Phil Heath Discusses the Dark Side of Bodybuilding, Talks Young People Using Steroids

Phil Heath has watched the sport change for better or worse since commanding the Mr. Olympia throne for seven consecutive years. In a recent YouTube video, Heath opened up on young people recklessly using steroids and relived his experience taking Trenbolone.

As a bodybuilding icon who dominated the sport at the highest level, it’s impossible to reflect on the Men’s Open division without mentioning ‘The Gift.’ He sported unparalleled muscle fullness and having worked in tandem with decorated coach Hany Rambod, Heath managed to tie Arnold Schwarzenegger in Mr. Olympia titles (2011-2017).

Even though Heath hasn’t shut the door on a comeback completely, he remains entrenched in the sport and its current events. Since stepping away from the stage, Heath has watched influencers arise, in large part thanks to the suspected use of performance-enhancing drugs. With young influencers flocking to them in hopes of achieving fame, Heath opened up on the dark side of bodybuilding.

Phil Heath Discusses Risks of Bodybuilding and Opens Up On Young People Using Steroids

Heath believes the fitness world is headed down a dark path if young influencers continue to use steroids to achieve fame.

“I think the majority of people that are out there on blogs should be damn-near banned, damn-near, because I believe in free speech.
 
I say damn-near because it’s so dangerous and to sensationalize it. We had people under the age of 25 that are clearly doing these things and making money from it on YouTube. These are teenagers.” 

While Heath used steroids throughout his bodybuilding career, he followed through with health protocols such as regular blood tests.
 

“This is like, I had a conversation the other day I was at an event and some of these kids were like yeah, yeah, there’s no problem with it. You did it. Yeah, but huh? You’re like how old are you, well I’m like 19, he’s 17, he’s 20. I go, why would you do that? Well, this guy is doing it. I go, you realize that sounds like drugs right? Well, he’s smoking pot, he’s doing coke, what’s the problem?
 
The problem is with bodybuilders especially the youth, even if you’re 25 and you just started training you didn’t even give yourself an opportunity to learn how to train, you said this at the beginning, you didn’t even give yourself an opportunity to know if you even like bodybuilding. You immediately said I’m going to do these steroids and it’s going to work out. You don’t know how to train, how to diet, you don’t know how to competition prep.” 

He also believes people will be less likely to try out bodybuilding if they can take gear, accrue followers, and earn income via sponsors online.
 

“It can open up a whole other world too, a whole other portal of things, and I can only imagine what it is to be an influencer that doesn’t compete, has no interest, because they know deep down, why should I compete? I can just  go do some gear and actually look swole and filter my images or have it filmed a certain why and gain a bunch of followers, next thing I know I get a bunch of sponsors.” 

Heath reflected on some of the craziest cycles he had ever seen.

“I can’t say who, but five grams of test and off-season, [per week]. Yeah, I’ve known some guys that do three,” said Heath. “I’m like what’s incrilex, I don’t know what the fuck that is. All these different types of insulins, all these different types of test, you have deca, EQ, and you have tren,” shares Phil Heath. 

He shared his experience with trenbolone, stating that the compound gave him a painful cough.

“How do you not cough your lungs out, that shit I’ve taken that and got the tren cough. You’re like I’m dying. I do not want that in my body anymore. That shit is crazy. But yeah, I’ve heard over 10 grams of oils in a week. I’ve heard these stories.”

Since departing from competitive bodybuilding, Heath has been candid about his PED use with fans. While he never ‘pushed’ PEDs right away because he could win naturally, Heath eventually utilized them to reach the next level in bodybuilding.

Heath remains one of the most successful IFBB Pros to ever throw on a pair of posing trunks. He believes bodybuilding requires a delicate balance of exercise, nutrition, and supplementation before embarking into the world of PEDs.

Watch the full video from True Geordie’s YouTube channel below:

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