exercise to boost hormones
Exercise is a simple testosterone booster, and it’s one of the most powerful health promoting treatments around. Both men and women experience a sharp increase in testosterone and human growth hormone (HGH) after strength training sessions.1 But high-intensity interval training (HIIT), which involves pushing yourself to your edge with intense exercise followed by a brief rest, is even more effective at increasing testosterone and HGH levels in both men and women.2 It’s also a great option if you’re short on time.
William J. Kraemer et al., “Endogenous Anabolic Hormonal and Growth Factor Responses to Heavy Resistance Exercises in Males and Females,” International Journal of Sports Medicine 12, no. 2 (May 1991): 228–35, https://doi.org/10.1055/s-2007-1024673.
Patrick Wahl, “Hormonal and Metabolic Responses to High Intensity Interval Training,” Journal of Sports Medicine & Doping Studies 3)
you need the D
One of the many problems with the Western diet is that it’s lacking key micronutrients that we need to create hormones, specifically vitamin D, which is essential for testosterone production. As you read earlier, almost everyone is now deficient in vitamin D because of our overavoidance of UV light. This is likely a major reason behind the decrease in testosterone levels. A study published in 2010 looked at the vitamin D and testosterone levels of more than two thousand men over the course of a full year. The results showed that men with healthy vitamin D levels had more testosterone and lower levels of sex hormone binding globulin (SHBG) than the men who were vitamin D deficient. SHBG binds to hormones so your cells can’t use them. If you have too much of it, your testosterone levels will drop.
E. Wehr et al., “Association of Vitamin D Status with Serum Androgen Levels in Men,” Clinical Endocrinology 73, no. 2 (August 2010): 243–48, https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2265.2009.03777.x.
you need cholesterol
Here’s how your body makes testosterone: cholesterol→ pregnenolone→ androstenedione→ testosterone.
Testosterone begins with cholesterol. In fact, you synthesize every single sex hormone from cholesterol. This is one reason that a “heart healthy” low-fat, low-cholesterol diet is horribly aging. Research confirms that men who eat saturated fat, monounsaturated fat, and cholesterol have higher testosterone levels than those who follow a low-fat diet.
Jeff S. Volek et al., “Testosterone and Cortisol in Relationship to Dietary Nutrients and Resistance Exercise,” Journal of Applied Physiology 82, no. 1 (1997): 49–54, https://doi.org/10.1152/jappl.1997.82.1.49.