AITA for thinking today’s “cycles” are basically homeopathic?

[Juicedhead]

Anyone else see the younger generation doing super isolation exercises like seated pull downs on one arm, then sit on their phones and never lift a heavy weight? Or just me

yeah i see kids waaaay over complicate lifting doing insane shit that advanced lifters do but they look like they weigh about 130lbs.

 

[Astartes]

Alright, I’m ready to be judged by the jury of bros. Am I the asshole here, or am I just old?

For context: when I first came up, my first cycle was 500mg of test and 400mg of EQ. That was considered… normal. Conservative even. Nobody threw a parade, nobody clutched pearls. It was just, “Cool, eat more and train harder.”

Later on? I’d often run 750mg of test with 500mg of tren. Again—pretty standard for the era. Not saying it was smart, not saying it was healthy, not saying anyone should do that now. Just saying that’s what the landscape looked like back then.

Fast-forward to today and I read cycle logs that look like this:

• “Thinking about 120mg test”
• “Might add 50mg of something if sides are okay”
• “Basically TRT+ but I call it a blast”

And everyone’s shredded, tracking biomarkers, wearing CGMs, quoting PubMed, and talking about longevity. Meanwhile I’m sitting here thinking, “Is this a cycle… or a multivitamin?”

Don’t get me wrong—I actually respect a lot of it. Lower doses, better drugs, better food, better knowledge, fewer people wrecking themselves just to gain 8 lbs of water and ego. That’s objectively a good thing.

But part of my brain still does a double-take when I see numbers that wouldn’t have moved the needle back in the day. It’s like showing up to a barbell club and everyone’s maxing out with pink plates… perfectly executed, pristine form, bloodwork on point… and I’m the dinosaur in the corner muttering, “Back in my day…”

So yeah—AITA for laughing a little when I see these minute doses compared to what we ran? Or is this just the natural evolution of the game, and I’m officially the old guy yelling at clouds?

Fire away.

People today are full of crap. Period.

I’m speaking of all the 15-30 year old Reddit guys and new users with a year under their belt who have suddenly become vets and experts.

This very prevalent. More than in days when you had to lie or bullshit your knowledge and experience to someone’s face. Real doses are rarely divulged and when they are, guys flame them.

That said… I’m glad there is a bit of a push to look at longevity and health, but more guys are dying in the sport than 25 years ago.

Why? Because we are less honest than ever. Because hormones and ancillaries are more prevalent than ever.

The reality is yes… more availability, better nutrition, better info (but a lot more bullshit too) and a ton of taboo crap around doses.

No one. Darn near no one is truly honest.

 

[SenorSuperdrol]

Anyone else see the younger generation doing super isolation exercises like seated pull downs on one arm, then sit on their phones and never lift a heavy weight? Or just me

At my gym they don’t squat bench or dead(SBD). They all do instagram science based lifts, super isolated, slow no weight or intensity lifts.

Not that that you have to SBD, but they are a good foundation for newbies.

 

[Mfras]

At my gym they don’t squat bench or dead(SBD). They all do instagram science based lifts, super isolated, slow no weight or intensity lifts.

Not that that you have to SBD, but they are a good foundation for newbies.

Why do pullups and dips when you can rip wide grip cable pulldowns incorporating a crunch and let the eccentric rip you back up uncontrolled to a nice stretch?

 

[glpfun]

My lats never really blew up until I started doing a lot of pull ups. I could feel the lat soreness doing pull downs but they never got that big until I did pull ups

 

[adrenalytic]

My lats never really blew up until I started doing a lot of pull ups. I could feel the lat soreness doing pull downs but they never got that big until I did pull ups

100%

Pullups for width, rows for thickness.

 

[eery]

My lats never really blew up until I started doing a lot of pull ups. I could feel the lat soreness doing pull downs but they never got that big until I did pull ups

my lats started growing when i ditched pullups and barbell rows and did more single arm pulldowns and machine rows :')

different strokes for different folks. People should give both a chance and start with the basics though, im with you on that.

 

[dinfaralt]

and barbell rows

barbell rows does absolute 0 for lat growth imo. i do them because i like them more than shrugs and bb rows build upper back and traps so well