TestoFuel Blog : Make Gains & Pack on the Muscle
You’re here because either you’ve been told you have low testosterone or you suspect that your hormone levels just aren’t functioning as well as they should be.
The lack of energy, motivation and stamina you’re experiencing are starting to wear you down and you’re beginning to wonder where that powerful, assertive, muscular young man that you once were has disappeared to.
In this article we’ll tell you exactly how you can take charge and get those hormone levels back to where they should be.
If you’re here because you want to make some positive changes to your body then you’re in the right place.
Testosterone (T) is your primary male hormone. As an androgen and naturally-occurring steroid it controls your wellness and longevity and isn’t just important for regulating your physical performance, but your health too.
From puberty you experience a massive surge in how much testosterone your body makes. And when your levels are ticking along optimally you look and feel great.
You’re lean, muscular and strong. You’re stamina, performance and libido are through the roof and your mental skills are on top form.
But as you hit your thirties you notice that things start to slow down. You find it harder to think, move and all kinds of niggling little aches and pains are beginning to set in. You’re ill more regularly and there’s absolutely no hope of hitting those big gym lifts you once found easy.
That’s because from your late twenties onward your testosterone levels drop by around 1-2% per year.
Around 4 or 5 million men suffer from low testosterone (or hypogonadism as it’s known in the scientific community).
Research shows that your overall T production can drop by as much as 30% between the ages of 25 and 75 and that the testosterone in your blood that is available to be taken up by your bodily tissues can drop by 50% [1].
It goes without saying that this can have a dramatic effect on your health.
When your hormone levels drop below the critical threshold you begin to see a number of side effects:
You can fight back. You don’t have to accept that you’ve passed your prime or that your best days are behind you.
Recapturing the vigor and focus that you had in your prime years can soon be reclaimed – you just have to know how.
Around 3 million men in the US choose to use some sort of testosterone therapy. More and more we are realizing that you can reverse the decline and continue to lead a healthy and happy life.
But there is an ever-growing concern that medical interventions such as steroid and replacement therapy could cause more harm than good.
Whilst they promise to get your T levels back to where they should, they are fraught with concerns about the many adverse effects they can cause.
When it comes to replacement therapy and steroid use, there are strong links to side effects such as increased risk of prostate cancer, stroke and cardiovascular complications. You could suffer an allergic reaction, edema, reduced fertility, sleep apnea or gynecomastia.
The risk just isn’t worth it.
There are a number of natural alternatives such should consider. These help to elevate your hormone levels without pharmacological intervention and stimulate production of T, rather than replace it with synthetic drugs.
Test boosters contain all-natural, herbal ingredients that have been selected based on clinical research studies.
Rather than giving your body synthetic hormones that have been made in a lab they stimulate your own body to make testosterone naturally. They work a bit like an alarm clock, giving your testes a gentle wake up call to get back to work.
Test boosters trigger precursor hormones such as luteinizing hormone to jump into action, and inhibit the amount of testosterone that gets bound up in the blood to antagonist proteins that make it unusable.
Together, these effects are potent and long-lasting.
Test boosters are a great place to start when it comes to getting back on track.
With such a high number of men like you suffering the effects of low T you’ll not be surprised by the vast amount of research conducted on the different strategies you can take to elevate your hormones.
Much like testosterone boosters, some foods contain natural compounds and nutrients that have been found to elevate hormone levels. These will support your body in the same way as boosters do – only not quite as potent (don’t forget – boosters us concentrated extracts).
Foods such as eggs and salmon contain vitamin D – a nutrient often referred to as the ‘sixth steroid hormone’ due to its amazing ability to elevate androgen levels.
Studies have found that supplementing 3,332 IU per day can lead to significant increases in T levels [2].
Although not your most typical food, oysters are the world’s best source of the essential mineral zinc – another androgen-stimulating nutrient.
Studies have shown that zinc boost both physical performance markers and testosterone levels by itself [3], but even eating oysters directly or an oyster extract also optimizes hormone levels as well.
And if you’re not a fan of oyster then you can always go for other zinc-rich foods such as pumpkin seeds, shrimp, beef or spinach too.
Lastly, you’ll find the very effective T-boosting nutrient D-aspartic acid in a range of foods as well. These include, meat, dairy and eggs.
Studies show that supplementing this amino acid over a short-term period can lead to significant increases in testosterone, seminal count and improved sperm motility [4].
But while you’ll not find a massive amount of this nutrient in foods naturally, it does still help contribute to an overall healthy diet.
Implementing strength training into your lifestyle is a sure fire way of promoting higher T levels.
Spending time with ‘the iron’ means that you’re damaging your muscle fibers on a cellular level. And while that sounds bad it’s actually good for you.
That’s because when you damage muscle cells through lifting weights your body responds by building back thicker and stronger fibers. Over time that leads to more muscle size and even strength.
So what’s the testosterone connection?
Testosterone supports your body’s anabolic processes.
When your cells are trying to repair and grow they use male hormones to boost protein synthesis.
In fact, research shows that when men who have low T increase their hormone levels, they also increase protein synthesis by over 55% [5].
How do you use strength training?
Lifting weights 2-4 times per week and focusing on big exercises with multiple muscle groups involved boosts T levels the most. Aim to lift heavy with 3 sets of 5-10 reps and if you really want to really ramp up the androgen release then keep your rest times to 60-90 seconds.
It’ll be tough… but worth it.
The secret weapon of hormone optimization is sleep. Not only is it straight up the best thing in the world, it is also vital for your health, cognitive ability and physical performance.
There are an overwhelming number of studies that show the amount of nighttime sleep you get is a good independent predictor of morning total testosterone levels [6].
And if you need to know exactly how much sleep you need; clinical trials show that those who sleep for 8 hours per night have T levels that are 60% higher than those that only manage 4 hours.
Hand in hand with getting enough sleep is being able to manage stress.
Why?
Because those that suffer from high levels of stress often don’t sleep as well as they should.
Work related stress accounts for as much as 45% of all sick days. It’s particularly evident in high-pressure, repetitive tasks such as office work.
The problem with stress is that it raises levels of the catabolic hormone cortisol.
And if cortisol gets too high it eats away at your muscle tissue, promotes belly fat and man boobs and blunts your immune system, leaving you feeling tired and unmotivated.
Cortisol is also a direct antagonist to testosterone.
If T is the gas then these catabolic hormones are most certainly the brake. Let them get too high and they’ll put a stop on your gains quicker than you could imagine.
As well as getting sufficient sleep, focus your attention on rest, recovery and enjoyment. Get a hobby and spend time with your family.
If it de-stresses you then get it in your daily routine.
