Dianabol info
Dianabol is
the old Ciba brand name for the oral steroid methandrostenolone.It
is a derivative of testosterone, exhibiting strong anabolic
and moderate androgenic properties. This compound was first
made available in 1960, and it quickly became the most favored
and widely used anabolic steroid in all forms of athletics.
This is likely due to the fact that it is both easy to use
and extremely effective. In the U.S. Dianabol production
had meteoric history, exploding for quite some time, then
quickly dropping out of sight. Many were nervous in the
late 80's when the last of the U.S. generics were removed
from pharmacy shelves, the medical community finding no
legitimate use for the drug anymore. But the fact that Dianabol
has been off the U.S. market for over 10 years now has not
cut its popularity. It remains the most commonly used black
market oral steroid in the U.S. As long as there are countries
manufacturing this steroid, it will probably remain so.
Similar to testosterone
and Anadrol 50, Dianabol is a potent steroid, but also one
which brings about noticeable side effects. For starters
methandrostenolone is quite estrogenic. Gynecomastia is
likewise often a concern during treatment, and may present
itself quite early into a cycle (particularly when higher
doses are used). At the same time water retention can become
a pronounced problem, causing a notable loss of muscle definition
as both subcutaneous water and fat build. Sensitive individuals
may therefore want to keep the estrogen under control with
the addition of an antiestrogen such as Nolvadex and/or
Proviron. The stronger drug Arimidex (antiaromatase) would
be a better choice, but can also be quite expensive in comparison
to standard estrogen maintenance therapies.
In addition,
androgenic side effects are common with this substance,
and may include bouts of oily skin, acne and body/facial
hair growth. Aggression may also be increased with a potent
steroid such as this, so it would be wise not to let your
disposition change for the worse during a cycle. With Dianabol
there is also the possibility of aggravating a male pattern
baldness condition. Sensitive individuals may therefore
wish to avoid this drug and opt for a milder anabolic such
as deca durabolin. While Dianabol does convert to a more
potent steroid via interaction with the 5-alpha reductase
anzyme (the same enzyme responsible for converting testosterone
to dihydrotestosterone), it has extremely little affinity
to do so in the human body's. The androgenic metabolite
5alpha dihydromethandrostenolone is therefore produced only
in trace amounts at best. The benefit received from Proscar/Propecia
would therefore be insignificant, the drug serving no real
purpose.
Being moderately
androgenic, Dianabol is really only a popular steroid with
men. When used by women, strong virilization symptoms are
of course a possible result. Some do however experiment
with it, and find low doses (5mg) of this steroid extremely
powerful for new muscle growth. Whenever administered, Dianabol
will produce exceptional mass and strength gains. In effectiveness
it is often compared to other strong steroids like testosterone
and Anadrol 50, and it is likewise a popular choice for
bulking purposes. A daily dosage of 4-5 tablets (20-25mg)
is enough to give almost anybody dramatic results. Some
do venture much higher in dosage, but this practice usually
leads to a more profound incidence of side effects. It additionally
adds well with a number of other steroids. It is noted to
mix particularly well with the mild anabolic deca durabolin.
Together one can expect an exceptional muscle and strength
gains, with side effects not much worse than one would expect
from Dianabol alone. For all out mass, a long acting testosterone
ester like enanthate can be used. With the similarly high
estrogenic/androgenic properties of this androgen, side
effects may be extreme with such a combination however.
Gains would be great as well, which usually makes such an
endeavor worthwhile to the user. As discussed earlier, ancillary
drugs can be added to reduce the side effects associated
with this kind of cycle.
In order to
withstand oral administration, this compound is c17 alpha
alkylated. We know that this alteration protects the drug
from being deactivation by the liver (allowing nearly all
of the drug entry into the bloodstream), however it can
also be toxic to this organ. Prolonged exposure to c17 alpha
alkylated substances can result in actual damage, possibly
even the development of certain kinds of cancer. To be safe
one might want to visit the doctor a couple of times during
each cycle to keep an eye on their liver enzyme values.
Cycles should also be kept short, usually less than 8 weeks
long to avoid doing any noticeable damage. Jaundice (bile
duct obstruction) is usually the first visible sign of liver
trouble, and should be looked out for. This condition produces
an unusual yellowing of the skin, as the body has trouble
processing bilirubin. In addition to the skin, the whites
of the eyes may also yellow, a clear indicator of trouble.
Should this occur the drug should be discontinued immediately
and a doctor visited. This is usually a point where further,
permanent damage can be avoided.
It is also interesting
to note that methandrostenolone is structurally identical
to boldenone, except that it contains the added c17 alpha
alkyl group discussed above. This fact makes clear the impact
of altering a steroid in such a way, as these two compounds
appear to act very differently in the body. The main dissimilarity
seems to lie in the tendency for estrogenic side effects,
which seems to be much more pronounced with Dianabol. Equipoise
is known to be quite mild in this regard, and users therefore
commonly take this drug without any need to addition an
antiestrogen. Dianabol is much more estrogenic not because
it is more easily aromatized, as in fact the 17 alpha methyl
group and c1-2 double bond both slow the process of aromatization.
The problem is that methandrostenolone converts to l7alpha
methylestradiol, a more biologically active form of estrogen
than regular estradiol. But Dianabol also appears to be
much more potent in terms of muscle mass compared to boldenone,
supporting the notion that estrogen does play an important
role in anabolism. In fact boldenone and methandrostenolone
differ so much in their potencies as anabolics that the
two are rarely though of as related. As a result, the use
of Dianabol is typically restricted to bulking phases of
training while Equipoise is considered an excellent cutting
or lean-mass building steroid.
The half-life
of Dianabol is only about 3 to 4 hours, a relatively short
time. This means that a single daily dosage schedule will
produce a varying blood level, with ups and downs throughout
the day. The user likewise has a choice, to either split
up the tablets during the day or to take them all at one
time. The usual recommendation has been to divide them and
try to regulate the concentration in your blood. This however,
will produce a lower peak blood level than if the tablets
were taken all at once, so there may be a trade off with
this option. The steroid researcher Bill Roberts also points
out that a single-episode dosing schedule should have a
less dramatic impact on the hypothalamic-pituitary-testicular
axis, as there is a sufficient period each day where steroid
hormone levels are not extremely exaggerated. I tend to
doubt hormonal stability can be maintained during such a
cycle however, but do notice that anecdotal evidence often
still supports single daily doses to be better for overall
results. Perhaps this is the better option. Since we know
the blood concentration will peak about 1.5 to 3 hours after
administration, we may further wonder the best time to take
our tablets. It seems logical that taking the pills earlier
in the day, preferably some time before training, would
be optimal. This would allow a considerable number of daytime
hours for an androgen rich metabolism to heighten the uptake
of nutrients, especially the critical hours following training.
Athletes are
also often asking how to go about cycling 100 tablets when
that is the only amount available to use. Although most
strongly prefer to cycle at least 200 tablets, half this
amount can be used successfully. The goal should be to intake
an effective amount, but also to stretch it for as long
as possible. We can do this by taking four tablets daily
during the week (Monday to Friday) and abstaining on the
weekend. This gives us a weekly total of 20 tablets, 100
tabs lasting the user five weeks. This should be a long
enough time to receive noticeable gains from the drug, particularly
if you have not used steroid extensively before. Although
unconventional, it is not necessary to vary the pill dosage
throughout a cycle. This method should provide a much more
consistent gain than if attempting an intricate pyramid
schedule, which can eat up most of your pills during dosage
adjustments. Tapering the dosage toward the end would offer
us no real benefit. |
