Q&A with Shadow Pro

Pharma
845

Here’s my background: I’m 48,been lifting since high school.I’m 6ft,210. Don’t know my bodyfat but I’m relatively lean and can see my abs. Haven’t had my test levels checked but I feel fine and have morning wood, libido is great.
I know everyone blasts oral only cycles but due to my job I can’t do the type of cycle I want because it can’t be obvious I’m on something. Here’s the plan:50 mgs/day of T-bol for 8 weeks. Nolva40/40/20/20.I’m not expecting to win the Olympia, I would just like a little boost.

Two questions:Would this cycle work and do I need to change anything? At my age, would that PCT be the best to regain my test levels? I’m not sure how suppressive T-bol is and how hard it would be to regain my natural production.
Thanks for the help.

846

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[quote]Shadow Pro wrote:

[quote]Jormugandr wrote:

Hey Shadow, been following this thread since the beginning and really appreciate all the time and effort you are putting into this.

My stats: Age 24 Ht 5’9 170 lbs 16-18% bf estimated
Squat: 245 Bench: 210 Deadlift: 275
Will provide photo if needed.

I’m cutting right now, hoping to get down to about 10% bodyfat. About to purchase some Clen so that should help. I believe that will be somewhere around 160 which is really small. From there, I plan to bust my ass for about 9 months to a year building mass.

Question: Not looking to cycle for at least a year but when I do, I’m really hoping to do orals only. Now I know you’ve touched this topic before but I am wondering what oral(s) you would recommend from an athletic/strength perspective ( ie. Rugby, Jiu Jitsu, etc.). Ideally, this would be a strength cycle while still staying relatively lean and mobile with good muscle/lung conditioning.

If orals are not conducive to this goal, please let me know. I have read you recommend winstrol a lot but I get the impression the joint pain would be debilitating to sports.

Let me know if this isn’t enough info and again I really appreciate you taking the time. [/quote]

Thank you for posting… I can see you have been reading the thread and I appreciate that. You’ve given me good information but if you can post a picture that would be great and your diet, it will help me to give you better advise… Maybe I can even give you some advice in the meantime to lower your bodyfat before your cycle.

In general winstrol will cause joint sensitivity issues, but this isn’t the case for everyone so it might work for you. Since it’s your first cycle anavar might be a good choice as well but it’s very mild. There are other very strong orals like halotestin and they are great for strength but I would never use it in a first cycle, only once you have more experience but just so you know it’s there. Other orals like dbol and Anadrol will cause lots of water retention so it wouldn’t be my choice for you. A combo oral that will give you strength gains and mass gains (with a little water retention) is oral turinabol, it’s kind of like a weak version of dbol. These are your oral options. Even for first cycle I would have clomid on hand.

Orals can be beneficial for your goal, it’s not the BEST option but it will work to an extent. You can start with an oral cycle and then decide if you want to do an injectable cycle later on.

Post your pic and diet and I’ll take a look. Thanks again for all the info.[/quote]

Hopefully that image helps. Not very good at posing lol. My diet is actually a real weak point for me right now so some help would be awesome. I’m ashamed to say it on these boards because you have talked about it a lot but sometimes I barely get 100g protein a day. I’ve been mostly just trying to cut calories and not focusing on where they come from but I know I should.

One of the perks of my job is I literally have to eat out at nice restaurants for lunch basically every day and its tough figuring out what I can eat that has good protein and moderate carbs/fats.

Also, follow up on your suggestion: If I were to use injectables down the line, what would be an ideal first cycle for me(Strength/Athleticism).

847

[quote]Shadow Pro wrote:

[quote]oneforme wrote:
Yeah? Did you read somewhere that Jesus was going to come down and light a bunch of bad people on fire too? [/quote]

This is an excellent first post… Now Jesus is being pulled into the steroid forum too.[/quote]
I suppose there would’ve been a nicer way to tell that fella to sort through the bullshit with things he reads… I will continue to follow the thread silently.

848

[quote]Shadow Pro wrote:

[quote]MattyXL wrote:

[quote]Yogi wrote:

[quote]Ranjanman wrote:
Hey how would your creatine cycle look like.
How much should i take on my bulk.

