Boosting your testosterone level naturally, that is, without using testosterone replacement therapy, is possible, according to health experts and physicians. It basically means living a healthy life. No, it’s not taking a pill every day and expecting that’s all you have to do. The steps are common sense and they are something every man can do.
Doctors and body builders both agree on these steps to boost your testosterone naturally. Some say they’re better than any supplement (which you should avoid, by the way).
If you have hypogonadism, or are diagnosed with low testosterone, you need to follow your doctor’s instructions. But if you’re over 30 and want to maintain the dwindling store of testosterone your body produces, you can do that by changing five areas of your life.
These changes have different effects on you depending on your age and overall health. But they affect all people positively no matter your age and health. And you’re never too old to take them up.
Exercise
A 2016 study of men with obesity found that regular exercise did more to increase T levels than even losing weight.
Resistance training (weight lifting) helps increase short- and long-term T levels in men. An added benefit is that after strength training, when you’re resting, you continue to burn calories.
HIIT (high-intensity interval training) boosts T levels more than simply running for 45 minutes straight. The HIIT pattern is 90 seconds of intense treadmill running alternating with 90 seconds of recovery.
Don’t forget that it’s more that your testicles that are involved in testosterone production. Your brain is key. When you don’t exercise, your brain thinks you don’t need testosterone, so it stops telling your body to produce it. If you do exercise, your brain recognizes that you need more testosterone, and begins producing it again.
Again, moderation is important. Excessive exercise decreases testosterone levels.
Sleep
Get 7-8 hours of good-quality sleep each night. This is not your mother telling you to go to sleep. While you sleep, your body releases most of the testosterone it’s made.
You need to prepare for sleep. Turn off your phone, tablet, and computer one hour before you begin to sleep. Don’t exercise strenuously three hours before sleep, but you can do restorative yoga or deep stretching to help relax. Don’t eat sugar before going to sleep. Don’t do intense work before sleep—like scribbling your work plan for the next day. If you’re caffeine-sensitive, don’t consume it after 2:00 PM. That includes chocolate and cola drinks. Don’t drink alcohol two hours before sleeping. “Good quality” means you don’t have fragmented sleep or sleep apnea.
Studies have shown that less than eight hours of sleep can reduce your T levels by 15% the next day.
The last 60-90 minutes of sleep are the most important. This is when you have the most REM sleep. REM sleep is essential for the hypothalamus to recharge, and start sending the signals to tell you testicles to make testosterone. If you miss your REM sleep, you can’t recharge. REM sleep is essential for boosting testosterone and improving your immune system. Take the extra hour.
Stress
Cortisol is the stress hormone, the fight or flight dude. It helps you in dangerous situations, but you don’t often need to escape from a charging rhino. You do often need to keep calm at work in an office or a store or a workshop when someone is acting like a jerk. Repeated situations like this cause cortisol to circulate in your blood. Cortisol is the enemy of testosterone. As cortisol rises, testosterone decreases.
The response? In the moment, do deep breathing. Then later, take time to do something you enjoy, like walking, reading, watching tv. Do this for your testosterone every day.
Tobacco and alcohol
Stop smoking.
Limit booze. A Veterans Administration report on increasing testosterone naturally says that if you have more than two drinks a day, you’re increasing the conversion of testosterone to estrogen. There’s that raw deal again.
Narcotics
If you take pain medicine, oxycodone, hydrocodone, vicodin, percocet, morphine, or any other narcotic, you should consider stopping it. Heroin also has the same effect as narcotics.
Narcotics suppress the hypothalamus, which is the part of your brain that signals your body to do a number of things. The part that is relevant to this discussion is that these medicines blunt the signal to your testicles, telling your testicles to pump out testosterone.
Taking narcotics blunts the message from your brain to your nuts, and your testosterone will end up dropping.
Of course, stopping narcotics can be difficult, and if they are prescribed by your physician you may need to come up with a plan to wean off them to avoid going into withdrawal. However, stopping narcotics is essential if you are taking them and have low T.
Steroids
Anyone taking anabolic steroids to help build muscle mass is at risk of developing primary testicular failure – your nutz stop making testosterone.
Stopping steroids is essential. You may need additional medications to help signal your testicles to resume making testosterone. Clomiphene citrate is one such medication.
