Anabolic steroids for gaining muscle mass are extremely popular today not only among professional athletes but also among amateurs. According to statistics, today in the USA, 3 out of 4 amateur bodybuilders have either used steroids or are currently using them. Their use is becoming epidemic, as they promise their followers quick results in muscle gain and weight loss.
In this article, we will discuss what anabolic steroids are and how they work.
Anabolic steroids were developed in the 1930s as a medication for treating hypogonadism – a condition of low testosterone, in which the testes produce insufficient amounts of the male sex hormone testosterone, responsible for the growth and development of male sexual characteristics.
That is, the primary purpose of steroids was to treat issues related to puberty, certain types of impotence, and to restore muscle mass in the treatment of AIDS and cancer.
During the 1930s, experiments on laboratory rats revealed that anabolic steroids stimulate muscle growth. This marked the beginning of their gradual penetration into bodybuilding, then weightlifting, and other sports.
Today, the entire professional bodybuilding and sports scene is built exclusively on the use of steroids and other pharmacological agents. This is discussed with some sadness in an interview by one of the most famous naturals – Michael Ashley.
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Facts about Anabolic Steroids for Muscle Mass Gain
Known facts about anabolic steroids:
- first synthesized in the 1930s as a medication for treating certain diseases;
- the first recorded case of use – 1954 at the World Weightlifting Championship;
- steroids were added to the list of doping substances and banned for use by the International Olympic Committee in 1975;
- athletes, including amateurs, take steroids for muscle mass gain and body cutting;
- steroids are widely used by men and women with excess weight for weight loss;
- the dosage of steroids in sports exceeds by 10-100 times that used in medicine;
- it is virtually impossible to synthesize steroids that would only cause an anabolic effect (muscle mass growth) without undesirable androgenic effects (development of male sexual characteristics);
- almost all cells in the body have steroid receptors; this means that their use affects every organ;
- the most dangerous side effect of steroid use – the risk of heart attack.
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Anabolic Steroids: What Are They?
Anabolic steroids are artificially synthesized analogs of the male sex hormone testosterone.
The full name of steroids is Androgenic Anabolic Steroids. The terms “anabolics,” “steroids,” “anabolic steroids,” “androgenic steroids,” and “androgens” refer to the same thing.
Testosterone produces a dual effect in the body:
- androgenic effect or masculinization: development of male secondary sexual characteristics (for example, facial hair growth);
- anabolic effect: increase in muscle mass and strength.
For many decades, pharmaceutical companies have tried to develop analogs of natural testosterone that would predominantly have an anabolic effect (stimulating muscle growth) and reduce or completely eliminate undesirable androgenic effects. Steroids became the result of this activity.
The best and most expensive steroids available today for muscle gain have only anabolic effects, but most have both anabolic and undesirable androgenic effects.
Anabolic steroids are chemically derived analogs of the male sex hormone testosterone, which have an enhanced anabolic effect (muscle growth) and a weakened androgenic effect (masculinization).
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What are steroids for? Beneficial effects
The reason for the incredible popularity of anabolic steroids today is that they really work.
Professional athletes use steroids to improve athletic performance (endurance, speed, muscle mass gain) and for cutting body fat. In addition, they significantly accelerate the recovery process, reducing the degree of muscle damage during training. This allows for more frequent training sessions with heavier weights, creating a greater stimulus for muscle growth.
Many athletes enjoy the aggressive state that accompanies steroid use.
The benefits of steroids for ordinary mortals of all ages and genders (adults and teenagers, men and women) lie in their ability to easily (even without the need for exercise) transform appearance towards the ideal: increasing muscle mass and reducing fat.
Steroids can indeed work wonders…
But… it is always important to remember that any miracle comes with a price: the cost of steroid use includes quite serious and numerous side effects.
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Types of anabolic steroids
The list of some of the most common steroids includes:
- androstenedione;
- stanozolol;
- nandrolone (deca-durabolin or “deca”);
- methandrostenolone.
Different types of steroids are obtained by slightly altering the structure of the testosterone molecule, which allows for the management of the degree of masculinization and muscle growth stimulation, reducing unpleasant strong odors associated with steroid use, improving absorption, etc. 1.
If you take a testosterone molecule and remove a specific group of atoms, 19-methyl, you will get a substance with a strong anabolic effect of stimulating muscle mass growth – nandrolone – a very popular type of doping, the effectiveness of which for muscle growth is confirmed by numerous experiments 1.
The steroid nandrolone is one of the strongest steroids in stimulating muscle growth
Furthermore, if in turn you substitute another group of atoms (7α-Alkyl) in the nandrolone molecule, you will obtain a substance – stanozolol – with an even stronger anabolic effect compared to androgenic and resistant to degradation, which can be taken orally (by mouth) or by injection.