I’m planing to use mono or is there a better creatine [/quote]

seriously? This guy is an Olympian level bodybuilder and you’re asking how much creatine you should be taking? You really think that’s a worthwhile question?

Really?

FUCKING REALLY?

R
E
A
L
L
Y
?[/quote]

maybe you havent heard of the mad gainz you will get on that mono…yo
[/quote]

Yogi… Please keep policing the forum, I am dieting now and need my sanity. You’re doing a great job.

Mattyxl, you should know that 8 weeks of Creatine will make your mister O… It’s the trick you’ve all been waiting for me to disclose.
[/quote]

I’ve got your back big guy!

That sample diet you posted is unreal! Between food and GH I’m surprised you don’t have to live under a bridge somewhere.

I’m going to take great delight in showing it to folk who say they can’t get bigger. I’ll say eat like that for 6 months and tell me you didn’t Grow!

849

[quote]Gainzbrah wrote:
Obviously yours will be different than someone who is natty, but anyway can you give an example of how much volume you typically do and what methods seem to work best in your experience? (set/rep schemes, techniques) Thanks in advance![/quote]

I know I must sound like a broken record but it is very individual. Everyone has different tolerances to volume, some people will react better to low reps and some will respond better to high reps… Depending if you are fast or slow switch fiber dominant.

I’ll give you a few general guidelines that could work.
-get yourself a basic strength, it’s the most important foundation before everything
-for a natural dude, I would say double your bodyweight in squat and deadlift and be able to press your bodyweight x1.5 (this is a good start for a strength base)
-best way to do this is to practice these exercises in rep ranges of 4-8, some people would go lower but again it’s completely individual.
Basic program advice: start workouts with compound exercises in straight sets with these rep ranges (4-8) concentrate on advancing in strength here. You can follow these with more advanced techniques like Supersets and drop sets in your other exercises (rep ranges between 10-15)

My typical volume would vary between 12-25 sets per body part. I don’t have a “typical” volume, it really depends on the workout or the specific goal at that point. I never have the exact same workout.

850

[quote]brute_fury wrote:
I had a sinking suspicion this was the case… Thanks for the honesty![/quote]

This doesn’t mean chicks can’t look good without drugs, they just choose not to. It comes down to the same laziness and shortcuts as the men try to find.

851

[quote]mistrato wrote:
Hey shadow,

Been silently following this thread ever since it started. Really grateful for someone of your level to be doing this for us general folks.

Being on cycle improves protein synthesis and recovery rate in the body, but is there an optimal amount of volume/frequency to be increased to fully maximise growth while being on cycle? Or would this all be up to the individual?

Thanks for everything man, best of luck dieting for the olympia![/quote]

Thank you. It’s very individual but regardless you need to push A LOT harder while you are on a cycle, meaning more sets, more exercises, more weight. It’s hard for me to give you an exact number but for instance you could increase everything by 25% including days or the week you train, amount of reps and sets per workout. Also, you need to make sure you are increasing your weight each workout because you’ll be getting stronger. Even if it’s a little bit more weight it’s better than nothing.

852

[quote]Cadztra wrote:
For calorie maintenance level. Would you consider the method of bodyweight x 14 and 17 a suitable method? [/quote]

I would have to say no. There is so many other variables to consider besides calories here so it wouldn’t be a valid calculation in the majority of cases. For example you need to consider current bodyfat, metabolism, drug use, supplements, training intensity and frequency and many more.

853

[quote]Ricardo Brentani wrote:

[quote]Shadow Pro wrote:

[quote]Ricardo Brentani wrote:
Hey shadow! I know this is a steroid forum, but id like to ask you about carbs… since day one in the gym (almost 7 years ago, when i was just 14) i have been taking a very simple homemade carb shake pre workout: 2 bananas and 1 large spoon of oat flour. To this day it gave me the energy to train hard for about one hour, all i ever needed. Intra workout drink has always been plain water. Than, immediately afterwards i would take my protein with waxy maize (dextrose made me fat) and bcaas.

But here is the question: what if i just stopped taking this homemade carb shake prior going to war and started to drink the wazy mazie during the workout, leaving just protein and bcaas as the post shake. I have been thinking about this for quite some time now, but for some reason have never actually tried it. Maybe this way i will have even more energy and get leaner at the same time (BF levels are about 12 percent now). Thanks a lot for helping me again![/quote]

Drop everything you’re doing and follow this protocol, you will see AMAZING PROGRESS.

