Bodybuilding influencer Chuck “Kali Muscle” Kirkendall is back to unearth details about his experiences with performance-enhancing drugs. On January 25, 2025, Kali Muscle discussed being hypersensitive to steroids, his first cycle, and how he gained 40 pounds in 90 days by force-feeding himself.
Boasting over 3.9 million YouTube subscribers, Kali Muscle has become immensely popular, mostly due to his candid personality. He has competed in bodybuilding and found success but changed directions after a heart attack nearly resulted in his death.
He vowed to stop using PEDs after the ordeal. Kali Muscle has made it a point to warn up-and-comers and established IFBB Pros alike about the dangers of steroids. Having come from humble beginnings and served 11 years in prison, fans continue to learn about his life as well as how steroids shaped his years into adulthood.
Kali Muscle Discusses Being ‘Hypersensitive’ to Steroids, Talks First Cycle and Gaining 40 Lbs in 90 Days
After struggling on a football team at 98 pounds, Kali Muscle was forced to sit on the bench for the entire season. This prompted him to look into adding size.
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“I was 98 pounds, super small, super little, right? Went out for the football team, and they said I was too small so they let me ride the bench the whole season. After that season, I started reading the magazines. How Arnold got swole. How Lee Haney got buff. I saw that you had to eat a lot of calories and I never liked eating food period.”
He eventually found his place on the football team by force-feeding himself, gaining 40 pounds in just 90 days
“I started force-feeding myself and so I gained 40 pounds in 90 days. Came back that summer, double days in football, and became a superstar, just overnight.”
Kali Muscle looked back on his first steroid cycle and mentioned that his strength increased before he noticed that new growth.
“I’ll never forget my first cycle, it was sustanon. It hurted man. I was like what did I do? I didn’t like it. I was swoled up and oh man. Anyways, that started, and in two weeks my strength went up 20 pounds on the bench. My strength went up first. That was the first thing I noticed.”
“I liked it. I liked the progress. I liked the strength that was coming and then the size started coming and you know, everybody started taking notice. After I seen Jay Cutler, he made me look small. Nine months later I did the Orange County Classic 2009 I won heavyweight,” he shared.
He admits that he was hypersensitive to steroids and started by taking 500 milligrams of testosterone weekly. When he competed, he revealed that his stack included many popular compounds.
“I was hypersensitive to steroids back then, taking 500 milligrams per week of testosterone when I was competing I was taking, I was scared of Tren so I kept it under testosterone, I was taking 400 migs a week of that. I was also doing anadrol, dbol, and this was my first year, 2009.”
In addition, he took Clenbuterol, T3, and Winstrol to prepare his physique for the stage.
“To get ready for shows I would take clenbuterol, T3, Winstrol, all the stuff. I was reading. I had books and I was on the internet for hours a day because I didn’t want to kill myself. So I studied at least 6-8 hours a day about nutrition and mostly steroids.”
While he ultimately paid the price for his steroid use, Kali Muscle said he utilized safer practices, like cycling off the compounds every 3-4 months.
“I was doing things right. I would take off 3-4 months out of the year. When you look back at my old YouTube videos, you can see.
I would always get smaller and bigger and people would always comment. That was cycling on and cycling off. I thought I was doing everything right. I still feel I was doing everything right but what hurt me was eating bad food all my teenage years into adult years while I was in prison.”
This isn’t the first time Kali Muscle has been vocal about steroid use. In the past, he warned other IFBB Pro competitors like Andrew Jacked, Nick Walker, and William Bonac about using PEDs. He emphasized that all heart attacks are preventative. In a previous plea to the public, Kali Muscle labeled IFBB Pro League competitors as ‘lying devils.’
After transforming his physique with the use of steroids, Kali Muscle acknowledges its benefits but warns about the risks and dangers of misuse. He remains dedicated to educating the public about these substances and helping others make informed health decisions.