[jbkunt2]

Hi all,

I wanted to ask if anyone can share any thoughts/experiences on boost Testosterone levels naturally?

I have heard compound heavy lifts, sex with hotties, and a diet high in saturated fat help...?

I am thinking about getting a panel done. I'm 28 and I suspect I am on the lower-end of the T scale (practically hairless, low LBM, average sex drive, etc.).

Thanks for any comments.

[CleanSlate]

You might raise your T naturally by 100, maybe 200 points if you're lucky. But if you're at 300, going up to 400 might not do you that much good.

Heavy lifting, sex with hotties, and a high sat fat diet won't take you from 300 to 1000.

[PhDre]

(06-07-2015 10:49 PM)CleanSlate Wrote:  

You might raise your T naturally by 100, maybe 200 points if you're lucky. But if you're at 300, going up to 400 might not do you that much good.

Heavy lifting, sex with hotties, and a high sat fat diet won't take you from 300 to 1000.

This.

I sleep 9 hours a night, eat tons of organic vegetables, grassfed butter and grassfed red meat, have a low stress job, lift full body, have sex multiple times a week... and have a test level at 450 ng/dL (old man level) at the same age as you.

Except for some trauma or really abusing your body, your test levels are mainly genetic.

I have tried every so-called natural testosterone booster out there: tribulus terrestris, maca, tongkat ali, horny goat weed, yohimbe, mucuna pruriens. I made sure to buy the high quality versions of these products. I even cycled them so they wouldn't stop working. It was far more expensive than real test and didn't do shit.

Do not believe all these websites on how to raise your testosterone naturally. They just want to sell you something. And in case they provide actual bloodwork to prove that their protocol works, this is done as follows:
1) Guy with naturally high levels deliberately crashes his test by eating low fat sugary crap and drinking lots of alcohol for a couple of weeks. He doesn't sleep for a couple of nights and masturbates as much as he can. The he has his "before" bloodwork done.
2) He cuts out all the shit food and replaces it by meat, fat, vegetables and fruits. He starts sleeping 8-10 hours a night, he starts exercising and cuts out the alcohol and the masturbation. The "after" bloodwork shows a phenomenal increase in test levels, which you can achieve yourself if you simply buy his ebook.

Don't fall for it. Don't buy their books and supplements. These tips are good for overall health but they will not raise your test levels by a meaningful amount.

Have bloodwork done and get on real HRT if you're low. The difference in how you feel and perform is night and day.

[Galahad]

Most important thing is to keep your body fat low. With the age the metabolic system also goes down, same as the testosterone level. In your body fat is saved oestrogen that affects you negative.

[VolandoVengoVolandoVoy]

Dude, just get on TRT. Test is awesome.

Of course do your homework, get bloodwork, be careful and cautious, but IMHO the benefits far outweigh the risks.

It will also permanently change your views on supplements. Once you take something that dramatically and obviously works, you will look at all of the horseshit that GNC and herbal/vitamin companies and bodybuilding.com shills market and wonder why anyone would ever spend money on it.

With test, it is no placebo effect, it works, and it works really really well.

Get on 100-200 test per week, maybe once a year bump it up to 600 or so for a 12 week cycle, and spend the rest of your money on a balanced natural diet with plenty of quality egg/meat/fish protein and fresh fruits/vegetables.

[RockHard]

MikeCF said something like "the difference between TRT and testosterone boosting is like the difference between lightning and a lightning bug".

I got my first shot last week. Night and day.

For testosterone boosting, I think the bigger deal is not to fuck up what your body's trying to do on its own. It's not so much about boosting, it's not tripping up your body. Don't drink heavily, don't be sedentary, don't eat shit (generally, don't put garbage into your body).

[heavy]

(06-08-2015 10:25 AM)RockHard Wrote:  

...
Don't drink heavily
...

My hangup. I gotta cut back on drinking.

I wonder if taking TRT, which might cause a big shift in a man's life (with women, job, socially, or just general outlook), may cause a man to be able to go off of it afterward.

While I'm not doubting genetics and natural high or natural low T, I've found testosterone is so situational. There are times I can tell I'm really pumping T, but too frequently I feel low T.