30 min preworkout 2 servings of MAG-10
Intraworkout 2-3 servings of Plazma
30min post workout 2 servings of MAG-10

This will give you a lot better results and you gain muscle mass, lose fat and have faster recovery.

  • I’ve said it a thousand times and I’ll continue to say it over and over and over that there is no replacement for Plazma intraworkout. NOTHING COMES CLOSE. I feel like I’m repeating myself, if anyone has any intraworkout supplement questions or wants my opinion just expect to hear me talk about Plazma…

It’s all I use, and yes I’ve tried everything else. I have spent tons of money on intraworkout drinks that didn’t do shit for me. This is the ONLY supplement that works, there is no replacement or “cheap” homemade mixtures… If you have money to spend on food and drugs then surely you can afford Plazma, it should be part of your macros meaning it replaces 1-2 of your daily meals. (Not a direct shot at you Ricardo… Just a general statement)
[/quote]
Hahahah ok shadow! I will definitely do that! In fact i will buy them right now! Thanks for the help, i really appreciate what you are doing, it shows great character! You will be hearing from me soon!
[/quote]

Great, I look forward to seeing your progress. Keep me posted.

854

[quote]Shadow Pro wrote:

[quote]Gainzbrah wrote:
Obviously yours will be different than someone who is natty, but anyway can you give an example of how much volume you typically do and what methods seem to work best in your experience? (set/rep schemes, techniques) Thanks in advance![/quote]

I know I must sound like a broken record but it is very individual. Everyone has different tolerances to volume, some people will react better to low reps and some will respond better to high reps… Depending if you are fast or slow switch fiber dominant.

I’ll give you a few general guidelines that could work.
-get yourself a basic strength, it’s the most important foundation before everything
-for a natural dude, I would say double your bodyweight in squat and deadlift and be able to press your bodyweight x1.5 (this is a good start for a strength base)
-best way to do this is to practice these exercises in rep ranges of 4-8, some people would go lower but again it’s completely individual.
Basic program advice: start workouts with compound exercises in straight sets with these rep ranges (4-8) concentrate on advancing in strength here. You can follow these with more advanced techniques like Supersets and drop sets in your other exercises (rep ranges between 10-15)

My typical volume would vary between 12-25 sets per body part. I don’t have a “typical” volume, it really depends on the workout or the specific goal at that point. I never have the exact same workout. [/quote]

My apologies, haven’t read the thread as a whole and not trying to annoy you with the same old questions. I understand everyone is different, I was just curious, but thank you for the great advice! I’m working a PHAT program right now, but it sounds like I should focus on strength a bit more. When I’m finished what programs do you recommend? 5x5? Wanna also keep working with my hypertrophy while focusing on strength. Thanks again!

855

[quote]dlrob wrote:
Here’s my background: I’m 48,been lifting since high school.I’m 6ft,210. Don’t know my bodyfat but I’m relatively lean and can see my abs. Haven’t had my test levels checked but I feel fine and have morning wood, libido is great.
I know everyone blasts oral only cycles but due to my job I can’t do the type of cycle I want because it can’t be obvious I’m on something. Here’s the plan:50 mgs/day of T-bol for 8 weeks. Nolva40/40/20/20.I’m not expecting to win the Olympia, I would just like a little boost.

Two questions:Would this cycle work and do I need to change anything? At my age, would that PCT be the best to regain my test levels? I’m not sure how suppressive T-bol is and how hard it would be to regain my natural production.
Thanks for the help.[/quote]

Thanks for posting. How suppressing this cycle would be is individual, some wouldn’t have any problems at all while others could suffer. Just FYI- you said you didn’t want your cycle to look obvious, but tbol is a weaker version of dbol so you will experience some of the same side effects. You will have some water retention, it won’t be the same as it you took dbol but it will definitely be there. If you want something that is less obvious you can look into trying anavar or winstrol as an oral only cycle, it will give you a harder and leaner look.

