Some bodybuilders are turning to extreme methods in order to achieve the perfect pecs.

There are two types of drug abuse: the scary kind, and the really scary kind. Synthol users fall victim to the latter. A drug which is becoming increasingly popular with bodybuilders, synthol is a kind of injectable fat, used to “correct” lagging body parts, giving the impression of a larger muscle mass as it’s absorbed into the body.

It was first concocted by American bodybuilder guru Chris Clark in the 90s, when he was looking for a way to bulk up muscles that responded poorly to training, and it’s been destroying people’s bodies ever since. Clark ended up in hospital after inadvertently poisoning himself with one of the early stage mixes, but apparently that didn’t deter him and synthol is now about as easy to get hold of as cannabis.

You might not have heard it’s name before but I’m sure many of you have seen the infamous YouTube video below showcasing it’s fuck-awful effects. The man in the video, Gregg Valentino, went from being the record holder for the world’s biggest biceps to “that guy whose arm exploded” after years of steroid abuse and synthol injecting took their toll, and a giant haematoma formed in his right bicep, leaking blood and puss for hours after he tried to drain it. Reflecting on what happened he says, “I was really the guy who needed a lobotomy.” Valentino underwent surgery but his arm is now permanently deformed.

This is obviously an extreme case but the reality is there are many cases of substance abuse happening in the world of competitive bodybuilding. Sarmad Alladin, an 18-year-old boy from Surrey, died last year after taking DNP fat burning tablets to help him slim down, an abuse that’s scarily common, and although synthol use is banned competitively, along with anabolic steroids, its popularity seems to be growing. Shunned by most professionals there are hundreds of anti-synthol forums dedicated purely to hatin’, but use still appears to be growing.

by Rosie Parry

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