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Prohormones and Target Hormones
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This is a piece I have sat down to write to allow people to understand the concept of prohormones better. The actions of prohormones are not limited to, but largely based on the fact that they convert to another hormonal substance, often an illegal compound in pure form, via natural enzymes. By explaining the intrinsic properties of the target hormones I feel it will be easier to understand what a prohormone can do for you. That is not to say that I want to liken the prohormones to any of the illegal substances mentioned below or that they can in any way live up to enormous anabolic potential of these compounds. What it will do is show you the stacking possibilities of the prohormone in question and by likening the properties of the target hormone to the prohormone allow you to choose what will work best in which situation.
I do not consider myself an expert in the field of Anabolic Androgenic Steroids, and the information in regards to the use of AAS in the article below is meant solely as illustration and documentation. That means for entertainment purposes only. I do not condone the use of illegal substances in any way other than as hormonal replacement drugs in older people and in people suffering from an immune deficiency accompanied by a loss of mass. However I do find the information below to be very useful in regards to legal hormonal compounds. For reference this article is best read along side my piece on Prohormone Science. If you do not understand something, most likely the answer can be found there. Should you be left with any questions feel free to contact me.
Testosterone
Name: 4-androstene-3-one,17߭ol
Precursors: 4-androstene-3, 17-dione / 5-androstene-3߬17߭diol / 4-androstene-3߬17߭diol
Forms: All of the following have several individual forms : Testosterone enanthate, testosterone Cypionate, Testosterone Propionate, Testosterone Suspension, testosterone heptylate, testroviron, testosterona, Sustanon, testosterone decanoate, Testosterone isocaproate, Testosterone phenylpropionate.
 
4-androstene-3,17-dione / Testosterone
In bodybuilding, however, it is THE "mass building steroid." No matter what you think of Dianabol, Parabolan, Anadrol 50, FinaJect, and others, when it comes to strength, muscle mass, and rapid weight gains, testosterone is still the "King of the Road."
~Excerpt from a drug Profile on testosterone enanthate at Steroid.com~
Raising testosterone has long been one of the most important goals of the legal supplementation industry and at little success. Negative feedback and inhibition are two natural processes that have disabled any attempt at naturally raising testosterone to any significant level. Andro and its diol components have succeeded where no others could.
The reasons are obvious. Testosterone is the base compound for many actions, including protein synthesis, the base of growth for all tissue including muscle. It's also responsible for most of the estrogen in the body, which is believed to have a positive effect on sperm maturation and is a helpful component in retaining nutrients and bulking up. It also readily converts, via 5-alpha reductase (5AR) to dihydrotestosterone or DHT, the most distinct androgenic compound in the body and responsible for all male characteristics, including increases in strength and neuromuscular functioning. As you can deduce from the excerpt up above nothing can hold a candle to testosterone in terms of rapid weight gain. Some prefer dianabol, some opt for leaner gains of trenbolone and boldenone, still others like the mildness of Deca. But in the end, if you want a serious increase in mass, a gain of 20 pounds in the shortest amount of time you turn to things like Sustanon, cypionate, enanthate and Propionate. All of them based on testosterone. The gains are huge, but they aren't pretty to see. Massive estrogenic water retention smooths you out. Your muscles swell and you strength explodes, but when you flex nothing happens. This is painfully obvious in bulking bodybuilders. But it's a sacrifice most are willing to make for this kind of explosion of mass.
Testosterone, despite its many formulations, is also still king of the hill where side-effects are concerned. As the most natural of all steroids it readily interacts with androgen receptors and aromatizes very easily to estrogen. Both with the consequent drawbacks leading to gynocomastia (growth of breast tissue in men), increased adipose storage (fat retention), prostate hypertrophy (growth of the prostate gland in men), clitoral enlargement in women, male pattern hair loss and increased aggressiveness. A long list of possible side-effects, and the main reason why a lot of bodybuilders opt for other steroids.
