Effects of self-administered androstenedione on a young male bodybuilder: A single-subject study

A well-trained, white, male bodybuilder (age, 28 years; weight, 92.3 kg; body fat, ~5%) was monitored for an 11-week period during which he self- administered androstenedione (200 to 400 mg/d) for two 4-week cycles (weeks 1 to 4 and 7 to 10). During that 11-week period, he followed a resistance- training program designed to maximize skeletal muscle hypertrophy. Body composition was determined weekly by measuring skinfolds at 7 sites and at weeks 0, 4, and 11 by means of dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry analysis (DXA). Using data obtained from 24-hour dietary recall, dietary analysis was performed once each week for the duration of the study. Total and free testosterone concentrations, blood lipid concentrations, and liver function were measured at weeks 0, 4, and 11. Androstenedione ingestion resulted in an increase in free testosterone concentration (week 0, 15.5 ng/dL; week 4, 17.6 ng/dL; week 11, 20.7 ng/dL), whereas total testosterone concentration showed no consistent alteration. Furthermore, no significant changes were observed in blood lipid concentrations or liver function. Percentage body fat increased (DXA: week 0, 7.3% and week 11, 8.7%; skinfolds: week 0, 5.1% and week 11, 5.5%), whereas body weight did not change. Thus in a well-trained, young, male bodybuilder, the ingestion of androstenedione 200 or 400 mg/d resulted in a slight increase in body fat without any deleterious changes in blood lipid concentrations or liver function.