Bodybuilding safety is a lot like gym safety in general. However, there are certain considerations and other factors that you as a bodybuilder have to keep in mind. You can’t just haphazardly start lifting weights. You have to remember a few things and get them down-pat before you even attempt to do so.

The first has to do with a lovely little thing called steroids. It can’t be lied about—steroids work. However, steroids also can cause complications that can either wreck your health now, or wreck you later. Not to mention a few embarrassing ones that most bodybuilders would cry if it happened to them. Here are a few of those bodybuilding joined with steroids complications:

1. Boobs. That’s right. You heard it. If you’re a guy, steroids can make you develop breasts. This might sound ridiculous, but you can actually have that happen to you. It all starts with the hormones that are mimicked. Testosterone is one. However, it can be converted to another hormone, and then again. The last time, the change is usually to estrogen. Then, voila! A boy with boobs. Not pectorals, but actual breasts.

2. Shrinkage. Certain parts of a guy’s anatomy can shrink with the use of steroids. (and for girls as well, although their shrinking has more to do with the chest area). Since you’re taking in so much testosterone, your body no longer feels the need to produce it. So, you shrink.

3. Stunted growth. This is also observed in those who had taken steroids in order to help with asthmatic problems. Perhaps not as much as those who take them recreationally (there is a limit to prescriptions, after all), but you will notice a difference at some point.

4. Heart attack and stroke. Steroids mess with your cholesterol levels. In fact, they mess with both the good and bad kinds. The bad kinds are taken up dramatically and the good kind that cleans your arterial walls is…well, reduced. This is an example of one of those that can kill you.

5. Infertility. You could also lose the ability to have children. If you’re looking to have a big house with a lot of babies running around, steroids can make you lose that ability.

When bodybuilding, you also want to pace yourself and have a spotter. Nothing is more dangerous than bodybuilding without keeping these in mind. They could lead to you getting seriously injured, or even not being able to body build ever again. A spotter will allow your bodybuilding experience to not only be safe, but also be something that you can work up to again and again.