What Happens When You Stop Taking Steroids?

Current data suggest that, more or less, half of the global fitness population could have used performance-enhancing drugs like steroids. It is understandable why individuals opt to use steroids. The results are unmatched compared to any ‘natural’ interventions. This does not mean that we are proponents of their use.

How many of these individuals will or have already stopped taking steroids altogether? Due to popular demand, we have put together a short article dedicated to the effects of steroid cessation.

The initial discussion covers the reasons why someone might stop steroid use. This section is then followed by the physical and psychological effects of halting steroid use.

If you or someone you know could benefit from this information, stay tuned and take notes.

Reasons for Stopping Steroid Use

There are a handful of reasons why someone might have considered stopping steroids, which we have shared below.

Health Concerns & Adverse Effects

At times, steroid users can become fearful of health concerns and side effects. Either from reading deeply into the adversities or first hand experience. Be it hair loss, acne, or even more severe liver or heart issues. In turn, this may influence their decision to come off steroids if they have not already done so.

Fear of Sports Ban

It is well known that performance-enhancing drugs are cheating within competitive sports. Due to anti-doping rules, WADA can subject any athlete to random testing.

Athletes may become fearful of the thought of a ban and fine, where they would stop taking steroids to eliminate the substance from the system. Note that elite athletes should not be taking steroids in the first place, but it does happen, and it is what it is.

Personal Choice and Lifestyle Changes

Typically, 18-year-olds would have different goals and outlooks on life compared to 35-year-olds. Sometimes, decisions are made that later in life are regretted with the realization that life’s purpose may not be solely to get abnormally strong and muscular.

At this point, an individual may want to stop taking steroids or any type of performance drug altogether. This is just one scenario, and there are many lifestyle changes that may have you cut back on the gym and performance drugs. Those who have been observing the fitness side of social media should be well aware of the ‘dad bod,’ which is eventually accepted by many.

Physical Effects of Stopping Steroids

So what happens if an individual stops taking steroids suddenly? Once steroid use is halted, there is a chain of physical effects covered below.

Hormonal Imbalance

Anabolic steroids mimic the male sex hormone testosterone when injected or taken orally. This rush of synthetic testosterone/steroids in the body does not go undetected. The hypothalamus and pituitary gland in the brain signal for suppression of natural testosterone production in an attempt to maintain hormonal balance.

Believe it or not, in some cases, steroids can lead to a permanent suppressor of testosterone even when you stop taking steroids. This would lead to a whole host of physical side effects that have been discussed.

All is not lost because someone who has lost their natural testosterone production can opt for testosterone replacement therapy (TRT). TRT would normally be prescribed and administered by a licensed medical doctor every 1-2 weeks. The dosage could be in the range of 50-400ml, depending on how stunted natural testosterone has become.

The goal is to maintain the healthy physiological range of testosterone between 300-1000 ng/dL.

Others may get off lightly and go through an adjustment period. During this time, hormonal levels will climb back to their natural state. The time course would vary from person to person but expect several weeks and up to four months. The individual will still feel the adverse effects of T until their hormone levels have somewhat normalized.

Decline in Muscle & Strength

Bodybuilders and powerlifters get absolutely humongous using steroids. Even high-level athletes can add over 11 pounds of muscle weight and a 20% strength increase in a reasonable amount of time.

Now, imagine when users come off them. They will no longer get the anabolic response from the massive amount of hormones flowing through the body. Secondly, performance and workout stimulus would drop significantly.

Do not be surprised to read that there would be a noticeable loss in size and lifting strength within the first 4 weeks. More than likely, this is due to a drop in muscle mass and water retention. Real-world steroid users have reported over 12% losses in bench press strength within the first few weeks of cessation if we are looking at steroids before and after one cycle.

Within the next 4-6 months, the majority of the muscle and strength gains could be lost unless proper training and nutrition are observed.

Anabolic steroids have been shown to increase myonuclei count (muscle growth signalers) above one’s natural capacity, so a former steroid user could always hold more muscle and strength than ‘normal.’

Please note that the above general information is based on some research and anecdotes. The rate of muscle and strength loss can vary from person to person.

Increase in Body Fat

For those who do not know, skeletal muscle is the most thermogenic tissue in the human body. In other words, the more muscle an individual has, the more calories are burned.

On estimate, an additional 6-10 daily calories are burned for every 1 pound of muscle held on the frame. This may not seem like a lot, but it adds up and helps to manage weight in the long term.

Just to give an idea, holding 20 pounds of muscle, at best, burns an additional 200 calories per day. Over the space of a year, this equates to 72000 calories, which is equivalent to 20.5lbs of body fat. How was this figure established? Well, there are ~3500 calories in 1 pound of body fat.

Stopping steroids results in significant muscle loss and lower training efforts. For these reasons, the total energy expenditure (calories burned) would be much lower. Think of it as a slowed metabolism. Body composition would definitely degrade, and unless calories from food intake are cut back, fat gain is almost inevitable.

Psychological Effects

Steroid cessation also comes with psychological problems. The drastic drop in testosterone levels messes with your brain hormones. In turn, this leads to mood swings, depression, anxiety, and lowered self-esteem.

These symptoms can be recovered by either waiting until testosterone levels ‘normalize’ or TRT. Other forms of help can be psychological therapies like CBT.

Take Home Message

All in all, halting steroid use messes up hormones, lowers muscle and strength, and then raises body fat levels by slowing down the metabolism. Do not forget that there are also some psychological effects related to mood and emotional well-being.

Remember that this article is not medical advice and is not intended to diagnose, cure, treat, or prevent any disease, disorder, or medical condition. It should never replace any advice and treatment provided by your physician or licensed healthcare provider.

If you have any questions regarding product usage or purchasing, feel free to contact us directly.