I had typed this up for a different thread (The Cushing Effect on Matthews).. but took it down as it is a bit self incriminating.. but screw it.. that was years ago.
Why have the least of fainting concerns about it..
Lets examine his friend Cushing.. which correctly insinuated by NS does not make him guilty.
http://www.totalpackers.com/2010/05/22/clay-matthews-denies-steroid-use/
I was very shocked, Matthews said. I obviously played for this guy for four years at SC. Hes a great friend of mine, I know the type of work ethic he has. It would give you no indication that he would partake in such actions. So for me, its very hard to believe.
That is reasonable and an expected comment, denying any knowledge and distancing himself.
Then goes here..
I really dont know the full details on the story, but hes one of the hardest-working guys I know, and hes always been very cautious about what he puts in his body, and hes very meticulous as you can see with how he plays, how he trains, and how he approaches life. Im rooting for him, Im pulling for him. Hell make it through this and I think hell have just as great a season this second year as he did his first.
First Clay distances himself and no indication of wrong doing, but then seems to have intimate knowledge of what Cushing puts into his body.
Nothing incriminating or anything, just two ambiguous statements in the same interview.
The things that draw attention together, is rapid growth, association of people and institution, some "false" reports, and the frat boy wolf pack that occurs inside a locker room. I don't know what an NFL locker room is like, but I can tell you what a DIII college locker room is like.. and you know more about the folks inside that locker room than you would like to know.
I find it highly doubtful that you wouldn't be able to with minimal work, start to establish patterns and cycles of events among your teammates and friends upon the team.. and become aware of their training habits, routines and cycles... doubt that, befriend a couple of players on any college program, say UW-L, and they will know whom is stacking and whom is not.
So when Clay claims to have knowledge of Cushing's intake, yet not know that he was cycling is suspect at best. Again, that doesn't prove jack other than either Cushing hid it extremely well or Cushing indeed had a legitimate defense to his HCG test by over training (used to increase sperm count). But according to Clay's opinion, Cushing was very meticulous in his training, and that by now, a decade into his football life he would have broken outside of this routine and over trained his body?
Personally, Clay is innocent, but not because it is a proven fact that he isn't taking them, he has never been proven guilty of the charge. Without knowing a person on a personal level (Yes even in this medium), how can one truly trust them on the value of their word?
Nonstop uses the eye ball test to defend Clay above, water retention, per myth, is common among dopers, but it really depends upon the substance they are putting into their system.
First lets take a look at the "puffy" Cushing.. lol..
Lets be very honest here and break down the process of what roids do to the body and your training routine. This process is not just established in a small amount of time, you walk though it step by step, result and effect and tweak the process until it is tailored to fit your routine and makeup.. I find it extremely funny that a guy like Petite claims to have only tried it once, it didn't help and stopped.. the process is more time consuming than a one time trial.
The purpose of the steroids is to increase the lean muscle mass and increases your ability to train longer without dead muscles, basically the recovery phase post workout is shortened and your can return to the gym for another workout sooner without your body feeling worn out. They don't just make you stronger, they give you the ability to train harder and reduce fatigue and injury risk.
When you first start taking anabolic substances (varies between shot or orally taken), you have to find you stacking regimen that works for you, basically finding a cycle that gives you the boost and maximizes the effects of the products and establishing a water/liquid intake routine. You pay attention to the color of your piss to help guide you to balance the cycle and H2O levels.
The cycles differ per individual, but you do gain some soft tissue, normally in the breast region with some irritation, however the skin irritation isn't limited to the breast region. You go through a process of finding your cycle with a mix of anti-estrogen (Nolvadex) to combat that effect.
Once you have your cycle identified, it becomes like clock work and you avoid some of the noticeable side effects. Coming off your stacking routines, your enzyme levels begin to return to normal and you feel drained for a couple of weeks.. but once your system balances out things return to a normal state.
Other effects like baldness, liver and kidney damage, testicular issues, cholesterol spikes aren't a broad stroke effect, like most anything you put into your body of a chemical nature, the effects vary upon the individual.
Water retention is really dependent upon the type of stack blend you take, frequency and water intake. Hence once you get your stack cycle down, it becomes a routine to keep it in balance.
In summary, lack of the "puffy" look is not a clear indication of use.
Again, I love watching this kid play, I love watching him develop into a multi-tool pass rusher for the Green Bay Packers.. but if he was to get popped for PED's... I wouldn't be surprised either.
To be clear, I am not insinuating, arraigning, bring a charge, incriminating, implicating, impugning, indicting, reprehending, or taxing him as guilty.. š
"The oranges are dry; the apples are mealy; and the papayas... I don't know what's going on with the papayas!"