In addition to this, stanozolol is odorless.
But!
All oral 7α-Alkyl steroids (including stanozolol) are toxic to the liver!
The steroid stanozolol has a strong effect on stimulating muscle growth, it can be taken orally, it is odorless, but it is toxic to the liver
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Designer Steroids
One particularly dangerous type of anabolic steroids is the so-called designer steroids.
They are synthetic steroids produced illegally, and their use cannot be detected by existing doping tests.
Designer steroids are produced specifically for professional athletes and are not used in medicine.
They are not tested and do not receive a “approved” stamp from the authorities responsible for control in this area, and they pose a particular danger to athletes.
Designer steroids are produced illegally specifically for professional athletes. They cannot be detected by doping tests. They pose a particular health risk as they do not undergo quality control
Forms of Steroids
Athletes and enthusiasts take steroids orally, by rubbing them into the skin, or by intramuscular injection. The most popular among them is injections.
Oral preparations have a very short half-life, they are taken daily; injectable steroids are usually administered once a week or every two weeks and are the most effective.
Recently, there have also been preparations in the form of gels for rubbing into the skin, but they are very INEFFECTIVE, as it is very difficult to deliver the required amount of testosterone into the body using them.
They are sometimes recommended during a steroid cycle for muscle mass gain (which are administered in the form of injections and tablets) to ensure a constant supply of testosterone in the body in small doses.
The most popular method of administering steroids is injections; oral medications and gels are very ineffective: the former break down very quickly, while the latter penetrate poorly.
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How do steroids work for muscle mass gain?
The mechanism of action of anabolic steroids for muscle mass gain is not yet fully understood.
It is reliably known that the intake of testosterone leads to an increase in muscle mass 2 due to the stimulation of hypertrophy of muscle fibers type 1 and 2; at the same time, their absolute quantity does not increase, nor does the relative ratio of cells of both types change 3.
(Muscle fibers type 1 are slow, thin, weak, responsible for endurance; muscle fibers type 2 are fast, thick, strong, responsible for strength.)
The mechanism of action of steroids:
1 The number of satellite helper cells increases, which contribute to the hypertrophy of muscle fibers4.
Satellite cells are directly involved in the muscle growth process: they begin to divide in response to physical stress and micro-damage. Accordingly, the more of them there are, the greater the muscle growth.
2 Steroids stimulate the circulation of growth hormone and insulin-like growth factor (IGF-1)5.
Growth hormone is another powerful hormone responsible for muscle mass growth. Along with steroids and insulin, it is part of the medicine cabinet of almost every professional.
According to one study, testosterone increases maximum strength and power of the legs but does not affect muscle fatigue during exercise 6.
3 Oxygen supply to the muscles improves
Testosterone promotes the synthesis of mitochondria and leads to improved oxygen supply to the muscles, due to an increase in the number of red blood cells and stimulation of capillary network growth 7.
Testosterone (steroids) improves the oxygen supply to muscle tissue.
4 Testosterone/steroids improves the transmission of nerve impulses in muscle tissue 8.
This study has become the basis for speculations, the essence of which is that testosterone reduces reaction time and therefore may be beneficial in sports that require quick reactions (sprinting, for example) or where a high degree of coordination between the eyes and hands is needed (baseball, for example).
Obviously, this was done to “hook” representatives of these non-strength sports as well.
5 The intake of steroids affects mood and motivation, which are indirectly related to sports performance.
The mechanism of action of steroids lies in increasing the concentration of satellite helper cells, which are involved in the hypertrophy of muscle fibers, improving the circulation of growth hormone, oxygen supply, and the transmission of nerve impulses in muscle tissue.
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Scientific studies confirming the benefits of steroids for muscle mass gain and weight loss
The benefits of steroids for muscle mass gain are an indisputable fact, supported by numerous scientific confirmations. Let’s consider a few of them.
In one exemplary experiment 9, men on steroids gained between 2 to 5 kg of muscle mass over 10 weeks. According to their own feelings, muscle strength increased by 5-20% during this time.
An interesting and very important fact: the experiment showed a clear disproportionate increase in muscle mass in the upper body (neck, shoulders, arms). And not because the participants did not train their legs.
This is a very important feature, by which, by the way, one can almost always recognize a steroid athlete versus a natural athlete: well-developed shoulders, powerful arms, and relatively weak lower body (legs). This occurs because there is a significantly higher concentration of androgen (steroid) receptors in the muscles of these areas.
In this experiment, the fat mass of the participants did not change.
In another experiment, scientists proved an increase in the rate of muscle protein synthesis by 27%, and the average increase in muscle mass by 20% 10.
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Harm of anabolic steroids
Anabolic steroids are one of the most dangerous types of sports pharmacology with an extensive list of side effects. See our studies on the harm of steroids and the consequences of their use:
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