Prohormone conclusions: Andro is a very weak compound and with the inherent flaw that the prohormone itself has the same side-effects as the target hormone make it dispensable in my opinion. The real ball-game with testosterone starts with the introduction of 4-diol to the market and later 5-diol. While 5-diol converts at an even lower rate than andro, it does not have intrinisic weaknesses. What it does do is agonize estrogen. That means you won't be stacking it with Nor-diol or 4-diol because that will increase estrogenic side-effects, but when looking for mass when using 1AD and 5AA, adding 5-diol may add a bit more bulk to the mix overcoming the low weight gain of these prohormones. 4-diol is the real winner however. It has the highest conversion to testosterone and has no side-effects of its own, meaning that the amount of side-effects correlates with the amount of gains. That makes this a great product. The problem with 4AD as opposed to testosterone esters is its short half-life in the body. Testosterone based steroids last very long, requiring only 1 injection a week, but with 4AD you need to take it up to 3 or 4 times a day to maintain positive levels of testosterone that exceed baseline. That is the amount that supercedes natural levels and will increase the anabolic use of testosterone and deliver higher gains. For those who feel testosterone is not their cup of tea, it is still worth stacking in low doses with Nor-diol or 1AD to somewhat repair a loss of libido that these products may cause. But adding a testosterone turning compound can increase both the estrogenic and androgenic risk of a stack. Stacking it with 19Nor or Nor-diol would supply you with the most popular stack ever, while adding it to 1AD will see you more bulk gains and an increase in libido.
Dosage: Orally a moderate dose of 4AD would be 500-600 mg, but in some stacks, if the other product is high enough, adding 200-300 mg will deliver some results in strength and bulk, or a you can opt for a 25 mg sublingual cyclodextrin based product, which will give the same results. By itself doses upward of 750 mg are warranted for proper results, and even then will not illicit great results in young men. If you plan on using 5AD, use it as an estrogen agonist and take doses of 200-400 mg. Higher doses to raise testosterone are useless, since you need almost extreme doses. 5AD in small doses has the increased benefit of better immune response and upgrading the 3HSD enzyme, making for a greater result of any other diol components it was stacked with. If you do plan on using regular androstenedione, and I advise against it, dosages upward of 1 gram will be needed to give you a serious anabolic response, preferably 1.5 grams and with that dose risks of estrogen related side-effects are fairly high. Which ever is your thing, andro or 4AD need to be taken over 3-4 doses daily to maintain a positive level, 5AD will suffice as a twice a day or just a pre-workout compound.
Nandrolone
Name:
Precursors: 19-nor-4-androstene-3߬17߭diol / 19-Nor-4-androsten-3,17-dione
Forms: Retabolil, Deca-Durabolin, Turinabol, Norandren, Ziremilon, nandrobolic, neo-durabolic, Sterobolin, Anaboline, nandrolone decanoate, Deca-Durabol, androline, Elpihormo, extraboline, nurezan.
 
19-Nor-androstene-3,17-dione / nandrolone
Nandrolone is usually manufactured as the 19-Nortestosterone metabolite nandrolone decanoate and in steroid circles is best known as Deca-Durabolin, one of its many brand names. In this case a 200 ml ampoule made by the organon company. But if you look under forms just up above you will see there are many, many more forms of nandrolone that are or were available. Without a doubt this is the most popular steroid for many users dating back to the late 70's and early 80's.
From all the specs I can make up that this is by far one of the safest hormones. Although very anabolic, it has a moderate androgenic component. This means it will ensure proper and good gains, but at the same time is not an extreme risk for androgenic properties such as hair loss. It does stimulate the androgen receptors to a point, but its inability to interact with the 5-alpha-reductase enzyme makes it roughly only 1/5th as androgenic. It exerts most of its anabolic influence through a positive effect on nitrogen retention. With the interference of nandrolone a muscle cell will retain and take up more nitrogen than it releases. This is called a positive nitrogen balance and causes a cell to increase protein uptake and protein synthesis. That means it can cause a real increase in muscle mass, but only provided you are eating a high-calorie, high-protein diet and getting plenty of sleep to provide enough nutrients and allow for enough room to grow. Despite this prerequisite it is still by far the best hormone available today.
