Answer:
ome athletes take a form of steroids — known as anabolic-androgenic steroids or just anabolic steroids — to increase their muscle mass and strength. The main anabolic steroid hormone produced by your body is testosterone.
Testosterone has two main effects on your body:
Anabolic effects promote muscle building.
Androgenic effects are responsible for male traits, such as facial hair and a deeper voice.
Some athletes take straight testosterone to boost their performance. The anabolic steroids used by athletes are often synthetic modifications of testosterone.
These hormones have approved medical uses. But improving athletic performance isn't one of them.
Why are these drugs so appealing to athletes? Besides making muscles bigger, anabolic steroids may reduce the muscle damage that occurs during a hard workout, helping athletes recover from the session more quickly and enabling them to work out harder and more frequently. Some athletes, as well as nonathletes, may like the muscular appearance they get when they take the drugs.