Steroid Users - Your Experience?

Boru.

Hi everyone as a result of the thread entitled "legality of steroids in ireland?" it was suggested by myself that the majority of people using steroids, in my expereince at any rate, were those of limited gym education and those not giving 110% effort.

On the other side there is the opinion that the majority of steroid users are serious hard training athletes who use them in an educated manner to maximise and exceed their genetic potential.

The goal of this post is to determine the experiences of the board members. In my capactiy as a fitness trainer I see mostly option A, the misguided steroid user, but simply becasue of my position what I'm presented with may not be accurate, hence the poll.

So, if you wouldn't mind voting for one of the options above if you have first hand experience with steroid use or steroid users and possibly describe that experience in a lttle more detail.

If nothing else this thread may serve to educate those who watch but don't ask about the recent steroid controversy and the pitfalls and benefits steroids provide allowing people to make a more informed decision on the matter.

I myself am against the use of steroids for anything bar medical reasons and do not advocate them as part of any training program or exercise regieme. It is my belief that excellent results can be produced simply through the proper application of diet and hard work.

Over to you.

joebhoy1916

Boru. wrote:

On the other side there is the opinion that the majority of steroid users are serious hard training athletes who use them in an educated manner to maximise and exceed their genetic potential.

I must say don't really know alot about them but for me you hit the nail with what you just said.

There athletes the whole point is to be the best you can be and steroids can make you a better athlete though I doubt they will be in Olympics or anything.

I mean why ban them people say you could die but that is up to the person who takes them if they want to or not.

Isnt it true you can train for 11 hours a day without taking them but if you took them you only have to work half the time still get same workout?

g'em

Why have you only given bodybuilders as an option of 'professionals' who use gear? What about cyclists, sprinters, basketball, American Football and even cricket (two Pakistan bowlers tested positive for Nandrolone earlier this week)or any other professional sport? Why hone in on bodybuilding for pereptuating innacuracies about steroids?

Dragan

g'em wrote:

Why have you only given bodybuilders as an option of 'professionals' who use gear? What about cyclists, sprinters, basketball, American Football and even cricket (two Pakistan bowlers tested positive for Nandrolone earlier this week)or any other professional sport? Why hone in on bodybuilding for pereptuating innacuracies about steroids?

Excellent point in fairness. Bodybuilding is the most obvious sport to use steroids, but if you think even Irish Rugby is completely clean then you are crazy.

Any of the major steroid scandals have revolved around baseball, american football, cycling, sprinting and recently cricket as mentioned and even MMA.

Bodybuilding is a fringe sport....it has a very limited number of competitors and a lot of fans and wannabe's who lift. As such, you can safely bet the number of bodybuilders using gear is far outweighed by the number of casual gym goers using it, or even sprinters etc.

yomchi

Having the chancve to talk with an IFBB pro in the recent past I was shocked at the amount of gear he has used in preps for comp - MINIMAL!

I know some teenagers and wannabe's who are using 3 and 4 times the amount pro's use.

So Dragans last point is spot on

Boru.

G'em great point - I'm including all professional or dedicated athletes in the "professional" bracket - I did have a much longer definition, but I had to keep it under a hundred words. :rolleyes: The reason I choose specifically bodybuilders is because from my experience they are the most deidicated and intense of athletes.

Olypmic level athletes, combat atheltes, clclists etc are all equally professional in thier approach to training. I first came into contact with steroids during international Karate Competitions, but bodybuilding for me is an interagal part of any athletic endevour at a professional level. Every serious cyclist, athlete, gymnast, karateka etc will all use bodybuiling (or techniques there of) to increase the performance of thier game at some point hence I give it primary listing.

Also for the sake of ease and clarification its hte first thing people think of - sorry for continuing sterotypes, but that too is an intresting off shoot thread that perhaps we should explore?





Anyways

Mickk

Purely a numbers game the idiots win, just because there are an awful lot more idiots than serious dedicated athletes. If you look at percentages then I think that a much higher percentage of serious athletes take steroids than idiots but its always the idiots that give it a bad name and do themselves damage because they aren't educated enough on the subject to understand how to use them safely.

yomchi

Mickk wrote:

Purely a numbers game the idiots win, just because there are an awful lot more idiots than serious dedicated athletes. If you look at percentages then I think that a much higher percentage of serious athletes take steroids than idiots but its always the idiots that give it a bad name and do themselves damage because they aren't educated enough on the subject to understand how to use them safely.

IM sure you're like me Mick, I get to see the idiots in action. All sorts of gym rats come into the shop and boast about how much gear they're on. The best ever was this wafer who came in said he was using a 1 month course of GH and bought a ready to drink PROMAX.. I haven't seen him since - he's probabaly dead!

Dragan

Jon wrote:

IM sure you're like me Mick, I get to see the idiots in action. All sorts of gym rats come into the shop and boast about how much gear they're on. The best ever was this wafer who came in said he was using a 1 month course of GH and bought a ready to drink PROMAX.. I haven't seen him since - he's probabaly dead!

I don't know which is worse to be honest, the inexperienced using GH, or Maximuscle!!!

Degsy

Dragan wrote:

I don't know which is worse to be honest, the inexperienced using GH, or Maximuscle!!!

Well maximuscle would certainly cost more!

mloc

I know maybe 4 guys off the top of my head who were on the ould juice, only 2 would have been taking them for purely bulking (e.g. not for other sports), and one of those two knew what he was doing, and followed a consistent training schedule for several years before taking steroids.

the other two guys are involved with sports, I wouldn't particularly say they're at the top of thier games.