The estrogenic conversion allows for some water retention, making this a visually appealing steroid because you can see the mass increase as it occurs. But the estrogenic response is still notably smaller than it would be with testosterone or any of its derivatives, making this a far fetch for estrogen-related problems such as gyno. That and its low androgenic property make nandrolone perhaps the safest steroid around. One of the reasons for its extreme popularity no doubt. Nandrolone is also one of the most often counterfeited products and the counterfeiting alone is a very lucrative business, because one ampoule of deca sells for around $20.
Estrogenic water retention combined with a simultaneous increase in protein synthesis makes this a muscle gaining wonder, and its stacking abilities are endless. In fact it is often believed that the practice of stacking was initiated by the amazing abilities of nandrolone. The most popular stack among competitive bodybuilders a decade ago was no doubt Deca/Dianabol. The slight retentive ability of nandrolone has been shown to be largely productive in combination with a high-protein diet because larger amounts of nutrients became available to muscle-building agents. The water was also readily stored in the connective tissue in joints, which made for one pleasant side-effect : a reduction in joint pains that often accompanied the use of other steroids and the practice of heavy low-rep training. Nandrolone also exhibits a great increase in the immune system, as steroid components often tend to do. Nandrolone has a fairly high half life, meaning it lasts long at the receptor and exerts its effect over a long period of time, one reason that no doubt contributed to the fact that metabolites (19Norandrosterone) can be detected in the body so long after use.
The obvious downside to nandrolone are the high cost naturally, and the fact that it is easily detectable up to 18 months after use, even when taken in small doses. That makes this an absolute no-no in relation to drug-tested competition.
Prohormone conclusions: Nandrolone precursors are without a doubt the greatest prohormone invention ever, even though it took and will take some tweaking to render them 100 percent useful. The reason is that they share a few characteristics with the target hormone : High Cost, low oral efficacy (Deca is injectable) and the positive drug testing thing. The first two combined for a very expensive product. 19Nor had an effective dose range of 600-2000 mg, but at those doses also exhibited a strong increase in side-effects especially when stacked. That left it as a fairly useless product, though reasonable in price. Nor-diol is the real precursor here since it converts to nandrolone at a three times higher rate. The industry has constantly bad-mouthed Nor-diol, claiming impurity, because of the high manufacturing cost. Despite the fact that it was a better product. But even then, a moderate dose of Nor-diol is 600 mg and at three times the cost of 19Nor that wasn't nothing. But luckily it was a great candidate for topical delivery and since recently we have access to a few decent topical products. That is a definite bonus since Nor-diol is obviously the stacking favorite, a trait it has in common with its target hormone. Combining it with testosterone precursors allows you to mimic the oldest and most prolific 1-2 hit in the steroid community, but it obviously has greater benefits in combination with substances that have higher androgenic properties like 5AA or 1AD. The latter being possibly the most costly stack one could find, but well worth the money. With 5AA it can render its stacking partner less androgenic whilst 5AA has as the major benefit that it reduces estrogenic effects. That would combine for a stack that can provide considerable lean mass gains, although the risk for androgenic side-effects in any stack containing 5AA is always high.
