Did Brian Johnson (Liver King) confirm steroid use?

Yes. In a December 2022 YouTube video, Johnson admitted to using anabolic steroids and confirmed that leaked emails detailing his pharmaceutical use were authentic. The emails named testosterone, trenbolone, growth hormone, hCG, nandrolone, and several peptides.

Is trenbolone approved for human use?

No. Trenbolone has never received FDA approval for humans. It was developed as a veterinary drug for livestock. No controlled human safety trials have been conducted, and its use in bodybuilding occurs entirely outside any clinical framework.

What is the difference between TRT and steroid abuse?

TRT replaces testosterone to physiological levels (300 to 1 to 000 ng/dL) under medical supervision for men with diagnosed hypogonadism. Steroid protocols in bodybuilding use multiple compounds at doses that produce supraphysiological levels, often without physician oversight or regular blood monitoring. The risk profiles are not comparable.

Can you achieve Liver King's physique naturally?

Multiple sports medicine physicians have publicly stated that the combination of extreme muscularity, very low body fat, and pronounced vascularity Johnson displayed at age 45+ would be exceptionally unlikely without pharmacological assistance. Johnson's own admission confirmed this assessment.

What are the health risks of the stack Liver King reportedly used?

The combination of testosterone, trenbolone, growth hormone, and hCG at supraphysiological doses carries risks including cardiovascular events, adverse lipid changes, erythrocytosis, insulin resistance, liver strain, hormonal axis suppression, and psychological effects. Trenbolone in particular has no human safety data, making its risk profile largely unknown.

Brian Johnson (Liver King) Transformation Timeline: Public Photos, Public Statements, and the Medical Context

By HealthRX Medical Team

Published May 25, 2026Updated May 25, 2026Last reviewed May 25, 2026

The Public Record: From Denial to Disclosure

Brian Johnson rose to social media prominence in 2021 and 2022 by posting shirtless videos of himself eating raw organ meats, carrying heavy objects, and promoting what he called the "nine ancestral tenets." He repeatedly stated on camera and in interviews that his muscular physique at age 45+ was the product of diet, sunlight, sleep, and primal movement patterns. He denied steroid use directly when asked by podcast hosts and commenters.

In late November 2022, leaked emails attributed to Johnson surfaced online. The emails, shared publicly by fitness YouTuber Derek of More Plates More Dates, appeared to detail a monthly pharmaceutical spend exceeding $11,000 and listed specific compounds: testosterone, trenbolone, growth hormone, hCG, and additional peptides.

On December 1, 2022, Johnson posted a roughly eight-minute video to his YouTube channel titled "I lied." In it, he confirmed he had used anabolic steroids and hormones. He stated that he had taken testosterone and other compounds while publicly claiming his physique was drug-free. The video remains publicly available and serves as the primary source for confirmed use.

What Johnson Confirmed vs. What Remains Speculated

Confirmed by Johnson on camera (December 2022):

Use of anabolic steroids (he used the general term)
That he misrepresented his physique as natural
That the leaked emails were authentic

Named in the leaked emails (not individually confirmed by Johnson verbally, but authenticated by his admission that the emails were real):

Testosterone (specific ester not publicly clarified)
Trenbolone
Growth hormone (GH)
Human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG)
Deca-Durabolin (nandrolone decanoate)
Insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1)
Various peptides including CJC-1295 and ipamorelin

Johnson has not publicly detailed exact dosages, cycle lengths, or whether a physician supervised his protocols. Any claims about specific dosing circulate as speculation and should be treated as such.

At a glance

Status: Confirmed steroid and hormone use (self-admitted, December 2022)
Compounds confirmed by public record: Testosterone, trenbolone, growth hormone, hCG, nandrolone, IGF-1, peptides
Duration of public denial: Approximately 18 months (mid-2021 through November 2022)
Monthly reported pharmaceutical cost: Over $11,000 (per leaked emails)
Age at disclosure: 45

Clinical Context: The Pharmacology Behind the Stack

The HealthRX Medical Team reviewed the compounds named in Johnson's authenticated emails. Here is what each drug does, what clinical medicine uses it for, and what the risks look like at supraphysiological doses.

Testosterone

Testosterone is the primary male sex hormone and the base compound in nearly all anabolic steroid protocols. The FDA has approved testosterone replacement therapy for men with documented hypogonadism, defined as serum total testosterone consistently below 300 ng/dL with clinical symptoms.

At replacement doses (typically 100 to 200 mg per week of testosterone cypionate or enanthate), the goal is restoring levels to the physiological range of 300 to 1 to 000 ng/dL. At bodybuilding doses, which can range from 300 mg to over 1 to 000 mg per week, testosterone produces supraphysiological levels that accelerate muscle protein synthesis, nitrogen retention, and red blood cell production well beyond normal limits.

