Feeling A Little Less Than Macho? Here’s 3 Ways To Increase Your Testosterone Naturally
Have you ever wondered how to increase your testosterone levels? Yes, I realize this is quite the question but it turns out that upping the level of your testosterone can be a very good thing. Believe it or not, it’s not all about your libido, strength, muscle size etc.
Having the right levels of testosterone can significantly improve your health … and your life.
The bad news about testosterone is that it doesn’t stay up forever. In a study done back in 2007 research found that men who were born in 1970 had 20% less testosterone at the age of 35 than their fathers did when they were 35.
What does that mean for men who were born in 1980 … like me? 🙁
Not sure, but it probably isn’t getting any better considering more and more of us are parked in front of a monitor, sorting through papers or sitting behind a steering wheel for 8-10 hours a day.
What Is Testosterone Good For?
Testosterone is known to play an important role in a man’s life. Among other things, here are a few reasons you should strive to have a healthy level of testosterone.
- Maintain bone density
- Distribute fat
- Maintain muscle mass & strength
- Production of red blood cells
- Mental sharpness
Are you in danger of having a less than manly amount of testosterone?
How To Tell If You Have Low Testosterone
The signs of low testosterone in men can be surprisingly numerous. And having low testosterone certainly effects more than your sex-drive.
In that same research paper mentioned above it started out with the following warning after testing over 8,000 men.
“… testosterone levels peaked in the men’s early 20′s and gradually declined after that. Testosterone that starts to wane in a man’s forties is to be expected, but in some men, testosterone drops more rapidly than normal.”
So it is normal for your levels of testosterone to decrease as you age, but for some men that decrease is more than it should be.
Here are a few signs that you may need to up your testosterone.
- You cannot drop those extra pounds
- Feeling physically & mentally tired
- Depressed & unhappy
- No motivation
- Over-emotional
- Weight Gain
- Low energy
In addition to these physical, emotional and mental annoyances there are even more weighty symptoms such as prostrate problems.
I’m not saying that if you have one of these symptoms you have problem. There are many of us who may suffer from some of these symptoms and that doesn’t necessarily mean that our testosterone levels are low. But if you do, just know that it could be related.
How To Increase Your Testosterone
There are many different drugs and methods to increasing one’s testosterone. Since I have never personally taken a testosterone increasing drug I cannot vouch for one nor give any recommendations.
What I can do, is let you know how to increase your testosterone naturally.
Here are 3 easy ways to increase your testosterone naturally.
1) Workout. No surprise here. Working out is a great way to naturally up your testosterone. Don’t just casually lift weights though. You need to lift heavy and with some intensity. Also, checkout this research to see how making adjustments in your workout can play a role in just how much your testosterone will increase.
“… The results of the present study support rest period in RE sets as an important variable to increase the anabolic hormone concentrations … TS (testosterone) response was greater in the RE protocol with a 120-second rest interval between sets… “
2) Sleep. Although you might think that staying up late to get in another cardio workout is good, it might not be. You need to get 8 hours of sleep every night, and apparently it’s during your REM sleep that you get the biggest boost.
“… Changes in nocturnal testosterone are sleep-related, with levels rising during sleep and falling on waking, whereas circadian effects are apparently marginal. Peak testosterone levels coincide with rapid-eye movement (REM) sleep onset … “
3) Eat meat. If you’re a vegetarian … I’m sorry! According to this study, vegetarian diets have a negative impact on your testosterone levels.
“… A lower nocturnal release of prolactin and testosterone occurred in men fed a vegetarian diet …”
Tim @ Behind The Workout
November 10, 2011 @ 11:18 am
Great tips Kevin. The fats in meat will help boost testosterone. I also find it important to make sure you are taking in enough vitamin D and Zinc (some people take ZMAs as a supplement to boost testosterone levels).