Primobolan is a well-known and popular steroid as well. Like nandrolone it's most often used as a base compound for stacking with other steroids. Methenolone however, is a DHT-based steroid (actually, DHB or dihydroboldenone, the 5-alpha reduced of the milder boldenon). Meaning when it interacts with the aromatase enzyme it does not form estrogens at all. That makes it ideal for use when cutting when excess estrogen is best avoided because of its retentive effects on water and fat. Methenolone is mostly only used in such instances, or by people who are very succeptible to estrogenic side-effects, because the anabolic activity of methenolone is slightly lower than that of nandrolone, quite likely BECAUSE it is non-estrogenic.
Because it is a widely available steroid its often used as a replacement for nandrolone or boldenone to those who have no access to Deca-Durabolin or Laurabolin or Equipoise. When stacked with a heavy mass steroid like testosterone and/or methandrostenolone it can deliver almost similar gains. Those seeking to cut will most likely be very pleased stacking it with drostanolone, stanozolol or trenbolone. Women and beginners also stack methenolone WITH nandrolone because this gives a mildly anabolic stack that is generally regarded as one of the safer stacks around in an androgenic perspective. But alas, with the nandrolone, also a very suppressive stack.
Methenolone is available as an injection or as an oral. The injection is naturally regarded as better. Its an enanthate ester which is quite long-acting and only needs to be injected once a week in doses of 300-600 mg. Because it by-passes hepatic breakdown on the first pass, it also has a higher survival rate. The orals are a lot less handy, but often preferred by bodybuilders who are afraid of needles or who are already taking one or more injectable compounds. The tabs are in a short-lived acetate form, meaning that doses of 100-150 mg per day are needed, split over 2 or 3 doses, making the tabs quite inconvenient for use. The reason doses need to be split up, unlike most oral steroids, is because Methenolone is not 17-alpha-alkylated, but 1-methylated for oral bio-availability. This reduces the liver stress, but also the availability, hence the multiple and high doses needed daily.
Like nandrolone, methenolone is very mild on the system. Probably the reason why both are strongly favored as base compounds in stacks. Methenolone has no estrogenic side-effects whatsoever, on account of its structure. Its effects on the cholesterol levels are barely noticeable. In doses of 200 mg or less (injectable) blood pressure is rarely, if at all, altered. As for hepatoxicity, long-term use will of course increase liver values but gradually and only slightly. The injections of course, since they only pass the liver once, have roughly half the liver-toxic effects of the tabs. The low liver-toxicity is accounted for that the bio-availability of methenolone is carried by a 1-methyl-group, which lessens the need for a carrier attachment such as a 17-alpha-akylated group, the main culprit in steroid-related liver afflictions.
The strangest thing however, taking into account that Primo is still a DHT (or rather DHB) derivative, is that it is quite easy on the system androgenically as well. Women use methenolone often, usually the tabs, and find little virilisation symptoms in short term use of methenolone. Long-term use may induce some acne and a deepening of the voice however. Methenolone is also not overly suppressive of the HPT axis (endocrinal axis for the production of natural testosterone). These are both the result of DHB's 1,2-double bond, which, analog to the parent structure boldenone, reduces the androgenic binding by 50% as opposed to DHT.
For athletes who wish to maintain a "natural" status in competition, the tablets are quite well-suited as detection chances for the acetate-form are quite slim. However tests have improved and quite a number of metabolites1 of methenolone can be detected with a simple urine sample. But an English study documented that there is a liability in eating methenolone contaminated meats2, which could provide a possible defense if found out. One could always claim they ate the meat of a chicken or cow injected with methenolone since the test concluded eating such meat does not improve performance, but can deliver positive tests for several methenolone metabolites almost 24 hours after ingestion. That's for those of you seeking a viable defense against a possible methenolone-positive.
http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/catprimo.htm.
