as I'm considering my first cycle and am in a similar situation as you used to be, right now. I've been researching for 2 years and am ready to take the plunge. I was ready to start 2 days ago, using low dose test (125 a week), but there are just a few things holding me back now and I think I may not bother. I'm in my 20's so I'd rather not be stuck to cruising for the rest of my life.

Was considering maybe a Superdrol cycle. But you mentioned losing those gains too.

I'd really appreciate your opinion as you seem very level headed and objective, and I'd like to learn from your experiences.

Correct. You are in a tough position right now. After years of researching it becomes so so hard to back off and decide not to do it, especially when you're so ready to begin. I was there, and I had multiple friends jumping on so the temptation was enormous.

But I strongly suggest you don't. Especially just a superdrol cycle. Literally everyone I know who has done just an oral cycle blew up then shrunk down within a few months afterwards, and about 50% of those guys are actually smaller than they used to be because they got depressed about it and lost motivation.

IF you are going to do anything then yes, blasting and cruising is the only thing that worked for me and is the only thing I'd recommend someone do but as you are aware that takes up a decent portion of your life and honestly in the end if you ever go to just cruising for life I doubt you'll net more than 10-15lb or so above what you could have gotten naturally in time.

If you have any more questions feel free to ask. And kudos to you for being able to step back and reconsider the situation.

 

[Stewie]

I was cleaning out some of my old bookmarks on my phone and I thought of you when I came across this.

Increased levels of lipoprotein (a) in Crohn's disease: a relation ... - PubMed - NCBI

Something you may consider pulling either independently or on a VAP or NMR profile.

 

[NoVaDriver]

One thing I would add is giving up alcohol is bullshit and unproductive. Granted, drinking is hardly productive, but killing your social life only hurts you. I started lifting/taking gear (not simultaneously, obviously) at the same time with three friends. Two gave up drinking and pretty much didn't do anything outside the gym. The others, including myself, stuck to diet mixed drinks with the occasional beer. News flash: I MADE THE MOST PROGRESS OUT OF ALL OF THEM. Granted, I am somewhat of a freak of nature when it comes to gear (virtually zero sides, extremely minimal PCT response was excellent).

Also, I would say more is not always better. At one point, I was doing 1400mg of test prop and a little over a gram of tren ace per week. I didn't get any better results than if I took almost half that amount of tren and a quarter of that amount of test... Apart from getting into fights at bars all the time. Lol.

 

[nothuman]

So if I'm understanding this correctly, you suggest not cycling unless intending to stay blasting and cruising. You lost all the gains you made during 1.5 years of numerous cycles when you stopped?

I'm asking as I'm considering my first cycle and am in a similar situation as you used to be, right now. I've been researching for 2 years and am ready to take the plunge. I was ready to start 2 days ago, using low dose test (125 a week), but there are just a few things holding me back now and I think I may not bother. I'm in my 20's so I'd rather not be stuck to cruising for the rest of my life.

Was considering maybe a Superdrol cycle. But you mentioned losing those gains too.

I'd really appreciate your opinion as you seem very level headed and objective, and I'd like to learn from your experiences.

It's a waste to use steroids if you don't blast and cruise. No one on any other beginner's forums will say this but they all end up realizing it's true after doing x number of cycles.

 

[nothuman]

One thing I would add is giving up alcohol is bullshit and unproductive. Granted, drinking is hardly productive, but killing your social life only hurts you. I started lifting/taking gear (not simultaneously, obviously) at the same time with three friends. Two gave up drinking and pretty much didn't do anything outside the gym. The others, including myself, stuck to diet mixed drinks with the occasional beer. News flash: I MADE THE MOST PROGRESS OUT OF ALL OF THEM. Granted, I am somewhat of a freak of nature when it comes to gear (virtually zero sides, extremely minimal PCT response was excellent).

