First and foremost I would like to state that what I have written should not be taken as an endorsement to break the law. Where anabolic steroids are illegal, I condemn their usage unless perscribed by a physician. The reality of competitive bodybuilding is that most shows are un-tested and most competitors use performance enhancers. One of the most important roles that anabolic steroids play in competitive bodybuilding is allowing the user to maintain a high level of muscularity while greatly reducing their food intake to diet down for a show. Since one of the major judgement factors on who places well in bodybuilding shows is overall level of muscle on one's frame, competitors use anabolics to maintain their lean mass during harsh caloric restrictions. Another important role of anabolics in bodybuilding is packing on as much lean muscle as possible in a small time frame. Most competitive bodybuilders compete 2-3 times per year, if not more. This means that, given contest preparation time, they only have about 5-6 months per year to be eating enough protein to gain muscle before caloric restrictions come into play. Anabolic steroids allow one to pack on a large amount of muscle in a few months that would be impossible naturally. This means a competitor can make huge improvements on their physique in only 6 months. There are a variety of synthetic testosterone derivatives that lend themselves to offseason or pre-contest. Generally, compounds that have higher estrogenic conversions will cause water bloating and thus are mainly used offseason when there is no concern about subcutaneous water. Compounds that tend to have lower estrogenic conversion ratios tend to "dry" the body out, by packing on lean mass with little water retention and diminshing fat storage capabilities - these are best used for precontest. There are 3 other major performance enhancers used by modern bodybuilders. The first 2 go hand in hand and have a synergistic effect; enhancing the effects of each other. They are Human Growth Hormone and Insulin Like Growth Factor. Together, they increase the body's ability (over a long period of time) to divert nutrients from lipid and glycogen storage and increase protein synthesis and nitrogen reuptake capabilities. Furthermore, they allow for sattelite muscle cell hyerplasia which, in combination with anabolics, can add on pounds of lean mass blowing past genetic limitations. The final performance enhancer is insulin. Insulin is used to optimize the body's ability to utilize massive amounts of nutrients, and shuttle giant quantities of macronutrients toward muscle building rather than lipid storage. Anabolic steroids, the hGH and IGF1 peptides and insulin are all part of the modern competitive bodybuilder's arsenal toward building the best physique to step onto the stage of an untested contest.
