Why Pakistan's Bodybuilders Are Dying



Last year, national bodybuilding champion and winner of Mr Pakistan 2011, Shehzad Khan Afridi, suddenly died of a heart attack just a few days after winning a gold medal at the National Championship in Karachi. It is widely understood within the community that the real cause of death was the use of deadly and illegal steroids – and this wasn’t an isolated incident.

For many lower class kids in Pakistan today, bodybuilding has become an obsession and a route out of the abject poverty in which they were born. But time spent at the gym brings them into contact with unscrupulous actors feeding off their dreams, and supplying them with steroids.

VICE World News is in Pakistan to explore firsthand the obsessive culture of bodybuilding among frustrated lower working-class men and how, after investing more than they can afford in this competitive and unforgiving sport, they end up gambling with their lives for a shot at wealth and fame.

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25 Replies to “Why Pakistan's Bodybuilders Are Dying”

  1. VICE News says:

    WATCH NEXT: Sergey Ponomarev has documented the Russian Army’s annexation of Crimea, and photographed the Kremlin’s brutal crackdown on pro-Navalny protests. – https://youtu.be/hjhqETDDPOk

  2. kevin k. says:

    What's up with dude's holding hands? That's some weird s***.

  3. JT says:

    You’re telling me these guys are on Tren ??

  4. At 2:22 : Compromise corrupts.

  5. anonymous69 says:

    4:00 I'm pretty sure this dude just did everything wrong about this injection, haha

  6. sudhir singh says:

    Bhai Inki situation toh bhaut zayada Kharab h look at the infrastructure in India we used to have that kind of competitions in early 90s.

  7. Why are they taking steroids they dont even have a baseline

  8. Sad how around the world the story or bodybuilding or fitness is similar.

  9. Not only in Pakistan now days its occuring in all over the world ever one is taking anabolic steroids and mis guideing by Coaches insted of saying do as a natural

  10. Toker says:

    they are on steroids and still look awful thats hilarious

  11. Steroids ends in tears 😭 always !

  12. Weak af lol how u gonna be roided out n that small? Im natural n outweigh them SAD comprised health for what

  13. I would be so afraid to inject fckn hormones sold on the black market.

  14. oogway says:

    Most of these juiced to the max Pakistanis are smaller than most of the Brexit Daniels that I see in Pure gym, who have only been going for a couple of months with a cheeky gym shesh here and there 😂😂

  15. Gordon Gekko says:

    cos they are all weedy ?

  16. Alec Joncas says:

    It’s not “impossible” to get that look, well some looks/muscles, it all depends on your genes. But it’ll just take longer and cost probably more. You saw how that one dude was super small and then took steroids and was massive in under two years. A natural person would take them 5-15 years to get a body like that and it still wouldn’t be as cut and big. The way steroids work is they’ll give you multiple body types, instead of just being cut or big they make you have all the desired traits

  17. E E says:

    isnt steroid abuse everywhere, dont people in usa use synthol and co, dont bodybuilders like deyzel and former ones like arnold and platz use steroids aswell?

  18. Kyu k Atta koi ni khaan juga😂😂

  19. Nirvau says:

    Yes Mudassir!! Your parents are role-models !!

  20. Lanat hay aaisee bodybuilding per , Mujhey body building ka bohot shoq ta lakin afsos is baat ka hay k main continue bodybuilding nahin ker saka lakin jab tak main nain bodybuildin kee tab tak Alhumdolilah main nain sirf Natural cheezain kha ker body banaee koee injection ya medicine kabhee bhee nahin khaee, main Interior sindh Larkana main bodybuilding kerta tha or bohot shoq or Bohot Junoon tha , hum jab karachi city shift huey to kafee years k baad main nain karachi main Gym join kiya wahan k gym owner kee body mujhey bohot achi lagee main nain wesey he ilus gym owner sey pata kiya k yar ye app kee body main itni Veins kesey nazer aati hain , to wo bolnain laga mujhey k sari zindagi bhee bodybuilding kero gey na body nahin bana paao gey, main nain kaha kesey kya matlab to bolnain laga bhai paisa kherch kerna perta hay ,main bain us ko bola app kehna kya chahtey hain clear bataain ,to wo bola merey pass aaisey taqat k injections hain wo laganain k baad app ko Exercises kerni parain gee app full monster bodybuilder ban jao gey , main nain us ko bola main Lanat bhejta hon aaisi bodybuilding per, or Second day sey he main us k gym nahin gaya, koee or gym join ker liya , dosto jo bhee Allah paak nain fruits paida kiye hain wo kha ker app jo Natural taqatwar body bana saktey hain wo injections or steroids sey nahin , han app ek time k liye to achey lagain gey lakin end bohot bura ho gaa to khudara steroids bodybuilding sey apnain app ko bachaain Shukriya

  21. Bexar20 says:

    If the Pakistani government was clever they'd sanction the medical industry in Pakistan to allow REAL doctors to analyze a persons blood work and prescribe the correct and safe dosages of the various treatments. If done correctly it can actually be healthy but the majority of people all across the world do it haphazardly.

  22. Worst physique 🤮🤮🤮🤮

  23. 7:02 man’s probably got clubbed nails from ODing on anabolic steroids

  24. Chris Lian says:

    I have the same physique but natural😏

  25. zotoda says:

    last guy is an inspirational story, praying he dont get tempted

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