Having dabbled in my formative years I’ve often wondered what it’d be like cycling after having a pill. Get some tunes on, get pumping. Trouble is you’re just as likely to stop to contemplate the beauty of nature for 30 mins so you might not get much riding done.

A friend thought he’d go full retro and mix amphetamine and champagne (this was the early nineties and we were young and skint – it would have been Lambrusco) for a club 10 to see how it felt. Intention was to DNF but close enough to the finish that he had a meaningful time to compare. He ended up half a mile from the finish in a ditch thinking he was having a heart attack and too afraid to ask for help because he knew how wired he looked.

I don’t advise.

^ I lol’d.

This article is fascinating. It will of course, make you super keen to try growth hormone, testosterone and EPO.

https://www.outsideonline.com/1924306/drug-test

And I’m not quite sure how DezB thinks my one flippant remark about ebikes makes this a snide dig at ebikes…. 🤔

Creatine will make you retain water so makes you heavier..not ideal for cycling up hills.

I read a tale about how the tdf doctors had to wake the riders up in the middle of the night to get them on the turbo for 20 min so their blood wouldn’t solidify due to all the epo they’d been taking. If you have a wife who is prepared to do this for you then fill your boots..

Sodium thiopental?
Maybe you’d realise that the truth is sometimes you just have to do the work to get the benefit.

I actually looked into this a while ago, I have absolutely no moral qualms about taking (performance enhancing) drugs to increase my enjoyment of sports, especially as I get older testosterone replacement therapy seems quite attractive, even just to slow the decline into old age.

It isn’t that hard to get hold of stuff online, there are forums (mainly for bodybuilding) where if you do your research you can find the genuine suppliers. Obviously most PED’s are muscle builders so not fully suitable for cycling. However it should be noted that what most PEDS do is allow you to train hard then recover faster, allowing you to improve through hard work, they are not a shortcut, so for cycling they would allow you to cycle more frequently and harder, but it will not be “easier”.

EPO was quite expensive, prohibitively so.

TRT is the one that made most sense IMO, but I think for me I would want to be supervised by a doctor, it is actually pretty safe as long as you know what you are getting is legit, and don’t overdo the dosages.

And that is where it falls down, if I could buy it from a private consultation with a doctor, get a blood test every other month, it would be safer than drinking a few glasses of wine a week and benefit me much more. But that option isn’t available to me and I am not going to trust the black market so I am out.

And I’m not quite sure how DezB thinks my one flippant remark about ebikes makes this a snide dig at ebikes

Probably whatever drugs he is on making him a bit paranoid

Supplement wise, I’ve been taking Onnit’s Shroomtech before big rides, and I’ve noticed a definite performance boost which is actually quite easy to evidence.

https://www.onnit.com/shroomtech-sport/

There’s a lot of science blurb etc and supposed positive results from various trials but the consistent thing I’ve noticed is on the readings from my heart rate monitor. On rides where I don’t take the Shroomtech prior to the ride, I’ll regularly hit 90%+ of my max heart rate and end up blowing up on climbs.

If I do take them before a ride, then my heart rate stays low on climbs and I feel like I’ve got much more in the tank.

Certainly works for me and I’ve been using it for sometime now and I definitely feel it benefits me.

And I’m not quite sure how DezB thinks my one flippant remark about ebikes makes this a snide dig at ebikes

It just seemed more likely than you actually wanting to take EPO for pleasure.
I could grab some quotes that tie in with my theory but I can’t be arsed.

Ask Amgen, they sponsor the tour of California and make epo, so they’re bound to be synthetic to your needs…………..

If I do take them before a ride, then my heart rate stays low on climbs and I feel like I’ve got much more in the tank.

Have you got power data showing that your power output hasn’t also dropped with your HR?

Have you got power data showing that your power output hasn’t also dropped with your HR?

That’s what I was thinking.

The earlier statement is a bit like saying your car had more left in the tank after driving at lower RPM (your legs being the gearbox in this analogy)

Ironic name too, my flatmates at uni took some shrooms, “on it” was definitely not a descriptor of their motivation levels, unless it was motivation to stare at a bit of abstract art from inches away.

if most PEDS are muscle builders this is bad as with steriod using bodybuilders your heart also grows and can cause real problems.

I am not sure about growth hormone and it’s side affects ( whether it’s dangerous or not ) but I would have thought it reverses old age in men and may be compared to hormone replacement therapy in ladies. This is probably not so though. Plus body builders probably take vast amounts of it to get bigger.

