A Closer Look at Trenbolone, Part I
by William Llewellyn, author of Anabolics
2006 - Anabolic Steroid Reference Manual
Not too many steroids have an air of mystique about them
quite like trenbolone. It is one of those agents that you will hear talked
up aggressively by some guy in the gym, to later find he has not even tried
it himself yet. The bodybuilding literature is full of strong, unusual,
and often-inaccurate statements about this drug, and consequently an air
of misunderstanding has begun to cloud our view of trenbolone. The unusual
history of this compound, including prolonged periods of very limited availability
and high selling prices, has no doubt played a part in shaping the view
of this steroid in the minds of athletes. It seems when anything is out
of reach, overly expensive or both, people start looking at it in a different
way. I therefore thought it would be a good idea to take a closer look
at the physical properties of trenbolone, as well as its current state
of availability and use.
Structure
Structurally trenbolone is a derivative of nandrolone,
carrying two additional double carbon bonds at positions 9 and 11 (hence
the prefix "tren", short for tri-en). The activity of trenbolone differs
from that of its parent hormone considerably however. To begin with, trenbolone
cannot aromatize to estrogen. The delta-9 group present on its structure
occupies a bond necessary for aromatization of the A-Ring to be possible.
Unless this group is removed metabolically, which it does not appear to
be, estrogen synthesis is impossible in the body. Although nandrolone is
a weak substrate for aromatase, estrogen levels can still rise during use.
With trenbolone we actually expect a lowering of serum estrogen levels,
as it should suppress endogenous testosterone release (the primary substrate
for estradiol in men).
Trenbolone (17beta-hydroxyestra-4,9,11-trien-3-one)
Androgenic Activity
Although derived from nandrolone, trenbolone is comparatively
far more androgenic than this steroid. In fact it is several times stronger
in this regard than our primary androgen testosterone as well (1). The
first contributing factor to this of course is that trenbolone is a strong
binder of the androgen receptor. This trait is also characteristic of its
parent nandrolone, which is several times more active than testosterone
in this regard. Androgen binding is in fact further enhanced by the introduction
of double bonds in delta-9,11 (2), which makes trenbolone an even more
potent agonist of the androgen receptor than nandrolone. Perhaps more significant
though is the fact that unlike nandrolone, the strong receptor binding
potency of trenbolone is not diminished in androgen sensitive tissues by
5-alpha reductase. Trenbolone does not seem to undergo 5-alpha reduction
in humans to any appreciable degree at all, which is evidenced by the fact
that the major urinary metabolites of trenbolone all possess the original
tri-en structure with an intact delta-4 group (3). So trenbolone retains
its original potency as it enters cells in androgen target tissues with
high 5AR concentrations, as this enzyme is not affecting it. These factors
work together to allow trenbolone to be a potently androgenic steroid,
instead of a primarily anabolic one in nature like nandrolone. .
Progestational Activity
It has been reported in other bodybuilding literature
that trenbolone does not exhibit any activity as a progestin in the body.
I am not certain where this belief originated, as trenbolone does appear
to exhibit the classic progesterone receptor binding ability that is characteristic
of nandrolone and its derivatives. One study looking at the bovine uterine
progesterone receptor for example found trenbolone to be a very potent
binder, startlingly even more so than progesterone itself (4). Another
looking at the binding of various compounds to the androgen, estrogen,
progestin, mineral corticoid and glucocorticoid receptors found trenbolone
to be a more potent binder of the progestin receptor than nandrolone (5),
a steroid normally noted for its usual activity in this regard. What does
this mean for trenbolone? I don’t think it really means that much. Trenbolone
clearly doesn’t cause gyno, water retention or fat buildup, which one might
attribute to estrogenic or progestational activity. So whatever slight
action it does have as a progestin on paper doesn’t amount to all that
much in the real world. The absence of estrogen may be a significant factor,
as progesterone is believed to cause gyno by enhancing estrogen’s stimulation
of mammary gland growth (6). Perhaps when trenbolone is taken with other
aromatizable compounds it could affect a person’s sensitivity level to
gyno and water/fat retention. This seems logical, at least in a technical
sense, although admittedly I have seen no evidence to support this.
Mass or Cutting Agent
The potently androgenic and non-aromatizing nature of
trenbolone makes it an extremely effective hardening and cutting agent.
In fact, it is thought of as unmatched in its capacity as a body-sculpting
steroid. Many competitive bodybuilders similarly find it indispensable
to any good pre-contest cutting stack. For this type of purpose I doubt
another steroid would serve you better. Many people do additionally find
they make very good muscle gains with trenbolone. It is a potent muscle-builder,
although we should probably not consider it an ideal mass-builder when
used alone. The absence of estrogen is an important factor, as this trait
seems integral in this type of steroid. This probably has to do not only
with water retention but also interactions between estrogen and muscle
glucose utilization, GH release and androgen receptor proliferation. Today
we are finally starting to understand why this hormone is needed for optimal
growth. Trenbolone is probably still the most potent muscle-building agent
of all the non-estrogenic steroids though, and admittedly is quite unusual
in its potency in this regard. But I would still think that if mass were
the goal and you were choosing only one steroid, testosterone, Dianabol
or Anadrol would be more productive every time in terms of overall size,
weight and muscle mass gain.
Availability
As mentioned in the opening of this article, trenbolone
has been plagued by periods of manufacturing inconsistency, high prices
and scarce availability since it first hit the market in the early 80’s.
There is probably little need to revisit in detail the rise and fall of
Finajet in the 1980’s, or the demise of Parabolan in 1997. Clearly the
colorful history of trenbolone is well discussed. But today’s situation
is no less interesting, as we are in a unique situation. For the first
time in four years we have a legitimate injectable trenbolone again, as
the Mexican veterinary drug firm Laboratories Ttokkyo has recently started
producing Trenbol, a 10 ml bottle of trenbolone acetate (TA) in the strength
of 75mg/ml. This product is not cheap, and usually sells for upwards of
$150 a bottle. Reportedly Denkall is working on a similar item, and there
are some reliable underground generics floating about as well that sell
for a better price and usually supply a comparable amount of TA. There
have been some questions about raw material supply lately though, and whether
or not both types of product would remain on the market. This discussion
was heightened by the recent removal of Trenbol from Ttokkyo’s website
(www.ttokkyo.com.mx), which is making a lot of people nervous that this
product may be on the way out. Hopefully this is just a website problem
and not a repeat of the fate that fell on Finajet and Parabolan. If these
products do dry up, trenbolone will still be available, but in the form
of cattle implant pellets. In Part II of this article I will take a closer
look at these unusual products, as well as the various methods utilized
by bodybuilders in an effort to effectively use them.
About The Author
World-renowned anabolic authority, William Llewellyn has
written and rewritten the definitive book on steroids. His series of ANABOLICS
books have become the most trusted steroid and performance drug reference
book of its kind. For over 15 years Llewellyn has uncovered and compiled
cutting-edge insider's information from actual drug manufacturers, dealers,
and users from all over the world, guaranteeing up-to-date information.
From Mesomorphosis.com
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