Surprised to see an article about gear on HN. Very cool.
I was more heavily into bodybuilding culture 10-ish years ago when I started lifting. I never took the stuff, as there are a billionty downsides to using them and you have to train, and diet, even harder while you're on them, but I am saddened, but not surprised, to see that it's gotten _even easier_ to procure these drugs.
That said, I am impressed that there are influencers who are finally coming clean about their drug use. It was really taboo to openly admit to taking PEDs back then, so it was really frustrating to see fitness dudes talking about how diet and grindset is the key to gains without mentioning the drugs while also knowing that their followers wanted the same body they had.
VICE didn't emphasize the dark side of steroids and PEDs hard enough IMO. Steroids seriously fuck people up permanently when used without (and sometimes with) an oncologist guiding them. Heart and hormone regulation issues are the biggest side effects. And that's assuming you get good-quality drugs, which is very hard to do when you're ordering from wherever the fuck. Here's an article from WaPo that hits on that topic more directly: https://www.washingtonpost.com/investigations/interactive/20...
The article reminded me of another thing I think I read/saw on Reddit where a bodybuilder on gear literally ripped their bicep open during a curl. It was gross. I also remembered that steroids can affect reproductive health and leaves "souvenirs" behind like enlarged guts and fat underneath chest muscles.
Steroids get all the media attention, but it's actually the fat burners and diuretics which are the bread and butter of the fitness industry and are more dangerous. Anyone can take roids and get bigger, but getting ripped is a more difficult problem as it entails extreme leanness. Everyone is trying to get leaner, not necessarily bigger.
i'm not sure what you mean by "bread and butter" of the fitness industry. certainly most fitness "influences" are on some sort of performance enhancing drug, with many of them on anabolics which is the reason why they look muscular and lean. i'm not sure what fat burners you think are actually more dangerous than this stuff (clenbuterol? ephedrine?), but I don't agree
Yup. Bullshit supplements with zero FDA oversight are the gravy train in the fitness industry. It will contract like a wet noodle overnight the minute the FDA decides to close that loophole, if they ever do. (They should!)
I don't think they should close the loophole. However I DO think there should be oversight to ensure that what's in the supplement is what's on the label, and it is tested to be free of contaminants.
Because the long term harm from these drugs is hidden (sometimes purposefully) while the short term benefits are obvious?
The real problem is teenagers more than adults. Steroids are basically required for some high school sports (like US football) to even hope to play in college. This needs to get stomped on extremely hard as it pushes adolescent boys to take drugs with strong side effects as the ticket for a "lottery" with really bad odds.
And, even if we're not talking about sports and instead just general young male population, the problem is that "nice muscles" is obvious and quick while stroke risk, heart disease risk, permanently depressed testosterone, etc. are not. And, once this becomes normalized, it is the same problem as using 20+ year olds to play teenagers in media--it throws off what everybody views as a "healthy" body type--both boys and girls.
As for adults, I don't give one iota of damn whether Chris Evans, Hugh Jackman, or The Rock took steriods--it's their life. However, they need to quit goddamn lying about it. And when someone has a really bad reaction, they need to talk about that, too.
Key word is "so far" it is never worth it. Crack is worth it "so far" heroin too. The problem with these things has never been in the "so far" portion, things that have significant problems in the "so far" region typically dont need much banning, because people can see negative impacts during their uncertainty based waiting period. certain drugs like steroids extract a toll no one willingly pays long after uncertainty wears off. It is absolutely not worth it, I support your right to use steroids but only if you and others are being real about it. You should be allowed to smoke, but you should also be fully aware of the issues involved, otherwise it not an informed decision being made.
I was more heavily into bodybuilding culture 10-ish years ago when I started lifting. I never took the stuff, as there are a billionty downsides to using them and you have to train, and diet, even harder while you're on them, but I am saddened, but not surprised, to see that it's gotten _even easier_ to procure these drugs.
That said, I am impressed that there are influencers who are finally coming clean about their drug use. It was really taboo to openly admit to taking PEDs back then, so it was really frustrating to see fitness dudes talking about how diet and grindset is the key to gains without mentioning the drugs while also knowing that their followers wanted the same body they had.
VICE didn't emphasize the dark side of steroids and PEDs hard enough IMO. Steroids seriously fuck people up permanently when used without (and sometimes with) an oncologist guiding them. Heart and hormone regulation issues are the biggest side effects. And that's assuming you get good-quality drugs, which is very hard to do when you're ordering from wherever the fuck. Here's an article from WaPo that hits on that topic more directly: https://www.washingtonpost.com/investigations/interactive/20...
The article reminded me of another thing I think I read/saw on Reddit where a bodybuilder on gear literally ripped their bicep open during a curl. It was gross. I also remembered that steroids can affect reproductive health and leaves "souvenirs" behind like enlarged guts and fat underneath chest muscles.