Testosterone is the most important male hormone, as it regulates your sexual function, governs recovery, growth, bone density, along with many other physiological processes.
Low testosterone levels are perhaps one of the worst problems a male can encounter, as it can lead to unpleasant side effects, such as:
- Low sex drive
- Poor erectile function
- Mood swings
- Poor recovery
- Worsened body composition
Likely, you don’t want to experience these and neither do you want to stick testosterone needles in your body.
If that’s the case, you are in the right place – In this article, we’ll give you the most important things you can start doing right away to boost your testosterone levels.
Naturally.
Now without further ado, let’s jump right into it!
Boosting Testosterone Naturally – The 5 Key Factors
Your testosterone levels naturally drop as you age, but before you jump into testosterone replacement therapy options, it is best to do a complete overhaul of your habits.
Here are the things that have the highest impact on your natural testosterone levels:
#1 Nutrition
Though it may be a hard-to-swallow pill, what you put in your body has a MAJOR effect on the way your bodily systems work.
Including the hormonal (endocrine) system.
It is a fact that food provides the body with essential nutrients, which the body needs but can’t produce on its own.
Besides that, poor nutrition usually leads to the gain of excess weight.
High body fat levels have been shown to actually lower your testosterone levels. (1)
This is why, if you want normal testosterone levels, you should at least keep a normal body composition.
In terms of nutrients, fat & protein are the two most important components of your nutrition plan, which will nurture testosterone production.
Low intake of dietary fats has been shown to decrease testosterone levels in males.
Nevertheless, though demonized, carbohydrates can also help optimize the testosterone response from resistance training. (2)
In general, a healthy diet that consists of whole food and has balanced quantities of protein, fats, and carbohydrates, should do the job.
Focus on foods like beef, chicken, pork, eggs, dairy, grains, beans, legumes, fish, fruits & veggies.
#2 Weight training
If you’re trying to give the body a reason to ramp up testosterone production, weight training is the perfect tool to do so.
When you do workouts with heavier weights and shorter-lasting sets, you technically break down muscle tissue, in a process called “muscle protein breakdown”.
Paired with good nutrition, this powerful stimulus will unleash a flurry of anabolic (constructive) processes.
And guess what… Testosterone production is a part of those anabolic processes!
The general guidelines are to workout at least 3 times a week if you are a beginner, and focus on compound movements (exercises that engage more than 1 muscle group).
Whether you are a teen, young or adult male, weight training can and will boost your testosterone levels. (3)
#3 Sleep
Though many people consider the body and brain to be at complete rest while sleeping, that is actually not true.
During sleep, we organize all the sensory information we got throughout the day, but we also recover and grow stronger and better.
Besides that, bedtime is important for the regulation of many bodily systems, including the hormonal system. (4)
In general, it is recommended that you have 6-8 hours of quality sleep per night, depending on how active you were throughout the day.
#4 Lifestyle
It is a fact that nowadays, many people use their bodies as vessels for sensory pleasure…
This leads to many toxic, testosterone-lowering habits, such as drinking and smoking.
If you want your body to really be at peak performance levels, there is no magical pill or supplement that will get you there.
A lifestyle change is imminent and so, it should favor a lot of movement, quality food, and good recovery periods, as we talked about in points #1, #2 & #3
#5 Stress management
One of the WORST things about the modern-day lifestyle is that it puts you through A LOT of stress.
When you’re stressed out (regardless of the factor), the body releases cortisol, which is the main stress hormone.
Unfortunately, elevated cortisol levels have been proven to lower naturally-secreted testosterone. (5)
This is why managing stress is of prime importance for your natural testosterone production.
If you feel the slightest bit of maintained stress, resort to practices like meditation, mindfulness, reading a book, going for a walk, or simply self-talking yourself to an internally regulated, calm state.
Conclusion
Testosterone is a key hormone for any male and it is a fact that its deficits can lead to unpleasant side effects no man would ever wish even to their worst enemy.
Whether you are young or old, there are lifestyle changes you can implement, to favor natural testosterone production.
Those are namely remaining active, feeding your body well, allowing for sufficient recovery & sleep, and last but not least, managing daily stress.
In doing all of this, you will more than likely be able to ramp up testosterone production and enjoy the benefits of normal test levels, regardless of age.
References
- https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/1984562/
- https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/9029197/
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22234399
- https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/05/110531162142.htm#:~:text=The%20effects%20of%20sleep%20loss,2%20pm%20and%2010%20pm.
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3880087/#:~:text=Human%20research%20has%20shown%20the,reductions%20in%20circulating%20testosterone%20levels.