Dosage: Orally these aren't the most cost-effective products. To see gains of 19Nor fairly high doses of 600 mg up to 2 grams are needed and because it is a dione product this consequently raises the odds of estrogen related problems such as excessive water retention and itchy nipples. Nor-diol is the clear winner here, but still has low oral efficacy meaning a moderate dose would be 600 mg , and the kind of dose most users would be looking for, gains-wise, is in the 900-1200 range and as high as 1500 mg. The high cost makes that relatively unlikely. In stacks doses of 600-800 mg are great. But Nor-diol is the only prohormone that is preferably taken in topical delivery form as it yields greater conversion at a slightly lower cost. In plain English that means you have to use less and it won't cost as much. This also allows for more stacking abilities orally. Because it's a long-acting product and topical delivery gives a very sustained release, its also very convenient. As a stacking product I would definitely recommend it, and even by itself it is by far one of the most potent prohormones. Orally supplying these prohormones would be a twice a day thing, maybe 3 times daily because they last significantly longer at the receptor site than do testosterone precursors. Transdermally once every twelve hours will suffice.
Boldenone
Name: 1,4-androstadiene-3-one,17b-ol
Precursors: 1,4-androstadiene-3,17-dione
Forms: Equipoise, Ganabol, Equigan, Ultragan (Boldenone undecylenate)
Boldenone, as an illegal steroidal compound, was created as a veterinary product. As the product names Equipoise and Equigan may suggest, mostly for the treatment of horses. But as with so many things within the steroid circuit, and especially with the difficulty of obtaining compounds meant for humans since the ban on steroids, it began gaining popularity among people who weren't veterinarians or animals. It was found, however, to be equally effective in humans.
Boldenone is touted with a very high anabolic effect, connected logically with a moderate but very distinct androgenic compound. It is not the type of steroid used when one is seeking massive explosions of muscle mass in a short amount of time, but rather when the goal is to pack on a small amount of very lean muscle mass without adding a lot of useless weight. Visually its not as gratifying as a testosterone based steroid simply because of the quality gains. Testosterone compounds have a high estrogenic effect and will therefore add a lot more mass visually in a short amount of time, but also considerable water retention and adipose gain. One of the greatest benefits of boldenone, in my opinion, is that it stimulates appetite. Since the effects of steroids are for a part based on their ability to increase protein synthesis in muscle tissue, it's a plus that just by taking the compound you get the urge to supply your body with the necessary materials to actually grow muscle. Almost as if you were to order some cement to build a house and you got the bricks for free. The gains from boldenone are also very stable, are easy to maintain after use and of a very high quality.
But that's not where the ride ends. Boldenone is perhaps one of the greatest means, apart from perhaps insulin, to maintain and stimulate the manufacture and retention of nitrogen. Positive Nitrogen balances are also a major stimulus to protein synthesis. This is, I believe, the main reason there is such a high gain of quality mass. There is a slow but very well maintained increase in muscle weight due to the sustained protein synthesis over a certain period of time.
Boldenone could also be a useful tool to endurance athletes, or multi-sport athletes as it is a noted stimulant of erythropoiesis. This is also the main effect of the drug EPO, and boldenone works through stimulating the release of EPO from the kidneys. Erythropoiesis is the process of making more red blood cells in the bone marrow, then release them in mass quantities in the blood. Red blood cells are the transport mechanism for oxygen, meaning you get a large increase in oxygen delivery to your muscles meaning you can enhance your endurance and sustain strenuous activities for longer periods of time without suffering cramps or fatigue. EPO is a heavily abused drug amongst cyclists by the way.
Prohormone conclusions: 1,4-andro, as a highly oral active precursor to boldenone, sees its use in many different ways. In terms of real bulking mass it can't hold a candle to testosterone precursors, but its obviously a great way of adding small amounts of quality mass that are easily maintained. Whilst it is low in estrogen aromatisation, it does not exclude the process entirely, also because it is a dione version. The amount of estrogen is considerably lower than that of testosterone precursors which avoids the massive water retention and decreases the odds of estrogen-related side-effects, but still has some estrogenic conversion which makes it visually more gratifying than DHT derivatives like 5AA and 1AD. I think 1,4-andro, if obtained at a decent price, is of most use as a lean mass agent in a stack with a testosterone precursor to illicit very high anabolic reactions and would make up for its lack of androgenic aggresiveness. Or by itself for endurance athletes and multi-sport athletes. In a stack with a nandrolone-precursor it would be a very low androgenic stack, Ideal for those looking for a stack that can still offer quality gains without the addition of androgen-related side-effects like prostate hypertrophy or hair loss. 1,4-andro is in my opinion a very valuable product if it can be obtained from a good source at a good price. The lean mass gain and low side-effect rate, combined with high oral efficacy make this one of the best products to consider in oral doses.
