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It's almost accepted as common knowledge that steroid users lose most of their gains once they stop juicing. However, a new Norwegian study shows a previously unknown side effect of steroid use: a steroid cycle taken today, can still help you pack on muscle mass even a decade after you stop using them.That's a pretty great side effect side effect of steroid use if you ask me and one I did not know about.

We've all heard the myth of the side effect of steroid use being when you stop using steroids all kind of bad things happen. Your muscles shrink significantly, your muscles turn to fat, you aren't nearly as strong, and your workouts suffer after a cycle. Of course, anybody who's used steroids responsibly before knows that the stereotypes can be blown out of proportion - especially for those who use a product like Test Stack 17 or other good Post-Cycle Therapy products. However, the fact remains that you're not going to keep everything after a cycle.

This being said, you'd think that somebody would experience almost no beneficial side effects of steroid use once they stop juicing for a decade. But Norwegian researchers have recently proven that this thought might not be entirely true. In fact, their study shows promising results which indicate that using steroids now could help you easily put on muscle much later in life.

Mighty Mouse

A few years ago, Norwegian scientist Kristian Gundersen and his colleagues made an interesting discovery which finally proved the actual existence of "muscle memory." This finding explained that people who exercise earlier in life can gain lean muscle faster at an older age.

More recently, these researchers again set out to make yet another discovery involving muscle. But this time they focused on the long-term impact that testosterone could have on mice. To set up their study, the scientists gave mice small amounts of testosterone for a short period of time. Three months after the mice stopped receiving the testosterone, their muscles grew by 30% following six days of exercise. Contrast this to the group of mice who weren't receiving the drug, as their muscles grew just 6% in the same time span.

Gundersen, who's also a professor at the University of Oslo, explained the findings to BBC News by saying, "It is rare to have data that clear cut, I was pretty satisfied with that." He went on to add that testosterone helps by boosting the number of cell nuclei in muscle fibers. And these extra nuclei greatly aided the mice in packing on more muscle in a short amount of time.

A Decade of Results

Whenever there's a study involving mice, the question must always be asked, 'How do the results translate to humans?' In Gundersen's opinion, humans may be getting the exact same long-term benefits from using testosterone. In fact, he thinks that the improved muscle-building results could last a full decade later.

"If it is sufficient to build muscle mass, I think it would be sufficient to give you this long-term effect," Gundersen said. "I think it could last 10 years, but I don't have the data to back that up. It would be my speculation yes."

This line of thinking goes against what many have commonly thought about steroids, in that they only provide results during and shortly after a cycle. And while these findings are encouraging to those who are thinking of juicing, there's something much larger behind Gundersen's research.

Lifetime Ban

When sports organizations suspend an athlete for using roids, it's usually only a short-term ban, such as four months, a year or, in the worst case, two years. But based on what the Norwegian scientists discovered, juicing could give one an advantage for many, many years to come.

"In science if you cheat, you are out for life, and my personal view is that it should be similar for athletes," Gundersen stated. "It is a harsh treatment but if you really are cheating, I think that's reasonable."

Gundersen's words are backed up by a study that was done in Sweden involving power lifters. Researchers Anders Eriksson and Lars-Eric Thornell were able to determine that lifters who'd taken drugs before and were doing little to no training had about the same number of cell nuclei in their quadriceps as clean athletes who were undergoing high intensity training. In other words, power lifters could still have an advantage over opponents long after they stopped juicing. Given these results, it's little wonder why the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) is debating whether to increase their doping ban from 2 to 4 years.

Regardless of what effect the Swedish and Norwegian scientists' research has on sports, it's really cool to know that there's a strong possibility that roids can work years after taking them. This means that if you ever have a change of heart about using gear or just can't afford it, you won't lose everything by going clean for a while. So keep lifting! And this is certainly a welcome thought to many amateur bodybuilders out there who are considering steroids.

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PS Here's some links to discuss the effects of long-term steroid use on the EliteFitness.com forums.

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