Post-Cycle Diet?

Pharma
24

I know brother just kidding

25

This. I see a lot of guys (and I have done the same) want to diet right away after a cycle, cut calories during PCT, up cardio, and bam, all gainz go bye bye. Horrible environment to be in if you want to maintain muscle. I’d just maintain for 6-8 weeks, then diet once your HPTa is back

26

I tried to maintain for 6 to 8 weeks, but where I differed, I would be back on another cycle. I tried to be “on cycle” more than I was “off cycle.” I am not recommending this, only that is what I did for 3 decades.

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27

I think your cycles were very reasonable compared to what guys use today.

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28

Quick off topic question, but since you lived the era as a professional BB, do you think Arnolds recent membrance of his cycles back then is plausible or not?

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29

I watched his Netflix show. I liked it. I was thinking that his statement of the steroids helping as much as a tan was a bit ridiculous. I believe it was a downplay move, however, thinking about it, could any white person do well under the lights without a dark tan in a large pro competition? It would be a huge disadvantage to be pasty white haha. Maybe he was about right in his assessment there, but I think most people assume the tan is a minor factor when it is very important.

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30

The most interesting thing to me that he said was that he was only on cycle for 4 months and only immediately preceding the contest. He said something to the effect of he wanted to be bulking up preceding the contest NOT dieting down like today’s bodybuilders. I also don’t think they used anything like AI or PCT back then.

Of course, that approach would get you nowhere near the bulk of today’s competitors but it must have been MUCH safer (might help explain why Arnold, Lou, etc are still around).

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31

I don’t believe this. Or I don’t believe he did only 4 months at the doses he has talked about. It might be possible if using a lot more (see Kevin Leverone’s transformations).

He was also using AAS as a teen. Makes me think he wasn’t that cautious.

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32

I was never a pro bodybuilder, but my wife (at the time) and I were invited to two Pro-Am Mixed Pairs IFBB contests (1982 and 83, if I recall correctly)

I should start be saying that I don’t trust what other bodybuilders say they are taking. I can go by rumors. Around 1977 a reasonably well know amateur bodybuilder claimed to take 80mg/day.of Dianabol. That seemed a lot to me.

It seems obvious to me that Arnold is pre-insulin/HGH. So he is not going to get that freaky size we see now. We always heard that Primobolan Acetate was the holy grail of contest steroids. I would guess that Arnold was on 100mg/day of Primobolan the final weeks of a contest (which for him was once a year.) I would say apart from the Primo, he might have taken between 500mg/wk and 1g/wk. I suppose he could have taken less. But like I said, I wouldn’t believe what he said today. Those that lifted with him would have the best guess.

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33

Too true. It was not far down the list of essentials for a contest. In other words: you better address it, or risk being “washed out” in the bright lights.

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34

I strongly believe in this, especially if he was off cycle very long. He would “pawn” a lot of muscle off cycle. Once he got back on cycle he would quickly get that pawned muscle back, all the while growing bigger and bigger. [That is my explanation to the Colorado Experiment]

I experienced a component of that every time I started the countdown (12 weeks out from a contest), starting back on AAS. I would be getting stronger and bigger muscle bellies while losing fat.

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35

If you are referring to Arnold, you must consider that there was no science backed evidence to fear AAS. Sure, any conservative doctor would have many concerns. Anyone could buy steroids with a prescription in the 1960’s and '70’s. All you needed was a doctor to write a script. That’s what I got. What is the fear that a person would have?

I wouldn’t recommend comparing values in the 1960’s by today’s standards.

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36

To me, a nobody, you are a pro.
To your comment, .5-1g /week this I can believe, but I think he claimed like 100mg test and 3x5-10 mg dbol tablets a week. :laughing:
Thanks Nomad.

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