Food is so anabolic to the body because of the changes it creates in hormone levels, most notably insulin and cortisol levels. Most guys can create huge amounts of muscle simply through the proper use of food. No need for steroids at all, just eat the right foods at the right times consistently and you will grow.

The next level of anabolic supplements is the various natural testosterone boosters such as tongkat ali and stinging nettle root extract that are out there. You might be surprised to learn that some of these natural supplements will work very well for certain users. They certainly aren’t as effective as steroids, but they are much safer as well.

The next class of anabolic supplements are the so called legal steroids. These are compounds that are chemically similar to steroids or steroid precursors. Supplement companies have been releasing these in droves over the past few years and while they do seem to work, they are also quite dangerous in their side effects in some users. Liver problems, high cholesterol levels and gyno are just a few of the side effects that have been reported with many of these legal steroid anabolics.

Obviously the decision is up to you regarding what supplements you want to put into your body. I can only recommend that you stick with food as your main anabolic compound, especially if you have less than 2-3 years lifting and you’re under the age of 21. If you fall into this category you should still be able to make very good gains without using any anabolics.

Those of you that have both your diets and lifting in line and are stuck at an advanced level may want to investigate the anabolic supplements to see if you’re willing to accept the possible side effects in exchange for the gains you can get using them. There’s no doubt that some of these supplements are quite powerful and could add 5-10 pounds of mass to your frame in a short period of time.

Anabolics are a very hot subject and it seems like everyone has their opinions on whether they should be allowed or not. I believe that those who are informed and willing to risk the possible side effects for the very real gains to be had from anabolics should be permitted to use them. In any case they are only supplements, not magic potions. Without a proper diet and lifting plan all the anabolics in the world won’t help you add quality muscle.

On the other hand, there are a huge number of over the counter anabolic supplements that are often referred to as legal steroids because they mimic the effects of real steroids. Are these anabolics truly legal steroids as some claim?

Many of the recent anabolic supplements such as Superdrol, Phera Plex and others were created to be similar to controlled anabolic steroids such as Masteron. While it is illegal under the Anabolic Steroid Control Act of 2004 to sell substances that are chemically similar to banned steroids, many of the supplements coming to market in the past several years are still analogs of anabolic steroids, in effect legal steroids.

One major problem with the creation of this new class of legal steroids is that they are often methylated compounds, meaning they use a methyl bond in the chemical structure to increase the absorption of the compound. While this may be great for your results and mass gains it is horrible for your health, especially that of your liver. The methyls in these compounds cause your liver to work way to hard to cleanse the body and can result in permanent liver damage if you believe some sources.

I have my doubts that the short cycles most guys use with these legal steroids can cause permanent liver damage. It is always pointed out that liver enzyme levels rise when taking methylated anabolics, but I would expect that your liver enzymes would be elevated while the liver is working so hard to clear the compounds out of your system. This does not mean that damage is being done in my opinion.

Another problem with the new class of legal steroids is their easy availability. While I believe you can safely take both these compounds and actual anabolic steroids safely, I also believe that to do so properly requires a certain amount of knowledge of physiology in general and your own bodies reactions in particular. I would be willing to guess that many of the guys taking these anabolics have no idea what they do to the body, how to counteract the negative effects and how to re-balance their hormones when coming off the legal steroids.

If you feel that it is necessary for you to take legal steroids to reach your bodybuilding goals then by all means do, but please do so safely. Take the time to learn about the compounds you’re planning on taking and how they affect your body. Learn what warning signs to look out for and what to do if you run into problems. And be sure to learn how to use post cycle therapy properly when discontinuing the use of legal steroids. This will help you to bring your hormones back into balance and will also help you keep the gains you made while taking the legal steroid.

If you’ve spent any time at all in the gym you know how difficult it can be to add additional muscle or overcome that plateau on your bench or squat. By using anabolics intelligently many guys have been able to blast through previous personal records and add pounds of muscle to their frames. Anabolic supplements are by no means a magic potion, but they can certainly be a help when your goal is to get huge.

