Original subtitles

"THE MOST IMPORTANT PIECE OF EQUIPMENT IN A CYCLIST'S HOME IS IN THE BATHROOM.

IT'S A SCALE."

LANCE ARMSTRONG

Hi.

DOMESTIQUE

Don't you think we eat too much meat?

Maybe we should stop.

Are you OK?

Sorry.

I guess I overdid it training today.

It's OK.

I wasn't totally hard anyway.

You shouldn't overexert yourself so much.

Roman...

will you put a plaster on?

Do it, please.

Sorry.

But we shouldn't cut corners.

Thanks.

Of course, we're doing it for us.

Where are you off to?

On the bike.

Now?

I'm falling behind.

But you trained all day.

I know, but still.

You're overdoing it.

-You'll throw your biorhythms out. -Charlotte...

relax.

It's my body. I know it, I listen to it.

I know when to ease off and when I can double down.

I'm falling behind, I can feel it.

Sorry.

You should sleep properly. It's not healthy.

You know it'll be my first day.

OCTOBER

SEXUAL INTERCOURSE

WET

This is the compressor.

The most important part.

Be super careful with it.

It takes a while to get used to the tent.

You can't do 3,000 metres right away.

It'd cause hyperventilation. You'd overheat.

You'd sleep terribly and in the morning

have a headache so bad you couldn't train.

-OK. -Trust me on this.

Be patient with it.

So where should I start?

1850 metres.

I'll set it for you.

When you go to bed, just press.

What's the limit?

It depends on the person.

You can set it higher

but if you overdo it, you can suffer far more than a headache or tiredness.

Never, ever go beyond the limit of 3800 metres.

OK?

Hi.

I said, Hi.

Hi.

What the hell is it?

A tent.

Are we going somewhere?

No, it's from the team.

It's actually...

an oxygen tent.

And why do we need it?

For training.

Because an oxygen tent simulates

a high-altitude environment.

The body has to cope with having less oxygen.

It produces more haemoglobin and red blood cells

and can deliver more oxygen to the muscles back at lower altitudes.

It boosts performance and endurance.

So you suffocate yourself?

But where will we sleep?

Inside. We'll both fit there.

Come here.

I won't sleep in that.

You'll feel healthier, more energetic.

I'm not going to suffocate or sleep in this.

It runs on just electricity.

Charlotte.

C'mon now, you'll get to like it.

It's just like a little camp in our bedroom.

C'mon, sweetheart.

Will you do it for me?

I've done a lot for you already.

So will you do this one last thing?

I'll dilute it, don't worry.

It's bad enough you smoke.

I do not.

Pour me some too, please.

I'll make you a coffee in a bit.

It kept me awake last night.

Don't tell me you can't have a coffee when you drink coke and water.

I'm not hydrated enough.

According to your litmus paper, right?

Drink your disgusting coffee yourself.

Have you seen me drink coffee in the last three years?

-No. -Please, you know it keeps me awake.

So don't drink the bloody coke.

Caffeine is caffeine.

Coffee has a good influence on sperm motility, not caffeine.

You've got ice cream in the fridge.

During the season you won't get proper food, just shitty pasta.

Actually...

that's why I have the oxygen tent.

Why?

I'm not going to be racing.

You're telling me only now?

Why not, Roman?

They want me to train hard for two more months at home on my own.

Those fuckers.

Do you have to swear all the time? You went to university.

Whereas you didn't finish school and speak proper?

Yes, I do.

Do you ever hear me swearing like that?

I'll be home more, I'll be with you.

That's good, no?

So if you don't go racing how long will the tent be here?

What?

If you don't go racing how long will the tent be here?

Well...

for it to have an effect on the body

four to six weeks.

You're taking the piss.

It's a non-physiological short cut, but it'll need at least a month.

Can you handle it?

Thanks.

What's up?

Nothing.

And one more for the libido.

But I don't need it.

You did yesterday, no?

Would you do the dishes? The dishwasher's broken.

Bloody hell.

Close it, please. It has to be closed.

-Is it going to hum non-stop? -It's fine.

Charlotte.

Not tonight.

How come?

We couldn't breathe. We should've done it before turning on the compressor.

So turn it off.

It'd break if we kept turning it on and off. Tomorrow.

-Tomorrow you'll be worn out from training. -I won't.

You do know we only have a fertility window of three days?

We have two more days.

Tomorrow. I promise.

What?

