If powerlifters think they're taking steroids—even when they're just getting a fake pill—they might still get stronger, just because their mind expects it to work.

If powerlifters think they’re taking steroids but are actually told it’s just a placebo, their performance boost goes away — meaning the mind plays a big role in the gains they thought came from drugs.

Just believing you're getting a performance boost — even if you're not taking any real drugs — can actually help competitive powerlifters get stronger, showing that mindset really matters in top-level sports.

Strength athletes who use anabolic steroids tend to score higher on measures of anger, impulsiveness, and muscle tension, and lower on how much they try to seem nice or socially acceptable, compared to athletes who’ve never used steroids or stopped using them for at least six months.

If someone has a condition that makes their muscles shrink, using muscle-building drugs and working out together helps them gain more muscle and strength than using either one by itself.