I recently when to the doctor to get my physical. As part of my physical, I get my testosterone levels checked to make sure my hormones are healthy. (I ask my doctor to have a testosterone test added to my blood work.)
Normally, I do a physical each year as part of a routine checkup. But in this case it’s been 2 or 3 years since my last check up.
As you know, I raised my testosterone levels naturally by more than 200 points.
My testosterone has been steadily climbing since 2016. And I have the bloodwork to prove it.
But after the crazy past two years I had, I didn’t know if my testosterone would be up or down.
Normally, I would expect my T levels to keep rising steadily as it normally does. But the past two years have been far from normal.
Based on my lifestyle changes, instincts, reason, and general feeling, I had no clue what my testosterone levels would be.
That’s because I experienced things in the past two years that are known to lower testosterone levels in men.
But I was also doing things that are known to raise testosterone.
Thing that I know work to boost T because I’ve been doing those same things to raise my testosterone over the past several years.
Is my testosterone level be up or down?
It was hard to say for sure one way or the other if my testosterone was up or down.
When my results finally came I was shocked at what I saw.
This post explores the things that cause testosterone to raise and fall naturally.
It also includes my personal experience and opinion of factors that impact testosterone levels in men.
What Causes Testosterone Levels to Change
Testosterone levels change for a lot of reasons. Age, activity levels, diet, genetics… the list goes on and on.
Environmental factors, stress, and exposure to chemicals also impacts T levels.
Some things are tangible while others are intangible. They are all material factors although it’s hard to know exactly how much each factor contributes to your overall testosterone levels.
What causes testosterone levels to increase naturally?
Things that naturally increase testosterone are:
- Whole foods
- Red meat
- Animal fat
- Hard work
- Physical activity (maximal excursion)
- Competition
- Combat sports
- Good sleep
- Killer instincts
- Positive attitude
- Sex
Bottom line is that healthy whole foods, including animal meat, and intense physical exercise and competition all increase testosterone naturally.
Do these things consistently over a long enough timeline and your testosterone will increase.
What causes testosterone to decrease?
Many things lower your testosterone. Some things you can control, but other things you can’t.
Age, for example, is one of those things you can’t control.
You will have lower testosterone in your 50’s than you did in your 20’s. That’s because testosterone levels drop slowly over time after a certain age.
What age does testosterone start to drop?
Around age 30-35 men may experience T level decline each year.
Why?
Simply put, the machine starts to wear down.
Add in bad lifestyle habits with low physical activity, and a poor diet, and you have a recipe for low T.
Things that decrease testosterone
- Stress
- Bad diet
- Environmental factors
- Lack of physical activity
- Exposure to certain chemicals
- Genetic factors
- Age
Avoid processed foods, extreme prolonged stress, and limit your exposure to xenoestrogen chemicals to preserve your precious testosterone.
While testosterone level do drop after a certain age, you can still maintain your T levels naturally with the right action.
How to Increase Testosterone in Your 30’s
You don’t have to be perfect. Conditions are rarely ideal.
I was actually bracing myself in case my testosterone levels were down since my last blood test.
Just go to the gym
The first reason I thought my T might be down is because my training routine was inconsistent.
I didn’t have a proper gym for months and months leading up to my testosterone test.
I wasn’t lifting real heavy and I didn’t have much motivation to train hard during that time anyway. I took weeks off at a time.
I tried to go 3-5 times a week when I had the motivation to do so.
Something was better than nothing I suppose.
Move more
I was sitting down a lot working odd jobs for a long time.
They were dead end jobs to make ends meet. I was anxious all the time. On top of that a lot of other things happened that compounded my anxiety.
Not getting into those things today. Just know they were tough.
I lost 20 pounds in a month due to stress. My bodyweight reached a record low of 186 pounds.
Eat well
Try to stay on the straight and narrow with your diet if you can. I know this is easier said than done. Especially when life’s got you feeling blue.
I didn’t eat that great. I ate junk and drank a lot of booze.
However, I did eat my steak and eggs religiously.
My diet, like my workout routine, was inconsistent. I would binge some days and not eat anything until 8PM other days.
Manage stress
Another reason I thought might cause my testosterone to drop was stress. I was the most stressed I’ve even been in my life.
I was walking talking a cortisol factory.
Not to be dramatic here but between work, financial pressures, moving away from home, crushed plans, and trying in different ventures that didn’t pan out, it caused a perfect storm of bullshit that rained down on me hard and I was caught up in it without an umbrella.
My body and mind took a toll.
I lost over 20 pounds in a month from the stress.
My mental state was messed up for a while.
