I’m not the building type but I do go to the gym every now and then with my friend though. My friend pointed out a bottle I didn’t recognize in some guy’s gym bag. He said it was some kind of steroid but he doesn’t judge the user since a person can’t reach certain proportion without them.
Is that true? I always thought steroids just helped you bulk up faster and easier but that a person’s full potential muscle mass would be the same, that it could be reached naturally. I’ve asked this on other boards but the opinions seem pretty biased so I thought this place would be better informed.
Not to answer your question, but it is of no practical use, as no one should ever even think of taking anabolic steroids. Unless, to use a cliche, you’ve been living in a cave, you must have read about the deaths of many athletes who did use such steroids. Died with massive muscles.
Compare the current Mr. Olympia contestants with the {url=http://www.naturalbodybuilding.com/results/olympia-99-00.html]Natural Olympia contestants.
The natural guys get big and cut but they’re nowhere near as big as the Olympia guys. It’s particulalrly obvious if you look at theMs. Olympia contestants. They don’t get anywhere near as big.
You use of the term proportional is kinda misleading. Bodybuilders consider “proportional” to be when the muscles are all equally developed, regardless of size. Some body builders have trouble with certain body parts. (for instance, Lou Ferrigno was famous for his trouble with his calves and then he mysteriously showed up one season with amazing calves, prompting rumors of implants). It sounds like you’re just talking about size…
I didn’t say proportional, I said proportion, I guess I could’ve said size. What I meant was, if a guy has the height to potentially to reach a max of 300lbs. of muscle through using steroids, then he could reach 300 naturally with proper diet and weights right?
And I don’t follow these contests, what’s the point you’re trying to make? You mean Mr. Olympia allows substance use but Natural Olympia doesn’t?
And as a follow up, why is everyone telling me to not use steroids? I clearly said I’m not the bodybuilding type and that I thought it was possible to get big without them.
To answer your question, no you can’t get as big naturally as you can using steriods. Steroids allow for new muscle cell growth, while natural bodybuilding only lets you make your current muscle cells bigger.
This doesn’t mean, however, that steriods automatically make someone huge. Guys (and gals) on steriods bust their butt in the gym just like everyone else, but the steriods allow them to recouperate from a work out more quickly than normal. This lets them work each part of your body more often.
Well its my understanding that anabolic steroids only cause expansion of pre-existing muscle cells. you’d need something like growth hormone to produce new muscle fibers.
However, yes you can get bigger with steroids than without. I know this because of all the people i know who use steroids so i am going by first-hand accounts (which can be either a very reliable or very unreliable source of info). Someone who takes Anabolics while taking high doses of protein, a bunch of supplements and exercising will build & maintain more size than someone who doesn’t from what i’ve seen. The people i know like this tend to lose alot of muscle once they quit taking steroids. One of the causes of this could be that their bodies adjust to the outside testosterone screwing with their hormone & cortisol levels but i think its also that they are on an artificial level of muscle growth while currently using anabolics. The constant protein synthesis probably lifts someone above natural levels.
most amateur bodybuilders & weight lifters only use steroids about 8 weeks at a time, while most professionals use them year round. Thats another piece of ‘not really proof but kindof proof’ that anabolics lift you beyond normal growth.
So in closing, i dont know but probably. Not that i know anything about this stuff
Oops, sorry, I should have been clearer. The Natural Bodybuilding organizations test quite stringently. The Olympia (the biggest pro contest) says they don’t want steroids used but doesn’t test for them. Every couple of years, Olympia starts talking about testing, everyone freaks out, and then they back down because they know their guys won’t reach the same size without steroids.
Anyway, I provided the links so you can see yourself. The natural guys spend just as much time and effort training but don’t get as big. So you can see first hand that steroids do make you bigger overall. (it also leads to bone growth which is why many top body builders like Arnold and Lee Haney have gap toothed grins.)
And everyone’s saying “Don’t do it” not just as a warning to you but as a warning to all those lurkers out there who might go “hmmmm, so steroids really do make you bigger. I should try that…”.
