Samson
MuscleHead
- Dec 8, 2013
- 253
- 70
There is a line that is easily crossed in the world of steroids. It is the line between part-time moderate use and the almost never-ending consumption of the hardcore bodybuilder. When first introduced to steroids, one quickly finds that their resulting gains are not all permanent. If you loved the way you looked towards the end of that first bulking cycle, and rapidly lost a good part of your favored look after the cycle stopped, it sometimes becomes an easy choice to just do another cycle, and stay on it longer the next time.
Braggs of “just one or two cycles” soon fade. Eventually it develops into continuous steroid use, as the athlete finds it harder and harder to come off and face the loss of any aspect of his well-crafted physique. But not everyone crosses this line. For many, steroid use remains a periodic event. Occasioned perhaps by a seasonal need for cosmetic improvement, hopefully with health first in mind. If you haven’t tried steroids yet but this is the kind of use that is attractive to you, you probably are giving some thought now to just what steroids can provide you in the long run. Exactly what can you maintain after a cycle is over, without hopping right back on the drugs?
As mentioned, not all of what you gain from steroids is going to stay with you long term. I don’t think that is much of a surprise though, as I’m sure it is understood that the drugs just do not immediately and irrevocably transform your body. That of course is not to say steroids are entirely useless unless you take them all of the time. The average recreational bodybuilder can make marked changes to his physique with steroids, which can stay long after the drugs are gone. The problem lies as we wonder exactly how much we can gain and keep. There is clearly a threshold of how much muscle tissue your natural body chemistry would allow you to carry, and if you expect to far exceed that during steroid use it will not remain for a prolonged period of time after the drugs are done. Expect that almost immediately the body will enter a state where slowly but steadily the new mass will diminish. Steroids will soon be needed again if the mass is to be kept.
Natural Growth and Protein Turnover
It seems like the bigger you get, the harder it is to add new mass. Walls and plateaus become more of a regular part of training the longer you do it. Before long it is a fight to make any small improvement. The protein cycle likely plays a big part in this. The protein that makes up muscle tissue is subject to constant turnover by the body. New proteins are synthesized, and existing ones broken down. The process is constant. It also seems that this balance becomes strained the more mass we accumulate. The body reaches a point where new proteins cannot be synthesized at a rate that will allow further growth, and new muscle tissue is resisted. It is not easy to trick it to think your way, and gains proceed slowly.
Steroids allow someone to easily pass such walls and sticking points and enhance their level of muscle mass over what could possibly be achieved otherwise by boosting the ability of cells to synthesize new proteins. The balance of anabolic (tissue building) and catabolic (tissue breakdown) processes can be unnaturally shifted well in favor of the former, and for a period of time natural limits can be exceeded. But once the drugs are stopped, the old chemistry returns. If your body wants to be 160 lbs and you are bulked up to 220lb, don’t expect to stay there long. But what if we are not striving for a competitor’s physique? Perhaps we didn’t gain 60lbs and only want to hold on to maybe 10 or 15 lbs of the 20 lb or so gained this year. If the muscle gains are not unreasonable, is fighting to keep them a practical idea? Certainly, and the place to fight for them is in the post-cycle hormonal recovery period.
Post-Cycle Recovery Period
The biggest obstacle to keeping your gains after the cycle is over is going to be the post-cycle recovery period. This describes the window of time after steroids are withdrawn, and before the body has been able to restore its internal hormonal balance. The problem is that during the cycle the body detects excess hormones quickly. In an effort to counter this imbalance, the release of testosterone is drastically lowered. Because the body stops signaling the testes to produce testosterone, they become atrophied. Cell size and activity shrinks, and for a period of time they are physically less able to do their jobs. When the drugs are stopped and the stimulus comes to produce testosterone again, they can’t do it. It may take several weeks for the body to normalize after the cycle is over, sometimes months as the testes slowly catch up. The resulting window is categorized by extremely low anabolic activity, which is often unable to balance the body’s natural catabolic forces. Left unchecked, muscle mass can rapidly diminish. I don’t think I have to explain why this period of time is also commonly called the post-cycle crash.