Also, I would say more is not always better. At one point, I was doing 1400mg of test prop and a little over a gram of tren ace per week. I didn't get any better results than if I took almost half that amount of tren and a quarter of that amount of test... Apart from getting into fights at bars all the time. Lol.

10000x.

If you're young and have an active social life consisting of hitting up bars, parties, or clubs, quitting drinking to ONLY focus on your physique is a colossal mistake. Could lead to depression and anger. Social life should always come first. Contrary to popular belief, it's possible to do both.

 

[inferno_x]

Correct. You are in a tough position right now. After years of researching it becomes so so hard to back off and decide not to do it, especially when you're so ready to begin. I was there, and I had multiple friends jumping on so the temptation was enormous.

But I strongly suggest you don't. Especially just a superdrol cycle. Literally everyone I know who has done just an oral cycle blew up then shrunk down within a few months afterwards, and about 50% of those guys are actually smaller than they used to be because they got depressed about it and lost motivation.

IF you are going to do anything then yes, blasting and cruising is the only thing that worked for me and is the only thing I'd recommend someone do but as you are aware that takes up a decent portion of your life and honestly in the end if you ever go to just cruising for life I doubt you'll net more than 10-15lb or so above what you could have gotten naturally in time.

If you have any more questions feel free to ask. And kudos to you for being able to step back and reconsider the situation.

Well by Superdrol cycle, I meant running Superdrol with a Test Enanthate base of 125mg so I don't lose my libido and become a mess etc. I'd never run it alone.

It's to the point of driving me crazy though now; all the do I, don't I thoughts, and the research which has taken up so long. I know what protocol I'd follow now. It's just a case of whether I do it.

You know that phrase "If you spend too much time thinking about a task, you'll never get it done". Well that sums it up, and I'm fed up of it consuming so much of my time that I just don't think I can be bothered now. Even though I now know what to follow, I still have the concerns of if my gear is fake, watching out for sides, dealing with them etc etc. Acne was my worst fear of all sides tbh.

It's just psychologically burnt me out, and I haven't even started yet :banghead: Besides, I despise the thought of pinning and that's why its taken so long...when I originally went to inject I just couldn't do it. I did 3 injections of prop and had to call the 'cycle' a day and that was 2 months ago.

 

[inferno_x]

It's a waste to use steroids if you don't blast and cruise. No one on any other beginner's forums will say this but they all end up realizing it's true after doing x number of cycles.

Thanks man. I'm seeing this truth pop up more and more from those that are willing to tell it how it is. I know one guy whos huge, but cruises on 250mg of test e a week ffs.

This forum honestly has to be the best I've been on. You are all so rational and not the typical '2g or gtfo' type.

 

[DK0223]

Pumped,

You did a very good job with this thread.
Very well written, insightful, detailed and informative.

I'm sure very few know you're going to school to become an MD.

Hopefully your friend will listen.

Remember, just on HRT, you will still make progress.
Plus I know you well, your pics would surprise a lot of people.
Just keep to your game plan, my friend.

This was a tip from Homonuculus regarding heart health.

-MT

Himalaya Heart Care:
Amazon.com: Himalaya Herbal Healthcare HeartCare/Abana, Heart Regulator, 240-Vcaps, 500 mg: Health & Personal Care

Does this contain CB?

It's a waste to use steroids if you don't blast and cruise. No one on any other beginner's forums will say this but they all end up realizing it's true after doing x number of cycles.

I'm gonna disagree. There are plenty of guys here who have been around that would say "cycling" is a good idea

 

[inferno_x]

I started lifting/taking gear (not simultaneously, obviously) at the same time with three friends. Two gave up drinking and pretty much didn't do anything outside the gym.

When I started I was the same as those two you describe, who didn't do anything outside the gym. It made me a miserable mess and I still suffer because of how OCD it made me about training etc. I actually just quit the gym for a year afterwards because I got burnt out. Had I not been so extreme to begin with I would have progressed further, just because I wouldn't have burnt out and instead have been consistent.