Derek of More Plates More Dates has become a leading voice on YouTube when it comes to talking about performance-enhancing drugs (PEDs). In a recent video, Derek joined Jeff Nippard to discuss gaining muscle naturally versus enhanced. In addition, Derek reflected on some of the wildest IFBB Pro bodybuilding cycles he’s ever seen.
If you are looking for a reliable source of fitness information on YouTube, you might have come across Jeff Nippard. He is a Canadian fitness expert who combines his passion for science and training to create engaging and educational videos. With 3.8 million subscribers, he is one of the most popular and respected figures in the YouTube fitness community.
But Jeff is not just a YouTuber. He is also a successful natural bodybuilder and powerlifter who has claimed several titles and records. He was the 2012 Mr. Junior Canada and held the Canadian national record for bench press in his weight class. As a coach, he has helped many athletes achieve their physique and performance goals with his evidence-based approach.
Derek of More Plates More Dates made a career out of his knowledge of exercise, nutrition, and PEDs. He continues to be a valuable member of the fitness community and was responsible for leaking Liver King’s (real name: Brian Johnson) steroid cycle in December 2022.
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Teaming up, Derek and Nippard tackled some commonly asked questions about TRT and steroid dosages. They also went over how the compounds affect a person’s ability to gain muscle over time.
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Muscle Building: Natural vs. Enhanced | Derek of MPMD and Jeff Nippard Give Opinion
According to Derek, whether a 600-milligram dose of TRT weekly is low, moderate, or high “depends on the context of the individual.”
“So, a big part of the studies on this is… our the dosages actually normal in the real world? Are the dosages in the studies actually what bodybuilders are taking? So in the most famous studies on this, they give people 600 milligrams of testosterone per week. Would you consider that a high dose, moderate dose or low dose?” asks Nippard.
“It depends on the context of the individual. I would say for an entry level enhanced user, it would be high, for sure. Objectively, it’s not high for a competitive environment for somebody who was going to step on a Pro bodybuilding stage for example, certainly not. High would be considered very low, but for a newbie, [600] is pretty high,” said Derek of More Plates More Dates.
MPMD adds that 25-50 milligrams of TRT weekly is typically less than what is produced naturally. He believes athletes start noticing ‘enhancements’ to their body and performance when they reach a dose of 125 milligrams because it’s higher than what the body is capable of producing endogenously.
“I think the good thing about that graded dose-response study is that it does break down the threshold of where things go super-physiologic — so you could see- the great thing about that study too is that they administer a GnRH agonist, so they essentially pseudo-castrate the subjects in the study so you can see the actual response purely to the test. There’s no endogenous conflation essentially with other hormones you would produce,” explained Derek of MPMD.
“25 milligrams and 50 milligrams, essentially, you would lose performance in muscle because you have shut yourself down and subject yourself to an amount of hormone that is literally less than you would have produced naturally.
But with the 125, you’re getting to a point where you’re starting to creep up above what you naturally can do. Then, at 300, you start to see some pretty significant increases that are very representative of super-physiological outcomes. And 600, is actual cycle territory, of what a lot of people, even bodybuilders would consider, okay, that’s a fair amount of gear to be using,” said Derek of MPMD.
Derek believes anyone using more than 200 milligrams of TRT weekly is in ‘enhanced territory 99% of the time.’
“With actual TRT, you’re typically looking at 100 milligrams a week, I think is fair to say, and things start to get super-physiological at 200+ although I think it’s rare anyone, even extreme outliers would need to achieve symptom relief, up to 200 for TRT, that’s very atypical.”
“Anything above 200 [of TRT] I would say is kind of like, okay I would say you’re in the enhanced territory 99% of the time.”
Wildest IFBB Pro Cycles?
When asked about some of the most extreme cycles he’s ever seen, Derek said it’s common to hear about people using 4,000-5,000 milligrams of compounds weekly.
“You see grams is common. When I say grams, I mean the combined dosage across a week of all anabolic androgenic steroids that’s included but not limited to testosterone plus your masteron, plus your anadrol, whatever it is, the combined dosage, is very typically at minimum like 1,000 milligrams and can be as high as 4,000-5,000 milligrams.”
“I would absolutely say without question: anything 300+ [milligrams] is abusive territory. That is the only increment we can really go by to actually I think without a doubt 99% of people watching would probably agree. Yeah, that’s where the enhanced-looking outcomes start to occur.”
“At least by sheer poundage, it gets extreme when you have guys that are 6-foot-plus who you know peak as a natural, and they will literally gain 100 pounds of lean mass on top of that,” said Derek.
Fans and athletes alike have expressed concerns over bodybuilders abusing steroids. Even 1990s Men’s Open standout Rich Gaspari has touched on the trend. He believes competitors today have become reliant on drugs instead of achieving physiques with tough training and clean eating.
Jeff Nippard and Derek of MPMD are fitness experts who discuss PEDs openly and objectively. They aim to educate athletes and young people about the effects of steroids on muscle development, both in bodybuilding and in general health.
Watch the full video from the More Plates More Dates YouTube channel below:
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