After a cycle of anabolic steroids, your body requires post cycle therapy (PCT). This will help to counteract all the negative effects of the drugs and to fight rising estrogen levels. Without a PCT, not only will you experience liver toxicity, but you’ll lose all of your gains and only have low Testosterone to show for it.
Nolvadex is one substance which is popular with bodybuilders as part of their post cycle therapy treatment. It might help to reduce the damage caused by steroids, but what you might not realize is that Nolvadex has a whole host of side effects all its own. Read on to find out more.9-methyl-9H-pyrido[3,4-b]indole
What is Nolvadex?
Nolvadex began as a breast cancer medication known as ‘Tamoxifen’. It
helps stop the spread of the cancer to other parts of the body. But how
did a drug for breast cancer wind up in the hands of steroid users?
Well, Nolvadex has two primary characteristic that caught the attention of the bodybuilding community. As a Selective Estrogen Receptor Modulator (SERM), Nolvadex has been shown to prevent estrogen binding. Couple that with the benefit of increasing your natural testosterone levels and it soon becomes clear why muscle-bound men and women use it.
How to use Nolvadex
Due to its anti-estrogenic and pro-testosterone effects, bodybuilders
tend to take Nolva both during and immediately following a cycle. As
mentioned above, this ensures that estrogen isn’t able to bind and
testosterone levels stay high.
Natural levels of Testosterone are going to be incredibly low after a cycle of steroids. It can take up to 12 months for them to be fully restored, assuming they’re not suppressed long-term by estrogen. Nolvadex can help to fight off estrogen while promoting an increase in Testosterone production.
A typical Nolvadex dosage is between 10 and 40 mg, depending on size, goals and the length of the cycle. Since it’s a medication, you won’t find Nolvadex sitting on your store shelf; however, it’s possible to buy Nolva online. When trying to buy this popular PCT, many users find Nolvadex marketed as ‘Nolva’.
5 Nolvadex side effects
Sure, it’s a popular PCT and users claim it’s a necessity after a
steroid cycle, but what you may not realize is Nolvadex can cause a
whole host of other issues, making it just as problematic as the steroid
cycle itself. Let’s review the 5 most troubling Nolvadex side effects.
1. Gains… What gains?
One of the main reasons bodybuilders take steroids is to increase a
hormone called Insulin-like Growth Factor (IGF-1). IGF-1 is one of the
best ways to stimulate growth hormone production inside the body;
promoting a seriously anabolic playground for your muscles to enjoy.
If you’re going to put yourself and your organs through all the side effects that come with steroids, you better make it worthwhile. But if you’re taking Nolva, you’re going to be sadly disappointed.
Studies show that subjects taking a 20 mg dose (10 mg twice a day) of Nolvadex experienced a significant drop in IGF-1 levels.
2. Non-existent libido
Guys, this one is for you: Despite claims that Nolvadex can jumpstart your Testosterone levels, it can also kill your sex drive.
Subjects in numerous studies, not to mention plenty of forum users, complained about having a severely low libido when taking Novaldex. For some guys, their non-existent libido was enough to make them drop from the study. Yikes!
