Here's the question: What proportion of the guys who work out at your gym use AS? This proportion would include both those whom you KNOW use, and those whom you're pretty damned sure do, whether they've admitted it or not. I'm interested in the "lifetime rate" (those who have ever used) rather than the "current rate" (those who use right now). Be as accurate in your guess as you possibly can be.

Here's why I ask: I'm trying to get a handle on just how unusual this practice is. I work out at a gym at the university, and there are very few guys there who, in my opinion, use gear. My best guess would be about 4%, or maybe 1 in 25 guys. I might be wrong, but that's my guess. There are maybe 2 or 3 bros who are real 300lb monsters, really serious bodybuilders who are obviously on gear, and then another 10 or so who are pretty freaky powerlifters who look like they probably do, or who are smaller guys who are WAY too strong for their size, and who I suspect use a strength enhancing type of gear like eq or anavar. But, overall, the vast majority of the guys at my gym just look like they train seriously and eat well. They would not turn heads on the street. Bear in mind that this is a pretty young crowd, mostly 18 to mid 20's, and the varsity athletes have their own gym, so I don't see them.

So, next time, you're at your gym, look around, and try to form an estimate in your mind (1%, 5%, 10%, whatever), and post it. Thanks much, bros.

Bjaarki

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

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peace,

Fuuuuck! Are you serious, man? 35% of the guys at your place use gear? Either I'm really naive about the dudes at my gym (yeah, maybe), or you're hangin' with some serious motherfuckers, blkLotus! You guys hold your gym socks up with thumbtacks, shit like that?

What part of the world are we talking about here?

One of the things that might be happening here is what in social psych we call "social funneling," same idea as "birds of a feather flock together." What happens is, people who are similar on some attribute but unknown to one another (say, users of gear, in this case), when in situations where they are aware of one another, tend to focus on that other, similar, person or group of persons. They loom large in the observer's consciousness, and people who don't share that attribute (don't use gear) tend to blend into the woodwork. I see this all the time in relation to alcohol use. Ask an alcoholic what proportion of American adults drink, and he'll invariably say "95%" or even "99%" (the actual figure is about 64%), then ask him how frequently the average person drinks alcohol and he'll say "Every day" (the actual frequency is about once a week), then ask him how many drinks the average person has in a week and he'll say "20 or 30" (when, actually, the average American drinks about 3 drinks a week). These misperceptions happen because of the social funneling effect. (BTW, if you're surprised by the facts I've just given you, you might be doing a little social funneling yourself, and you might want to watch your drinking a little. Just a suggestion, all in the name of better health, brothers.)

You sure that social funneling isn't happening here in regard to your estimates of gear use? Listen, I understand that something like 20 million Americans (maybe a larger number, I don't know) lift weights. By you guys' estimate, then we'd have to have someting like 7 million anabolic steroid users, minimum, in this country. I just don't believe that! Neither do you, if you think about it.

Sorry to go on like this, but I really do want to figure out for myself just how unusual the use of gear is among my fellow lifters. Try again, brothers!

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peace,

I think if you look at what blkLotus is saying you can see that the numbers you'll get here are going to be a bit skewed.
My father works out in Kirkland Washington in the off-season his club is filled with Seahawks. If you walked in there on the right day every week you would think the number is 75%. Would that be a random sampling?
I don't think this board is what I would term a random sampling of the general populous. Social funneling is all you'll get here.

Yep, I guess you're right. Oh well, so much for research!

Thanks anyway, bros.

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peace,