Anavar Results: Before and After Pictures (4-Week Progress)

What Are the Origins of Anavar?

Anavar (oxandrolone) was created in 1962 to increase lean muscle in patients suffering from cachexia (a muscle-wasting illness).

However, it wasn’t long before Anavar was used in bodybuilding due to its anabolic and fat-burning properties.

Anavar became an efficacious cutting steroid, displaying less toxic effects than other anabolic steroids. Women and children also experienced few side effects in clinical trials when taking therapeutic dosages (Freriks et al., 2012; Porro et al., 2012).

Despite Anavar later being banned for recreational use, some male and female bodybuilders still take it today to increase muscle mass and definition and reduce their body fat percentage.

Today, gymgoers can purchase Anavar on the underground market due to the difficulty of getting a doctor to prescribe it for anything other than a muscle-wasting illness.

So, we know that Anavar has been used for several decades in clinical research, but what do the results look like?

Anavar Before and After Results

A user’s results on Anavar can depend on their cycle, dose, genetics, diet, and training routines. However, we see novices generally gaining 10-15 pounds of muscle mass and 7 pounds of fat loss from a 4- to 6-week cycle.

Below are the visual changes in body composition that men can experience after four weeks on Anavar.

Male Anavar Before and After (4 Week Results)

The above illustration is of a user who has cycled Anavar. See how he looks notably more muscular after one month, especially in his:

• Biceps and triceps
• Deltoids
• Latissimus dorsi

Furthermore, his abdominals and deltoids are more defined due to considerable fat loss. This user transformed from appearing bloated to lean and toned.

We have found this to be a typical transformation when combining Anavar with weight training. However, this before and after may be unrealistic if Anavar is taken by a sedentary individual.

Female Anavar Before and After (5 Week Results)

This woman took 10 mg per day for 5 weeks. She lost a significant amount of fat, especially from the midsection, and gained notable amounts of lean muscle, which is evident by her body weight increasing.

These results are typical of Anavar’s effects in our experience. However, if users eat in a calorie surplus, fat loss is likely to be less than that illustrated above. Thus, diet remains an important factor in determining body composition on Anavar.

Studies have shown that an Anavar cycle can significantly enhance a person’s physique due to the steroid’s simultaneous muscle-building and fat-burning effects (Demling & DeSanti, 1997b; Schroeder et al., 2004).

Disclosure: We do not accept any form of advertising on Inside Bodybuilding. We monetize our practice via doctor consultations and carefully chosen pharmaceutical recommendations, which have given our patients excellent results.

How Much Strength Can Be Gained?

One benefit of Anavar supplementation that is not obvious when looking at before and after photos is the increase in strength. Despite being a cutting steroid that promotes lean muscle mass, research has shown Anavar to be a potent strength-enhancing steroid (Przkora et al., 2006).

We find this to be attributed to its distribution of fluid and increased uptake of ATP in the muscle cells. ATP is an energy molecule that’s been shown to increase muscular strength and endurance. Thus, gymgoers may feel stronger during workouts and be able to train more intensely, lifting heavier weights for longer periods.

Generally, we see beginners experiencing as much as a 20% increase in lifts from an Anavar cycle.

Thus, if you’re currently benching 200 pounds, you could be lifting 240 after 6 weeks.

When lifting heavy on Anavar, users may want to take ample rest in between sets, as pumps can become intense, especially in the lower back. We have had bodybuilders discontinue their workouts due to this painful sensation, particularly susceptible in the lower lats during deadlifts.

What Protocols Can Be Utilized to Maximize Results?

Male beginners typically take 15–20 mg/day of Anavar, lasting for 6 weeks.

If the dose is lower than this, results may decrease.

Generally, we find that doses over 20 mg/day are unnecessary and can increase the risk of side effects without experiencing further gains. A study has shown that high doses of Anavar can cause cardiac remodeling via increased angiotensin-converting enzyme expression, causing vasoconstriction (Ronchi et al.,2021).

How Much Do Women Take?

Women, during a first cycle, may take 5–10 mg per day, lasting 5 weeks. One protocol is to take 5 mg during the first week to ease their bodies into a cycle and then take 10 mg for the remaining 4 weeks.

If a woman has taken Anavar before, she may start on 10 mg/day and extend her cycle to 6 weeks for further results.

Can Women Experience Masculinization?

Women taking more than 10 mg/day or cycling Anavar beyond 6 weeks dramatically increase the risk of virilization, in our experience.

