Understanding Anabolic Steroids: Benefits, Side Effects, and Usage in Sports

Anabolic Steroids are natural and synthetic analogs of the male sex hormone testosterone and its derivatives, created in laboratory conditions. When these steroid drugs enter the human body, they act just like the male sex hormones produced by the endocrine glands: testosterone and dihydrotestosterone. By binding to specific androgen receptors in the body, they enhance protein synthesis, leading to increased muscle growth (muscle hypertrophy). Endurance is improved, the body's recovery rate after physical exertion is accelerated, strength increases, and both power and cardiorespiratory endurance, as well as speed-strength indicators, are enhanced. Steroids are considered a form of doping in sports.

Due to these qualities, steroids have found widespread use in bodybuilding and all sports where the above qualities are essential.

Moreover, according to unofficial data, there hasn't been a single "clean" record in professional sports for over 20 years. The so-called "fight against doping" is more political than practical. It is no secret among insiders that all outstanding sports achievements of the last 30-40 years are the result of doping and anabolic steroids.

Anabolic-Androgenic Steroids (AAS) or anabolic steroids are slang terms in bodybuilding: "pharma," "vitamins," "chemistry," "mince," "anabolics," sports pharmacology, doping, "sports pharma."

Historical Background

The first steroids were synthesized quite a long time ago, to be precise, 85 years ago, before World War II.

Chemically synthesized from cholesterol, testosterone was obtained in Germany in 1935, and clinical trials of steroids on humans began in 1937.

The first steroid drugs observed in the human body were methyltestosterone and testosterone propionate.

Initially, steroids were created for medical purposes to solve a range of issues, particularly for accelerated recovery after injuries, burns, and severe surgeries. But within a few years, by 1938, the first mentions of steroid (doping) use in sports disciplines appeared in sports literature. Sports historians mark 1938 as the starting point of AAS use in sports. From that time on, steroids began to be used to improve sports performance and prepare athletes for both local and international competitions, including the Olympics.

This marked the beginning of the real "steroid race."

Leading pharmaceutical companies, often with tacit approval or even encouragement from their governments, were developing new steroid drugs.

Moreover, steroids had legal status. Until 1976, steroids could be bought in any pharmacy, even without a doctor's prescription. Over time, international sports and legislative policies did their "dirty work." In 1988, the International Olympic Committee banned the use of steroids in sports as a form of cheating and unsportsmanlike behavior.

Thus, the use of anabolic steroids in sports became illegal. It seemed like a victory for fairness, but the "genie" was out of the bottle and could not be stopped.

1988 marks the year when the legal use of steroids in sports ended, but the illegal use of anabolics in professional, amateur, and even junior sports continues today on a truly global scale. Efforts to develop new doping types now focus on creating structures undetectable by current doping tests.

Additionally, new doping types that are not detected by doping controls have been synthesized, including:

• Peptides

• Growth Hormone (HGH)

• Insulin

Unfortunately, the ban on steroid use affected not only professional sports.

As always, the United States set the legislative "fashion" (pardon the pun) and international policy. In the U.S., steroids, which are largely "harmless" compared to some truly dangerous medications commonly found in household medicine cabinets, like aspirin and paracetamol, were classified as narcotics! Alongside hard drugs, criminal liability was introduced for the use, sale, and possession of steroids. Essentially, steroids were equated to psychoactive substances, i.e., substances that alter human consciousness.

This occurred in 1990 and represents the height of human absurdity.

Of course, those who profited politically and financially from this law and the "black PR" of steroids were not absent.

Following the U.S. example, other "developed" countries began to ban the free circulation of steroids. The same happened in the former USSR republics, where certain types of steroids—drugs containing nandrolone and methandienone, the only AAS available in the Soviet Union—were banned.

In our country, Ukraine, the legislative ban on these substances still applies. However, liability only applies to the illegal sale of these steroids. Buying, using, and possessing steroids is not prosecuted by law.

Other types of steroids and doping are conditionally legal and are sold in many online stores on the principle that what is not expressly forbidden is allowed. Some steroids (testosterone propionate, Sustanon, testosterone undecanoate) are even sold in pharmacies.

In recent years, Russia has followed the U.S. example by equating almost all AAS with narcotics and imposing severe penalties for selling, possessing, and smuggling steroids.

Anabolic Steroid Drugs

Steroid drugs can be divided into two types based on their administration method:

1. Oral steroids (tablets) taken orally and metabolized in the gastrointestinal tract.

2. Injectable steroids administered intramuscularly by injecting the anabolic into large muscle groups.

We recently wrote two extensive informational articles about both types of AAS, detailing their pros and cons. You can read this information in the relevant categories on our website.

Types of Steroids

Steroid drugs can be divided by administration method: oral (tablets) and injectable (injections).

Oral Steroids (List)

• Turinabol (oral Turinabol) : Exclusively in tablet form. Best steroid for a first cycle considering price, quality, and effectiveness. Non-aromatizing. Minimal side effects. Gains of 4-5 kg of quality muscle mass per cycle. Recommended duration: 6 weeks. Taken daily.