Recent times have seen the rapid explosion of legal steroids as supplement companies are able to tap into the latest scientific research in their quest to make new anabolic supplements. It seems that each month sees the addition of a new anabolic compound promising massive gains in the gym. In truth, many of these are simply copies of already existing substances which have been proven to work well.

When you decide to start using anabolics you should be sure to research them well and know what effects and more importantly side effects come with these anabolic supplements. If you’re under the age of 18 by no means should you be taking these products as your body has not finished its natural growth. Food, rest and heavy weights are all you need at this age.

Once you’re informed and prepared for the experience you can feel safe using the newest anabolic supplements. Don’t expect to add 30 pounds of muscle in a month, but it is quite usual for lifters to be able to add 10 pounds in a month and increase their core lifts by anywhere from 10-15%.

Adding legal steroids or anabolics to your arsenal of muscle building processes is a very good move. Today’s anabolics when used with knowledge are quite safe for most men and the results they give are superior to simple creatine supplementation. If you haven’t already made the leap you should learn more about anabolic supplements and see if they are right for you.

By adding a methyl group to Epitiostanol chemists have made it a different compound and therefore it is not covered under current laws. This group of now legal steroids have long lasting and strong anti-estrogen effects and are considered to be weak androgens.

Because of the anti-estrogen effects of epistane you can expect very dry gains with little to no water retention. Because it is a weak androgen you should experience little to no side effects such as gyno and hair loss. Epistane does not suppress the gonads and you shouldn’t see much if any shrinkage. It has also been shown to maintain high LH levels and some users report that it is even effective in reducing existing gyno.

Because of the above mentioned properties I would consider using epistane as a cutting agent to maintain strength and lean mass while dieting. However, that does not mean it wouldn’t make a good bulking compound. The benefit here would be that any gains would be lean gains and users reports gains of 5-10 pounds in a month of using epistane. Because it is so dry most of the gains are kept once the cycle is ended.

Most users are dosing epistane from 10-60 mgs a day for a maximum of 6 weeks. You should no continue using this legal steroid for longer than 6 weeks. Remember, epistane is methylated so both dosage and time on cycle should be adhered to. A beginners dosing schedule might look like this:

Week 1: 10 mgs for the first 3 days then increasing the dose to 20 mgs.

Week 2: 20 mgs

Week 3: 30 mgs

Week 4: 40 mgs- This week is optional and depends on how your body reacts.

Even though the side effects associated with epistane are small I would still consider using support supplements while on cycle and running a complete and proper post cycle therapy at the conclusion of your cycle.

Based on user feedback I think that the legal steroid epistane can be a great tool to help athletes add lean mass and/or maintain strength and mass when cutting. It may be quite beneficial as part of a stack with another, non-methylated legal steroid such as 1,4 AD or Mega TRN. Since epistane is already methylated itself I would avoid other methylated designer legal steroids such as Superdrol and Halodrol and their clones.

Serious amateur bodybuilders have been flocking to the newest legal steroids such as Androstenedione ( andro), 1-AD,1-test and 4-Androstenedione and more recently to such great supplements as Superdrol, Halodrol and Phera-Plex.  When used correctly these legal alternatives to steroids can be both safe and effective in boosting muscle recovery, strength and size.

The very first legal steroids were actually prohormones and they were popularized by the East Germans.  Androstenedione is considered the first of these prohormones and it works by being converted by the liver to actual testosterone.  It was in this way that illegal steroids were avoided and athletes were able to boost their testosterone levels through the means of legal steroids.

After Andro came many other prohormones over the past decade.  On January 20th, 2005 the US Federal Gorvenment’s ban on prohormones, including Androstenedione, took effect.   There are new legal steroid alternatives being introduces literally every month now as the governments try to shut down each new compound.  So far they have not been successful.