I wonder if TRT can boost you into feeling high T, which may allow you to go off it.

Just something I've wondered.

[PUA_Rachacha]

(06-08-2015 10:25 AM)RockHard Wrote:  

I got my first shot last week. Night and day.

What did you experience after getting your first shot? And what's your doctor's prescribed regimen?

[RockHard]

(06-08-2015 11:06 AM)PUA_Rachacha Wrote:  

(06-08-2015 10:25 AM)RockHard Wrote:  

I got my first shot last week. Night and day.

What did you experience after getting your first shot? And what's your doctor's prescribed regimen?

It's subtle. It's not like popping a couple viagra and washing down with a Red Bull, but I'm much more... on edge? Basically, the male urges are back in a way I haven't experienced in years. Slept awesome last night.

I'm 47 and getting out of a bad marriage, so there's definitely a mental aspect but I like the boost. I got the shot Thursday, so it's early still, but I like it so far.

Right now he just gave me a shot to see how it feels, I'm going to report back. This is my primary care doc but we have a long relationship. I'm going to see if he'll write me a scrip and I'll self-medicate using the protocol LINUX outlined in his TRT thread http://www.rooshvforum.network/thread-44354.html - basically work out a dosage then do my own labs. Haven't gotten that far with my doc, he may have his own ideas. I'm going to give him a follow up call later in the week to discuss how to move this forward.

[amity]

I had some strange rises and dips in testerone lately.
I was doing some sporadic lifting a few weeks ago and didn't feel any real change in my horniness.
Then I went on holidays to a sunny location with my LTR and my horniness shot up, I was pounding her like there was no tomorrow.
But a strange thing happened afterwards, after that first 3/4 days, my horniness dropped off considerably, to the point where some days I wasn't thinking about sex at all.
An almost 360 in the space of a few days.
I was eating cleaner, but not as much meat(replaced it with fish during the holiday), plus I wasn't lifting but was swimming for a while every day, but the change was night and day, between the first and second weeks.
Conclusion: HIIT in the gym and dense protein improve T Levels much more than Cardio and less dense protein like fish

[Blackwell]

Lots of sex.

Competitive sports.

Omega 3.

Heavy weights.

Taking risks.

Hustling to make cash.

Being around girls talking to girls.

Zinc. Magnesium.

Grow a beard.

Cold showers.

Quit or cut down on drinking/smoking weed.

[VincentVinturi]

^^
Thank you.

This whole "dude just get on TRT" line of advice is:


A) Possibly Unnecessary because very few guys have the patience and resolve to see how far they can take their test naturally.

Sleep, diet, heavy weights, lifestyle, stress-reduction, banging chicks - can make a big difference.

If you've done everything in your power to max out your genetic potential, fine.

Otherwise...


B) Potentially Dangerous - The HPTA is a delicate mechanism.

Some guys respond well to gear; some guys respond really badly.

Some guys get fucked and never fully get back to normal.

You can go browse through bodybuilding forums and you'll see plenty of dudes who have totally fucked their bodies up with gear.


I'm all for TRT and I'll be all over that shit once I'm past my prime.

But I've managed to improve my body and well being significantly with HARD WORK, smart work, diet, and lifestyle choices.

I'm as hard gainer as they get, plus I have a varicocele.

And I feel better at 29 than I've felt ....ever!

Because I chose to do everything in my power to make that happen.

Just getting the sense that people want shortcuts instead of solving fundamental lifestyle problems and they're being encouraged to take those shortcuts...

[RockHard]

(06-12-2015 04:58 AM)Blackwell Wrote:  

Lots of sex.

Competitive sports.

Omega 3.

Heavy weights.

Taking risks.

Hustling to make cash.

Being around girls talking to girls.

Zinc. Magnesium.

Grow a beard.

Cold showers.

Quit or cut down on drinking/smoking weed.

Get good sleep

Avoid building up stress. Cortisol will block Testosterone. If you're hustling hard during the day make sure you blow off steam and rest too. There's a danger from both overworking and overtraining.