As for your pct, it’s fine but I would have HCG on hand so you can use it during or after the cycle if you notice a drop in libido. It’s not likely but some people are very sensitive so it’s always good to have just incase. At your age, being on a natural test booster like AlphaMale is a good idea during the cycle as it will encourage your body to keep producing testosterone.

856

Shadow Pro, what would be a good place to start with Tren Ace and Test Prop. Seeing past good gains from a 500 Tp per week cycle normally.

857

[quote]Jormugandr wrote:

[quote]Shadow Pro wrote:

[quote]Jormugandr wrote:

Hey Shadow, been following this thread since the beginning and really appreciate all the time and effort you are putting into this.

My stats: Age 24 Ht 5’9 170 lbs 16-18% bf estimated
Squat: 245 Bench: 210 Deadlift: 275
Will provide photo if needed.

I’m cutting right now, hoping to get down to about 10% bodyfat. About to purchase some Clen so that should help. I believe that will be somewhere around 160 which is really small. From there, I plan to bust my ass for about 9 months to a year building mass.

Question: Not looking to cycle for at least a year but when I do, I’m really hoping to do orals only. Now I know you’ve touched this topic before but I am wondering what oral(s) you would recommend from an athletic/strength perspective ( ie. Rugby, Jiu Jitsu, etc.). Ideally, this would be a strength cycle while still staying relatively lean and mobile with good muscle/lung conditioning.

If orals are not conducive to this goal, please let me know. I have read you recommend winstrol a lot but I get the impression the joint pain would be debilitating to sports.

Let me know if this isn’t enough info and again I really appreciate you taking the time. [/quote]

Thank you for posting… I can see you have been reading the thread and I appreciate that. You’ve given me good information but if you can post a picture that would be great and your diet, it will help me to give you better advise… Maybe I can even give you some advice in the meantime to lower your bodyfat before your cycle.

In general winstrol will cause joint sensitivity issues, but this isn’t the case for everyone so it might work for you. Since it’s your first cycle anavar might be a good choice as well but it’s very mild. There are other very strong orals like halotestin and they are great for strength but I would never use it in a first cycle, only once you have more experience but just so you know it’s there. Other orals like dbol and Anadrol will cause lots of water retention so it wouldn’t be my choice for you. A combo oral that will give you strength gains and mass gains (with a little water retention) is oral turinabol, it’s kind of like a weak version of dbol. These are your oral options. Even for first cycle I would have clomid on hand.

Orals can be beneficial for your goal, it’s not the BEST option but it will work to an extent. You can start with an oral cycle and then decide if you want to do an injectable cycle later on.

Post your pic and diet and I’ll take a look. Thanks again for all the info.[/quote]

Hopefully that image helps. Not very good at posing lol. My diet is actually a real weak point for me right now so some help would be awesome. I’m ashamed to say it on these boards because you have talked about it a lot but sometimes I barely get 100g protein a day. I’ve been mostly just trying to cut calories and not focusing on where they come from but I know I should.

One of the perks of my job is I literally have to eat out at nice restaurants for lunch basically every day and its tough figuring out what I can eat that has good protein and moderate carbs/fats.

Also, follow up on your suggestion: If I were to use injectables down the line, what would be an ideal first cycle for me(Strength/Athleticism). [/quote]

Thank you very much for posting pic, you did a good job at guessing bodyfat. I would say you are about 15-16% bf so you’re in a better place than you may have thought.

The bad news is that your diet really sucks and the good news is that it’s a very easy fix.
Let’s start by trying this in the diet:
Protein: 250-260g/day (1000-1040 cal)
Carbs: 150g/day (600cal)
Fats: 40-50g/day (360-450cal)

I want you to get these calories from these food choices. So you must get the exact amount of calories from each source. The calories from carbs, fat and protein are not interchangeable.
Protein choices: if you are eating in a restaurant I’m sure they’ll have some of these options. Ask for all sauces and additives to be on the side so you don’t eat them, this is where all the shit comes in.
Filet mignon, grilled chicken breast, salmon (once a day and count the fat), white fish(cod, tilapia, prawns, shrimp, lobster) NO BUTTER, egg whites.
Carb sources: steamed white or brown rice, baked potato, sweet potato, whole wheat bread or sprouted grain bread(no white bread), oatmeal. You can also add broccoli, kale, asparagus, spinach and any other leafy green vegetable without salad dressing or anything added.
Fat: very small amount. For example in a day you would meet all of your fat calories just from your meat if you include salmon once a day. Or you could do 2tbsp of mct oil.

