I have to ask this question and I know I’m going to get a lot of strange responses, ranging from disbelief to cries of BS and more. This is my real story and my current burning question. I’m being honest and upfront, so please do the same.
Personal Stats:
Weight - 196
Height - 5’6"
BF% - 17%
Bench 1rpm - 275
Leg Press 1rpm - 710
The History:
I’ve been weight training off and on for about 20 years. I was actually a very sick kid and almost died a few times. In jr high school I got healthy and interested in the Marital Arts. I earned a Black Belt in TKD by 14, pretty much just out of willpower. I continued and earned Black Belts in Shaolin Kung Fu, Jiu Jitsu, and Shotakan Karate by 17. My best bench press held at a measly 145lbs. I was fit, but not strong.
At 19 I entered into international competition and fought for 3 years with a pretty good record and few injuries. I also earned a Black Belt in Aikido during that time.
I had a sort of “crisis of faith” in 93 and went to a remote area of China to study an obscure martial art, and zen, for 6 years. To be honest I lost track of time after the first two years and had no idea what year it was until I left.
When I returned home to the USA in '99 I discovered I had a daughter I never knew about and who’s mother had abandoned. I settled in to take care of her and got a job. I had to work really hard long hours for a long time and it was only in '05 that i could seriously get back to the gym.
Then disaster struck and I slipped and fell while squatting 450 on a rack with no safety bars. I broke my back in 6 places and had to stop lifting for 6 months. It was a long hard struggle back to health and the gym.
I had a respectable bench press of 190 in '06 and my squat was back to 400. I had to stop squats though on doctors orders. So I switched to various leg presses to get the job done.
In the past year I’ve not changed my workout radically. I usually do a 5 way split with m/w/f devoted to chest/back/legs and tue/thur devoted to core/cardio. I’ve increased the percentage of my diet that protien to 60% or more and kept it as close to 1gram per pound of bodyweight as I could. But to be honest I haven’t been that good about my diet.
The Change:
In the last 6 months I have suddenly had a dramatic physical change. My bodyfat dropped from 32% to 24%, then to 20%, then 17%. At the same time my strength has skyrocketed. In just the last 8 weeks I went from benching 190 to 235, then 250, then 275. My leg press went from 450, to 550, then 650 and 710.
Now, I did do some clenbuterol for about 4 weeks and that’s when I went from 24%bf to 20%, but then I seemed to get stuck. So I tried adding in a little T3 and it made me feel like crap so I stopped both. The jump from 190 to 275 bench started the week I started the clen, and has continued since then.
I almost have a 6 pack again, and everyone tells me I am looking younger all the time.
I feel strong, but I pull muscles really easily now and my tendons seem to be a lot more tender than usual.
I’m hungry constantly and I could eat all day if I wanted to. I can’t seem to get enough sex either. (When your 24 yr old fiancee who’s a self described “monogamous slut” tells you that you’re wearing her out, and your 37, that’s not normal).
I can’t seem to sleep at night, waking up 4 or 5 times at least.
I also urinate a LOT, like 10-15 times a day, and it’s a full bladder every time. I have to drink 8-10 bottles of water a day to not feel dried out.
When I do cardio on Thursdays I feel like I don’t have limits. I go full blast on the elliptical machine for an hour and I actually have to make myself stop or I’d keep going.
I feel supercharged sometimes, and other times I can barely stay awake.
The Question:
What the “F” is happening to me? Has anyone ever seen this before? Do I have some sort of weird tumor on a gland that’s doing this?
I guess some freaks can do it, but I’d suspect steroids in most of those cases.