I remember that drugs article people are linking to being discussed on here a few years ago.

The guy reckons HGH was the best one to take long term. I particularly like the bit about old scars healing up and not needing glasses.

But then somebody on here (Njee20?) pointed out taking HGH long term will massively increase your chances of developing all sorts of cancer. That put me off a bit (plus its bloody expensive).

The PEDS that pros use are the best that they can do without getting caught. Surely if you just want max power just drop some speed? Should be fairly easy to get. Just keep dosing low to start with.

Can’t you just get an asthma inhaler?

does **** all for me lol

I could do with some TRT and HGH..

Sniff..

#iwantobemoarofamanthaniamalready

PM me…

DrP

(Ha…of course not really!! Wouldn’t that be terrible!!)

Just a pick me up that I can pop before a ride.

caffeine

caffeine is a wicked performance enhancing drug

Blood transfusion can’t be that difficult? Extract some blood. Save it for one of those weekends… Not sure how you get it back in but it’s not rocket science, just needs squirted into a tube.

Interesting, MSP, thanks.

Mate said about blood transfusion. Bubble some oxygen through it and squirt it back in.

Could be messy, mind.

^ sounds like a soda stream would be ideal for diy blood doping 😉…..oh…….that’s carbon dioxide ain’t it?…..still, it’s probably gonna have the same effect.

Caffeine doesn’t help before a ride, in my experience. Go without until you’re knackered 5 hours in, then take it. That’s when it has a big effect.

Meow!

Meow Meow surely?

I’m no massive hill climber, but there’s no substitute for repeatedly hitting hills to make your hill climbing better.

Even if you have to get off and walk, if you keep pushing within reason, you’ll get a bit further each time.

Also things like amphetamines, they might give you a slight boost, but if your muscles and vascular system isn’t up to the job, you’ll quickly come undone.

Have you got power data showing that your power output hasn’t also dropped with your HR?

No power data but I can Compare climbs in strava and my speed is demonstrably higher and more consistent when I supplement

Mate of mine would occasionally pop an aspirin before racing time trials.. he said your heart doesnt have to work as hard as your blood is much thinner??

Hes pretty quick like.. i dunno 🤔

Ok so a couple of years ago I got given a load of flourexatine. I went from struggling to do 10 miles to no issues with 20 overnight.

Basically I hear it’s like taking coke and e

I haven’t looked back since. It cant be good for you but it’s better than the alternative for me.

Blooming heck !

Caffeine doesn’t help before a ride, in my experience.

A clinical pharmacologist writes… most people do not realise that after caffeine ingestion, absorption is relatively slow. Peak concentration is reached about 45 minutes after. So you won’t notice any benefit immediately after taking it.

All the pros take sis double espresso gels and will ALL be dosing heavily with an hour to go in any race.

Caffeine has several metabolic benefits. It adds 5-7 bpm to my max heart rate for one. Useful in a 25. Provided you dose an hour before the start.

PS you have to take a lot for the ergogenic effect. Doses of 8 mpk or about 500 mg have been tested. That’s 10 pro plus tablets or six double espressos. The lethal dose of caffeine was believed to be 14000 mg, but two students survived 30000 mg with emergency dialysis.

HGH and Testosterone will make you recover faster but won’t give you a boost, they are used in conjunction with EPO so you can train harder and recover faster.

EPO and corticoids will likely add a few watts to your legs, but only if you train accordingly.

I don’t think there is a miracle drug that gives you a boost without any training…maybe amphetamines…

I find it hard to believe youd not get a boost from HGH and upping your Testosterone levels.. Test might not be massively effective for endurance type events but enduro, downhill and any kind of sprint youd definitely have performance gains.

Just wondered what there is or there that will give me a bit of pep for the long climbs.

I think what you are after is a banana tbh!

I prescribe you 1 banana, 1 hour before said climb! 😆

Ah, just take the Tom Simpson approach. Fill up on Amphetamines and hope nothing goes ‘pop’.

Worked alright for him…

All I need these days,on a big day out, are three Torq gurana gels and it’s like I’ve had an E!
Try that.

PM me…

DrP

(Ha…of course not really!! Wouldn’t that be terrible!!)

YGM

I prescribe you 1 banana, 1 hour before said climb!

Where is he to inject this banana ?