Dosage: 1,4-andro and likewise boldenone posses a double bond between the first and second carbon atom, which can be seen in the structural diagram above. This gives it a natural ability to bypass the liver at a much higher rate than steroid-hormones that do not posses this double bond. Often times steroids are 17-alpha alkalated to make up for low oral efficacy, but that increases the chance of hepa-toxicity. The double bond doesn't. That means dosage between 150 and 300 mg daily are often enough to illicit dramatic results when stacked with another prohormone. For use by itself doses of 500-800 mg should be considered, but this is a very expensive affair. To maintain levels, it should be taken in 3-4 doses per day. There is some use for it transdermally, but the 1-double bond makes it a better candidate for oral delivery.
Dihydrotestosterone
Name: 5-alpha-androstene-3-one,17b-ol
Precursors: 5-alpha-androstane-3߬17߭diol, 5-alpha-androstane-3,17-dione
Forms: None
The word DHT must be running shivers down the spines of some experienced prohormone users. And I must say I wasn't too pleased with the invention of a prohormone that directly converts to DHT either. This is after all the stuff that was named as the main culprit in accelerated male pattern baldness, prostate hypertrophy, acne and increased facial and body hair growth. So why would anyone want to use straight DHT ? Well androgen related side-effects do not occur in everyone, usually only a percentage of people suffer from the severest side-effects. And other prohormones do exert these androgenic effects themselves to some extent as well. Either by converting to DHT or by stimulating androgen receptors in other ways. So the increased risk of using DHT isn't that much greater, unless of course you really have male pattern baldness (MPB), in which case using this product will leave you permanently bald after prolonged use. But the increased risk between this and a precursor to 1-testosterone or even testosterone is really not that great.
So what are the benefits of using DHT ? Are there any ? Well there are some, but I agree, not many. DHT and its derivatives do play an important role in the success of testosterone based products. Mainly in the neuromuscular department. Many of the strength related effects of testosterone and other steroids are due to neuromuscular stimulation by way of DHT. It will allow for dramatic strength increases over a short period of time. Combined with the fact that it is already 5-alpha reduced and cannot aromatise that makes DHT a winner for weight-lifters trying to make a weight class. The weight gain is minimal, and all of it muscle, and your strength shoots through the roof.
Another benefit of using DHT and the like is that it promotes muscle hardness to a large point, making it a possible favorite for pre-contest bodybuilders. This could however be a problem as DHT does stimulate acne and skin impurities, and as mentioned before, if you have MPB the risk is considerable. But nonetheless the increased hardness, striations and vascularity can pay off.
Prohormone conclusions: In stacking opportunities, 5AA leaves a lot of be desired. But it has been touted as a blocker of estrogen as well as being incapable of forming it by itself. That means taking it with a testosterone precursor can decrease the ability of estrogen aromatisation of the latter. If the increased androgenic activity is of no concern to you, but estrogen-related issues are, this may be worth considering. Stacking it with a nandrolone precursor can decrease estrogenic activity of the nandrolone precursor and increase the low androgenic ability. Like wise the nandrolone precursor will decrease the overall androgenic risk of such a stack. As far as stacking goes I believe this to be the best possibility. They support each other to a large extent and are capable of delivering upon strong, lean gains while decreasing the side-effects of the other component.
