It seems like everyday we get a new cycle proposal in the logs section or question in the forums about a first cycle and its clear they have no idea what they're doing. So we all tell them the same thing, you need to do some research. The reason I don't like to spoon feed people is not because of the time it takes, I could write you out a basic test cycle plan with pct in 30 seconds. But the problem is a lot people will just take that idea and run with it. They won't do another minute of research and before you know it they have a needle in their ass and 6 weeks later they're wonder why they have bitch tits and there dick won't work. Well Ive been thinking about it and I don't think a lot of people know what they're supposed to be researching. Theres a lot of different things one must learn before embarking on their first steroid cycle and its important they have all their bases covered. I don't want anybody to miss an important topic so i've put a little guide on what exactly you should become familiar with before crossing over to the dark side.

Blood Work
The most important thing in my opinion. This is good for many reasons. First and foremost to make sure you're healthy. If you're going to be using steroids in my opinion you need to be basically in perfect health. So by getting blood work done you can see your lipids, kidneys, liver, thyroid, complete blood count and testosterone levels. So the next reason you need to be doing this is to establish a baseline for your testosterone levels. This is important so when you finish your first cycle and get blood work to see if you recovered you will know for sure. If you got blood work before and your testosterone was 600ng/dl and your blood work after your cycle shows your test is now 400ng/dl you know you have not recovered yet so more time off is necessary. Without a baseline its just a guessing game. So figure out how to get your blood work done. Its very easy in most states in the US. Not sure about the other countries.

A BASIC TEST CYCLE!!!
People seem miss this one 9 times out of 10 and propose some crazy messed up first cycle. So I'm gonna spoon feed you one thing and tell you your first cycle should be test only. So start searching eroids google for posts on a "test only cycle". And just because you hear that your first cycle needs to be a test only cycle dont think your missing out on a damn thing. Testosterone at 500mgs per week is extremely fucking powerful, you strength will go through the roof, if your eating correcting you will put on more muscle with this one cycle then probably any other cycle you run during your juicing career, if your diets really spot on you can lose a good bit of fat while gaining a ton of muscle. My first cycle I gained 28lbs, 5 was water that dropped right in the first 2 weeks of pct and i held 23, id have to say roughly 18lbs was LBM. I havent came close to those numbers running the stacks you guys are all reading about, test deca dbol, test tren, test eq, hgh etc. Keeping 10lbs these days is a great cycle for me. So your still thinking well if I can gain that much with just test I can gain even more if i add trenbolone. Wrong, it just doesnt work that way. The body even on gear can only add muscle so quickly, you might get an extra few pounds, but along with that youll get a set of tits that lactate, a dick that doesnt work, and a pct so rough and painful youll lose everything you gained. When you run that first cycle your a virgin, youre body has never been exposed to hormones like this before. Anyone who has ever smoked weed will tell you the first time they actually got high, its impossible to replicate that high no matter what you do. So stop trying to add fucking deca, or tren or anything else thinking your missing out because your cycle is called "test only". If i could re-virginize my receptors after every cycle and run a 500mg test cycle again just like my first. Id be bigger then ronnie coleman making those kind of gains 2-3 times per year.

Aromatize inhibitors
Pretty important part of a cycle. These drugs will keep your estrogen in normal range and can be the difference between you getting bitch tits or not as well as many other side effects. Theres two different kinds that are suitable for on cycle use. Aromasin and Arimidex. Do some research on proper doses for each of them, when to start them, the difference between the two etc etc. And also look into another AI called Letrozole, it will save you if your on cycle AI doesn't work. But its not the kind of AI you use on cycle its only for emergencies.

PCT
First you need to look into the standard pct protocol. It shouldn't be hard to find. Ill give you a hint it includes both Nolva and Clomid. I don't want to give you all the info because I believe by searching and reading about pct you will come across other useful info that you would miss out on if I just laid it out for you and you didn't research on your own.

Ester clearance times
This goes back to pct. An ester is almost like an extended release mechanism. if you were to inject pure testosterone or TNE as its called ( testosterone no ester) it will be in and out of your system in a matter of hours. So they developed these esters that extend the half life of the steroid. So depending on which testosterone ester your using will determine how long you wait to start pct after your last injection. So search when to start pct after test e or c cycle.

How to inject/injection sites
The next thing you want to learn about is how to inject, how to be sterile and the different injection sites. Ill save you some trouble and give you a great website that shows the different injection sites, needle sizes, and injection procedure regarding how to be as clean and sterile as possible. http://www.spotinjections.com/index3.htm

Infections and abscesses
Its important that you know the signs and symptoms of an infection. If your gear is clean and you follow proper steps to insure sterility you shouldn't have a problem. But as they say, shit happens. So make sure you know what to look for incase this happens to you.

Side effects both short and long term
Before starting a cycle you should be familiar with the potential side effects and how to prevent them. There are many short term side effects but there is also some that can stay with you for the rest of your life. So make sure you understand these risks before you decided to use steroids.

Gyno
Gyno is one these side effects but I feel that it needs its own section. You want to know the signs and symptoms and how to treat it. Its not like one day you wake up with bitch tits. It happens somewhat slowly so if you recognize it early which you should then you'll be able to stop it before it progresses into actual breast tissue. But if took the time to learn about aromatize inhibitors then you should not have this problem.

Cycle lengths and time off
Unfortunately you cant stay on cycle forever and you can't just start a new cycle whenever you feel like it. So learn about how long you should run your cycle and how much time you need to take off before your next one.

This is the basics of what you need to research. Im sure i'm forgetting some things so ill add more as I remember but this is a good starting point for all you guys who are considering using steroids. If you do the proper research you can reap the benefits of anabolic steroids while minimizing the side effects. So do it the right way and you'll have a blast, do it the wrong way and you can run into some very serious problems. So take your time to cover all your bases and you'll have fun.

If anyone has anything to add feel free to comment and I will add it in.