[Menace]

This topic has been covered in great detail here and in related sites. So I'm just regurgitating knowledge that others have provided.

First of all, get your t-levels tested. Stop feeling, and get some numbers. It's like $50 or less.

If you're under 30, you should do all or most of those things listed above to try and improve it naturally. There are also some exercises that can potentially increase your t-levels. I would check out Danger & Play for that.

http://www.dangerandplay.com/2013/11/12/...erapy-trt/

Once you're older (say 40's), you will probably need TRT IF your levels are legitimately low. You may be feeling like crap from things other than low T. I'm on TRT, but I had multiple labs done before hand showing I was on the very low end.

Probably most important things are lifting weights, getting sleep, eating well, and vitamin D.

[SamuraiJack]

I agree with Vincent that if you have low testosterone, you should focus on your lifestyle first before considering TRT.

In a 6-week period this year, I was able to increase my testosterone naturally. I went from sub-300 ng/dL to over 400 ng/dL. Physically, the most notable difference is waking up almost daily with an erection, more hair growing on my body (i.e. most noticable on my back), and beard growing faster. I'm continuing with the lifestyle changes to see how high I can get it to go before it levels off.

Before I go into the lifestyle changes I made, a little background.

I'm in my mid-40's. I first tested my testosterone levels several years ago as I was showing symptoms of Low T. The tests confirmed I had low T. I got my T levels checked at least once a year since then as part of my annual checkups. It was always below 300 except for one test where it went to just above 300 when I was applying a testosterone gel for 1 month.

Prior to my recent lifestyle changes, I tried two different approaches for increasing my T.

The first approach I tried was a testosterone gel as noted above. It did increase my T levels. In 4 weeks, my total T increase to just over 300 ng/dL (22%) and my Free T increased by 1 pg/mL (16%). My doc simply said to try it, so I did. I didn't start to research it until I was on it for 2 weeks. When I found out that it stops your natural T production, combined with the inconvenience of having this gel on my chest, I decided I didn't want to continue, even though I saw a small improvement.

The second approach I tried was taking Chlomid to basically block the signals that tell your body to stop producing testosterone. I did this for about 6 weeks earlier this year. Physically, the two things I noticed were I was getting morning wood more often, but I was also very short-tempered (I'm normally very calm and patient). I didn't have any tests done after taking Chlomid, so I don't know the actual changes in testosterone/estrogen levels in my body. At this point I decided I wanted to see if I could do something naturally without taking pills or gels. This was earlier this year.

Here are the key lifestyle changes I focused on to increase my testosterone naturally...

1) Diet
For years, I've been doing a low carb diet in an attempt to keep my weight under control. To increase my testosterone, I changed to a more balanced diet: 40% Carbs, 31% Fat, 29% Protein. Now I focus more on the carbs and fat than on the protein. This change had an effect on my libido and morning wood within 24 hours. I wasn't expecting that, but it gave motivation that I was on the right track.

I also eat at a slight calorie deficit so that I'm losing about .5 lb every week. I combine this diet with intermittent fasting (basically skipping breakfast). The goal is to lose bodyfat slowly as to avoid messing with metabolism and the endocrine system. As Galahad noted, losing bodyfat is critical for maintaining or raising testosterone.

2) Sleep
For years I survived on 4-6 hours of sleep a night. I now prioritize my sleep and target between 7-9 hours a night. On average, I get 8 hours of sleep every night.

3) Exercise
I've exercised regularly for years, mainly lifting weights. I've continued with that, but lift only 3 days per week now. I perform 5 exercises per workout, 2 sets per exercise, with a focus on lifting heavy. This takes me just under an hour to complete. I used to add in cardio like running or tabata. Instead of that, I now walk briskly for about 45 min on the other 4 days (about 2.5 miles for me). So I now exercise 7 days a week, 3 days of heavy lifting and 4 days of brisk walking.

4) Reduce Stress
Another big factor is reducing stress in order to keep cortisol low. As RockHard noted, Cortisol will impact Testosterone (they have an inverse relationship). That is one reason I replaced running/tabata with brisk walking.

