Let’s be honest. Most men know that testosterone contributes to what makes them manly. It’s what gives them the characteristics that define manhood. But when you dig deep into why testosterone is important, most men will stare at you blankly or give you the “it builds muscle and boosts sex drive” spiel.
Yeah, testosterone is essential for supporting muscle growth and libido, but it contributes a whole lot more than just that. Here, we break down the reasons why men of all ages (and especially the older ones) need sufficient levels of testosterone and five ways you can increase your testosterone levels naturally.
What is testosterone, and why do we need it?
Most men know testosterone as the muscle-building hormone that controls the sex drive, and while it does play a big role in that, there’s more to it. Testosterone is the primary male androgen (sex hormone) that’s involved in a slew of essential physiological processes. It’s synthesized in the Leydig cells of the testes from its precursor, cholesterol, but small amounts are also produced in both the adrenal glands and the brain.
Proper levels of testosterone are required for:
- Strength
- Muscle mass
- Body fat distribution
- Insulin sensitivity
- Mood
- Bone mineral density
- Libido
- Sperm production
- Physical performance
What are the effects of low testosterone?
Unlike women hitting menopause, low testosterone doesn’t just take a nosedive once you hit a certain age. Age-related decline happens gradually with levels dropping anywhere from 1 to 2 percent each decade after the age of 30 due to the decreased steroidogenic capacity of Leydig cells, which drops roughly 50 percent with aging. However, there are other major factors that can contribute to low levels. That includes:
- Age-related decline
- Poor nutrition
- Lack of physical activity (especially resistance training)
- Hormonal imbalances
- Hypogonadism
Symptoms of low testosterone aren’t going to be the same across the board, because it’s highly dependent on age, but for most men, you’ll see some semblance of:
- Low sex drive
- Difficulty getting an erection
- Low semen volume
- Hair loss
- Fatigue
- Loss of muscle mass
- Increased body fat
- Decreased bone mass
- Mood swings
- Impaired memory
- Small testicles
- Low blood count (increased risk of anemia)
How to boost testosterone naturally
Fortunately, there are ways you can increase testosterone naturally. If you want to maintain high T well into your 80s, here are five tips to help:
1. Sleep
Sleep is huge–next level huge. Most people are under the impression that lack of sleep impairs mainly the physical, but it also has a profound effect on the physiological. Just one week of decreased sleep–that’s five hours of sleep per night–can tank testosterone levels by up to 15 percent. There’s a big link between REM sleep and hormone secretion. Because of this, sleep deprivation of any sort can hugely interfere with hormone levels. The highest levels of testosterone production occur during REM sleep, the fourth stage of a sleep cycle where repair of the body and mind happens. So, if you’re not getting seven to nine hours of deep, uninterrupted sleep daily, you’re compromising your testosterone levels.
2. Proper nutrition
Just like your car requires certain things to run properly, so does your body. Here, nutrition is king. For the body to synthesize testosterone, it requires certain nutrients. I’m not just talking about the typical protein, carbs, and fat—although complex carbs, dietary protein, and fat are all key for maintaining hormone levels—but also micronutrients like vitamin D, zinc, essential fatty acids, magnesium, B vitamins, and selenium.
However, because testosterone is a steroid hormone that’s derived largely from fat, especially cholesterol (its precursor), I can’t stress enough how much you need adequate fat in your diet. Fat is not the enemy if you’re choosing healthy fats. We’re talking things like nuts and seeds, eggs, cold-water fatty fish, meats, dairy (if tolerable), and organ meats.
A balanced plate is key to normal testosterone synthesis, so make sure you’re hitting all the major macronutrients: protein + complex carbs + fruits and vegetables (I classify them as a group of their own) + fats.
3. Metabolic workouts
Resistance training has always been king for testosterone production, but it takes a backseat when metabolic resistance training (MRT) steps into the picture. The reason why resistance training is so effective for testosterone levels is that the acute endocrine response to a bout of heavy resistance training involves increased secretion of several catabolic and anabolic hormones, including testosterone. While the response of testosterone and androgen receptors to resistance exercise is regulated by factors, such as the type of training program, sex, and age, there’s generally an increase seen in testosterone levels directly following heavy resistance exercise in men.
But MRT takes resistance training to a whole new level by ramping up your cardiovascular system to maximize muscle gain, boost fat loss, and improve total body health. The results are two-fold. MRT increases muscle mass, which has a direct effect on increasing testosterone, but it also decreases fat mass, which has negative associations with testosterone levels. It’s a win-win all around.
4. Minimize stress
We all get stressed, but how we handle that stress can have major implications for testosterone levels. Many of the symptoms of low testosterone mimic those of stress, which may be due to the increase in cortisol, which is linked to chronic stress. While acute stress is beneficial in several ways, chronic stress can be disastrous.
The mechanism behind how cortisol interferes with testosterone isn’t clear, but studies suggest that cortisol may disrupt the testicular steroidogenic process in Leydig cells, or it may elicit a direct inhibitory effect on luteinizing hormone receptor activity and content of the testes. Simply put, cortisol and testosterone have an inverse relationship. When one goes up, the other goes down—and unfortunately for us, it’s usually cortisol increasing.
So, if you want to maintain high testosterone, check your stress! Whether that’s through deep breathing, journaling, exercising, walking in nature, or hitting the sauna, decreasing stress levels is essential to hormonal balance.
5. Reduce estrogen
Compared to the other four factors, estrogenic foods don’t play as big of a role, but decreasing estrogen is nonetheless important for supporting testosterone levels. Men naturally have small amounts of estrogen that are involved in modulating sex drive, erectile function, sperm production, and bone health, but excessive amounts of estrogen, usually caused by increased aromatization (a chemical process that converts androgens into estrogen), can tank testosterone. Aging plays a big role in increased aromatization, but fat mass plays an even bigger role. Studies show that an increase in adipose tissue is linked to an increase in the enzyme aromatase, which converts testosterone to estradiol and leads to reduced levels of testosterone that favors the deposition of visceral fat.
What’s more, as total body fat mass increases, so do hormone resistance for leptin and insulin, which, in and of themselves, causes a slew of issues.
So, what should you avoid?
- Wheat and grains
- Soy
- Conventional animal products (meat and dairy)
- Food additives
- Alcohol – beer
Instead, load up on these:
- Celery
- Olive oil
- Oysters
- Cruciferous vegetables
- Parsley
Keeping your levels of testosterone up can sometimes seem like World War III, but once you’re aware of what contributes to low testosterone and what you can do about it (without relying on testosterone injections), it becomes pretty simple. Eat well, exercise often, manage your stress, and get enough sleep. When you prioritize healthy lifestyle habits, you’ll naturally see your testosterone levels increase.
For more on testosterone from Funk Roberts, check out his video on this essential hormone.
To read more, check out Salivary Testosterone Levels Under Psychological Stress and Its Relationship with Rumination and Five Personality Traits in Medical Students, Treatment of Men for “Low Testosterone”: A Systematic Review, and Aging and Declining Testosterone: Past, Present, and Hopes for the Future.