• Oxandrolone (Anavar) : Primarily for women. Non-aromatizing. Considered the safest AAS in bodybuilding and fitness. Commonly used by track athletes and fighters.

• Stanozolol (Winstrol tablets) : Mainly used for cutting. Non-aromatizing. Rare side effects. Gains of 2-3 kg of quality muscle mass per cycle.

• Trenbolone (oral) : Rarely used due to high cost. Preferred in injectable form. Quickly eliminated from the body. Mainly used by professional athletes.

• Halotestin (Fluoxymesterone) : Powerful steroid causing explosive growth in strength and aggression. Used in power sports before competitions. Enhances muscle quality and definition. Has pronounced side effects.

• Primobolan (tablets) : Mild steroid mainly used by women. Rare side effects. Minimal suppression of natural testosterone production in men.

• Oxymetholone (Anapolon) : The most potent oral steroid. Rapidly increases muscle mass and strength, with some water retention. Medium frequency of side effects. Rarely used solo, popular in mass-gaining cycles.

Injectable Steroids (List)

• Testosterone Enanthate : Long-acting testosterone ester. Basis for any mass-gaining steroid cycle. Duration of action: ~18 days. Aromatizes. Medium frequency of side effects. Recommended cycle: 8+ weeks. Requires PCT and gonadotropin injections.

• Testosterone Cypionate : Similar to Enanthate with a longer duration: ~21 days. More pronounced muscle growth but higher aromatization.

• Testosterone Propionate : Short-acting ester mainly used for cutting and definition. Duration: 6-8 weeks. Requires frequent injections every other day.

• Testosterone Phenylpropionate : Acts for ~6 days. Suitable as a Propionate alternative with fewer injections.

• Testosterone Acetate : Fast-acting ester. Acts for ~2 days.

• Testosterone Undecanoate : Long-acting ester used primarily for hormone replacement therapy (HRT). Acts for ~42 days.

• Testosterone Suspension : Water-based testosterone with the shortest action. Used by professionals to avoid doping tests. Acts immediately and is eliminated within 24 hours.

• Methenolone Enanthate (Primobol) : Long-acting Primobolan ester suitable for women. Acts for ~21 days with weekly injections.

• Winstrol (Suspension) : Injectable Stanozolol used by professionals. High injection frequency and pain reduce its advantages over tablets.

• Masteron Enanthate : Ideal for mass-gaining cycles. Strong anti-estrogenic and fat-burning properties. Used solo for strength and endurance without significant mass gain.

• Masteron Propionate : Short-acting Drostanolone ester. Used mainly in cutting cycles. Strong androgen.

• Sustanon : A mix of four testosterone esters with varying action periods. Acts for a month. Used for HRT and mass-gaining in bodybuilding.

• Testosterone Mix : Depending on the manufacturer, can be a mix of long and short testosterone esters or a combination of various steroids (ready-made cycle).

• Trenbolone Acetate : Fast-acting Trenbolone ester. Powerful pre-competition steroid for maximum muscle definition. Not for beginners.

• Trenbolone Enanthate : Long-acting Trenbolone ester. Strongest mass and strength-gaining steroid

. Significant fat-burning properties.

• Parabolan : Trenbolone Hexahydrobenzylcarbonate. Acts for ~14 days. Huge strength gains and muscle definition. Not for beginners.

• Trenbolone Mix : Combines various Trenbolone esters. Ready-made cycle in one vial.

• Injectable Oxymetholone : New on the market, with more pronounced effects and less gastrointestinal load than tablets.

Steroid Effects

• Main Effect : Accelerated muscle mass growth with adequate protein and carb intake and regular progressive training.

• Mechanisms :

  • Accelerated recovery time

  • Suppressed catabolic processes

  • Enhanced protein synthesis in muscles

  • Activation of genetic apparatus in target cells

  • Increased red blood cell mass

  • Accelerated metabolism

Types of Steroids by Effect

• Anabolics (High anabolic effect):

  • Muscle mass growth

  • Strength increase

  • Endurance and speed enhancement

  • Bone strengthening

  • Fat reduction

• Androgens (High androgenic effect):

  • Suppressed natural testosterone production (testicular atrophy)

  • Acne and pimples

  • Prostate hypertrophy

  • Hair loss (genetically predisposed) and increased body/facial hair growth

Additional Effects

• Increased libido

• Appetite enhancement

• Improved mood and well-being

Common Side Effects

• All steroids suppress natural testosterone production. The extent depends on cycle length and dosage.

• Aromatization : Conversion of testosterone to estrogens, causing side effects like gynecomastia, water retention, fat deposits, and high blood pressure. Can be managed with aromatase inhibitors.

• Liver Toxicity : Mainly oral steroids. Injectable steroids, except Winstrol, are non-toxic. Severe effects only occur with extremely high dosages.

• Cholesterol : Potential increase in bad cholesterol levels. Preventive measures include limiting animal fats, taking Omega-3, and polyunsaturated fatty acids during the cycle.