Since making these changes, my Total T has increased by more than 150 ng/dL (57%) and Free T has increased by 6.3 pg/mL (86%). The numbers aren't huge, but it was just over a 6 week period. I will be testing again in a few months to see if these changes will continue to show improvements.

Since these changes I feel much better. Not surprising since I went from a low T level to at least being in the range considered normal. Erection quality is better, frequency (i.e. morning wood) has increased significantly, libido is also higher.

The lifestyle changes I made are based on a program called TestShock by Christopher Walker. He goes into the details and theory about increasing testosterone naturally. I would highly recommend that program if you are interested in increasing your testosterone naturally. If you get it, buy the upsell (Aggressive Shred Program) as well, it has more practical things to do (i.e. calculating how much of each macro nutrient you should eat, workout program, etc). He has a lot of free articles on the web, so take a look at those to see if it fits with your goals before purchasing.

[blck]

Lifestyle is key:

1) Get out of your cubicle!
2) Get your hand on some skydiving course
3) Get yourself a bike
4) ???
5) Profit

[VincentVinturi]

@SamuraiJack - Sleep is so key man, I couldn't agree more.

I've managed to cut down from a 2-espresso a day habit to 1 small cup of instant coffee (can't be more than 20mgs of caffeine) in the morning.

The effect on reducing my cortisol alone has been profound, to say nothing of the impact on sleep.

Magnesium oil has also been a god send, combined with killing all artificial lights after dusk, cold showers and other seemingly small habits, which taken as a gestalt, are greater than the sum of the parts.

You know what's an interesting parallel to this?

I've been training Brazilian jiu jitsu for over 5 years.

There are guys who have been training 20+ years.

Both me and the OG Brazilian cat do the same technique but his works a lot better and more consistently. Why?

Because if you look more closely at each technique, it's really a thousand little movements and adjustments, and you have to optimize each movement for maximum efficiency, leverage and timing.

Likewise, in order to improve in weightlifting, or increasing testosterone, or playing music, or ANY complex domain, your level of improvement is mostly a series of small adjustments, made consistently, optimized relentlessly, not some glaringly obvious panacea.

Not "biohacks" and other feel good shortcuts, but just an accumulation of tiny adjustments and details; a degree here, a breath there, an extra hour of sleep, saying no to a second beer, and so on ad infinitum.

The whole idea of hard work has been Tim Ferriss-ified.

"Hack this, hack that", "80/20", "30 pounds of muscle in 30 days". GTFO with that bullcrap.

Once I realized that every seemingly 'big' thing is just a combination of little things, I started paying attention to the details and acquired a newfound patience with hard, complicated endeavors like weightlifting and business.

Here's a quick breakdown of a typical day for me in terms of the habits that comprise it:

- wake up @10am on the nose without an alarm clock. Why? Because I turn off all devices at night to kill EMFs (habit #1)
- go take a cold shower (habit #2) and brush my teeth with non-SLS, fluoride free toothpaste (habit #3)
- drink ice cold water (habit #4)
- take 2 liver tablets (habit #5), two Mercola's probiotics (#6), one Thorne adrenal cortext (#7)
- place a sublingual vitamin D (5000 IUs) + K2 tablet under my tongue (#8)
- place a b12 (methylcobalamin, NOT cyanocobalamin) tablet under my tongue (#9)
- put on some shorts and move my yoga mat to the center of the room; do a vinnyasa slowly and mindfully (#10)
- do a few full body flexes at maximum tension a la Pavel Tsatsouline (#11)
- Turn my computer and phone on, pack them into my backpack and head over to my breakfast place (#12)
- order a small instant coffee (#13)
- order a protein shake made with New Zealand grass fed whey concentrate that I bought on iherb, with 3 fresh eggs mixed in and a few dashes of organic cinnamon (#14, #15, #16)
- check email and prioritize shit for the day (#17)
- check stats on Clickbank, etc (#18)
- spend a few minutes looking at my to-do list in a notebook to get my bearings for the day (#19)
- work an hour on the most important thing on the list (#20)

So those are 20 habits I've installed and practice consistently just to get the day started on a positive note, which goes on to influence everything that follows.

And each habit can be further broken down into little optimizations.

