A Comparison of Competitive Anxiety and Perceived Overtraining in Athletes with and without Anabolic Steroids Consumption

The aim of the present study was to compare competitive anxiety and perceived overtraining in athletes with and without anabolic steroids consumption. The statistical population included all athletes of team and individual sport fields in Tehran city in 2016. 251 male athletes with and without anabolic steroids consumption were selected using multi-stage cluster sampling method. Athletes had mean age (24 ± 6) years and exercise history (3 ± 1) years. Data were collected using competitive anxiety and perceived overtraining questionnaires. The findings were analyzed by multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) and independent t test and showed that athletes without the consumption of anabolic steroids had higher cognitive and physical anxiety than those athletes who consumed anabolic steroids, but there was no significant difference between the two groups in self-confidence. Also, given the perceived overtraining variable, the group who did not use anabolic steroids had a higher level of overtraining. The results indicated that one of the main reasons why athletes use anabolic steroids is their benefits which reduce the negative states and improve the mental and physical performance. That is why these steroids prevail among athletes every day.