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12/11/08
Are you new to the world of steroids? Looking to learn a bit more about the commonly used words and phrases tossed around the forums, websites and magazines you read? Let’s check out the three most commonly used words you’ll encounter. Knowledge of their simple definition and basics will make reading about more advanced topics a bit easier.
Orals
Just as the name implies, there are steroids which are administered orally. In other words, they are placed in the mouth and swallowed, like vitamins or food. They are present in the body for several weeks, having a half-life of several days to a week. Orals are usually popular with bodybuilder for their first cycle, as it’s much easier to overcome a single hurdle (accepting steroid use) than it is to face two (accepting steroid use as well as putting a needle in ones’ own backside). Orals are processed by the digestive system as well as the liver before reaching the bloodstream and then meeting with the muscle receptors, locations in muscle cells which stimulate growth. Therefore orals have to be very powerful. For this reason, they are also very toxic. Most bodybuilders admit that any steroid without toxic effects probably isn’t very useful as well. However, side effects can cause liver disease, hair loss, and gynecomastia, the dreaded “bitch tits” which causes regret in so many bodybuilders. Orals are dangerous yet effective, and typically maintain a place in most steroid users’ repertoires even after injectable use begins.
Injectables
For most people, the thought of a person injecting him or herself with a needle every day seems unheard of. They might consider these things isolated to the case of junkies, or diabetics. However, injectable steroids are very useful for bodybuilders looking to inject safe, long-acting steroids into their body to facilitate long-term growth. After the oil is injected, it sits in the muscle tissue, slowly releasing into the bloodstream over a period of weeks. The use of needles can be dangerous and certainly requires instruction by a professional before attempting, but are certainly rewarding in terms of muscle gain.
Testosterone
This is a compound which is already produced by your body. It is produced by your testes, in very small amounts, at the order of the pituitary gland of your brain. The endocrine system measures the testosterone levels in the blood, and orders the testes to produce more. Since testosterone is the magic ingredient which makes us aggressive, powers our sex drive, and causes us to gain muscle, it’s obviously a very powerful asset.
When produced in the body, testosterone only has a half life of ten minutes. That means in less than an house, the original release of testosterone has been completely broken down by the body. Some bodybuilders have decided they’d like to increase their body’s level of testosterone, so they inject synthetic testosterone into their body. The testosterone is suspended in oil, and then extracted into a syringe. It is injected into the glutes or deltoids, in most causes. The testosterone they inject is much more powerful, and at much higher levels, than the testosterone produced in the body. Scientists rearranged molecules to make it act like natural testosterone, but last much longer.