One of the reasons why Anavar is commonly supplemented is that it produces positive results in women without affecting their femininity. However, studies have shown that if high doses are utilized, women can be at risk of developing:

• Vocal cord thickening (Menke et al,. 2021)
• Breast atrophy or reduced development (Zeger et al., 2011)
• Clitoromegaly (Sheanon & Backeljauw, 2015)
• Hirsutism (Freriks et al., 2012b)

Anavar is generally considered “female-friendly” by our patients when taking 5–10 mg per day for 5–6 weeks. We have had women describe the side effects as “manageable” on such doses, without experiencing high levels of cardiotoxicity or hepatotoxicity.

Some females choose to stack Anavar with other steroids for enhanced results, such as:

1. Winstrol
2. Anadrol
3. Deca Durabolin

However, such stacking can increase the risk of masculinization while potentially exacerbating cholesterol and endogenous testosterone levels.

What Are the Negative Effects?

Although Anavar may be a less toxic compound compared to other anabolic steroids, its benefits are not without risk.

Research has shown that Anavar can reduce HDL cholesterol moderately, increasing the risk of hypertension, left ventricular hypertrophy, and myocardial infarction in vulnerable individuals (Davis et al., 2016). To reduce this risk, users may reduce saturated fat and salt consumption. Furthermore, we have found regular cardiovascular training to have a notable reductive effect on blood pressure in our patients.

Research has found that Anavar can cause nephrotoxicity in superphysiological doses (Mount Sinai Medical Center, Miami Beach, Florida). We have had patients develop rhabdomyolysis and acute renal failure as a consequence of taking high oxandrolone doses. Such cases can be transient if prompt medical treatment is administered upon developing the following symptoms:

• Myasthenia
• Myalgia
• Swelling
• Edema
• Reduction in urine volume

Anavar can also cause elevations in liver enzymes, marking a degree of hepatic stress. Thus, it is imperative for users with compromised livers to avoid Anavar and other oral anabolic steroids. If an individual requires Anavar for cachexia but has compromised hepatic function, then injectable anabolic steroids may be more optimal.

Can Anavar Cause Low Testosterone?

Users can also experience moderate endogenous testosterone suppression, which may result in temporary declines in:

• Testicular volume
• Energy levels
• Libido
• Well-being post-cycle

Anavar may also cause masculinization in women; however, we do not typically observe this in therapeutic doses. However, excessive dosages or combining Anavar with other anabolic steroids such as Winstrol increases the likelihood of masculinization.

Are Anavar’s Results Permanent?

Yes, typically we see users retain the majority of results from an Anavar cycle if they continue lifting weights. Typically, there is not a substantial crash post-cycle unlike other anabolic steroids, making it possible to maintain size and strength gains.

However, a study has shown that muscle and strength results can be entirely lost 12 weeks post-supplementation in sedentary older males (Schroeder, Zheng, Yarasheski, et al., 2004b). However, this is a different scenario compared to weightlifters who typically continue being active following an Anavar cycle.

Interestingly, in this same study, fat loss results were largely retained long-term. Therefore, users may have to continue exercising to maintain muscle and strength results, whereas reductions in adipose tissue appear to be long-lasting.

However, if, after a cycle, a person stops going to the gym and starts overeating, fat accumulation can occur.

One temporary effect of Anavar is modified water distribution. Often, Anavar can flush out extracellular water and shuttle fluid inside the muscle. This can cause a dry and pumped look in the muscles. When a person stops taking Anavar, they are unlikely to look as dry, with their muscles being less full. However, this typically only has a mild effect on a person’s overall appearance.

What to Avoid When Taking Anavar?

Due to Anavar’s hepatotoxicity, it is not advised to combine Anavar with alcohol or other medications that can compromise hepatic health.

Also, users are advised to get their ALT and AST levels checked pre-cycle to ensure they are in a normal range.

Research has shown that supplementing with TUDCA can offer some protection to the liver, which may be advantageous when taking Anavar, with a dosage of 500 mg/day being effective in clinical literature (Crosignani et al., 1996).

If you are seeking the results of Anavar but don’t want to experience the same level of side effects, we recommend buying legal Anavar (known as Anvarol). Anvarol may not replicate the same level of anabolism or fat burning as Anavar; however, it is preferred by some bodybuilders due to a lack of side effects and its FDA-approved nature.

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