The Problem With Tapering
Extremely common is the recommendation to slowly taper off steroid dosages at the end of each cycle in order to avoid a post-cycle crash. For example, if we were taking 800mg of testosterone enanthate weekly and 100mg Anadrol per day at the peak of a bulking run, at least 4 or 6 weeks would be spent slowly lowering that amount when we were ready to go off. The testosterone dosage would dropped by a 100 or 200 milligrams per week, and the Anadrol maybe a half a tab less daily on every seventh or tenth day. Over the course of four to six weeks, we would be hoping for a soft cushy landing back to balanced internal hormone levels as our bodies read this lowering and respond by firing up our testosterone again. The problem is that we would be expecting way too much from this type of a program. The inescapable flaw with tapering is that even relatively low levels of steroids can be suppressive to natural testosterone release. Even 100mg per week of enanthate, or 25mg per day of Anadol would lower testosterone levels. So how can we expect 6 weeks devoted to dropping intake to this point to help us? Clearly we cannot. Testosterone would not budge during the 6 weeks, and it would be a completely useless endeavor with the crash still occurring once the drugs were completely stopped. Tapering is no doubt a relic of the earlier ages of steroid use, when drugs were taken with little understanding of their actions. Today we know better, and prefer to rely on other means to help restore our natural androgen production.
Post Cycle Help
The use of HCG (human chorionic gonadotropin) and an anti-estrogen such as tamoxifen (Nolvadex) or clomiphene (Clomid) is considered the most effective way to combat crashing at the end of the cycle. HCG and an anti-estrogen are both implemented first. This compound is basically injectable LH (luetinizing hormone); it mimics the natural body hormone that stimulates the release of testosterone. Typically 5000IU is given per application, once every four or five days. This is only continued for two to three weeks at maximum, no more than three or four shots total. The function of HCG is to hit the testes hard with a heavy dose of LH, in order to help shock them back into working order. The anti-estrogen is used to help block any trouble that might come if estrogen levels begin to elevate. After this the anti-estrogen is taken alone for two to three weeks. These drugs also work in a similar way to HCG, as they enhance LH output. However the anti-estrogens work by blocking receptors in the brain that trigger the negative feedback loop that halts testosterone release. Endogenous LH levels can be elevated as a result, but not exponentially. The increase is similarly notable but not unreasonable. We are hoping this will be enough to enable the body to produce a physiologically normal amount of testosterone and cushion the effect a hormonal imbalance can have on muscle mass.
Conclusion
The goal of a good post-cycle program is to minimize, potentially avoid, putting the body in a state where anabolic hormones are absent. If we can prevent this from happening, quite a bit of muscle mass can be saved instead of being rapidly lost to unbalanced hormone levels. Although tapering offers us little, fortunately we find there are a few common bodybuilding drugs that can aid us. Once the crash is dealt with and eventually balance restored, it will be up to you and your internal chemistry to see if the muscle mass is maintainable long-term. Of course I don’t have to remind you that diet and training are also very important factors. If one loses the drive to train aggressively or eat correctly, then there is that much more to fight against. But that aside, I have spoken with many recreational bodybuilders who feel that early experimentation they did with steroids has made lasting changes in the absence of these drugs. Some feel that they are able to carry around more muscle mass now than they were before trying steroids, yet continue to train naturally and have so for years. I think it is mostly just a matter of how much muscle you are looking for. If you have only dabbled with steroids and like the modest look of muscularity you have achieved, then I don’t doubt a little diligence should enable you to keep a nice physique. But if you think you are going to massively bulk up, be prepared for the hard and inevitably hopeless fight to hang on to your gains that accompanies long breaks from steroid use.
