Ask Bill Roberts #17

Testosterone Undecanoate / Clomid

Hello Mr. Roberts,

Is it possible and safe to extract the 40mg of testosterone undecanoate from the Andriol capules with a syringe and than inject it? How often and how much should I inject for maximum muscle growth?

I remember some Australian fellow telling me a few years back that he had tried this, and it was very unsatisfactory. The capsules contain stuff that you don’t want to inject, he said.

It would be very hard to purify the capsules, because testosterone undecanoate will not crystallize easily if at all.

Is it a good idea for a natural bodybuilder to use Clomid on its own to boost testosterone production? What about the effective dosage for this reason? How much can somebody gain on a 6 week cycle? How about the side effects?

David

I don’t think Clomid will do anything for the natural bodybuilder. It does seem to help endurance athletes though, who otherwise tend to have problems with low testosterone.

A very small percentage of people suffer temporary vision problems with Clomid, which are generally reversible on stopping use of the drug.

By the way, there has lately been some hysteria in the popular press that tamoxifen (Nolvadex) can do bad things to your DNA. This is based on studies on rats where the rats were given more than 100 times the human dose per kilogram.

However, the fact is that tamoxifen, or rather, its principle metabolite, is an effective anti-oxidant, which is a good thing. In moderate quantities, anti-oxidants quench reactions of free radicals, which otherwise could cause damage. In high concentrations though the anti-oxidants can instead promote free radical activity, which can cause DNA damage.

Studies have been done looking for evidence of tamoxifen-caused DNA damage in humans and it just hasn’t been found.

The reason I mention that is that Clomid has the same sort of anti-oxidant activity. At very high doses (a gram a day or more) perhaps its anti-oxidant activity could turn against you. No one is recommending such doses.

Clinically, the typical dose is 50-100 mg/day, and it has been used for a year or more at a time.

Using it during cycles and/or for a few weeks after the cycle seems conservative and does not seem to cause problems. I have had only two reports of vision problems, both of which proved reversible, and physicians are finding that to be an uncommon complaint also.

The more common complaint I have found is increased emotional sensitivity. Sometimes though this is praised as being an asset in relationships.

Psychiatrists really ought to look at it for that purpose. But, I digress!

Steroids and Hair Loss

I recently discovered the hard truth to your statement that Deca + Propecia will result in rapid hair loss. 400mg to 600mg T200 and 400mg to 600mg Deca per week can create catastrophe in ones hair. Part of my question is; with continued use of Propecia without steroids (I stopped cold turkey and went to Clomid when I discovered the hairloss) is it likely that the recent hair loss will reverse as it did when I began Propecia (which has indeed regrown a lot of hair for me)?

It’s possible. It’s a dangerous game to lose it and hope to get it back, but given your previous experience, perhaps so.

And, what other agents do you recommend stacking with the Propecia for added regrowth benefit? My main concern is NOT losing my hair.

I used Xandrox from http://www.minoxidil.com

It worked quite well. Problem is, I was determined to stack it with spironolactone (an antiandrogen) but this stuff smells bad. This wound up causing me to stupidly use neither for a while, with considerable losses resulting.

The product contains azelaic acid, which is a 5-alpha reductase inhibitor probably more effective than Propecia; minoxidil; and Retin-A.

Are there any other steroids i.e. Equipose, Anavar, that are mild on hair loss besides Deca?

Nope, in my opinion all synthetics except Deca are equal to each other, and equal to Deca + Propecia.

I would like to try 500mg Primoteston per week for six weeks (mass cycle) then 6 weeks of 250mg Primoteston + 400mg Equipoise per week (cutting cycle) while using 2.5mg of proscar. Would shorter cycles prevent balding at all? Also, is it truly possible to retain a percentage of your steroid gains permanently?

Jake

Well, basically, given your genetics for hair loss, you are either going to have to take it very easy with steroids, using just moderate Deca, or just say the heck with it and go for the Kojak look. It seems like a lot of pro bodybuilders are doing that now.

Shorter cycles won’t help. E.g., the 2 on / 4 off system is just as bad as anything else on the hair.

Sure, I am convinced there are permanent gains. Possible mechanisms for this include increased nucleation of muscle cells during the cycle, which would be a permanent lasting change allowing increased protein synthesis; and maturation of satellite cells into mature muscle cells. Both of these things happen.

I think retention of about 1/3 to 1/2 the gains, not counting water weight, is about right.

Half-Life of Parabolan

Bill,

What half-life would you attribute to Parabolan. I was thinking of using it instead of trenbolone acetate on a short cycle (2 on, 4 off). I had been using testosterone propionate but my source got busted.

Thanks in advance,

Keith

I’ve never seen a published value. Parabolan is trenbolone cyclohexylmethylcarbonate. The half-life of a steroid ester is mostly dependent on its ratio of fat solubility to water solubility: the longer chain the ester, the higher this ratio, and the longer the half-life. This particular carbonate could be most closely compared with an enanthate ester. And so the answer probably is, a little less than week. Or, too long for a brief cycle!

