MMA News Forums » Sports & Training » Nutrition, Supplements, and Training for MMA

[Malice]

Steroid abuse scars a young muscle man for life - The Body Odd - msnbc.com

For one 21-year-old muscle man, the quest to build a perfect body ended in grotesque, lifelong scars.

Doctors were shocked when the young man came into their Dusseldorf clinic with one of the worst cases of acne conglobata any of them had ever seen: His chest and upper back were canvassed in craterlike ulcers and abscesses oozing with pus.

A 21-year-old amateur bodybuilder's steroid abuse left him with permanent scars. Courtesy of The Lancet
“He had these deep, ulcerating lesions with bloody crusts,” says Dr. Peter Arne Gerber, a dermatologist who treated the young man at Heinrich Heine University in Dusseldorf, Germany. Adding insult to injury, the poor young man’s sperm count had plummeted and his testicles were in a sad little shrunken state.

[Submissionist]

With bitch tits to follow.

[Rufio]

This guy almost certainly had a pre-existing succeptibility to acne that was exacerbated by the extreme hormone imbalance he created. Judging by the bitch tits, I doubt he took the proper precautions with his dosage or the right cycle/post-cycle therapy. Sucks that this happened and the guy's an idiot, but this article is very biased. It's like showing some instance of a guy choking to death in his own vomit after 30 shots of vodka and saying "this is why you should stay away from the alcohol, kids."

[Malice]

I don't get it are you trying to defend steroid use lol?

No doubt this is an extreme case, however I had a close buddy of mine develop the same reaction about 10 years ago and now he has lesions all over his back and neck.

[Witchdoctor]

Anything that could potentially do that to your body no matter what the circumstances, obviously doesn't need to be in there.

And if you can't work hard enough to attain it without it, you don't deserve it or even need it.

Guy got what he deserved. I just wonder if he stares at himself in the mirror as much as he used to?

Fuckin' ironic how vanity turns around and bites you in the ass.

[Rufio]

Originally Posted by Rockx

I don't get it are you trying to defend steroid use lol?

I defend the legality of steroids and non-sensationalized portrayals of the facts regarding their effects. I don't use steroids personally as the risk/benefit ratio isn't favorable for me at this stage of my life and I don't think they're necessary for my physical goals. However, I don't think the government should be telling people whether or not they can use them and I think they should be classified more along the lines of breast surgery than crack and meth.

Originally Posted by Rockx

No doubt this is an extreme case, however I had a close buddy of mine develop the same reaction about 10 years ago and now he has lesions all over his back and neck.

And I've seen people develop the same thing through natural hormone imbalances.

Originally Posted by Witchdoctor

Anything that could potentially do that to your body no matter what the circumstances, obviously doesn't need to be in there.

That's like saying breast implants "shouldn't be in there" due to some of the horror stories regarding surgery gone wrong. Or alcohol "shouldn't be in there" due to how many people have fatally poisoned themselves or destroyed their liver. Or hell, by this logic virtually every single pharmaceutical on the market "shouldn't be in there" given that there can be extreme reactions with wreckless use. Many common precription drugs or even OTC medication like aspirin can kill you if you use too much. This is where personal responsibility comes into play.

Originally Posted by Witchdoctor

And if you can't work hard enough to attain it without it, you don't deserve it or even need it.

Your body can only grow to a certain size or strength naturally. If you want to go beyond that and push yourself harder (as in WORK HARDER with bigger weights that put more strain on your body) you need hormonal assistance. Not only do steroid users who are competing work harder than casual gym rats as they're trying to make a career out of it, but they work more often too ... One of the greatest benefits of AAS is the decreased recovery time. For the average natural, you can only push yourself to the limit 3-4 times a week or you're overtraining. Anabolic steroids allow people to train their hardest almost every day and continue getting results.

In short:

*Steroids allow you to work harder than your body would otherwise allow, so the claim that juicing shows a lack of work ethic is the complete opposite of reality

*What someone "deserves" is a personal choice. If people want a physique that's impossible to acheive with natural hormonal levels, more power to them. As long as they understand and have weighed the risks vs. the benefits, who are you to tell them what they "deserve?"

*Just for clarification, I don't support steroid use for people who haven't had years of lifting under their belt to approach their natural genetic potential. Roid gains are easy to lose without proper precaution, especially if you haven't built a natural base. Relying on AAS for a beach body after you've been lifting 3 months is irresponsible use, IMO.