by William Llewellyn
Bibliography
1- Effect of long term testosterone oenanthate administration on male reproductive function. Acta Endocrinol 78 (1975) 373-84
2- Effects of chronic testosterone administration in normal men: safety and efficacy of high dosage testosterone and parallel dose-dependent suppression of luteinizing hormone, follicle-stimulating hormone, and sperm production. J Clin Endocrinol Metab 1990 Jan;70(1):282-7
3- Alteration of hormone levels in normal males given the anabolic steroid stanozolol. Clin Endocrinol (Oxf) 1984 Jul;21(1):49-55
4- Accute stimulation of aromatization in Leydig cells by HCG in vitro. Proc Natl Acad Sci 76:4460, 1979 5- Hormonal effects of an antiestrogen, tamoxifen, in normal and oligospermic men. Fertil Steril 1978 Mar;29(3):320-7
Braggs of “just one or two cycles” soon fade. Eventually it develops into continuous steroid use, as the athlete finds it harder and harder to come off and face the loss of any aspect of his well-crafted physique. But not everyone crosses this line. For many, steroid use remains a periodic event. Occasioned perhaps by a seasonal need for cosmetic improvement, hopefully with health first in mind. If you haven’t tried steroids yet but this is the kind of use that is attractive to you, you probably are giving some thought now to just what steroids can provide you in the long run. Exactly what can you maintain after a cycle is over, without hopping right back on the drugs?
As mentioned, not all of what you gain from steroids is going to stay with you long term. I don’t think that is much of a surprise though, as I’m sure it is understood that the drugs just do not immediately and irrevocably transform your body. That of course is not to say steroids are entirely useless unless you take them all of the time. The average recreational bodybuilder can make marked changes to his physique with steroids, which can stay long after the drugs are gone. The problem lies as we wonder exactly how much we can gain and keep. There is clearly a threshold of how much muscle tissue your natural body chemistry would allow you to carry, and if you expect to far exceed that during steroid use it will not remain for a prolonged period of time after the drugs are done. Expect that almost immediately the body will enter a state where slowly but steadily the new mass will diminish. Steroids will soon be needed again if the mass is to be kept.
Natural Growth and Protein Turnover
It seems like the bigger you get, the harder it is to add new mass. Walls and plateaus become more of a regular part of training the longer you do it. Before long it is a fight to make any small improvement. The protein cycle likely plays a big part in this. The protein that makes up muscle tissue is subject to constant turnover by the body. New proteins are synthesized, and existing ones broken down. The process is constant. It also seems that this balance becomes strained the more mass we accumulate. The body reaches a point where new proteins cannot be synthesized at a rate that will allow further growth, and new muscle tissue is resisted. It is not easy to trick it to think your way, and gains proceed slowly.
Steroids allow someone to easily pass such walls and sticking points and enhance their level of muscle mass over what could possibly be achieved otherwise by boosting the ability of cells to synthesize new proteins. The balance of anabolic (tissue building) and catabolic (tissue breakdown) processes can be unnaturally shifted well in favor of the former, and for a period of time natural limits can be exceeded. But once the drugs are stopped, the old chemistry returns. If your body wants to be 160 lbs and you are bulked up to 220lb, don’t expect to stay there long. But what if we are not striving for a competitor’s physique? Perhaps we didn’t gain 60lbs and only want to hold on to maybe 10 or 15 lbs of the 20 lb or so gained this year. If the muscle gains are not unreasonable, is fighting to keep them a practical idea? Certainly, and the place to fight for them is in the post-cycle hormonal recovery period.
Post-Cycle Recovery Period
The biggest obstacle to keeping your gains after the cycle is over is going to be the post-cycle recovery period. This describes the window of time after steroids are withdrawn, and before the body has been able to restore its internal hormonal balance. The problem is that during the cycle the body detects excess hormones quickly. In an effort to counter this imbalance, the release of testosterone is drastically lowered. Because the body stops signaling the testes to produce testosterone, they become atrophied. Cell size and activity shrinks, and for a period of time they are physically less able to do their jobs. When the drugs are stopped and the stimulus comes to produce testosterone again, they can’t do it. It may take several weeks for the body to normalize after the cycle is over, sometimes months as the testes slowly catch up. The resulting window is categorized by extremely low anabolic activity, which is often unable to balance the body’s natural catabolic forces. Left unchecked, muscle mass can rapidly diminish. I don’t think I have to explain why this period of time is also commonly called the post-cycle crash.
