By Dayne Hudson
These days we want everything quickly.
Our favourite TV shows are on demand and we get all communication right in the palm of our hands.
So natually, we want this in all facets of life. But unfortunetly, this immediacy doesn't translate into the world of fitness in a healthy manner.
But it hasn't stopped people from having a go at it anyway; injecting synthol into their arms for more size, without having to lift a weight.
The latest offender to speak out is 25-year-old former bodyguard Romario dos Santos Alves, who came a whisker away from losing both arms after too much synthol abuse.
Romario says he's modelled his body on the incredible Hulk and was prepared to do anything to get there.
Romario says the injections are addictive: “If you take it once there will definitely be a second time."
And forget the boogeyman, Romario seems to terrify children more. Once he was working in a Catholic Church and a woman came up to him and said that her 12-year-old daughter wouldn’t come in because she's afraid of him.
“She said that she thought I was a beast, a monster — I just put my head down and didn’t say anything” he said.
So how did he get started with this silly decision?
He moved from his hometown of Caldas Novas to Goiania in Brazil three years ago, and saw some big guys in his gym with large arms. After making friends with them, they introduced him to it and he "lost control."
He says it got to the point where his muscles were so hard, the only way he could inject them were with specialist needles that are used to inject bulls.
"I know it seems stupid but I had to get my fix” he admits.
“I remember the doctor told me that they would need to amputate both arms — they said everything in there, all my muscles, were rock."
Romario is speaking out for one reason, he wants the world to see the dangers of synthol injections, and how close to death he came because he wanted bigger muscles.
"It's just not worth it" he admits.
His biceps had swollen to a whopping 25 inches when he ended up in hospital. To make matters worse his wife was six months pregnant.
So Romario decided to give it away.
“I decided to fix my ways and I never again wanted to take any drugs. We went through a really hard time and almost starved.”
The filler caused him all kinds of consistent pain, and he nearly suffered kidney failure because of the toxins in the oil.
At one stage he was told the unthinkable - both arms would need to amputated because it's the only way to keep him safe.
Romario now says he wants to keep him dream alive of becoming a professional bodybuilder - but he'll be doing it clean.
“I regret it a lot — my ambition is still to become a bodybuilder but I’ve got a long way to go.
“I know I will achieve it though.”
Hopefully he can stay off it and build muscle the RIGHT way - risking your life for a better body is just not worth it.
"Stay Fit, Stay Flexed!"