I’ll try to keep it simple. Have 3 solid meals a day and 3 liquid meals a day. For the solid meals you can choose from above and for your liquid meals do:
Plazma intraworkout: 2 servings during your weight session(76g carbs, 30g protein)
MAG-10 2X/day: 1.5 servings (30g protein, 15g carbs)

The rest of the carbs should come at breakfast or in your preworkout meal. Just make sure to count.

If you want to do an injectable cycle a good choice would be:
Test-p @ 75mg eod
Mast-p @ 75mg eod (or substitute with winstrol for more strength @ 50mg ed)
HCG 250iu 2x/week
10mg of nolva 2x/week

858

[quote]oneforme wrote:

[quote]Shadow Pro wrote:

[quote]oneforme wrote:
Yeah? Did you read somewhere that Jesus was going to come down and light a bunch of bad people on fire too? [/quote]

This is an excellent first post… Now Jesus is being pulled into the steroid forum too.[/quote]
I suppose there would’ve been a nicer way to tell that fella to sort through the bullshit with things he reads… I will continue to follow the thread silently.
[/quote]

No harm done, I’m trying to keep the thread positive. I don’t want people to be shy about asking questions even of they may seem stupid. It just pisses me off when people don’t read the thread and ask the same questions over and over.

Don’t be silent, feel free to contribute or police the assholes haha

859

[quote]Yogi wrote:

[quote]Shadow Pro wrote:

[quote]MattyXL wrote:

[quote]Yogi wrote:

[quote]Ranjanman wrote:
Hey how would your creatine cycle look like.
How much should i take on my bulk.

I’m planing to use mono or is there a better creatine [/quote]

seriously? This guy is an Olympian level bodybuilder and you’re asking how much creatine you should be taking? You really think that’s a worthwhile question?

Really?

FUCKING REALLY?

R
E
A
L
L
Y
?[/quote]

maybe you havent heard of the mad gainz you will get on that mono…yo
[/quote]

Yogi… Please keep policing the forum, I am dieting now and need my sanity. You’re doing a great job.

Mattyxl, you should know that 8 weeks of Creatine will make your mister O… It’s the trick you’ve all been waiting for me to disclose.
[/quote]

I’ve got your back big guy!

That sample diet you posted is unreal! Between food and GH I’m surprised you don’t have to live under a bridge somewhere.

I’m going to take great delight in showing it to folk who say they can’t get bigger. I’ll say eat like that for 6 months and tell me you didn’t Grow!
[/quote]

This is what a lot of people don’t understand. Eating is a full time job when you are doing bodybuilding in a high level, you eat when you aren’t hungry and often want to puke eating these amounts of food but it’s a part of the job… Same as training.

You are right, it’s pretty simple. If you don’t eat, you don’t grow. You’ll see a few posts up, there is a guy who has decent potential but only eating 100g of protein a day…imagine what miracles will happen once he just starts eating normally. Obviously people don’t need to eat the amount I do, but a basic understanding of caloric deficit and surplus is a must.

No drug or elaborate cycle will compensate poor eating for any purpose!

860

[quote]Gainzbrah wrote:

[quote]Shadow Pro wrote:

[quote]Gainzbrah wrote:
Obviously yours will be different than someone who is natty, but anyway can you give an example of how much volume you typically do and what methods seem to work best in your experience? (set/rep schemes, techniques) Thanks in advance![/quote]

I know I must sound like a broken record but it is very individual. Everyone has different tolerances to volume, some people will react better to low reps and some will respond better to high reps… Depending if you are fast or slow switch fiber dominant.

