Coach Milos Sarcev joined Dennis James and Chris Cormier for an honest discussion regarding the use of Synthol or site-enhancement oils. On The Menace podcast, Sarcev revealed his biggest regret in bodybuilding was injecting Synthol into his biceps, triceps, and calves.
In bodybuilding, site enhancement oils like Synthol have been used to alter an athlete’s appearance. Judges are trained to identify imbalances in a bodybuilder’s physique at each event. While some have used the compound without drawing negative attention, other competitors have finished poorly and/or been marked down at contests as a result of the practice.
Last year, Thiago Santisteban made headlines for suspected Synthol use after finishing eighth at the 2022 Muscle Contest Pro. Given the imbalances he displayed on stage, many fans believe judges specifically penalized the 212 bodybuilder due to possible site enhancement oil use.
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There have also been more extreme cases of those who use Synthol. Recently, MMA fighter/bodybuilder Szymon Komandos required surgery following several injections into his biceps. Last November, he underwent a procedure to drain the Synthol out of his arms and said more operations like this one are on the horizon.
The latest to give their opinion on Synthol use is Milos Sarcev, who joined Dennis James and Chris Cormier to underline why it was the biggest regret of his bodybuilding career.
Milos Sarcev Talks Dark Road Of Using Synthol in Arms/Calves: ‘You Try to Correct It, But It’s Too Late’
Sarcev found some success using Synthol in 1999 but said eventually the drug ruined the appearance of his biceps.
“I would be a hypocrite. I was guilty of using it. I used it in 99′ when I beat you [Dennis James]. I tell you how it is. We all get tempted okay. I was told with bigger arms I could be somewhat more competitive. In 1999, I was second to Chris Cormier in that show right. But I started putting it — you know, when you never have arms and now it’s like 22 inches, it’s like, ‘oh this is good.’ But then, it’s like: why stop there? Keep going.Then, oh my God. I shot it into the peak of the bicep for the Canada Pro Cup. Bob Kennedy from the Muscle Mag International, he came up to me and said, ‘Milos, you have a beautiful physique, why are you ruining it?’ I just lift my arms, and the peak was like this [damaged]. What did I do now? Let me correct it. To correct it, instead of the peak, let me shoot it [Synthol] low,” says Milos Sarcev.
“At the Night of Champions, I swear to God, it looked like a book when you lift the arms, it’s disgusting. All these guys, you start thinking of something and maybe it didn’t go as well and you try to correct it and next thing you know, it’s too late. Biggest regret of my life. It was supper embarrassing man. Super embarrassing. But you sign a contract to compete. There’s no way out.”“You just hope it’s going to go back [to what it was]. It was disgusting. I made a fool out of myself and then I went into Flex Magazine to talk about it. I wish that never existed. But you’d be surprised. I did the biceps, triceps and the calves. I didn’t do the shoulders.”
“There’s no benefit from using Synthol or any of that SEO [site enhancement oils] shit. You know, there’s still people out there selling that shit. They say this is a game-changer just to make some money. It’s fuc**ng ridiculous. It’s mostly people that coach people. That’s the bad part,” Dennis James shared.“I’ve had someone personally tell me in my face that they don’t give a fu** if they gave up 20 years of their life to make it,” Dennis James added.