Originally Posted by Witchdoctor

Guy got what he deserved. I just wonder if he stares at himself in the mirror as much as he used to?

Fuckin' ironic how vanity turns around and bites you in the ass.

This just sounds like pure bitterness, implying that bodybuilders or steroid users in general are "vain" and savoring their misfortune. I may be off, but I'm getting the impression that you're one of those guys who has very little experience in weightlifting and assumes that he could look like Arnold in a few weeks just by injecting enough AAS into his system.

[Tick]

Originally Posted by Rockx

I don't get it are you trying to defend steroid use lol?

There are actually some good uses for steroids, when taken in a smart manner. Granted, this guy obviously did not do it in an intelligent way.

The only time I (personally) would consider steroids is when I get to be around 35+. I would like my testosterone levels to remain then what they are now (at 26). If mine start to naturally fall, then I might ask to get on some sort of hormonal therapy for it where a doctor closes watches my counts and keeps me in a level that is good, or that of a 21 to 26 year old. The problem comes when taking TO much. The body naturally stops making testosterone and can take time to start making it naturally again.

Another comment on the article... The kid was obviously an idiot. The first sign of that shit on my chest and I would of been to the doctor and stopped taking the roids. i seriously doubt he woke up one day and had that craters in his chest that were ooozing sludge.

[blah]

just a tragic kind of situation. i seriously dont think anyone should take anything like this unless they need it for health, as opposed to cosmetics. the human body is pretty fragile and i'd rather have some natural imperfections than risk serious damage. besides, usually hard work and smart, healthy living will make you look and feel good.

[Witchdoctor]

Originally Posted by Rufio

This just sounds like pure bitterness, implying that bodybuilders or steroid users in general are "vain" and savoring their misfortune. I may be off, but I'm getting the impression that you're one of those guys who has very little experience in weightlifting and assumes that he could look like Arnold in a few weeks just by injecting enough AAS into his system.

Yes, you are off. Not everyone that lifts weights condone using steroids. I used to lift weights on a regular basis and did so for over 10 years. Now I do rock climbing, hiking, running and boxing instead.

And yes, breast implants, alcohol and prescription drugs (sans life threatening illness) should definately not be in your body. Aren't you against smoking? Aren't you against drug use? Well, whats the difference? Prescription drugs are still drugs.

Have you ever been around bodybuilders? (I'm sure you have judging by your defense of injecting hormones.) Are you telling me they don't stare at themselves in the mirror constantly and stress over every single muscle fiber in their bodies? What constitutes being vain to you?

BTW, I'm not savoring in his misfortune. Should I feel sorry for him or something? Should I feel sorry for meth addicts that smoke their way to a set of false teeth?

[Paytheplayer]

Originally Posted by Witchdoctor

Yes, you are off. Not everyone that lifts weights condone using steroids. I used to lift weights on a regular basis and did so for over 10 years. Now I do rock climbing, hiking, running and boxing instead.

And yes, breast implants, alchohol and prescription drugs (sans life threatening illness) should definately not be in your body. Aren't you against smoking? Aren't you against drug use? Well, whats the difference? Prescription drugs are still drugs.

Have you ever been around bodybuilders? (I'm sure you have judging by your defense of injecting hormones.) Are you telling me they don't stare at themselves in the mirror constantly and stress over every single muscle fiber in their bodies? What constitutes being vain to you?

BTW, I'm not savoring in his misfortune. Should I feel sorry for him or something? Should I feel sorry for meth addicts that smoke their way to a set of false teeth?

I had to rep both you and Rufio because you both made great points.

On one hand, I don't "look down" to anybody who chooses to use steroids. Everybody is entitled to making their own life choices. You usually go in knowing the risks. In this case, I really doubt this guy knew that this was one of the risks.


I lift weights almost every single day, but not once have I even thought about using roids. What's even worse, is that at some points, rumours were going around that I was just because people hate to see other people succeed at something. But some people would just rather take the easy route to achieving their goal, so they choose to do roids. Its whatever.

Like it was mentioned about breast implants, it's basically the same idea as roids. You take roids because you either have insecurities about your body, or you need them to compete in competitions. Now I dont know anybody whos competing in big breast competitions, but they get them because of their insecurities and you really can't blame someone for that.