On a recent episode of the Trensparent podcast, PED expert Vigorous Steve reflected on how dramatically the bodybuilding community’s attitude toward GLP-1 receptor agonists has shifted over the past several years, moving from open contempt to near-universal adoption.
Steve first set the scene by recalling the lengths competitors once went to in order to manage appetite during prep before GLP-1s became widely available.
“All the weird tricks we had to pull before GLP-1s came to the market,” he said. “Injecting melanotan 2 to kill your appetite because you’re too nauseous, or drink like two liters of water before you go to bed so you fill your stomach so you can actually sleep.”
Adderall was another tool people leaned on before the d**g class gained traction.
The contrast Steve drew was direct. Where competitors once relied on stimulants and sheer discomfort to suppress appetite, the scene has completely shifted. “So now we just use retatrutide,” he said. “Lifesaver.”
But the more telling observation came when Steve described how the bodybuilding community responded when he first began discussing GLP-1s four to five years ago.
“When I started about GLP-1s, the other bodybuilders were so against it,” he said. “It’s not blue collar, bro. I like to be hungry and feel the pain of prep.”
That mindset, Steve noted, has completely reversed. He said, “And now everybody and their mother is on a GLP-1 and all the coaches are talking about it. It’s hilarious to see. Nobody can prep without a GLP-1, which is fine. So it’s a d**g that has its benefits.”
He connected the GLP-1 shift to a pattern he has noticed in the bodybuilding community’s reluctance to adopt new approaches before eventually embracing them. “It’s funny to see how the bodybuilding community has changed and changed their tune the last couple of years on five aminoQ, on mitochondrial health,” he said.
He pointed out that dismissiveness about new stuff tends to give way once those become normalized.
Steve also flagged one practical concern for competitors using GLP-1s leading into a show. Because the d**gs slow gastric motility, carb loading becomes difficult.
“Carb loading is going to be pretty hard, where you try to eat 600, 800, 1,200 carbs,” he said. His recommendation was to stop GLP-1 use two to three weeks out, allowing digestion and intestinal motility to normalize before peak week begins.
He also pointed to what he believes may be a consequence of competitors continuing GLP-1s too close to competition. “I saw, especially at the amateur level, you see some guys with horrible distension again, which I thought we were over,” he said. “It’s probably from the GLP-1s.”
