Let’s Get an Answer: Was Ryback On Steroids With WWE?

Look at a wrestler from 30 years ago. Now look at one today. You’ve probably noticed a significant decrease in muscle mass, and yes–that owes largely to WWE’s to increased restrictions on steroid use.

There are still a few recent names that leave you wondering if steroids ever truly went away. Ryback, for one. Was the Big Guy on PEDs? The answer is yes, absolutely, most definitely.

On a recent episode of the Ross Report (transcript via WrestlingInc), Ryback told JR that it was the professional bodybuilding scene that got him started.

“They kind of started putting it in my head a little bit. I know it was my choice and my adolescent mindset where I’m comparing myself to other people rather than being the best version of myself. It was what it was and guys were doing it and I saw the guys that I liked growing up and they’ve openly admitted that they used them in the past. And if they do it and I like these guys, maybe I need to do this in order to be noticed and I did them for a period of probably three or four years off and on.”

But that was before his WWE days. According to Ryback, WWE’s Wellness Policy made him stop, and he says the program is a great benefit for talent.

Ryback humiliates a local competitor in the locker room: Raw, August 19, 2013

“That forced me to stop. And because if I didn’t, I wouldn’t be able to do what I love to do. But for me, I suffered severe consequences for using them where it had shut down my natural testosterone production.”

It’s one of the few positive things Ryback seems to have to say about his former employers. He’s recently discussed WWE “whoring out” its talent, getting punishment from Vince McMahon, and called one backstage official a “real douchebag.”

Obviously some folks might consider Ryback an unreliable source when it comes to his own steroid use, but he did cop to doing it during his pre-WWE days. Do you think he’s on the level? Let us know in the comments below, or on Facebook!