Using steroids when your ligaments/tendons haven't fully developed/strengthened...

I've been reading through various threads discussing the potential short-term risks associated with younger/unexperienced guys using anabolic steroids. One of the things that kept popping up was this idea of your ligaments/tendons being "underdeveloped" and so therefore unable to cope with the drastic increase in muscle mass in such a short period of time.

I was wondering whether anyone could offer any further insight into this. Is this a genuine concern that a young guy with less than 3 years of training should take into account?

What are the potential/most common injuries that could occur? Also, do they tend to occur from guys being silly in the gym; i.e. - attempting to lift weight that is far beyond them just because of the fact they're on gear? Is the risk still there if you go into the gym and train against moderate resistance whilst working in a hypertrophy stimulating rep-range? Or does it just happen when you're on gear and your ego gets the best of you so you start pushing for 1RM's all the time?

I mean, hypothetically, say a skinny guy (6'0", 150 lbs) did a Test E/Dbol cycle and did everything right. He keeps all of the sides at bay and eats/trains/sleeps optimally. Let's say he doesn't go overboard in his training and doesn't try to lift too much weight that he wouldn't normally attempt. A gain of 20-25 lbs is a realistic expectation in 12 weeks. If he had only been training for 6-12 months prior to the cycle, would he be at serious risk of injury as his tendons/ligaments would be unable to cope with the increase muscle mass?

I have no intention of using AAS just yet. I just wanted more information on this.

Thanks.

Hypothetically, you're several years away from being ready for gear. You're 18. While soft tissue damage is a concern at your age there are much more serious things to worry about. This would be one of the least of your concerns.

I'm actually 26. I've been trying to change my account settings for a while now but I can't seem to access the "My Profile" tab.

Could you go into more detail about what soft tissue damage is and how it's caused?

Why would you put 18 in your profile when you joined just four months ago? I don't know about you but when I register for websites, even if I feel inclined to fake an age, which I never do, I would not put 18. Something smells fishy here.

Either way, your tendons and ligaments grow in strength similar to your muscles. They just grow a lot slower. This means over a short period of time using steroids your muscles are growing incredibly fast in size and strength.

While your muscles may be growing fast your tendons and ligaments are not growing as fast. This means you might be maxing out on benchpress at 3-400lbs, and no doubt your muscles could handle it if you are doing it, but that doesn't mean your tendons and ligaments can.

It would only be a matter of time until you got injured. Tears, pulls, aches, and even surgery can be necessary if it is bad enough and you do not listen to your body and common sense.

Cause 26 is the golden age.

OP, hypothetically if you were 6'0 and 150lbs, it would indicate that you don't know how to eat food. Steroids aren't going to fix this problem.

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Originally Posted by Honkey_Kong

OP, hypothetically if you were 6'0 and 150lbs, it would indicate that you don't know how to eat food. Steroids aren't going to fix this problem.

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Goodness gracious, I didn't see that when I first read the post. Somebody buy this guy a hamburger.

I think some of you guys are taking this to literally. I think OP was trying to create a scenario where both muscle and ligaments were at a baseline to focus the talk on ligament growth (please correct if I'm off).

Interestingly enough most of the AAS users who get injured are intermediate to experienced lifters. The people who are pushing the upper limits of their bodies where things that didn't bother us say with a 1200lbs total that can now wreak havoc with a 2000lbs total. This is why the motto never stop learning is so incredibly important. As your body becomes more experienced so must your brain to keep yourself healthy.

The truth of the matter on young people and steroids is no one really knows. Arnold started using when he was 15 and he stands 6'2" today, growth plates be damned. The issue for me comes back to experience and knowledge. Most people under 25 don't have the maturity to understand what they are doing let alone injecting super physiological levels of hormones.

If you started lifting when you were say 15 by the time you were 25 that would be 10 years under your belt. By this time you should know almost everything there is to know about how your body reacts to lifting, different protocols for different results, calorie partitioning for your goals, and proper recovery. Whether it takes you 3 years or takes you 10 to reach the experience level of an expert doesnt matter. I am of the opinion that no one should start a cycle until they are considered an expert, not by themselves but by the peers they interact with.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by AlexLifter

I've been reading through various threads discussing the potential short-term risks associated with younger/unexperienced guys using anabolic steroids. One of the things that kept popping up was this idea of your ligaments/tendons being "underdeveloped" and so therefore unable to cope with the drastic increase in muscle mass in such a short period of time.

I was wondering whether anyone could offer any further insight into this. Is this a genuine concern that a young guy with less than 3 years of training should take into account?

What are the potential/most common injuries that could occur? Also, do they tend to occur from guys being silly in the gym; i.e. - attempting to lift weight that is far beyond them just because of the fact they're on gear? Is the risk still there if you go into the gym and train against moderate resistance whilst working in a hypertrophy stimulating rep-range? Or does it just happen when you're on gear and your ego gets the best of you so you start pushing for 1RM's all the time?

I mean, hypothetically, say a skinny guy (6'0", 150 lbs) did a Test E/Dbol cycle and did everything right. He keeps all of the sides at bay and eats/trains/sleeps optimally. Let's say he doesn't go overboard in his training and doesn't try to lift too much weight that he wouldn't normally attempt. A gain of 20-25 lbs is a realistic expectation in 12 weeks. If he had only been training for 6-12 months prior to the cycle, would he be at serious risk of injury as his tendons/ligaments would be unable to cope with the increase muscle mass?

I have no intention of using AAS just yet. I just wanted more information on this.

Thanks.

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common ailments newbs taking steorids experience due to a lack of time in the gym strengthening up connective tissue:

forearm - tendonitis/tendonosis (reverse curls)
leg - hamstring (leg curls, leg extensions)
shoulder - rotator cuff (bench press)
knees (squats)
elbows (skull crushers)

it's interesting. I've never heard of anyone experiencing an injury from crunchies?