There is much debate over the safety and efficacy of these new legal steroid products as most of them come to the market untested and with no way to determine possible short term and long term side effects.  In fact, the athlete’s themselves are now the guinea pigs for testing these substances and many do so gladly in the hopes of adding an additional 5 or 10 pounds of muscle.

While this is definitely not the best way, it will continue I’m sure as we athletes can be quite fanatical.  The best you can do is to find as much information as possible before beginning with any of the new legal steroids.  Have blood tests done before, during and after your cycle to make sure you aren’t doing any harm to your body.  Take auxiliary supplements to help protect your liver and to avoid possible estrogen bounce back.

I know very well that as long as supplements are being promoted to help increase strength and muscle there will be people that take them even though there is scant information available about them.  All I ask is that you do as much research as possible when trying out the latest legal steroids.  And please avoid them completely if you’re under the age of 21.

For the rest of you who need to watch your expenses (like me) the alternatives to Halodrol-50 are MethAndrol-50 and Hemadrol. There is also a product called Promagnon-25 which has been discontinued by the manufacturer, but can still be found online. The nice thing about Promagnon is that the 25mg serving size allows you to dose at 75mg/day. Very useful for larger athletes as the 50mg/day has been found to be a bit underdosed if you weigh more than 200 lbs.

Methandrol-50 is produced by Webber Pharmaceuticals and includes a proprietary blend of enzyme blocking herbs. They purport that these herbs increase the bio-availability of the anabolic ingredient in Methandrol-50 by up to 40%.

Just like Halodrol-50 it has very little androgenic activity and will lead to quick gains in strength and lean muscle mass without any bloating, oily skin, acne or gyno. This is a great legal steroid with excellent lean dry gains. It also stacks well with many other products including creatine, NO enhancers and more androgenic legal steroids.

Active ingredient: 4-chloro-17a-methyl-andro-4-ene-3,17b-diol 50mg
Bergamottin 100mg
Buplerum 100mg
Hoelen 100mg

Mass FX is not a steroidal product or prohormone. Anabolic Xtreme is calling it a pro-anabolic and they claim that Mass FX will increase testosterone levels, deliver rock hard pumps, promote the Alpha Male mentality, increase aggression, build xtreme muscle mass and give immediate strength gains. And it is supposed to kick in within 2-3 days!

Mass FX is a blend of 4 ingredients:

• (3b,5a,6a,25R)-Spirostan-3,6-diol
• 3,4divanillyltetrahydrofuran
• 6,7,-dyhydroxybergamottin
• Bioperine

(3b,5a,6a,25R)-Spirostan-3,6-diol aka 25R-diol
25R-Diol is natural derivative of a class of compounds called sapogenins. It has potent anabolic properties and no (pro-hormone type) harsh side effects. 25R-diol will bind to androgen receptors, but has very little androgenic activity. This makes it a potent anabolic with none of the androgenic side effects.

3,4divanillyltetrahydrofuran
Stinging Nettle Root Extract – This is the same compound found in Activate by Designer Supplements. If you’ve read my Activate write up you’ll know that I really like this product. It works by freeing up bound testosterone. Bound test is inactive in your body and free test is active. So, by freeing up the bound testosterone you get more test related benefits.

6,7,-dyhydroxybergamottin
Also known as DHB it is used to prolong the activity of 25R-diol in the body.

Bioperine
This is an extract from black pepper and it increases absorbtion of 25R-diol from your stomach.

Overall, reviews for this new pro-anabolic product so far have been outstanding. Users are almost all reporting increases in strength, lean mass and energy along with a decreases in fat. Additionally, users report increased aggression/focus, better pumps and increased libido. I have been unable to find any reports of negative side effects few reports of non-responsiveness.

If you are looking for a mild anabolic supplement with no side effects and decent consistent gains then I think you will like this product.

Anabolic Xtreme suggests that you stack this with Hyperdrol and I will be reviewing that product next. The two products are supposed to compliment each other very well.