Steroids in Sports

The Dark Side of Sport Today

By Marcus Power

In our world of sport today, only the elite seem to survive and make it to the top in their chosen fields. Why is this? How come a certain few athletes seem to dominate, and completely outclass the rest. What is it that gives the so called elite few, that extra edge. I believe, it's simply the fact that they are so hungry to succeed, they will do whatever it takes to reach their goals, regardless of the consequences.

I have personally witness this obsession over the years in a number of different sports. My chosen sport was Bodybuilding. I starting Bodybuilding at the age of sixteen and by the time I reached the age of twenty, I had made some good gains in both size and strength. But overall I was unhappy with my progress considering the effort I was putting into my training and diet. I was still a long way off from reaching my goal, which was to compete at national level.

I was introduced to anabolic steroids at the age of twenty. And after a short period of time taking them I had made some incredible gains in muscle size and strength. By the time I reached the age of twenty seven I was a seventeen stone Bodybuilder, I was huge, it was almost life changing.

I took steroids for over ten years just to reach and stay at national level of competition. But like all good things, it came to an end and it was far from pleasant. I ended up in hospital with all sorts of very serious health problems, my liver and kidneys were damaged, I had developed an irregular heart beat along with a number of other issues. All those risks for the love of a sport, all those risks so that I could be better than all the rest.

I was one of the lucky ones; I have made a full recovery. Some guy's that trained with me are no longer around, heart attacks and strokes saw them on their way. Some other guys ended up on dialyses machines. Now that I am in my forties, I look back in complete horror at the crazy risks that I took just to try and reach my goal.

I worry for the youth of today, especially the ones that are involved in sports that require size and strength. I have spoken to a number of sixteen and seventeen year olds, who have told me the pressure that they are being put under by their coaches to bulk up, just to get a place on their local teams. I would advise any parent to closely monitor their children at that age who are involved in any sport that requires size and strength. If you think for one minute that your son is naturally bulking up on creatine of protein powders that you can buy in your local health food store you are very much mistaken.

Trust me, I know. I've being there and done it and I can safely say that you don't get that size and strength from a tub of powder. Apart from all the serious damage that you will do to your internal organs from taking steroids. There are also other life threatening side effects. A lot of steroid users become very paranoid and depressed, which as we all know can and does lead to suicide in many cases.

Sport is no longer as it uses to be, that is a fact, and it's a harsh reality. We hear cases of well known sports stars failing drug tests now on a regular basis. I don't believe that sport will ever be completely drug free again. But as parents who encourage our children to take part in sport, which has so many great benefits for them, not only physically, but mentally and socially as well. We really need to be fully aware of the dangers and the temptations that they will be faced with as they progress in their chosen fields.

Click Here For Your Free Bodybuilding and Powerlifting Magazine

Disclaimer: Information provided on this site is for entertainment purposes only. Any suggestions given are in no way intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice. CyberIron.com assumes no responsibility for personal injury or damage sustained by or through the use of any advice given or products suggested.