Colesterol

[David Censored]

Hi guys.

I read this forum often and see important, sensible advice given out to posters on a regular basis. The prime thing that people should be concerned with (in my opinion) when making the decision to do a course of steroids is the side effects and how to counter them. To this end posters on this board, especially the more senior ones seem very clued up and, as far as my knowledge tells me, provide smart advice on not only PCT but also choosing cycles that will prevent as much of the the nasty sides as possible in the first place, allowing the user to be as safe as possible which is what we all want.

One area that I do not see covered however is the definite link between steroids and increased colesterol levels. High colesterol levels lead to all sorts of problems, to name some, heart attacks and strokes - two things that seem to be synonymnous with the deaths of say professional wrestlers (who I would say are amongst the biggest users in the public domain). What concerns me is that some new steroid users are concerned more with the sides that they can 'see' such as gyno, testicular atrophy etc etc and not with things that are beyond the end of their own nose. Furthermore even when advice is given to more clued up members of this board the effects of colesterol are rarely mentioned.

So......

I think that it would be for the good of the board if some of us could get together in this thread and consider the effects of colesterol and how to manage it so that the high level of education and knowledge on this board can be maintained and furthered.

Obviously if I've missed something obvious feel free to tell me, but cheers for reading this pretty wordy post and I look forward to reading your ideas!

Cheers
Dave

[ramrod67]

I do agree with the spirit of your thread although we do talk about lipid profiles on this site. I think sometimes cholesterol issues aren't quite as important to the average guy as his testicle size or his ability to regain his natural hormone levels after cycle. And of course Gyno is always a threat. I'm 42 so I take my lipid profiles a hell of a lot more seriously than a person who's fifteen or twenty years my junior. Point well taken.

[erokyrwrld]

Cholesterol is the biggest problem with AAS as it will directly contribute to cardiovascular problems. I am not predisposed to cholesterol issues, so I keep mine in good order by staying away from saturated fat, doing cardio on a regular basis and taking niacin.

[Floridagrowin]

Good topic David.

It is important to get a complete blood work done not only before a cycle but anytime you are going to embark on a life changing venture, to include severe diet or an exercise program. We advocate that mostly for the older fellas for several reasons, mainly because you need to know the status of your health. It is assume (not real wise) that the younger guys are healthy unless they disclose factors to the contrary.

Although cholesterol is important to watch it is usually only elevated while on the cycle then goes back to its normal range post cycle. There are risk with this and I would suggest anyone with cholestrol that is high get that in order before starting a cycle. The same goes for blood pressure.

Just because we put hours in the gym and have a healthy looking body does not mean we are healthy inside. Proper blood work and a physical are always a great idea for anyone.

[eClenbuterol]

This is why people need to get blood work done before and after cycle to make sure firstly they are healthy enough to run a cycle. Blood work before/mid/and after cyce is the way to go.

Just because we put hours in the gym and have a healthy looking body does not mean we are healthy inside

Flordia is the so true. Everyone should look at it this way. Look at the foods they eat, and ask themselves what do they really have in them? Some shit I read on labels I cannot even pronounce.

[hazcat]

Nice thread. It's been a while and definitely past time for another. This site it's even more important because we get a lot of the younger crowd and first timers. I believe we often time skim over the fact that steroids are not healthy for you if you already have normal test levels. Taking steroids comes with serious health risk and it can and does happen to "us" so we have to do everything we can to minimize negative side effects of cycling AAS.

[Martano666]

Originally Posted by David Censored

heart attacks and strokes - two things that seem to be synonymnous with the deaths of say professional wrestlers (who I would say are amongst the biggest users in the public domain).

While I certainly agree with the point you were trying to make, I don't agree that the deaths of these wrestlers is usually cholesteral related. It may or may not be the case. I personally think that the reason we see high numbers of deaths of pro wrestlers is due to the nature of their jobs. 300+ days per year these guys a litterally beating the hell outta each other. I know wrestling is fake, but they still are constantly putting their own bodies through extremely high impacts. What does that do to the organs, and brain tissue, etc..

[Floridagrowin]

I think that goes for most professionals in a contact sport Martano. A lot of them are on nubain or use other drugs which also contibute to their health problems. Combine that with crappy eating habits and not enough rest and you have a heart attack in the making.

[David Censored]

Some good points there guys. With reference to your point Martano, I agree the wrestlers line of work contributes to their downfall to an extent, but I also wonder if it also seves as a bit of a convenient cover up for the long term effects of 20+yrs of cycles which is borderline compulsory for most wrestlers. But a lifetime of head impacts sure must take their toll.

These days you can pick up a basic Blood pressure monitor for about £10/$15. It'd be interesting for people who post logs of their weight/strength progress to post logs of their BP, maybe this is something we could suggest to any body doing one of these logs. Also maybe keep a log of BP during PCT to cover your point Florida.

I think another factor that works against a bodybuilder of any variety with regards to colesterol is diet. Human bodys arnt really designed to be taking in 4000+ cals day in day out for long periods. Especially when its made up of things like red meat. I'm not sure where I'm going with this point I guess its just another reason that demonstrates how these issues should probably be at the top of a guy going on a cycles concerns.