On top of that… well I’ll just leave it at that for now. Well as filling my role in relationships and feeling isolated and alone through me into a downward spiral that ended in a physical collapse and mental breakdown. Crazy anxiety for several reasons I might get into later but, bottom Line is I was stressed out.
Plus I’m a couple years older now. And passed the age that scientist tell you that your testosterone levels should be decreasing.
So, I say all of that to say this:
I didn’t know what to expect. I didn’t have a clue if my T levels would be higher or lower than last time.
My Testosterone Test Results
But wouldn’t you know it? My Testosterone levels went up.
My total testosterone is 861 points.
Pretty solid for a suburban white boy.
I was pleasantly surprised. I don’t know how it went up given all the things I was experiencing that were supposed to decrease testosterone levels.
Things that Increase Testosterone Naturally
This section contains things that I think increase testosterone naturally. It’s based on my personal experience and the synthesis of data gathered over the years.
Sunlight
Solar energy is medicine. You need sunlight to operate and function normally.
You need sunshine to produce Vitamin D, a nutrient in which people are deficient.
I try to get sunlight on my skin and see unfiltered sunlight daily. A 20-30 minute walk outside does the trick.
Steak
I ate a lot of steak. (Surprise!)
1-2 steaks per day on average. I also eat 4-6 whole eggs a day.
The protein, saturated fat, and cholesterol provide the right ingredients for your body to produce testosterone naturally.
Steel
Lifting weights increases your testosterone.
Training should be challenging. It should be intense enough to were you have a your single minded focus on your training during a set.
You should get lost in the moment while training because it takes every ounce of your focus to push through the rep. That’s how you know it’s intense. That’s how you break through boundaries. That’s how you boost T.
Leg training is necessary. You should squat a lot if you’re serious about gaining muscle, strength and boosting testosterone.
Pull ups are necessary. Deadlifts are necessary. And you know what? Overhead shoulder press are necessary because they just feel badass.
My training is typically varied. I got through phases of low reps and heavy lifting and other times I focus on volume. Either way it’s usually quite intense.
Competitive environment
Competition forces you to level up. You must improve in competitive places or get swept away. This taps into your survival instincts and can boost testosterone if channeled correctly.
Sweating
You need to clean out your system and sweating is one of the best ways to do it.
Either through intense training or the sauna. The heat is good for you and is therapeutic.
Inertia
Inertia is how people who bust their ass in the gym for 20 years can take a year off and stay jacked.
Why?
Because they put in the time already. Their body is already used to being healthy and fit that it wants to stay healthy and fit. Your body wants to maintain homeostasis.
Call it momentum. Call it equity. Nothing can replace the hard work put in over a long time.
Maybe I had some momentum from my previous 5-10 years of training that was still propelling my testosterone levels upwards.
Who knows for sure. But hard to rule it out.
These things decrease testosterone
These are things that lower testosterone levels either directly or indirectly.
Processed foods
These kill you slowly in an insidious fashion.
Processed food wear you down and destroy you from the inside out.
They are hard for your body to process and they give you nothing good in return.
But I’m human after all. I eat processed foods too. I just try to be conscious of it and keep the amount low.
The best thing to do is learn about how processed foods are made. Once you know you won’t put that poison in your mouth again.
These things might raise or lower your testosterone levels
It’s unknown if these things ultimately increase or decrease testosterone.
Stress
Stress straight up probably does lower testosterone. And the effect is amplified if the stressor makes you timid and takes the fight out of you.
Sure stress raises cortisol which in turn pushes down testosterone. But if that stress hormone dump motivates you to hit the gym and destroy the weights, what’s the score then? Does that result in a net positive or a net negative? Maybe it’s a wash?
All in all it’s hard to say either way when looking at the big picture.
Alcohol
Hard to say here. Alcohol might reduce testosterone if you drink it in a vacuum but what if you train hard?
Plenty of dudes guzzle down brewskis and are jacked to the gills. Those same guys also train like savages.
What if the alcohol helps you reduce stress? I’m not talking about getting blind drunk – I’m talking about a glass or two of wine with dinner or a two-figure whisky pour to wind down after a long day of kicking ass. Takes the edge off so you can relax.
But then what if alcohol lowers your inhibitions and makes you binge on shit food?
Things get murky. It’s probably best to avoid alcohol in general since it is a slow acting poison. However used responsibly and in moderation it can provide some benefit.
Closing thoughts on Testosterone
You don’t live in a vacuum. Everything effects everything else. The human body is too complex a system to attribute the impact on testosterone levels to one thing or another.
Your best shot is to just do what gets you into the shape you want to be in. And keep doing more of that.
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