In this episode of Blood Sweat & Gear on Think Big Bodybuilding, coaches Skip Hill, Andrew Berry and Scott McNally answer your toughest bodybuilding questions — covering testosterone dosing, TRT, growth hormone protocols, hematocrit management, contest prep strategy and the current state of the underground PED market.

We break down Olympia-level peaking consistency, bloodwork timing after dose adjustments, managing PSA on cycle, GH side effects, first cycle dosing, and whether size is really determined by how much you take. We also debate old school mass monsters, critique physiques live, and talk coaching strategy for competitors vs lifestyle lifters.

Blood Sweat & Gear is a bodybuilding Q&A podcast where three experienced prep coaches share real-world insight on contest prep, PED education, training principles and long-term progress.

Timestamps:

0:00 Bodybuilding Q&A with Skip, Andrew & Scott
1:00 Competing to Beat the Field or Your Personal Best
5:00 How Judging Panels Actually Work
7:50 Sports Betting and Bodybuilding
12:00 Nick Walker 2024 vs 2025
15:45 Peaking Like an Olympia Champion
17:30 Coaching Athletes Across Multiple Shows
18:45 Underground Steroid Market Update
22:50 Comment Section Spam Warning
24:40 Hardcore Bodybuilding Without Competing
33:10 PED Use for Competitors vs Lifestyle Lifters
38:00 Cardio, RBC and Hematocrit
41:45 Every Other Day GH with Tesamorelin
46:00 GH Releasing Peptides
50:00 Arnold Classic Plans
53:20 Is 250mg Test Enough to Start
56:00 Finding Affordable Labs
57:40 Are Lab Subscriptions Worth It
1:03:30 Estrogen Testing After Dose Changes
1:08:30 Nationals vs Another Local Show
1:18:00 Mini Cut vs Holding Weight
1:23:00 Size vs Dose Discussion
1:28:50 Managing PSA on Cycle
1:38:00 TRT After a Cycle
1:40:50 Numbness on Growth Hormone
1:44:40 Higher vs Lower Test with EQ and NPP
1:45:55 Skip’s DHB Experience
1:47:30 Libido Drop After Test EQ
1:49:12 Old School Bodybuilding Debate
1:57:00 Physique Critique
2:02:45 Behind the Scenes

Support THINK BIG Bodybuilding
Help keep the podcast going — even $5/month makes a difference.
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Coaching:
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Andrew Berry — http://www.bodyberry.com
Scott McNally — mcnallydiets@gmail.com

Arnold Classic is 3 weeks out and we’re breaking down the latest updates.

Sam Sulek’s insane size, Classic Physique contenders like Mike Sommerfeld and Wesley Vissers, and a peek at Nick Walker’s potential strategy. Plus, fun carbs vs complex carbs, the wildest mass shakes, 3 anabolics for prep vs offseason, and Ron digging out an old-school Winstrol bottle.

Straight bodybuilding talk. No fluff.

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0:00 Ron’s OG Winny Bottle Story
1:00 Podcast Intro
2:00 Mutant at Shaun Clarida’s Gym
6:00 Does Martin Hate Us?
12:00 Sam Sulek Physique Talk
15:00 Mike Sommerfeld 3 Weeks Out
18:00 Wesley Vissers Update
23:00 Nick Walker’s Strategy
25:20 Fun Carbs vs Complex Carbs
29:40 Craziest Mass Shakes
38:12 3 Anabolics for Prep and Offseason
47:45 Steroid Time Capsule

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In this episode, we break down what “safe” cycles really mean, risk vs reward, managing estrogen, hair loss, TRT options, and whether you can optimize without running gear. Plus some classic tangent chaos at the end.

0:00 What Is a “Safe” Cycle?
1:15 Welcome to DNS
4:00 Risk vs Reward: The 5 Safest Approaches
9:00 Which Steroid Family Is Safest?
10:00 Are You Even a Good Candidate?
13:00 High-Test as a “Safe” Option
14:45 Primo vs Mast
17:45 Anavar vs Oral Turinabol
22:00 Equipoise Deep Dive
28:00 Managing Hair Loss
31:45 Tendon Ruptures & Injury Risk
34:00 Minimum Effective EQ Dose
36:00 MENT & Estrogen Conversion
41:15 Oral Testosterone for TRT
43:30 Optimizing Without a Cycle
47:00 Running Gear Post-Surgery
49:00 Extreme Stretching Talk
53:30 Messing With Dave
55:00 High-Test Estrogen Problems
58:00 Test to Mast Ratios
1:00:00 Test Cyp Debate
1:08:30 WWII Tangent
1:16:15 Bonus Footage

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0:00 Welcome Back to Blood Sweat & Gear
0:45 Updated Thoughts on Mitochondria Peptides
4:00 Andrew’s Protocol Breakdown
8:30 MOTS-C Real World Experience
16:00 TRT Bloodwork Timing
21:00 When Life Disrupts Your Cycle
24:20 Dieting Overseas
27:30 Moving to TRT+
30:00 Best Time to Take Dbol
35:40 Umbilical Hernia Concerns
43:14 Rotating Orals
44:50 Managing High Hematocrit
54:00 AAS Red Flags
57:20 Skip’s Word of the Day

Support THINK BIG Bodybuilding
Help keep the podcast going — even $5/month makes a difference.
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Official Sponsor: TRUE NUTRITION
Custom supplements trusted by serious lifters. Third-party tested and fully customizable.
Save with code THINK: https://www.truenutrition.com/THINK

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Coaching :

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http://www.bodyberry.com

mcnallydiets@gmail.com

0:00 Intro

4:45 Is Martin Fitzwater Behind for the Arnold?