The Problem With Tapering
Extremely common is the recommendation to slowly taper off steroid dosages at the end of each cycle in order to avoid a post-cycle crash. For example, if we were taking 800mg of testosterone enanthate weekly and 100mg Anadrol per day at the peak of a bulking run, at least 4 or 6 weeks would be spent slowly lowering that amount when we were ready to go off. The testosterone dosage would dropped by a 100 or 200 milligrams per week, and the Anadrol maybe a half a tab less daily on every seventh or tenth day. Over the course of four to six weeks, we would be hoping for a soft cushy landing back to balanced internal hormone levels as our bodies read this lowering and respond by firing up our testosterone again. The problem is that we would be expecting way too much from this type of a program. The inescapable flaw with tapering is that even relatively low levels of steroids can be suppressive to natural testosterone release. Even 100mg per week of enanthate, or 25mg per day of Anadol would lower testosterone levels. So how can we expect 6 weeks devoted to dropping intake to this point to help us? Clearly we cannot. Testosterone would not budge during the 6 weeks, and it would be a completely useless endeavor with the crash still occurring once the drugs were completely stopped. Tapering is no doubt a relic of the earlier ages of steroid use, when drugs were taken with little understanding of their actions. Today we know better, and prefer to rely on other means to help restore our natural androgen production.
Post Cycle Help
The use of HCG (human chorionic gonadotropin) and an anti-estrogen such as tamoxifen (Nolvadex) or clomiphene (Clomid) is considered the most effective way to combat crashing at the end of the cycle. HCG and an anti-estrogen are both implemented first. This compound is basically injectable LH (luetinizing hormone); it mimics the natural body hormone that stimulates the release of testosterone. Typically 5000IU is given per application, once every four or five days. This is only continued for two to three weeks at maximum, no more than three or four shots total. The function of HCG is to hit the testes hard with a heavy dose of LH, in order to help shock them back into working order. The anti-estrogen is used to help block any trouble that might come if estrogen levels begin to elevate. After this the anti-estrogen is taken alone for two to three weeks. These drugs also work in a similar way to HCG, as they enhance LH output. However the anti-estrogens work by blocking receptors in the brain that trigger the negative feedback loop that halts testosterone release. Endogenous LH levels can be elevated as a result, but not exponentially. The increase is similarly notable but not unreasonable. We are hoping this will be enough to enable the body to produce a physiologically normal amount of testosterone and cushion the effect a hormonal imbalance can have on muscle mass.
Conclusion
The goal of a good post-cycle program is to minimize, potentially avoid, putting the body in a state where anabolic hormones are absent. If we can prevent this from happening, quite a bit of muscle mass can be saved instead of being rapidly lost to unbalanced hormone levels. Although tapering offers us little, fortunately we find there are a few common bodybuilding drugs that can aid us. Once the crash is dealt with and eventually balance restored, it will be up to you and your internal chemistry to see if the muscle mass is maintainable long-term. Of course I don’t have to remind you that diet and training are also very important factors. If one loses the drive to train aggressively or eat correctly, then there is that much more to fight against. But that aside, I have spoken with many recreational bodybuilders who feel that early experimentation they did with steroids has made lasting changes in the absence of these drugs. Some feel that they are able to carry around more muscle mass now than they were before trying steroids, yet continue to train naturally and have so for years. I think it is mostly just a matter of how much muscle you are looking for. If you have only dabbled with steroids and like the modest look of muscularity you have achieved, then I don’t doubt a little diligence should enable you to keep a nice physique. But if you think you are going to massively bulk up, be prepared for the hard and inevitably hopeless fight to hang on to your gains that accompanies long breaks from steroid use.
by William Llewellyn
Bibliography
1- Effect of long term testosterone oenanthate administration on male reproductive function. Acta Endocrinol 78 (1975) 373-84
2- Effects of chronic testosterone administration in normal men: safety and efficacy of high dosage testosterone and parallel dose-dependent suppression of luteinizing hormone, follicle-stimulating hormone, and sperm production. J Clin Endocrinol Metab 1990 Jan;70(1):282-7
3- Alteration of hormone levels in normal males given the anabolic steroid stanozolol. Clin Endocrinol (Oxf) 1984 Jul;21(1):49-55
4- Accute stimulation of aromatization in Leydig cells by HCG in vitro. Proc Natl Acad Sci 76:4460, 1979 5- Hormonal effects of an antiestrogen, tamoxifen, in normal and oligospermic men. Fertil Steril 1978 Mar;29(3):320-7
