6 Evidence-Based Methods to Increase Testosterone Naturally

9 Foods That Will Naturally Increase Your Testosterone Levels

Ingredients in TestoPrime, like Ashwagandha, have stress-reducing properties, helping balance the body’s response to stress and improve overall mood, which can further support a healthy libido and energy levels. For men, testosterone is the major sex hormone responsible for muscle size and strength, bone mass, red blood cell production, sex drive, sperm production, and fat distribution. During puberty, testosterone fuels the development of male features like body and facial hair, deeper voice, and increased muscle strength in boys. But it doesn’t stop benefiting you once you grow out of adolescence. Having too high testosterone levels can cause side effects like irritability, erectile dysfunction, and more shallow sleep. Testosterone is a hugely important hormone — not just for men’s health and not just for your sex life. It’s responsible for everything from body fat distribution to muscle mass to bone strength, and having low levels can impact your mood, libido, and sleep.

Free testosterone (the active form) also matters, as does the patient’s overall health picture. Intermittent fasting has been found to have a profound impact on testosterone levels in non-obese men. There are pumpkin seeds good for testosterone a number of approaches to intermittent fasting, but all include fasting for 24 hours or less as a sort of ‘metabolic reset ». I’ll detail the physiologic effects about this in another article, but for now, consider skipping breakfast as a fairly simple approach to intermittent fasting and a quick way to boost your T level.

There are natural ways to boost your body’s production of the hormone, however, and many of them are simple lifestyle changes that can improve your sleep and overall health, too. When we face stress, our adrenal glands secrete cortisol to prepare our bodies and minds to handle the stressful situation — the primal fight-or-flight response. In small dosages, cortisol is fine and even useful, but elevated cortisol levels for prolonged periods can do some serious damage to our bodies and minds. One area that seems to take a hit when cortisol is high is our testosterone levels.

If the glands and cells responsible for producing testosterone are damaged or defective, no amount of eggs or sleep will help you raise testosterone levels. You’ll likely need to use testosterone replacement therapy to get your T levels to a healthy place. Our glands need certain minerals — like zinc and magnesium — to get testosterone production started and our Leydig cells need cholesterol to make testosterone. Some foods — like broccoli, cauliflower, and cabbage — can help boost T levels by removing estrogens in our body that lower our T. If you suspect low testosterone levels, there are several evidence-based methods you can begin today that can increase testosterone naturally, including changes to your diet, sleep schedule, and supplement routine. If necessary, your integrative medicine doctor can work with you to rebuild hormonal wellness.

For those of you who don’t know, HIIT stands for high-intensity interval training. It calls for short, intense bursts of exercise, followed by a less-intense recovery period. You repeat with the intense/less-intense cycle several times throughout the workout. In addition to increasing T, HIIT has been shown to improve athletic conditioning and fat metabolism, as well as increase muscle strength.

Testosterone is metabolized through two different processes. One 2021 meta-analysis suggests that supplementing with ashwagandha root or leaf extract for at least eight weeks effectively raised testosterone levels better than a placebo (27). Research suggests a few natural testosterone-boosting supplements.

Those with less vitamin D tend to have lower testosterone levels than those with more vitamin D. While lifestyle changes like moderating alcohol and quitting smoking are necessary for maintaining testosterone levels, another important factor is what you eat. These are the top foods to add to your diet if you want to elevate your testosterone levels to a healthy range. Several supplements may also help increase testosterone levels naturally. If you want to normalize your hormone levels and naturally boost your testosterone, the first thing you need to do is kick the sugar habit immediately.

…A good example of this is a study where non-athletes experienced significantly higher testosterone levels after an intense lifting workout in comparison to elite athletes142. It’s a very good fit for testosterone boosting workouts (which is why it is one of the main themes in the THOR Testosterone Training program). In fact, there are a few interesting studies which have shown that after a short-term fast, your androgen receptors become more sensitive towards testosterone than what they would be if you’d eat on a constant basis. Even after 10-days of water fasting, re-feeding shoots testosterone levels higher than what the baseline was in the beginning120,121. …And sure enough, there’s evidence that regular tea consumption can offer slight protection from type-2 diabtes109, and improve cardiovascular health110.

It helps build muscle, affects your sex drive, your bone strength, your heart, your memory and, well, your penis size. There’s a reason why these mollusks are known for being great for fertility. They have almost five times your recommended daily dose of zinc. When you consider the effects that insulin resistance and poor sleeping habits have on testosterone, this makes perfect sense because they are all closely knit together with obesity. At the core of this issue is cutting out processed sugars from your diet, which have been linked to insomnia, obesity, diabetes and countless hormone disorders. Exposure of the skin to solar ultraviolet B radiation is the major source of vitamin D and only a small proportion is derived from dietary intake. If you can, get out in the sun 20 to 30 minutes each day to increase your vitamin D levels.

Healthcare providers measure testosterone levels with a blood test called a total testosterone (TT) test. This test measures active (or « free ») and inactive (or « bioavailable ») testosterone in the blood. On the other hand, you should limit your intake of red meat, refined sugar, processed foods, and excessive dairy, which can increase adiposity and the production of aromatase. Aim for minutes of direct sunlight exposure daily or consider taking a Vitamin D3 supplement if you have limited sun exposure.