Intro:
In the fall of 2019, my eighteen year old self decided to see exactly where my testosterone levels were at. Now, at this point, I had been working out consistently for 9 months and was starting to notice a substantial increase in both strength and lean muscle mass. This boost led me to wonder about my testosterone levels and how they lined up with my peers. I purchased a test, pricked my finger, and sent the sample off for “TESTing.” I got my results a few days later, 658 ng/dl……average. Now this was not a bad result at all as most experts place normal levels between 300-1000 ng/dl, but it was not the result I wanted. I knew that testosterone generally peaks around 18-19 (I was exactly 18.7 at the time of the test) and felt a little bummed out that in my so-called “prime” all I could muster was 658. This led me down a path to optimize my testosterone levels. Now, let's fast forward almost 4 years for just a second here and we will get back to what happened during the time in between. In 2023, after instituting the many habits/changes I will discuss below, I retested my TEST and saw an increase to 981 ng/dl. This change coincided with the busiest, most stressful, and most painful times of my life, but the change was great. Not only did my testosterone increase over this timeframe, but also my patience, my work ethic, and my overall outlook on life. So, without further ado, here are the changes that I believe helped lead me to an almost 50% increase in testosterone.
Exercise:
Exercise, and especially pushing yourself in the weight room or in HIIT workouts can cause about as big of a natural increase in testosterone as any one activity. Studies have found that both total and free testosterone spike after exercising. Now, many of you lift and I myself lifted when I got my less than ideal result back, so you may be thinking “Is this Legit?” Well let me dive into hormone balance a bit here. Cortisol (your body’s stress hormone) and Testosterone have a bit of a yin-yang battle inside the body. The two regulate each other in a sense as there is a negative correlation between the levels of the two. So, how exactly does this relate to working out? Well, intense exercise can put the body under a lot of physical stress which can then increase the cortisol levels in the body. The increase in cortisol causes a decrease in testosterone and can lead us to wonder why we don’t feel too great after the 12th straight week of your powerbuilding program. Quite simply, being able to optimize your testosterone from working out comes down to rest and listening to your body. Lifting the proper weight, the proper amount of times, the proper amount of sets, with the proper weekly frequency can help our bodies stay in a hormonally optimized state. Finding the happy medium where you can push yourself to failure while still leaving enough in the tank for the next lift or the next day is crucial in not overworking your body. This is something I did not practice my first two years in the gym, and I honestly believe it affected my testosterone levels. It takes a badass to be in the gym bright and early every day, but even badass can use a deload week, or a recovery day, or even just a good night's sleep. Be sure you treat your body right and it will optimize its performance for you.
Diet:
For many, eating a healthy diet that is tailored to your workout regimen, life goals, and current health is the hardest part of health and fitness (it is for me too!). I’m gonna skip the macromolecules, micronutrients, and keto vs. carb load vs. vegetarian vs. whatever argument and just focus on caloric balance, especially in the sense of cutting and bulking. In any lifter’s journey, they are going to be faced with the common crossroads, cut or bulk. Being that this article is about testosterone levels, let's take a look at research pertaining to the effects both caloric excess and caloric deficit can have on testosterone. Many gym goers go on a “cut” either before a competition or before the summer “bikini” season if you will. During this time, a caloric deficit will start in which the body is provided less calories than needed to maintain the current weight. While this can result in the “shredded” look that many are chasing, it can also have a negative impact on hormone levels in the body. A 2008 study shows a significant decrease in serum testosterone level in individuals performing a “cut” that is accompanied by a significant increase in sex-hormone binding globulin (SHBG) Sex Hormone-binding Globulin=A protein in the blood that binds sex hormones (like testosterone) and lowers the level of free testosterone. This results not only in less overall testosterone, but also less free testosterone due to the increase in SHBG which binds testosterone preventing it from being used elsewhere in the body. The more severe the caloric restriction, the more prominent the negative effects on testosterone. You may now be thinking, “well I just need to bulk to increase my testosterone,” and let me assure you that there are also risks with that approach. A significant caloric excess, or “dirty bulk”, can also decrease testosterone levels. As the body builds up more fat (which is inevitable in a true dirty bulk), more leptin is released from the body which inhibits testosterone. Leptin is the hormone that gives you that “full” feeling after eating, and directly opposes the “hunger” hormone ghrelin. Obviously, as your body senses more available energy in the form of fat reserves, it will release a hormone response that indicates that feeding is not necessary. In addition to this hormone response, it has long been known that excess body fat in general can decrease testosterone, so it is best to avoid unnecessary weight gain, especially done rapidly. Now, it may seem as though I am suggesting avoiding cutting and bulking altogether, which is not true. I dirty bulked and hard cut in the past, and have found that the best way to cut and bulk is with a more watered down approach. This approach does require patience, but I honestly believe the results will more than make up for it. Instead of a “dirty bulk” over the winter in which you eat a large excess of calories in an attempt to gain 15-20 lbs, go for a leaner bulk in which you only gain maybe 5-10 lbs of body weight over a 6 month span. Not only will this prevent a large impact on hormone levels, but it will also allow you to have a less stressful cut in the warmer months. Over the past two years I went from 171 lbs in the winter to 165 lbs in the summer. The following year I was able to bulk up to 176 lbs in the winter and weigh 171 lbs during the summer while being at the same body fat percentage as the summer before when I was around 5 lbs lighter. I truly believe that reducing the weight fluctuations in my body has allowed me to maintain higher testosterone levels year round.
Supplementation:
I’m going to be very brief with this section as I plan on posting an article about my supplement stack, but here is the basic gist of what I have been doing over the past year in terms of supplementation. Using a daily multivitamin accompanied with Omega-3 fish oils and daily creatine use has definitely helped me perform better in the gym. More specifically relating to testosterone, a combination of fadogia agrestis, tongkat ali, and ashwagandha has been a huge boost to my libido and overall drive in life including but not limited to the gym, school, and work. I would highly recommend doing research on the aforementioned supplements, being sure to research dosage, frequency, and necessary cycling for each. Again, expect a deeper dive into these supplements in the near future.
Recap:
Testosterone is the hormone that makes men manly, and as many of you know, being a man is a 24/7 365 day a year job. It requires resilience and discipline in all aspects of life to see a dramatic change in testosterone, but there is no doubt in my mind that anyone can do it over time. Analyze an area that you can make a change in and stick to it. Everyone’s response will be different, but in life it is not about the destination but the journey to that destination. Best of luck guys!
Sources:
D’Andrea, S., Spaggiari, G., Barbonetti, A. et al. Endogenous transient doping: physical exercise acutely increases testosterone levels—results from a meta-analysis. J Endocrinol Invest 43, 1349–1371 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40618-020-01251-3
Cumming DC, Brunsting LA 3rd, Strich G, Ries AL, Rebar RW. Reproductive hormone increases in response to acute exercise in men. Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise. 1986 Aug;18(4):369-373. PMID: 2943968.
T. A. M. Karila1 , P. Sarkkinen2 , M. Marttinen3 , T. Seppälä4 , A. Mero2 , K. Tallroth3. Rapid Weight loss decreases serum testosterone. Int J Sports Med 2008; 29(11): 872-877
DOI: 10.1055/s-2008-1038604
https://www.elo.health/articles/foods-and-supplements-that-impact-testosterone/