Risks at supraphysiological doses include erythrocytosis (elevated hematocrit increasing stroke and clot risk), cardiovascular events, hepatotoxicity with oral formulations, acne, hair loss, testicular atrophy, and hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal axis suppression.

Trenbolone

Trenbolone is a veterinary anabolic steroid that has never received FDA approval for human use. It was developed for cattle to promote lean mass gain before slaughter. Its anabolic potency is estimated at roughly five times that of testosterone.

Trenbolone binds the androgen receptor with high affinity and does not aromatize to estrogen, which means users often report a hard, dry appearance. It also binds the progesterone receptor, which can cause gynecomastia through a non-estrogenic pathway. Documented side effects include severe insomnia, night sweats, cardiovascular strain (particularly adverse lipid shifts with suppressed HDL), tachycardia, kidney stress reflected by darkened urine, and significant neurotoxicity in animal models. No human safety trials exist because the drug was never intended for people.

The HealthRX Medical Team considers trenbolone one of the highest-risk compounds in underground bodybuilding pharmacology. Its absence from any legitimate human clinical literature means that every user is running an uncontrolled experiment.

Growth Hormone (GH)

Recombinant human growth hormone is FDA-approved for growth hormone deficiency in adults and children, Turner syndrome, and a few other specific conditions. In anti-aging and bodybuilding contexts, GH is used off-label at doses that may range from 2 IU to 10+ IU daily.

At supraphysiological doses, GH promotes lipolysis (fat breakdown), increases IGF-1 production from the liver, and can contribute to connective tissue growth. Side effects include carpal tunnel syndrome, joint pain, insulin resistance progressing to type 2 diabetes, fluid retention, and theoretical concerns about accelerating occult malignancies through IGF-1 stimulation.

Human Chorionic Gonadotropin (hCG)

hCG mimics luteinizing hormone (LH) and is used clinically to treat hypogonadotropic hypogonadism and to preserve fertility in men on testosterone therapy. In steroid protocols, hCG is commonly included at 250 to 500 IU two to three times per week to prevent testicular atrophy and maintain intratesticular testosterone production.

Including hCG in a steroid protocol is a harm-reduction measure, not a safety guarantee. It does not prevent the cardiovascular, hepatic, or psychological risks of the primary anabolic compounds.

The Disclosure Problem: Why This Case Matters Clinically

Johnson's case became one of the most prominent examples of influencer steroid denial in the social media era. The clinical significance is not the steroid use itself. It is the downstream effect on public health literacy.

When an influencer with millions of followers attributes a physique that is pharmacologically assisted to diet and lifestyle alone, the audience receives distorted expectations about what natural training can produce. A 2023 survey published in JAMA Pediatrics found that adolescent boys who followed fitness influencers were more likely to report supplement and appearance-enhancing drug use. While Johnson was not named specifically, the pattern his brand represented (extreme physique plus natural-only claims) maps directly to the pathways described in that research.

The HealthRX Medical Team sees this as a clinical education issue. Patients who present to endocrinology or primary care requesting TRT increasingly cite social media physiques as their benchmark for what testosterone "should" do. When those benchmarks are secretly augmented by trenbolone, growth hormone, and multiple peptides, the clinical conversation starts from a false baseline.

Physical Changes Documented in Public Media

Johnson's physique as shown in early social media posts (circa 2021) displayed a level of muscularity, vascularity, and leanness at age 44+ that multiple sports medicine physicians publicly noted would be extremely unusual without pharmacological assistance. Signs commonly cited included: full muscle bellies with simultaneous low body fat (estimated at 8 to 10%), prominent vascularity across the midsection, and trapezius and deltoid development disproportionate to other muscle groups, a pattern consistent with high androgen receptor density in those tissues.

Post-disclosure, Johnson's public appearances have shown a visibly reduced level of muscularity, consistent with what would be expected after discontinuation or reduction of anabolic compounds.

What Responsible TRT Actually Looks Like

For men with clinically diagnosed hypogonadism, testosterone replacement under medical supervision is a well-studied intervention. The Endocrine Society's 2018 guidelines recommend diagnosis based on at least two morning serum testosterone measurements below 300 ng/dL, combined with symptoms such as low libido, fatigue, or loss of muscle mass.

Monitored TRT involves regular blood work checking total and free testosterone, hematocrit, PSA, lipid panels, and liver enzymes. Doses are titrated to achieve mid-range physiological levels, not the supraphysiological concentrations used in bodybuilding. This is a medical therapy. It is not a performance program.

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