posted July 20, 2000 03:37 PM         

Some of you might remember me, I started a cycle about 4 months ago at the age of 17, even though I told everybody on here that I was 18. Now I'm back with a failure story so that maybe I can encourage a few of the younger guys on the board to wait another year or two. I'm not against using the juice (if you haven't tried it, it DOES work), but everybody told me not to do it 4 months ago and I thought I knew better than them... so I feel like some people here that are where I was 4 months ago could use this story to underline those warnings. Here are some rules about juicing that I've learned.

If you still live at home with your parents, and they don't know about your juicing, and you know they'll disapprove if they found out -- then don't even try it. Forget about it now. I know the idea is very enticing and it's really hard to hold back on AS when you know you could be putting up 40 more pounds in just 4 weeks. But, it's hard to take 5 doses of reforvit a day and 5 or 6 protein shakes without your parents noticing. When they do find out, which they probably will (your parents probably know way more about your life than you think they do), they won't know anything about juice and they'll think you're a fucking heroine addict, then once you finally calm them down they'll take it away from you. That's what happened to me. 4 weeks into my cycle they confiscated it. No more deca, no more test, no more clomid. Don't think you can hide it from them unless they're the worst fucking alcoholic parents in our fine country.

Next, if you're 18 years old and you're spending more than an hour every day reading this board like I was 4 months ago, you've got a problem with your lifestyle. Unless you're fucking stupid (in which case you shouldn't use juice at all) and weightlifting and football is your life, then there are better things you can be doing with your time. You're at a BBing board. You probably already have a really nice body for an 18 year old guy and that's what you're doing it for right? That's why I wanted to use the juice. My logic was if I could get this much bigger and stronger, then I'll get more respect, I'll look better, get more girls. But I've learned so much about girls in the few months I've been off. Most of them don't like a guy that's too ripped like the fucking Hulk. They do want a guy with a nice body -- but if you're a fun time they don't care if you're 5'8 and 150 with some nice cuts in your abs or if you're 5'8 and 200 with a body that could rip her limbs off. Besides, I got so into weightlifting that it became a lifestyle -- all I thought about and all I did was to get bigger, and it started turning people off of me. Friends stopped hanging out with me and I couldn't hold up a conversation with anybody because I'd start talking about lifting or BBing. It's just not worth it if you're doing it for the wrong reasons which you probably are at 18.

Next, at 18, you're probably going to be able to make gains by changing your diet and workout that are comparable to the gains you'd make with juice. At 18, you're probably lying about you're age like I was. You're probably lying about your stats like I was. On these boards my bench was 20 pounds higher than it actually was and I weighed 10 pounds more than I actually did. If you're lying to yourself like that it's an immediate sign.... it just isn't psychologically healthy to decieve yourself... to walk around feeling inadequate 24 hours a day because you can't even physically live up to your image of yourself. When I got on the juice I had been making steady gains on my bench and squats of about 5 pounds per month. My max bench was up to 220. Yes, the juice worked. When my parents took me off the juice I was benching 245, a gain of 25 pounds in a month. But now, after the months it took me to recover psychologically from coming off the juice and physically readjusting to my natural test levels... my max bench is, guess what, 220. Right back to where it started. I'm guessing that in those 4 months if I had just kept a healthy diet and continuous lifting routine I could have had 230 or 235 by now. My weight soared in those 4 weeks, I had gained 21 pounds. A lot of it must have been fat because my cuts in my abs started to disappear slowly. So you'll actually look worse on the juice while you're making sure you're getting enough protein and calories. 2 weeks after I was off, I had lost 8 of those pounds (water weight). And today, I am only 4 pounds above where are started my cycle.

Anyway, the story of my cycle finishes like this... my lifts went off the deep end after my cycle ended... I was weaker than when I started. AND I didn't have the will to get back into the weightroom. I had bad tendinitis in my left bicep tendon and in both of my wrists, and I felt weak and stupid for trying juice. So my workouts dropped off... I'd go twice a week instead of 5 times. I'd do 4 sets per muscle instead of 10 and I wasn't giving 100% either. It wasn't until a couple months that I got my self-esteem and confidence back completely. I still get into the weightroom a few times per week. Once for tris/chest/shoulders. Once for bis/back. Once for legs/abs. It's simple and it keeps me in shape.

You have to realize that unless you're willing to make steroids and bodybuilding your entire life -- you're never going to be a giant like the pros. Life is way too fun to waste the whole thing on steroids. Of course, it's also fun to be a little bit bigger, a little bit stronger, and a little bit faster than everybody else, too. But there are too many risks at 18 -- you'll fuck up your family, your own natural hormones, and you'll be fucking with your mind at a time in your life when you're changing a lot and you might realize afterward it wasn't worth because you've changed priorities in the short time your cycle took. You CAN wait.

I hope that gives you something to think about while you're deciding whether or not to take the plunge.

posted July 20, 2000 03:44 PM            

Besides, it's the same for all people, adult or teen. What makes you think teens are in anyway more prone for failure than adults? last time I checked adults are still the ones committing the most crime, having the most car accidents, doing more women than their wives, and other bullshit things. Is there a click in our brain that automatically turn us into responsible adults at the age of 21?

posted July 20, 2000 05:22 PM            

Good luck...

posted July 20, 2000 07:19 PM            

You got heart, and you got balls. In my book, you got all the respect you'll ever need.

Bjaarki

------------------
"'Til the weard of the world, stands, unforgotten,
high under Heaven, the hero's name." - Hrolf Krakki's Saga (Iceland)

posted July 20, 2000 07:37 PM            

It doesn't matter how mature you are, if your family approves or not, or where you live, or how long you lifted. If you are still in your teens and think you are ready you are fooling yourself.

At that age your body is not ready. You are still growing and producing enough test on your own to accomplish amazing results.

Wait just a couple of more years, you will be very glad you did.

P.S.- good post Androgen-Man, hope some of the younger guys lisren to ya.