Did you put on the plaster?

You can't cut corners.

I don't need any protective plaster on my balls.

Roman.

You're on that bike all day.

In those sweaty shorts.

You gulp down those dodgy supplements that may even make you shrink.

So what you need most is cooling plasters on your balls.

Please put on the plaster.

SEXUAL INTERCOURSE

CERVICAL MUCUS

SLIMY

I didn't burn off a thing. Thanks to your ice cream.

-Bye. -Bye.

Don't forget I'm be late. We have that parents' evening.

-All your food is prepared in the fridge. -Thanks.

We should stop eating gluten.

It's totally unhealthy.

So what'll we do today?

I've got to train now.

But it's Saturday.

It is, but as I said I've got individual training

with just one day of regeneration.

But you didn't say a word about training at weekends.

I thought it was obvious.

I want that tent out of the flat.

I don't want it here. I don't want to sleep in it.

What then?

What do you mean, what then?

-We're going to sleep like normal people. -No.

I mean, what then when I stop riding?

Hello.

Hi.

Pump your arm.

Fine. Lie down.

Relax.

It's completely simple and completely safe.

There's nothing to be afraid of.

I need some name for you.

Maybe the name of your dog.

-Our dog died. -Whatever.

Any kind of name you'll remember.

Miguel.

OK.

Raise your arm.

Press it here, so there's no bruising.

You're going to feel sick for a bit.

You've lost a lot of blood. You're going to need iron

and vitamin B.

Have a beer when you get home.

I don't drink beer.

Actually I've never even been drunk.

How's that even possible

So when you get home have a nice piece of meat.

We've stopped eating meat.

What?

It's unhealthy. You must eat meat. That's nonsense.

It'll make your whole body weak. Your hair'll fall out.

You'll be needlessly tired.

It's not on.

Why do that? It's unhealthy.

And definitely don't take EPO today.

Your body would stop producing blood cells.

So forget about it for today.

I don't take EPO.

What do you weigh?

60 kilos.

That's a hell of a lot to carry. You've got to lose weight

and get your hematocrits up.

The easiest way to do that is with EPO.

It can boost oxygen transmission in the blood a lot.

That means a huge boost in strength.

It's all below the permitted limit.

I've heard it's dangerous.

It isn't.

Dosing can be tricky,

but just like having 10 litres of fruit juice a day.

If you like I can give you a few capsules.

Free, for now. Just a test.

By prescription, if you like.

Got a girlfriend?

-A wife. -What's her name?

Charlotte.

How long have you been together?

Four years.

Yeah? How's it going?

We're trying for a baby.

Nice. I can write them in her name.

For menstrual bleeding.

Sure, I guess.

She tends to bleed a lot.

Excellent.

-Have you tried anything else, like testosterone? -No.

Cortisone?

Growth hormones? Steroids?

Nothing.

Once my dad gave me something for stiff muscles

but I felt weird afterwards.

After EPO you feel great, no longer exhausted,

healthy, strong.

It improves your mood and above all endurance.

You can take more – and above all for longer.

You go beyond your limits.

-Do you use the oxygen tent? -Yeah.

Good.

Because it boosts natural EPO production

and balances out the level of synthetic stuff.

In a month we'll return that blood of yours.

Hi.

Hi.

Where were you?

I went swimming.

How about you?

I feel kind of weird.

So will we do it? It's my last day.

Not today. I'm not feeling well.

You couldn't cook steak for dinner?

We don't eat meat.

MENSTRUATION

NOVEMBER

You got over it fast.

I have my period.

So in the ass.

Forget about it.

Sweetheart.

Charlotte.

C'mon baby.

C'mon.

C'mon.

C'mon. C 'mon.

Charlotte.

Roman.

What's going on?

What the fuck is going on?

Nothing.

Roman.

What is going on?

It happens sometimes.

It doesn't matter.

It'll be OK.

I understand.

It'll be OK.

Good morning.

Goodness.

Morning.

Did you sleep really well or something?

The same as always.

Looking good.

Thanks.

What time will you get back?

The usual time.

I was thinking we could maybe go out.

To the cinema maybe.

-You'd skip training? -Sure, I feel great.

It wouldn't hurt.

So after dinner we'll go to the movies.

I'd just go to the cinema.

But you know not eating isn't healthy.

You don't like it?

Not at all. It's really tasty. I'm just full.

But you haven't eaten a thing.

Somehow I'm just not hungry.

