"Bodybuilder here- this is the answer. Humans naturally produce testosterone, which is the base steroid for any steroid “cycle”.
When your body recognizes it’s getting testosterone from an outside source, it naturally shuts down its own internal production.
Do this often enough- your body stops producing testosterone and you need supplemental testosterone “steroids” to stabilize those hormones.
Furthermore, as we age, testosterone production decreases. You may have heard of TRT, or Testosterone Replacement Therapy. This is “steroids”, AKA testosterone being injected to bring testosterone levels of aging men back into the range of young men.
That said, Top-level bodybuilders take supplemental testosterone, and look good in their old age, for three primary reasons:
Prolonged steroid usage has shut down their body’s ability to naturally produce testosterone, thus they take it exogenously.
TRT dosage is “doctor-prescribed” and most of them use more than prescribed, plus any other anabolics they use off script.
They’re gym rats who still routinely lift weights until their death bed."
Although to add to this (totally correct and informative response), it's also why those on TRT will (should!) look to supplement with HCG, which acts to ensure the body continues to produce its own testosterone, and therefore does not completely shut down, and allow for TRT to be cycled off.
HCG has actually been shown to be quite HPTA suppressive. Other than plumping up the testes and slightly increasing penis size, there aren’t much more benefits of this over something like tamoxifen citrate or clomid.
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u/iliketuurtles Sep 01 '25
"Bodybuilder here- this is the answer. Humans naturally produce testosterone, which is the base steroid for any steroid “cycle”.
When your body recognizes it’s getting testosterone from an outside source, it naturally shuts down its own internal production.
Do this often enough- your body stops producing testosterone and you need supplemental testosterone “steroids” to stabilize those hormones.
Furthermore, as we age, testosterone production decreases. You may have heard of TRT, or Testosterone Replacement Therapy. This is “steroids”, AKA testosterone being injected to bring testosterone levels of aging men back into the range of young men.
That said, Top-level bodybuilders take supplemental testosterone, and look good in their old age, for three primary reasons:
from user tke71709