At the Arnold Classic convention, fitness content creator Coach Kolton was walking the floor conducting a social experiment with his friend Ed, approaching people who appeared to be using PEDs to see how many attendees were actually using gear.
One particular encounter became a moment that went viral, racking up 2.4 million views on Instagram, and for all the wrong reasons.
Spotting a young man who looked significantly older than his actual age, Coach Kolton approached him with a simple question.
He asked: “Are you natural or not?”
“I’m on SARMs,” the teenager replied.
Kolton then asked: “And how old are you?”
The young man replied: “16.”
Coach Kolton noted he asked the teenager’s age twice because he genuinely could not believe the answer the first time. The young man disclosed he was running a full stack containing LGD, YK11, MK-677, and RAD-140, multiple stuff that have never been approved for human use.
When asked why he was not simply injecting testosterone instead, his response was: “Because I’m 16 years old. I don’t need it right now.”
SARMs, or Selective Androgen Receptor Modulators, were developed with the intention of replacing anabolic roids by delivering all of the muscle-building benefit with none of the harmful side effects. That goal was never achieved.
Clinical trials across multiple pharma companies between 2000 and 2010 revealed that SARMs produced similar negative outcomes to roids, including suppression of natural testosterone production, lipid dysregulation leading to cardiovascular disease, and concerning changes to neurochemistry. The FDA ultimately deemed them unfit for human use.
For a 16-year-old, the consequences are far more serious. At that age, growth plates at the ends of long bones are still open, and s ex hormones are supposed to rise gradually to drive natural development before signaling those plates to fuse.
Flooding the body with excess androgens accelerates that process, potentially closing growth plates early and permanently limiting height and physical development. On top of that, the absence of estrogen byproducts that come with compounds like testosterone means the body is being denied hormones it critically needs during puberty.
Coach Kolton noted that following the video going viral, fellow fitness commentator Greg Doucette reached out wanting to help the teenager, and came to the same conclusion: the young man was resistant to information that contradicted his emotional investment in his current path.
“He is already aged to oblivion and is actively shutting down his natural testosterone levels,” Coach Kolton said. “This is a recipe for disaster.”
The teenager himself summed up the prevailing attitude when asked about his plans: “Whatever it takes.”