Being Overweight
Dropping the pounds will help boost testosterone. Fat cells convert testosterone to estrogen, making you feel and act more feminine. Less fat cells, more testosterone.
Anastrazole is a prescription medication that can help. It is an aromatase inhibitor, and can prevent fat cells from converting testosterone to estrogen. Some obese men can benefit from exercise, dieting, and taking anastrazole. Of course, ask your physician about this medication if you think you might benefit.
Diet
Fads in diets are as prevalent as fads in cars. Nutrition is complex. When you limit one nutrient, you create a cascade of effects in your body. Regardless of whether you’re trying to maintain testosterone or not, losing weight or maintaining a healthy weight is best done by just eating a balanced diet and limiting portions.
But a word about obesity. Men who are obese are much more likely to have low T than men who are not obese. Abdominal weight is to blame. If your girth is over 41 inches, you’re at risk. This type of fat produces aromatase. This enzyme actually converts testosterone—your primary male hormone—to estradiol, the major female sex hormone. Doesn’t seem fair, does it? But as your BMI (body mass index) drops your testosterone increases.
The Mediterranean diet is a healthy way to eat, and it’s not really a diet. It’s what people around the Mediterranean Sea eat. It’s plant-based: whole grains, olive oil, fresh fruit and vegetables. It includes moderate amounts of fish, seafood, dairy, and poultry. Only occasionally are red meat and sweets in the diet.
Foods to eat
And yet, it’s important to have enough fat in your diet to maintain testosterone. Fatty fish such as salmon and sardines supply you with nutrients important for hormonal health: vitamin D, zinc, omega-3 fatty acids.
Remember low fat diets from a few years ago? A diet low in fat may reduce your testosterone levels.
According to studies, men with low levels of vitamin D tend to have lower testosterone than men with higher levels. Salmon and mushrooms contain vitamin D, but it’s hard to get enough vitamin D, the sunshine vitamin, through diet. Daily supplements are usually necessary. As to whether you should take Vitamin D2 or D3 is an opinion not resolved. Men and women 19 and older need 600 IU daily. Over 70s need 800.
Dark, leafy greens contain magnesium, a mineral important for keeping your T levels as high as possible, especially in older men.
Cocoa products include cocoa powder, cocoa nibs, low-sugar dark chocolate. They are high in magnesium and flavonoid antioxidants.
Avocados contain magnesium and boron, both of which may benefit testosterone, although the jury hasn’t returned a verdict about boron. It’s not advisable to take boron supplements, but eating avocados is a safe way of increasing boron in your diet.
Whole eggs contain fat, protein, and selenium, which in some studies enhanced testosterone production. While more studies, especially in humans, are necessary to prove selenium’s role, whole eggs are highly nutritious.
Berries, cherries, and pomegranates may figure in testosterone production both directly and indirectly. We need more studies in humans to solidify the role of pomegranate directly. But these fruits may help prevent inflammation caused by obesity, a condition that lowers T levels.
Oysters, clams, and other shellfish contain zinc, selenium, and omega-3 fatty acids, which contribute to optimal T levels. Zinc supplements are not recommended as a treatment for low T, but shellfish may support overall hormonal health.
Foods to avoid
- Excessive sugar
- Excessive caffeine
- Red meat and other sources of animal fat
- Excessive dairy products
- Food dyes
- Processed foods
Any dietary guideline is subject to argument. The key is to consume everything in moderation.
You don’t have to spend money
These guidelines are low cost; some are even free. They don’t involve buying a lot of supplements, which are expensive and largely useless, if not harmful. The only one of the steps that involves spending money is food, which you have to buy anyway. Besides, eating a healthy diet improves your overall wellness, which keeps you out of the doctor’s office. The US Department of Agriculture developed My Plate, a graphic that helps you visualize what should be on your plate if you want to eat healthy.
You can join a gym, but beginning an exercise program doesn’t require a gym membership. If you haven’t exercised for a few years, a good way to start is with yoga. That requires only a yoga mat and finding online yoga programs, of which many are free. You can find sites for macho yoga, but really, all you need is basic yoga. Check out Yoga with Adriene’s Bedtime Yoga Practice. This is a good, free site, and has been running for many years.
The purpose of this healthy living is to preserve as much testosterone as possible. It’s guaranteed to make you healthier, slimmer, and better looking. Nothing wrong with that, Romeo.