12:25 Samson Dauda Looking Huge

15:20 Why Fans Love Nick Walker

21:40 How Today’s Champions Changed Training Culture

37:45 What Happened to Science-Based Lifting?

47:55 Training Hard While Creating Content

54:27 Do people use Gym Pins Before Maxing the Machine Out?

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0:00 Rotating steroid compounds?
0:15 Supporting the show and sponsors
2:00 Rotating compounds – old school vs modern approach
15:00 Short-acting compounds and rotation
22:00 Does MENT aromatize? Listener feedback
26:00 Putting steroid studies into context
28:20 SSRIs and Tren side effects
32:00 Anxiety from Tren
33:00 Addictive personalities and drug use
37:45 Too much ECA
39:30 MENT as a former oral compound
40:45 High-dose MENT and DHT
42:30 Premixed underground GH
44:00 Long-term Primo use
49:00 Low-dose MENT and prostate sensitivity
59:30 Are cheeseburgers really that bad?
1:00:00 McDonald’s stories
1:05:00 Uncle Dave’s wisdom
1:10:00 Dave’s modeling days
1:15:20 Watching Dave’s commercial
1:21:00 Behind the scenes

Support THINK BIG Bodybuilding
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Coaching & Consulting
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Scott McNally: mcnallydiets@gmail.com

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Muscle Minds Dr Scott Stevenson & Scott McNally0:00 Muscle Minds Teaser: Hard Training, Muscle Growth & Execution0:33 Muscle Minds Intro with Dr Scott Stevenson & Scott McNally1:29 Just Train Hard: Why Effort Still Matters Most for Muscle Growth4:04 Training for Muscle Growth: Effort, Load Selection & Progression25:57 Concentric vs Eccentric Training: What Actually Builds More Muscle42:12 How to Activate the Target Muscle During Every Rep💪 Support THINK BIG Bodybuilding❤️ Support the Channel on PatreonHelp us keep the podcast and videos coming. Even $5/month makes a difference.👉 https://www.patreon.com/thinkbigbodybuilding📕Get Scott Stevenson's Book https://drscottstevenson.com/byobbcoach.html👕 THINK BIG Bodybuilding Apparel🔥 Official THINK BIG T-Shirts & MerchTrain. Represent. Support the brand.👉 https://think-big.printify.me/products🥇 Official Sponsor: TRUE NUTRITION✅ Custom Supplements Trusted by Bodybuilders• 3rd-party tested• Fully customizable formulas• Used by serious lifters worldwide💥 Save with code: THINK👉 https://www.truenutrition.com/THINK🇨🇦 Canadian Viewers — Supplements Made Easy💊 Huge Deals on Top Brand Supplements in CanadaFast shipping. Trusted retailer.👉 http://www.supplementsource.ca📢 Share this episode with a training partner or friend who loves bodybuilding : https://youtu.be/gy_VQ_fn5W8

When progress stalls, most lifters blame the gear. In this episode of Blood Sweat & Gear, coaches Skip Hill, Andrew Berry, and Scott McNally break down why cycles stop working — and how recovery, stress, sleep, health markers, and smarter decision-making often matter more than adding more drugs.

0:00 It might not always be the gear stalling progress

0:34 Welcome back to Blood Sweat & Gear

1:37 Why your cycle might not be working

4:00 Sleep and recovery fundamentals

9:00 CPAP and improved recovery

13:45 Developing systems for recovery

17:00 Stress ruining diet progress

23:32 Health testing while using gear

23:45 Tren versus Winstrol health discussion

36:18 Test E to Mast E ratio

37:04 Gear versus diet impact on health markers

42:19 Scott’s client contest photos

43:14 Skip clears the air on Rich Gaspari

Support THINK BIG Bodybuilding
Help keep the podcast going. Even $5/month makes a difference.
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/thinkbigbodybuilding

Official Sponsor: TRUE NUTRITION
Custom supplements trusted by serious lifters.
Third-party tested, fully customizable formulas.

Save with code THINK
https://www.truenutrition.com/THINK

THINK BIG Bodybuilding Apparel

Official t-shirts and merch.
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Canadian Viewers — Supplements Made Easy

Top brand supplements with fast shipping in Canada.
http://www.supplementsource.ca

Help Us Grow

Share this episode with someone who loves bodybuilding.