I’ll give you a few general guidelines that could work.
-get yourself a basic strength, it’s the most important foundation before everything
-for a natural dude, I would say double your bodyweight in squat and deadlift and be able to press your bodyweight x1.5 (this is a good start for a strength base)
-best way to do this is to practice these exercises in rep ranges of 4-8, some people would go lower but again it’s completely individual.
Basic program advice: start workouts with compound exercises in straight sets with these rep ranges (4-8) concentrate on advancing in strength here. You can follow these with more advanced techniques like Supersets and drop sets in your other exercises (rep ranges between 10-15)

My typical volume would vary between 12-25 sets per body part. I don’t have a “typical” volume, it really depends on the workout or the specific goal at that point. I never have the exact same workout. [/quote]

My apologies, haven’t read the thread as a whole and not trying to annoy you with the same old questions. I understand everyone is different, I was just curious, but thank you for the great advice! I’m working a PHAT program right now, but it sounds like I should focus on strength a bit more. When I’m finished what programs do you recommend? 5x5? Wanna also keep working with my hypertrophy while focusing on strength. Thanks again![/quote]

No need to apologize, it was a good question I just don’t have and exact answer for everything… It just seems like I continually tell you guys that “it’s very individual” but that’s because everything to do with your fitness goals are individual.

5x5 is a decent program, it’s very basic. I stumbled across this program that includes both strength and hypertrophy, it seems something like this would fit your goals. There are also a lot of other good programs you can scroll through here. How I Finally Got Muscle to Grow - Phase 1

861

[quote]Batman00 wrote:
Shadow Pro, what would be a good place to start with Tren Ace and Test Prop. Seeing past good gains from a 500 Tp per week cycle normally. [/quote]

For a beginner that wants to start test-p and tren-a cycle I would start at 75mg every other day of each. If you are more advanced you could do 100mg every other day. The next increase after this would be 75mg everyday and for advanced people it could go up to 100mg everyday. More than this would be considered very extreme. If you aren’t doing this for a living there is no point to go over that.

862

[quote]Shadow Pro wrote:

[quote]dlrob wrote:
Here’s my background: I’m 48,been lifting since high school.I’m 6ft,210. Don’t know my bodyfat but I’m relatively lean and can see my abs. Haven’t had my test levels checked but I feel fine and have morning wood, libido is great.
I know everyone blasts oral only cycles but due to my job I can’t do the type of cycle I want because it can’t be obvious I’m on something. Here’s the plan:50 mgs/day of T-bol for 8 weeks. Nolva40/40/20/20.I’m not expecting to win the Olympia, I would just like a little boost.

Two questions:Would this cycle work and do I need to change anything? At my age, would that PCT be the best to regain my test levels? I’m not sure how suppressive T-bol is and how hard it would be to regain my natural production.
Thanks for the help.[/quote]

Thanks for posting. How suppressing this cycle would be is individual, some wouldn’t have any problems at all while others could suffer. Just FYI- you said you didn’t want your cycle to look obvious, but tbol is a weaker version of dbol so you will experience some of the same side effects. You will have some water retention, it won’t be the same as it you took dbol but it will definitely be there. If you want something that is less obvious you can look into trying anavar or winstrol as an oral only cycle, it will give you a harder and leaner look.

As for your pct, it’s fine but I would have HCG on hand so you can use it during or after the cycle if you notice a drop in libido. It’s not likely but some people are very sensitive so it’s always good to have just incase. At your age, being on a natural test booster like AlphaMale is a good idea during the cycle as it will encourage your body to keep producing testosterone.
[/quote]

Thank you so much for the help, it’s much appreciated. One more question. I can’t afford anavar, so other than t_bol my only other choice is winstrol. With lifting, MMA, and several surgeries I tend to have joint pains. Would the winstrol make this worse or is that an individual thing? Once again, thanks for taking the time to do this.

863

Thanks for all your help so far shadow, so refreshing to br able to vpice and see voiced all these wuestions without instant ridicule and agressive responses. Worst case scenario you tell a much needed harsh truth with constructive criticism and its a great read.

This question may sound a little benign but i am somewhat of a perfectionist.

With regards to compounds with very short half lives, I was wondering what your opinion was on split doses for more constant concentrations vs single doses for a higher concentration at key times.

My interest is specifically in splitting winstrol 25mg am and 25mg PM, vs 50mg a few hours pre workout. But would be interested to know your opinion on the concept generally.

864

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shadow any early predictions about the O?phil wins again?i have met him and seems like a cool guy,dont understand the hating for the guy…
also a recent pic of mine in the gym,delts- biceps- triceps critique please(i am the right guy)