Types of Steroids

What are steroids?

Anabolic steroids are performance enhancing drugs that are used to improve athletic performance by increasing the muscle mass and strength. Steroids come in various forms and even though their general purpose is the same, they all carry different traits and features. Despite the fact that there are many types of steroids, we will focus mostly on injectable and oral steroids, as these are the most popular types. Even though injectable steroids are totally opposed to the oral steroids, it is a common practice to use an injectable steroid in conjuncture with an oral steroid in the so-called bulking cycle. It is considered that such a cycle brings good results and despite the strong anabolic effect it is preferred to the strictly injectable steroids cycle or oral steroids cycle. In such cases, in order to decrease the incidence of side effects, to the steroid cycle is added a non-aromatizing agent that prevents conversion to estrogen and development of estrogen-related side effects. There are many aspects related to the use of steroids (See the article How to anabolic steroids work), in this article we will discuss about the types of steroids, the benefits and drawbacks each of them carry.

Injectable steroids

Injectable steroids represent an important category of steroids that carry many benefits with minimal risks for health. Injectable steroids are very popular due to the high level of toleration to side effects, stability and the long-lasting effects athletes may benefit from following a cycle with an injectable steroid. Another important thing is that testosterone- the synthetic version of the male hormone comes in form of injection. Testosterone is not only a potent steroid but it also supplements the body with the necessary quantity of hormone. Many steroid cycles include testosterone as the base steroid, as it has many derivatives that are suitable for many users. Besides testosterone, there are many other injectable steroids, the most popular are the following: trenbolone, nandrolone, boldenone, drostanolone and others. Each of them has several derivatives with different duration of action, period of administration and features. Overall, injectable steroids are a good choice for beginners as they provide safety, stability and great results. (For more information see the article: What are injectable steroids)

Oral steroids

Oral steroids are opposed to injectable steroids from all points of view: dosage, period of administration, form of administration, benefits and side effects. Oral steroids should be used before competitions, as they help obtain a good physical appearance in terms of musculature and increase the muscle strength. Oral steroids are designed for the short time use because they carry an increased risk of liver damage. If used for a longer period of time they become toxic and may cause serious health problems. This is the reason oral steroids are used in bulking cycles with injectable steroids for a period of 1-2 weeks before competition or withdrawal. The benefits of using oral steroids are more pronounced if compared to injectable steroids, but last for a shorter period of time. Some of the most popular oral steroids are the following: methenolone, oxandrolone, methandrostenolone, stanozolol and fluoxymesterone. (For more information see the article: What are oral steroids)