Steroid use within the female bodybuilding community has recently become more openly discussed than it ever was before. Anavar and Primobolan (Primo) are two steroids that are often used by female athletes during their competition prep, as well as during their off-season. However, many female competitors tend to take these without really knowing how they work, nor being aware of the potential side effects they can cause.

Over the past two to three years, the use of “fem test” within the female bodybuilding community has rapidly increased. Its popularity has resulted from the industry becoming more educated on the safe use of performance enhancing drugs for female bodybuilding competitors.

In the bodybuilding world, it is no secret that clenbuterol – more commonly called “clen” – is used to aid with fat loss. In fact, you can be fairly certain that most people competing in an untested federation will have taken clen during their prep. Although its usage is openly discussed with and amongst male competitors, it still remains a huge taboo amongst females. As with most things, this is probably due to a fear of being judged by others for using it.

It’s no secret that anabolic androgenic steroids (AAS) are a big part of the bodybuilding community and that their usage is increasing globally each year. I still remember being a young naïve adult, just jumping on the steroid cycle that my friend suggested I tried, without too much knowledge behind what I was taking.

Before reading this article I strongly suggest you read the article Introduction to AAS-Testosterone. Once you have done so, you will have a better grasp of the basic concepts that are discussed in this article. I’d also like to remind you that the following topics are for informational purposes only and should not be deemed as advice in any way.

If you are a male assisted bodybuilder, there’s no doubt you will have heard of the post show magical phase in which you can add some quality tissue in a short period of time. This is because as we pull body fat levels down to low levels, the body becomes very sensitive to changes in nutrients, but also hormones

Many of you within the bodybuilding realm will know that assisted bodybuilders use the hormones T3 (triiodothyronine) and T4 (thyroxine) when dieting for a contest prep, but these hormones are also sometimes also used by individuals who are doing photoshoots or looking for an extreme body transformation. Specifically, T3 and T4 can help accelerate fat loss throughout a dieting phase, which is great; however, as with other compounds, many will take them without knowing much about how they work and what they do.

If you’ve thought about going down the assisted route in bodybuilding, you’ve probably told yourself “I don’t want to inject, but I’m happy to take orals”. I say this because I remember telling myself and saying it out loud to peers. Of course, at the time I knew nothing about oral steroids and thought they were just the same as injectables.

If you have been involved in bodybuilding for a while, you’ll have no doubt heard of assisted bodybuilders using insulin across the day, perhaps in the morning or around the workout parameters. Whilst this is fairly common, very few people understand the principles behind this practice, and/or why insulin might be used alone or in conjunction with other drugs such as Growth Hormone (GH).

As you begin to climb the ranks in the bodybuilding game, you are sure to come across the use of growth hormone (GH) alongside anabolics. This is seen in particularly in the heavier classes that require more muscle mass such as heavy weights, super heavy or class 1,2 etc. Although it might not be needed, it can and will be used by athletes in the classes below these too.

If you know anyone with type 2 diabetes, then you will know that metformin is the most prescribed drug to help manage this disease and its associated complications, as it has clear benefits in relation to glucose metabolism (how it’s used in the body).

SARMs have been around in the bodybuilding scene for quite some time now. Although there is an abundance of information on these, like with any topic within the bodybuilding industry, there can be some misinformation or conflicting ideas. As a result, it still seems that people know little about what they do in the body and how they can aid one’s physique development.

Over the past three years or so, there has been a big shift in the industry in how assisted bodybuilders control oestrogen levels. In the past, assisted bodybuilders might have used medications such as aromatising inhibitors (e.g., Arimidex) or selective oestrogen receptor modulators, known as SERMs (e.g., Tamoxifen) to stop their oestrogen levels getting too high.

In recent years, it has become fairly common for athletes involved in bodybuilding to use the healing peptides BPC-157 and TB-500 to improve their recovery from injuries such as tendonitis and/or muscle tears. These peptides can have significant positive effects on tissue repair, and although many people may use these, most don’t actually know or understand the mechanisms behind how they work.

Although it has only come into the bodybuilding scene in recent years, if you are an assisted bodybuilder, you’ll have undoubtedly heard of and/or started using Telmisartan. This compound is typically used to help lower blood pressure, and whilst its usage has become increasingly popular, many will take it without an understanding of what exactly it does.

If you have been involved in bodybuilding for some years then you’ll be familiar with the concept of getting “dry”. This is part of the criteria required for the larger bodybuilding classes and is why some athletes use pharmaceutical diuretics.