Arnold Schwarzenegger's bold message to bodybuilders: 'Avoid steroids for a healthy life'

Once an admitted user of performance-enhancing drugs, 75-year-old Arnold Schwarzenegger is now advocating for a steroid-free bodybuilding industry. The actor and former California governor has revealed some hard truths about his past and sent out a grave warning to those walking a similar path.

The Terminator Star's Personal Encounter with Steroids

In an interview for Men’s Health magazine, Schwarzenegger reminisced about his days of testosterone and Dianabol consumption - both drugs popular in the bodybuilding circles. He shed light on his intake, divulging that it involved "100 milligrams a week” of testosterone and "three Dianabol a day, so that was 15 milligrams a day".

The Terminator star was quick to draw a line between his past use and the rampant steroid misuse he sees in the present day, highlighting that the consumption of these drugs only became illegal post-1990 with the introduction of the Anabolic Steroids Control Act.

A Safe Sport No More, Warns Schwarzenegger

In Schwarzenegger's view, bodybuilding was once considered a 'safe sport,' but that is no longer the case. The disturbing rise of drug overdoses and misuse have tainted the sport, leading to a worrying increase in mortalities. He made an emphatic plea, "Bodybuilding always, always was considered a safe sport. But now it’s not. Now people are dying — they’re dying because of overdoses of drugs and they don’t know what the f--- they’re doing. They’re listening to charlatans."

Despite his own experience with steroids, Schwarzenegger urges contemporary bodybuilders to prioritize health over all else and avoid using steroids. He candidly warns, "Don’t go there. Anytime you abuse the body, you’re going to regret it. I have seen people getting kidney transplants and suffering tremendously from it."

Although he acknowledges his complex role as an advocate, Schwarzenegger now maintains a steroid-free fitness routine, focusing on staying healthy and maintaining his ability to perform in films.