Understanding Dianabol – Dosages, Cycles & Side Effects
Developed in the 1960’s by pharmaceutical company Ciba Specialty Chemicals, Dianabol is a synthetic variant of Testosterone specifically designed to enhance muscular development and athletic performance.
The technical name for Dianabol is Methandrostenolone, and it’s part of the androgen group of anabolic steroids.
Dianabol and the Athlete
Dianabol was specifically designed with the athlete and bodybuilder in mind, and is still used for the purpose of performance enhancement today. There are no therapeutic or medical uses for Dianabol, and it’s intended to be used by athletes and bodybuilders.
Delivered primarily as an oral steroid in pill form, Dianabol is unlike other steroids in that it can pass through the liver largely intact, reaching the bloodstream at more or less full strength. There are some injectable versions as well, but these are rarely used or even seen by most users.
Dianabol is a very popular, if not the most popular anabolic steroid even today, and its use is still widespread. It can be used by itself or with another steroid like Testosterone, in a combination or ‘stack’ in increase the effects of both.
Dianabol in the Body
As mentioned above, Dianabol was specifically designed to be an anabolic steroid, and to address some of the issues inherent in other steroids. As such, its structure was designed to produce low androgenic strength, as described below, and to allow it to be administered orally.
Like most anabolic steroids, Dianabol binds to the androgen receptors in the muscle cells of the body, causing them to increase their protein synthesis, which expands the muscle cells, and to increase the level of glycogenolysis, which increases the energy in the cells for additional activity, providing an overall increase in energy for the user.
Side Effects
Side effects from most steroids are caused by their androgenic strength, which means how strongly they interact with androgenic receptors in various tissues in the body. Testosterone, for example, has a very high androgenic strength, and can cause significant side effect if used improperly. Dianabol was specifically designed to eliminate this issue, and as a result has a low androgenic strength. However, while Dianabol has a relatively low androgenic strength, it does cause side effects.
Dianabol causes a moderate amount of aromatization, which is a process in the body whereby the body senses an increase in androgenic activity, and compensates by increasing production of other hormones, namely estrogen. This can result in conditions like Gynecomastia, which is a swelling of tissue in the male chest, commonly referred to in bodybuilding circles as ‘bitch tits’. While this condition can be treated with various kinds of treatments known as aromatase inhibitors, failure to treat this issue can result in long term issues.
Dianabol can also cause a range of internal side effects as well. Among those is liver toxicity, which is caused due to Dianabol being taken orally, and metabolized by the liver. This can result in damage to the liver, and is one of the major reasons why Dianabol use should be limited to 6 weeks, in order to allow the liver to recuperate. Longer term use of Dianabol without these rest periods can result in significant and even permanent damage to the liver.
Cycling Dianabol
In terms of the primary use for Dianabol, its best usage is to product muscle bulk and strength. Whereas another steroid like Testosterone and others can also be used to trim fat and achieve enhanced muscular definition, Dianabol has proven to not be as effective for that use. In addition, if the use of Dianabol is not combined with proper nutrition, and a high level of protein intake, gains will be minimized and the Dianabol usage will largely be wasted.
Dianabol use alone also typically results in relatively limited gains. Because of its side effects, Dianabol cycles should be limited to about 6 weeks. However, while this results in big gains in muscle growth, it also results in limited retention of those gains. The body simply loses that muscle mass a short while after the end of the Dianabol cycle, resulting in limited permanent gains. This means that Dianabol-only cycles are typically discouraged, because a six week cycle is too short to produce lasting gains, while a longer cycle can result in significant damage to the body.
Therefore, the best use for Dianabol-only cycles is for performance athletes who use it for a short period, such as before a competition, and the cycle off afterwards. But for a bodybuilder, or anyone who wants to keep the gains longer term, Dianabol is most effective when used in conjunction with another steroid like Testosterone. In that scenario, the bodybuilder would begin with the injectable steroid, like Testosterone, and then add Dianabol orally for a six week period. Then, after the end of the Dianabol cycle, the user continues with the Testosterone treatment for another 6 weeks or so. This has the effect of preserving the gains made through Dianabol use, allowing the body to adapt and ‘grow into’ the gains made with Dianabol, and preserve more of the gains going forward.
Conclusion
Dianabol is a steroid specifically designed with the athlete and bodybuilder in mind, and in many ways it’s perfectly suited to achieving its goal of increased strength and muscle mass while decreasing certain side effects.
However, Dianabol comes with other side effects as well, and can cause serious damage if it’s not taken the right way. If used correctly, Dianabol can produce significant gains for the user, resulting in increased strength and muscle mass. The key is to make sure that you understand the risks, and do your homework, before you engage in any use of Dianabol.
