Top 5 Most Extreme FAKE Bodybuilders

With well-known figures like Arnie always
in the spotlight, it is no surprise that bodybuilding
is as popular now as it has ever been.
There are thousands of professional and amateur
bodybuilders all over the world who dedicated
their lives to sculpting their body into peak
condition.
However, there are also fakes out there who
get their results in a less than ethical manner,
thanks to the use of anabolic steroids, synthol
and even fake weights.
What’s worse is that they are promoting
their results on social media.
So now, let’s check out the top 10 most
extreme fake bodybuilders.
Gregg Valentino

Gregg Valentino

One name to hit headlines in the bodybuilding
world, for all the wrong reasons, is Gregg
Valentino.
For more than 25 years, Valentino worked hard
to become a trophy-winning bodybuilder and
did it in the right way.
However, between the years of 2008 and 2011,
he was talked about a lot in the industry
for his use of synthol.
Synthol is a mixture of oil, alcohol and other
harmful substances that is injected underneath
the muscle to push it upwards so that it appears
bigger.
Valentino noticed guys half his age at his
local gym were surpassing his lifting abilities
and wanted to do something about it.
He felt that nobody took him seriously.
It was at this point that he began injecting
synthol into his biceps.
Alongside injecting, he also used equipoise
and testosterone propionate - up to 3500mg
a week.
His arms ended up looking completely unnatural
due to his anabolic steroid use.
Ultimately, he paid the price when his biceps
exploded when he punctured an abscess which
became infected and led to major blood loss.
Even more worrying is the fact that while
synthol has always had a bad rep, especially
in the bodybuilding world, it saw a boost
in popularity after people saw the results
achieved by Valentino.
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Kirill Tereshin
This 21-year-old hails from Pyatigorsk celciusin
Russia’s Stavropol Krai region, and has
hit headlines multiple times in recent years
and much like Valentino, for all the wrong
reasons.
Although he once served in the army, once
he left, he decided that he wanted to get
into bodybuilding.
However, he decided to go about it in the
wrong way and began injecting synthol, like
Valentino.
In the space of just 10 days, Tereshin observed
a massive increase in muscle diameter of 26cm.
Compared to the rest of his body, his arms
look totally out of proportion.
We can’t imagine anyone favoring the Popeye
look, but apparently, they do.
Terrifyingly, each time Tereshin would inject
synthol into his bicep, he would come down
with a fever of up to 40 degrees and feel
like he was dying.
Even more worrying is the fact that this didn’t
encourage him to stop injecting the substance,
which causes the muscles to form rocks within
them.
Not only do the results of synthol look ridiculous,
but it has been shown that the oil can cause
cysts, abscesses, muscle damage, and even
strokes.

Romario dos Santos Alves
This 27-year-old has also hit the headlines
recently for, you guessed it, his alarming
use of synthol to achieve ridiculous biceps.
According to Alves, he modeled his physique
on The Incredible Hulk.
He has freely admitted that he was addicted
to injecting the oil and has since faced serious
health issues because of this.
At one point he was even faced with the possibility
of a double amputation.
Fortunately for him, it didn’t come to that
but he still isn’t out of the woods yet
in terms of long-term damage.
He became hooked on injecting synthol after
he moved from his hometown of Caldas Novas
to Goiania, Brazil, where he was introduced
to the oil at his local gym.
He injected so much that his muscles started
to solidify to the point where he could no
longer get a needle in.
While you would think this would be a warning
sign to stop, Alves instead decided to buy
special needles that are designed to inject
bulls with so that he could force it into
his muscle.
Sadly, he had attempted suicide, and he had
also come dangerously close to suffering from
kidney failure.
Fortunately, he has since turned things around
and now has ambitions of becoming a professional
bodybuilder but intends to stay clean, thankfully.

Brad Castleberry
To say that Brad Castleberry is one of the
most hated fitness vloggers on YouTube is
an understatement.
Growing up with a father and grandfather who
were very into fitness and the gym, Castleberry
was destined to follow the same path.
He got his first gym membership at the young
age of 16 and entered his first professional
bodybuilding competition at 19.
However, he soon decided that professional
bodybuilding was not for him.
Since graduating from college, Castleberry
has mainly focussed on weightlifting and building
a huge following on YouTube.
Unfortunately for him, it is the platform
where he receives a lot of negative feedback,
along with on Instagram.
In some instances, he has even been labeled
as a disgrace to bodybuilding.
Ouch.
The controversy stems from accusations of
using fake weights in his videos.
While many struggled to prove that this was
the case, one YouTuber actually found a website
where it is possible to purchase fake hexagonal
weights, exactly like those used by Castleberry.
There are also claims that this muscle man
uses Photoshop to edit some of his Instagram
posts to make it appear like he is lifting
more than he is.
He has always denied these claims, but by
looking around online, it is clear to see
that there is plenty of information to back
them up.

Gracyanne Barbosa
Another fitness guru who has made a name for
herself on social media is Gracyanne Barbosa.
She is a Brazilian fitness model who has amassed
an impressive 5.9 million followers on Instagram.
Much like Castleberry, Barbosa has faced some
harsh criticism over certain posts.
However, from taking a look at her Instagram
account, it is very easy to see why real bodybuilders
have taken issue with her.
Some of her posts depict her lifting ridiculous
weights that, given her frame, would probably
cause her to buckle in half.
It is quite clear that she is using fake weights.
As well as this, she is lifting without the
help of a weight belt or even weightlifting
shoes.
In one video she claims to squat 495lbs.
There have been numerous hate comments left
for her, including one stating that people
like her take the focus away from real powerlifters.
We can definitely see why this is the case,
especially when women in bodybuilding are
not given much focus as it is.
There are some incredible female bodybuilders
out there who are not getting the recognition
that they deserve because of people like this
who have become famous through the use of
social media and deception.