As most would know, approaching female ped usage is totally different to male ped usage. As guys our path to hypertrophy via pharmacology is pretty straight forward when starting peds. Jump on test for a few cycles then introduce some other anabolics of your choice on cycles. Then maybe some slin, hgh etc. For females it can be pretty confusing working out the best place to start and how to go about usage. So I wanted to write up a beginners guide for female ped usage.
First of all. Yes androgens (anabolic steroids) are going to the most effect path for females to grow large amounts of muscle. But you must be aware that all anabolic steroids are androgenic and can cause masculinisation. This includes clitoris growth, jaw structure change, facial hair growth, voice deepening etc.
So how do females go about using androgens while trying to avoid masculising effects. This comes down to compound selection, dosage and duration.
But before jumping into androgen use, there are a number of compounds females can utilise for muscle growth without the risk of any masculinisation.
1. Clenbeuterol
Compared to androgens, clen is a mild anabolic agent. But it is a great muscle building compound for women. Starting dose for hypertrophy is 5-10mcg per day. At this low dosage we don't see a spill over to the sympathetic side of things meaning it is not stimulating fat loss like it does at higher doses (which means you dont need to worry about any of clens side effects). But what this low dose will do is drive up background MTOR which will build muscle tissue.
Recommended starter cycle:
5 to 10mcg per day for 4 to 6 weeks.
If you wish to utilise clen for more of its fat loss purposes you can run a higher dose up to 50-60% of your BW in mgs peak dosage. Example. 60kg female can tirate up to 30-40mcg per day for a 4 to 6 week cycle.
2. Fast acting insulin
Low dose fast acting insulin is another effective tool females can use to build muscle tissue. Only dosing before working out.
Protocol: start with 1iu of novo/rapid insulin pre workout with 20-40g carbs during workout via a intra workout shake (or gatorade etc). This can be run long term if you respond well and can be tirated up to 2-3iu pre workout. At these low doses it is extremely unlikely you will ever go hypoglycaemic.
3. Hgh
Another compound that is effective for muscle growth and can be run for longer periods by females. Starting dose is 1iu taken before bed. Even this low dose of 1iu can have profound results in body recomp and muscle growth as well as providing other benefits such as improved sleep and hair, nail and skin quality.
4. Metformin
Metformins ability to increase insulin sensitivity in the body makes it a great option for females looking to gain muscle and recomp. If we increase insulin sensitivity we improve the way we supply nutrients to our muscles leading to improved recovery.
Dosage:
It is recommended that you use roughly 1mg of metformin per 1g of carbs you consume in a day. Metformin comes in 500mg tabs. Split them in half for a 250mg dose or quarters for a 125mg dose. Metformin can be dosed in the morning or night or both.
Hgh, slin and metformin can be run longer term and all four of these compounds can be stacked together (though clen usage should be run in cycles of 4 to 6 weeks with a similar break time between usage).
For many women the use of the above compounds can result in significant muscle growth and physique changes. To the point that they may not feel the need to delve into androgen use.
Now onto androgens.
Firstly, when it comes to masculinisation, duration of exposure is the biggest player. Dosage does obviously effect it as well, but masculinisation takes time and studies have shown that lower doses of androgens over long periods or time are more likely to cause masculinisation than moderate to higher doses for shorter periods. So you should aim to keep androgen exposure to shorter periods. The 4 to 6 week period is ideal, you can push longer but it is not recommended to go past the 8 week mark.
So where to start. Well most starting probably aren't overly keen on injecting and that's fine because orals are a great option. The orals of choice for female beginners should be either anavar, anadrol or winstrol (or oral primo if you can source it).
1. Anavar is a great all rounder that has become a favourite in the female ped world. It will drive lean muscle growth and will also work on long term energy systems (which can be beneficial to females competing in sports like crossfit).
Recommended starting dose: 2.5mg-5mg per day for 4 to 6 weeks. On future cycles this dose can be increased up to 10mgs per day with some even pushing to 20mgs per day with little side effects or masculinisation occurring.
2. Anadrol provides more fullness along with it supporting muscle growth. For female bodybuilders this is commonly used earlier into a prep to drive tissue accrual.
Recommended starting dose: 1 to 2.5mgs per day for 4 to 6 weeks. Many coaches report that they rarely need to push anadrol dosing past 2.5mgs per day to see significant results.
3. Winstrol is a drier compound that will support lean muscle growth while providing a hard cosmetic look. This is why it's commonly used in the weeks leading up to a bodybuilding show. It also works on short term energy systems which supports explosive strength and power output.
Recommended starting dose: 1 to 2.5mgs per day for 4 to 6 weeks. Like anadrol many coaches report that they rarely need to push winstrol dosing past 2.5mgs per day to see significant results.
The next level. Injectables.
If you want to take the next step up, then injectable androgens are the path. The best injectable compounds for women are primobolan and nandrolone (preferably NPP due to its shorter ester, which means it will clear the system faster if you need to stop it due to side effects).
Women tend to respond well to primobolan as it is not very androgenic and effectively drives protein synthesis and transcription.
Women also respond well to nandrolone for the same reasons. Nandrolone is also technically a bio-identical hormone as women produce it during gestation.
Starter cycles:
1. Primobolan - 6 weeks of 25mg per week. Most find this to be a very effective dose that doesn't need to be run much higher.
2. NPP - 8 weeks of 25mgs per week. Some females may require a higher dose of NPP, up to 1mg per kg of BW per week, or even up to double that to see the best results. It is best practice to start at a low dose and tirate up from there.
(Keeping in mind that we have a study on females using nandrolone showing: "a high tolerability (minor but statistically insignificant incidents of viralising side effects) with a dose of 50mgs of nandrolone per week for 12 weeks" - meaning it's well tolerated at doses of around 1mg per kg of BW per week for 12 weeks or less.)
The recommended primobolan cycle is a few weeks shorter than the NPP cycle due to the longer ester attached to primo.
It is always recommend that time on cycle = time off. For further cycles you can up the daily dose. But it is not recommended that you exceed 1mg of androgens per kg of BW per week. As once you move up from there masculinisation is more prevalent.
In between androgen cycles women can continue to use insulin, clen or hgh to stimulate muscle growth.
As always be sure to stay on top of your health markers with regular bloodwork. And only continue to use compounds that you respond well to with minimal negative side effects.
If you need someone to coach you through, check out the ASF coaching section as we currently have three of the best coaches in the game who all have experience coaching female athletes.
Much love, get massive.
Shankle