Dosage: The minimum effective dosage in a stack would be 200-300 mg a day. Again, I don't really advocate the use of this product other than in a stack with a nandrolone-precursor as the androgen related risks are considerable. Though strength wise stacking it with a testosterone precursor would considerably increase neuromuscular response. By itself taking less than 600 mg would have little to no use in adding any sort of mass. Especially orally. This would however be a great candidate for transdermal application. The use by itself is extremely limited, I would not advise it to anyone other than perhaps weightlifters looking for added strength without having to miss their weight-class cut-off.
1-Testosterone
Name:
Precursors: 5-alpha-Androst-1-en-3,17-beta-Diol / 5-alpha-Androst-1-en-3,17-Dione
Forms: none
 
1-Testosterone is in effect dihydro-boldenone, a 5-alpha reduced version of boldenone. A DHT derivative if you will that entails a very high androgenic potential. This is good because this increases the anabolic capacity of the drug. Its been said that it 700 percent more anabolic than body testosterone. That's quite a catch no? The downside is that androgen-related issues consequently increase largely as well. 1-Testosterone is perhaps best described as a means to achieve amounts of lean mass, considerably higher than DHT, but with greater oral efficacy. Users report immense boosts in strength and muscle hardness, with minimal amounts of bodyweight but still a slow and steady increase in muscle mass.
Most of that effect is the result of absolutely zero estrogenic activity. Having already undergone 5AR it is structurally incapable of interacting with estrogen receptors. This means it is a great product to use for pre-contest bodybuilders looking to add a few pounds and stay/get lean at the same time. It doesn't have any water retention so there is no fear of unwanted bodyweight. Because of a structural difference it has a double bond between the first and second carbon, much like boldenone, meaning it is highly orally effective and much lower doses can be used than for DHT, but still achieving similar hardness and striations.
Prohormone conclusions: 1AD is very effective at what it does and mg per mg it is more potent than any of the other prohormones due to low water retention, high oral efficacy and being a potent androgen. The risks, androgen wise, are considerable, as was the case with 5AA. Estrogen wise there is absolutely zero aromatisation. The downside here is the cost. With 1,4-andro cost was an issue, but there are other sources to apply to that offer it for a lot lower price. But as far as 1AD is concerned a patent has been applied for by the manufacturer and that alone promises no decrease in price in the near future. Luckily the oral efficacy is so high, so even minor doses can contribute, which means it will remain a very hyped and popular commodity among prohormone users. But for people who stack, it's a bit of a wash. 1,4-andro can deliver similar results when taken in a good stack, and be obtained for a lower price in retail if you shop around a bit. Nonetheless it makes a good match for both 19Nor and Nor-diol in a stack, but that will only drive up the price. Bodybuilding.com offers one of the lowest prices on 1AD worldwide, which may be some relief to people. 1AD is very potent and I think you haven't seen everything until you tried it, but for regular use its not the best option for your wallet. It is best stacked with a non-androgen, in analogy to trenbolone, so a Nor-diol is your best bet. You can stack it with a sublingual 4-diol as well because 1AD has been shown to have nefast effects on the libido, which could be countered by 4-diol to some extent.
Dosage: Currently 1AD is an oral only compound, and I have no idea whether or not there are plans for transdermal delivery. But because of the 1-double bond its one of the best candidates for oral delivery anyway. Doses should be maintained throughout the day. That means administering it 3-4 times. Low doses (200-300 mg) can exert an effect, especially in a stack, but by itself it is recommended that you use the effective dose (600-900 mg) or even the aggressive dose (900-1200 mg, which is very expensive). It is best stacked with a non-androgen, probably a transdermal Nor-diol.
The chemical and physiological data I presented you with is very accurate, but here and there, there may be mention of dosage and stacking information which I, like many people, obtained from other sources. I have worked with some steroid users, have several friends who have this knowledge, but haven't tried them myself. So this information may not be 100 percent accurate.
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