Real Parabolan is murderously expensive, too. An amp a day would be ruinous for the average Joe, yet comparable only to 58 mg/day of trenbolone acetate. (The acetate is a little more potent, more effective per milligram, because the acetate ester is lighter and therefore a higher percentage of the weight is trenbolone.)

Blood Pressure Question

Hi Bill!

You probably don’t remember but I emailed questions regarding infertility problems and you were kind enough to reply. Well it took about a year, mostly due to scheduling doctor appt. and getting rid of crappy doctors, but my wife is in her 2nd trimester!

Wow! Terrific!!! :)

My question is I have been clean for over a year now and had a physical taken recently. I resumed training and gained 13 lbs of lean mass in a little over 6-7 weeks but my blood pressure was 150/100, 150/90. Now mind you I had a 32 oz. cup of coffee from Starbucks but usually when I gain weight my blood pressure gets elevated to 140/90 but because I run 3-4 times per week I thought that would keep my pressure down. I am taking creatine, 20-30 grams, and I do take Adipokinetix rather frequently. Be advised high blood presure runs in my family as does heart disease, strokes high bp, etc. I am 34 years old. Any suggestions?

Perry

Well, we have a lot of things combining against you here.

Increased bodyweight will tend to increase blood pressure. Ephedrine will tend to increase blood pressure, and I expect Adipokinetix will too. I don’t think running will do miracles. Some people have claimed that creatine has increased their blood pressure, but perhaps it is by no more than would be expected with the weight increase. Add in a family tendency towards it, and you have a lot of things working against you.

I’d avoid the Adipokinetix if your blood pressure is over 140/90. After establishing this result, I’d experiment and see what happened from dropping creatine. If no improvement after a month, put it back in!

Some have claimed improvements from cyclic ketogenic diets, but as to whether it is medically established that this works, I don’t know.

If your problem continues even after minimizing adverse factors, I’d definitely seek medical assistance.

Prohormone Cycle

Bill,

I am planning on taking Nor Stack by Substrate Solutions and Tribex 500 for gaining mass. What do you suggest is the best way to do so for a 4-6 week cycle? I train HIT style 2-3 times a week so I am a little confused if I should take the prohormones only on lifting days or on “off” days also and if so how?.

Thanks,

Morgan

With the prohormones, you have a choice of going all-out, for which the costs are inhibition of natural testosterone production and a big hit to the wallet, or keeping it conservative. Conservative means using, for example, just 300 mg before workouts, this not being after 6 PM, or perhaps using 200 mg three times per day, with the last dose not being after the late afternoon.

Don’t expect big mass gains. This is an “edge” at best.

The other approach is to take high doses around the clock. This might mean 300 mg four or five times a day. I don’t personally recommend this. I think a pharmaceutical steroid cycle, if legal, would make a lot more sense, and would give more results too. A few people have reported results they were pretty happy with when doing this, but they suffered post-cycle losses too.

As for the Tribex, I don’t know. I got nothing out of Tribestan myself. On the other hand, some people are sure they did. It’s a matter that needs more study for me to be sure about it. I’d suggest trying it, but also try taking a few weeks off from it, and make sure that there is an obvious difference before making it something you use regularly.

Anabolic Steroids and Fat Distribution

Mr. Roberts

I have a few questions about the effects of steroids on the way your body distributes fat. Thank you for your time,

Jason

Well, I’ll just have to guess what you would have wanted to know, since I did not get to this letter until right before the article deadline.

There are some differences. In one study, oxandrolone was shown to particularly decrease percentage of abdominal fat in men, compared to testosterone or nandrolone. And overall, men with low testosterone often find it much easier to lose fat (overall) when using anabolic steroids than when not using steroids. I have the impression that high androgen levels particularly aid in loss of lower-body fat.

It’s an interesting topic.

Anabol and Descending Cycles

Dear Bill,

Is ANABOL from Thailand different from Dianabol?

They have the same active ingredient: methandrostenolone.

Are descending pyramid cycles out of date?

They’re a bad idea, anyway. My philosophy is, if you are going to be using enough steroids to substantially inhibit natural testosterone production, then use enough to be growing fast. It is pointless to use low doses that kill your natural testosterone and yet result in little growth.

At the end of a cycle, one is very unlikely to grow much on piddly doses, yet these low doses are still inhibitory.

Or in the case of descending dose cycles that just drop a little, still, there is no reason for the drop. If the previous dose was acceptable for side-effects before, it’s still acceptable in the final weeks of the cycle, too.

For an 8 week cycle I’ll start at the max dose of 60mg Anabol then, taper down from there. From my understanding of your columns it looks like I could just take like 40 mg for 8 weeks straight.

Joe

Yes, you could. What I would do would be to switch to morning-only use (half or two-thirds on arising, and the remainder at noon) somewhere towards the end. This will still allow recovery while helping to avoid losses.

Is 100 mg Winstrol Worthwhile?

Hi Bill,

I’ve been takin’ 50mg/day of hydroxyzine for more than 10 years now, for allergic control. Since I started on AAS this year, I’m on the 2nd cycle now, and I don’t know exactly what hydroxyzine is. I wonder if is there anything I should be aware of in this combination.