So I made you pasta and you don't even eat it?

You think I want a man who's skinnier than me?

It's bad enough you shave your legs more than me.

What the fuck was that supposed to be?

If you'd said it was so long I'd have worn compression socks.

My legs got stiff.

I meant the lift.

We were first and I won't wait for anyone, or climb stairs.

You can't take air conditioning, when you stand you need to sit,

and if it's for long you need to lie down. And now stairs too?

What'll it be next, Roman?

Bernard Hinault, who won the Tour de France five times,

used to have himself carried up stairs.

Yeah?

But you haven't won it even once.

You've never entered it and you never will.

I'm not hungry. I ate earlier.

Save your excuses.

I've heard that one before.

Where? At your school?

Yeah. For example.

It's not as if I go throw up in the washbasin.

It's obvious you don't know what you're talking about.

That's how it usually starts – throwing up in the sink.

Maybe because vomiting in the toilet is too demeaning.

Having to kneel too is terrible.

But then when the vomit starts to block the sink

you end up using the toilet anyway.

Tell me more.

That's all.

Don't you have other interesting tips, from your school?

Ice cream.

What about it?

Ice cream's the best lubricant.

After it, food flows right through you.

And when you throw up it still smells like ice cream.

You OK?

Yeah. It was good today.

-You polished off the whole pizza? -Yeah.

You've got a coffee and a libido pill in the kitchen.

Thanks.

-I'll turn the lights on. -No, don't.

From behind.

It's better for conceiving.

I feel like this time it's going to work out.

What are you thinking about?

That it's a pity I can't be pregnant too.

It's OK, I'll handle it.

I'll handle it.

In the 1970s

sportswomen in the USSR and East Germany

deliberately got pregnant before competitions.

Because pregnancy

is in itself a terribly demanding physical performance.

The body begins producing lots of hormones,

as if it were naturally doping itself.

And then?

What happened to them afterwards?

Well, for the most part

they couldn't handle it at all.

Seeing how the body changes.

How you put on weight in the wrong places.

Your breasts and pelvis expand.

The hormones turn you totally crazy.

Usually they had miscarriages after they'd competed.

They were so destroyed they totally lost the ability to conceive.

So what's your point?

If I could be pregnant now

there'd be a huge natural improvement in the quality of my blood,

haemoglobin.

My muscles would oxygenate better, my ligaments would be more flexible.

I'd perform better.

And I could really do with that right now.

How much longer will it take?

Twenty minutes or so.

How soon will I notice the change?

More or less immediately.

You'll feel strong, healthy.

Euphoric.

You'll have loads of energy.

So make sure you make the best use of it.

I've got goose bumps all over.

That's normal. That blood bag was in the freezer over a month.

Cheers.

It seems like it went great for you today.

-Fancy a drop? -No.

Of course, you don't drink.

You're damn right.

I've had treatment so many times.

When you think it's gone, it comes back.

It beats you every time.

So I gave in to it.

There's no point trying to fight it.

It's like every disease.

If someone says they've been cured, it's a lie.

A lie.

They've just suppressed it. But it'll come back – and it'll get you.

Like every disease.

You can think what you like about it.

I'll give you some advice.

After you train, have a big glass of warm water.

You'll feel full.

And then take two sleeping pills.

You'll sleep through dinner and if you're very lucky through breakfast.

Also...

dye your hair.

It'll burn off the genetic information.

Everything you take is recorded in your hair.

-No! -Wait.

No!

Wait.

Wait!

Wait. Wait.

MENSTRUATION

Be careful with the vomiting.

It's giving you a rash.

Look at yourself. You're totally pale.

Soon you'll look like a junkie.

And not being a woman you can't cover it up with makeup.

Watch out. When you do it you lose very valuable nutrients.

Then you'll be tired.

I feel fine.

Because you're on EPO and getting new blood.

You may also be swollen up after it

as you're retaining water.

I'm just trying...

It's OK.

But tell me...

how did you feel after the first transfusion?

OK?

Yeah. Of course.

Sometimes the body resists.

But I guess you're strong.

Actually I was surprised how much of a boost I got.

Fucking hell.

Roman.

Have you been rooting in my stuff?

-No, I haven't. -No?

If you haven't rooted around, what's this lying here?

Do I fuck with you?

No I don't!

So don't fuck with me.

I just want to know why. It's not healthy.

SUBTITLES: IAN WILLOUGHBY