Athletes are constantly searching for ways to improve athletic performance. Wages of professional athletes continue to grow and nowadays they can compete with the income of small corporations. Professional sport has become a big business, which forces the athlete to take almost everything to become more successful. Corporate employees are known for using medications to combat attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), or other stimulants, just to be at the top of the career ladder. In fact, this situation is not different from athletes taking doping. Most people by their nature tend to be a leader, to be better than others so that no one doubts their superiority. When Viagra (Sildenafil) first appeared on the market in order to improve and restore erectile function, no one could imagine that one day it will be used by athletes to improve their athletic qualities in a sports stadium, and not in the bedroom.
Viagra – Blue Tablets for What?
Blue tablets, containing sildenafil, and having the commercial name Viagra, are one of the most recognizable medications in the world. Sildenafil is a vasodilator, which has the ability to relax blood vessels and increase blood flow in them. During sexual stimulation, increased blood flow can eliminate problems with impaired erection. Vasodilators can also increase blood circulation in the lungs. This can have a positive effect on blood flow enhancement that nourishes the lungs since in this way enhanced blood circulation makes the gas exchange more efficient. Such a blood flow increase has a beneficial effect on athletic qualities.
The famous NFL participant, Brandon Marshall, once stated that most league guys take Viagra to improve their performance. The Daily News of New York once wrote an accusing article that blew Roger Clemens for using Viagra for better performance, as this drug was found in his sports box. The founder of BALCO (the company that conducted doped-test), Victor Conte, said that absolutely all athletes are taking drugs that improve athletic performance. Conte, who, oddly enough, was responsible for the supply of similar substances to many professional athletes, is convinced that Viagra can also be attributed to this category as well.
Sildenafil (Viagra) is a drug created to improve and restore erection. Initially, it was characterized as a drug that struggles with high blood pressure, but after a while, it was established that it was also able to improve erection as well. The drug was patented in 1996 and approved for sale as early as 1998 and appeared on the market. The annual sales of this drug in 2008, reached 2 billion US dollars. Day after day, Viagra’s popularity increases its turnover, according to the specialists from Trust Pharmacy. Some time later, generics of Viagra appeared in online pharmacies. It makes sildenafil much more popular among men. For example, Trust Pharmacy, an online pharmacy, offers to buy generic Viagra using discount coupons. It makes the price as lower as possible.
Viagra and Sport Activities
Sildenafil is believed to be able to improve athletic performance in several ways. It has been shown to be effective in raising testosterone levels. The scientist, Matthew Spitzer, who studied the effect of Sildenafil on the level of testosterone, gathered a control group of 140 people who had a reduced rate of this hormone. He prescribed doses of Sildenafil that were based on several different factors. Men taking alpha-blockers was prescribed 25 mg. The men who used Sildenafil for the first time in their life took 50 mg. And those patients who were already intimately familiar with Sildenafil were given 100 mg.
Spitzer monitored the hormonal profiles of these men, starting from the third week of the experiment, until the end of the 7th week. On average, testosterone levels increased by 40%, free testosterone levels rose by 50%, and DHT levels appeared. Increased testosterone levels had a positive effect on strength and muscle mass. All this usually leads to an improvement in athletic performance.
Sildenafil’s ability to relax and expand blood vessels, thereby enhancing the supply of oxygen to tissues, goes far beyond the simple treatment of erectile dysfunction. The effect of this drug has been proven in a low-oxygen environment. Studies have shown that even in such conditions, the tolerance of athletes to the loading remains very high.
In 2006, one more study was made at Stanford University, which proved that Sildenafil is able to improve the time for cyclists to cover a 10-kilometer segment by 40%, and all this at an altitude of 3870m over the sea. The cyclist, Andrea Moletta, was once caught with 82 tablets of Sildenafil right before the Tour of Italy, later accused of using medications to improve his athletic performance.
Conclusion
Sildenafil has proven its effectiveness in the field of anabolic hormones, its ability to increase testosterone levels, as well as proved to increase the ability to endure athletic activity by increasing blood circulation in the lungs, due to improved oxygenation during endurance training and similar sports.
Bodybuilders who may not be interested in training to improve endurance, or in increasing the level of natural testosterone that Sildenafil can offer, can still get some benefits from this drug. Additives on the basis of increasing nitric oxide have become very popular among bodybuilders, because of their effect on the athlete’s muscles.
Sildenafil, as you already know, works as a powerful vasodilator, which bodybuilders usually try to use when taking Viagra before weight training. This allows them to increase the volume of blood circulation in the target muscle during workouts, thereby significantly increasing the pump effect.
This effect also makes it possible to strengthen the feed of the muscles with various nutrients, since the enhanced blood circulation is able to more efficiently nourish the muscle tissue, thereby increasing the productivity of muscle growth.