It is an H1 receptor antagonist. As you would guess, this is a receptor relevant to asthma treatment. I don’t think there is any issue of interaction with anabolic steroids.

Also, about stacking steroids… Let’s say in one week I shot:

• 200mg Deca Durabolin
• 250mg Sustanon
• 100mg Winstrol Depot

As your advice is at least 50mg/day of Winstrol, should I consider that the Winstrol in this case is worthless in the overall, or the 550mg of AAS is what really counts?

Thanks in advance.

Vander

No, it still counts towards your total and will make a difference. But, it would not make a dramatic difference, just as 550 is not a dramatically different number from 450. Each amp will give just as much benefit on this schedule as each amp would with 350 mg/week total Winstrol. But it’s only two of those benefits instead of seven of them.

I do want to make it clear to other readers that I’m not saying that “milligrams are milligrams” and it doesn’t matter at all what the blend is. I’ve had other columns on synergy and why some combinations are beneficial. But in general, yes, you can look at the total amount and get an idea of how much of a stack one has.

This is a reasonably mild one, with or without the Winstrol.

Estrogen and Mood

Bill,

You say that high estrogen has negative effects the mood of someone on high doses of testosterone.

Mmmm, don’t think I said exactly that.

What I know I said was that at the start of a steroid cycle with high doses of testosterone, and no use of an antiaromatase, the user may feel bad in terms of mood, and that I attributed this to unaccustomed high estrogen levels.

I think it is more the change from what the athlete is used to rather than the absolute amount of estrogen, because as time goes on, the athlete is comfortable with it.

I thought that estrogen was beneficial in the function of the brain.

It is part of normal function, yes.

I have high estradiol levels like 63 pg/ml. Testosterone is 763 ng/dl. I have never used steroids or pro hormones before. Should I use an anti estrogen or not?

Ben

If you have no problems that would seem related to it, such as problems with lower-body fat retention, or water retention, I would not bother trying to treat a non-problem. A couple of percent of individuals will test just above the high end of the normal range, and this does not mean that they have a health problem.

Winstrol Depot Orally?

Bill,

I have read on several boards that taking Winstrol amps orally can be just as effective as injecting.

It is just as effective, I think, as taking the same amount of tablets orally. Whether it is exactly as effective as injecting, I don’t know. It seems to be in the same ballpark anyway.

They go on to say that the amps like the tabs are 17-alkylated and would not make a difference. And what would you find to be more effective and less stressful on your liver?

I would expect the same effect on the liver either way. Either way, the steroid is going to be metabolized by the liver, and in fact, will pass through the liver many times.

This practice can be very beneficial considering how frequent and painful Winny shots are.

They really should not be painful (in the calves though can certainly be an exception).

Also most of the black market Winny is fake: I believe my bottle has the active ingredient Stanozolol but is probably a bath tub operation, and not sterile enough to inject but acceptable to take orally.

Charles

I can’t comment on whether an unknown fake is safe orally, but if there is a problem, it’s far better to take something bad orally than to inject it.

Safety of Dianabol, and Percent 1 Rep Max

Bill,

In the 2 on 4 off case studies that are presented, for example with Jim, I noticed that some form of D-bol is used for at least 4 of the 6 weeks. I know that D-bol or Reforvit-B, if that’s the drug of choice, is hard on the liver.

Not very. I wouldn’t use it every day of every week for life, though.

For example, Jim’s blood tests showed he did fine.

With successive cycles done back to back, what is done to prevent damage to the liver? Does the fact that the D-bol is not stacked with test lessen its toxicity?

When Dianabol is used only in the morning, the liver is free of it for about half of every day. It doesn’t seem to be a practical problem. Besides this, I like to see a completely clean week or two in between the cycles as well. However that does not seem necessary when talking about only a few cycles, such as three to five back-to-back.

My second question regards training. You’ve often mentioned that when training for hypertrophy, one should utilize weights ranging in the 70-85% 1RM area. Is that 70-85% of your 1RM at that time? What I mean is this: say an individual can do 10 reps with 70% of his 1RM. So he does 3 sets of 10 with that particular weight. He then moves on to the next exercise for that bodypart. Obviously fatigue will be a factor, and thus 10 reps of the new exercise will not be 70% of the 1RM for that exercise. Could you please explain if there is any validity to this point, and if so what should be done about it.

Thanks!!!

John

It is based on fresh 1RM.

When you get to the point where, because of previous exercises, you cannot get a decent number of reps with an appropriate percentage of your fresh 1 rep max, you are done training anyway!

I have run into this. For quite some time, I had always done the Hammer Strength Iso Row as the last back exercise on those occasions I did the Iso Row. I’d never tried to see what I could lift fresh, and was using weights that allowed 4-9 reps during these final sets.

Little did I know that I was using weights as low as 30% 1RM (!) to get nine reps. No wonder I was making no or little progress on that machine, or on my lats for that matter.

Once I knew my fresh 1RM, I adjusted my training weights upward accordingly, and restructured my workouts accordingly, with very good results