IFBB pro bodybuilder Josh Bridgman has gone public with a candid account of what years of anabolic roid use has done to his body, and the consequences run far deeper than anything visible in the mirror. Fitness coach Greg Doucette talked about it in a recent video where Bridgman laid out the full scope of a career built around performance enhancement, documenting every cycle and blood work panel along the way.
“I posted every single cycle, every single bit of blood work,” Bridgman said. “For me personally, it was to be the best in the world. In fact, right now I’m preparing to qualify for the Mr. Olympia competition.”
Doucette, who openly discusses his own past roid use, praised Bridgman’s transparency before walking through what actually happens to the body during prolonged anabolic use. The reality is far removed from what most people anticipate when they start a cycle.
“Your physique is looking better, but everything else is looking worse,” Doucette said. “From the blood work, from your organs, from your insides to your face, to your hair, the acne, everything is getting worse with the exception of your physique.”
One of the most visible signs is what happens to the face. Long-term users often develop a puffy, rounded appearance driven by water retention and hormonal conversion. Doucette noticed it in himself when reviewing old photos.
“When I look back on my old ste**id-looking photos, when I was in my late 30s, and I’m seeing the puffiness, the size of my head, I’m surprised to see this because, frankly, I was peeled, single-digit body fat, but yet my face looked like I was fat.”
The internal damage, however, is where the story becomes genuinely alarming. Blood pressure, heart enlargement, liver stress, and kidney decline are among the most common and most overlooked consequences.
“You can’t tell that your heart is enlarging,” Doucette said. “These are secret changes that are going on inside your body. All you see is the visual.”
Kidneys present a particular concern. “Once they start going down that track, they most likely will never be the same ever again.” Unlike the liver, which has some capacity to bounce back, kidney function can decline permanently with prolonged abuse.
Hair loss, accelerated by testosterone converting to DHT, is another well-documented effect. Doucette underwent two hair transplants as a direct result of his years of use.
The cognitive toll is perhaps the least discussed. Doucette acknowledged that memory problems have affected him personally, and he works actively to slow mental decline through regular exercise, study, and diet.
His message throughout the conversation pointed toward accountability rather than regret.
“The only thing that you can continue to do that would be more stu*id than what you’ve done in the past is to keep doing what you’ve done in the past.”
Bridgman’s willingness to document the physical cost of elite bodybuilding offers a rarely seen look at what the pursuit of a world-class physique can permanently take away.