For example, how many dashes of cinnamon is optimal (3, 4, 5?)

Coffee WITH or without milk?

If the average guy takes this detail-oriented approach, I'm sure he can boost his T significantly without running gear.

And then he'll no longer be average!

[PhDre]

Vincent (and others), you give good advice and it is well meant.
However, to me, this is not “testosterone boosting” advice. This is general health advice. This is “do not fuck up your own test production” advice.

If someone complains about his health and energy level, these are the first questions that should be asked: “How long do you sleep every night?”, “How are your stress levels?”, “What is your diet like?” and “What is your physical activity level?”

However, if someone gets enough sleep 90% of the time, eats healthy 90% of the time, does not have excessive stress and does not live a completely sedentary lifestyle, and this person still has a low testosterone level, then no natural cure will take him to high levels.
No amount of saturated fat, heavy weights, herbal supplements, detoxing, meditation, sex or risk taking behavior will take him to high levels.

You used yourself as an example and I will do the same.
- I sleep 9-10 hours every night. Most of the time I’m in bed by 10.30 pm. I do not put an alarm clock in the morning.
- I sleep in a pitch black, cool room. I sleep with ear plugs.
- I have no electronic devices in my room and I switch off all electrical devices at night.
- I do not carry my cell phone close to my balls.
- I take cold showers.
- I do not eat canned food, processed food, soy, gluten or pasteurised dairy (I do use raw dairy products).
- The staples of my diet are grass fed beef, grass fed butter, coconut oil, olive oil, organic free range eggs and organic vegetables.
- I take vitamin C, D, E, K, magnesium and zinc.
- I have cycled tribulus, maca, yohimbe, mucuna, horny goat weed, tongkat ali, icariin (the working substance of horny goat weed).
- I limit my alcohol intake to 2-3 drinks a week.
- I don’t use other recreational drugs.
- I don’t drink tap water, coffee or soft drinks
- I don’t accept cash receipts.
- I don’t use shampoo, shower gel, shaving gel, sunscreen or fluoride containing toothpaste.
- I walk 30 minutes daily.
- I lift weights 2-3 times a week. I do big compound movements and limit the duration of my workouts to 45 minutes.
- I have sex 4-5 times a week – with a very pretty girl.
- My job is low stress and I’m in a comfortable financial situation.
All of this should lead to near perfect health. And indeed, my liver and kidney function is perfect. My blood lipid profile and my blood pressure are perfect. My vitamin and mineral levels are near perfect. My homocystein and crp are very low.
Despite all of this my this test level is only 450 ng/dL and my dhea level is only 110 microg/dL at age 28. And I feel and perform like shit (or at least I used to before HRT).

How is this possible? You need to understand that the maximum test level that your body can reach is determined by genetics. Your hypothalamus contains the set point for your test level and you can do nothing to change this. By living as healthy as possible, you make sure that all of the organs that are involved in test production further down the chain (pituitary, liver, adrenals, testicles) are functioning optimally and that you have the necessary nutrients for hormone production. However, when your setpoint is low, the outcome will remain low no matter how good these organs do their job.

Consider this example. Guy A has a good natural setpoint of 1000 ng/dL. He parties 3 times a week, doesn’t eat very healthy and has 10-20 drinks a week. As a result, his hormone production only reaches 70% of his genetic setpoint and he is left at 700 ng/dL. Guy B was a weak kid for as long as he could remember. He has finally realised that his test levels are low and he does everything in his capacity to raise them. He goes to extremes and manages to make his body work at 99% of optimum. Since his setpoint was 400 ng/dL, that leaves him at a test level of 396 ng/dL…

Unfortunately, the setpoint for your testosterone levels later in life is determined by your test and estrogen exposure in the womb. For instance, if your mother was on birth control until a couple of weeks before she conceived you, there’s a chance you’ve been royally screwed before you were even born.

This is why my advice might come over as “just get on TRT”.

If you feel great at the moment, do not go on TRT.
If you do not feel great, please look at your sleep, stress levels, diet, physical activity and exposure to endocrine disruptors.

However, if you do these basic things right 90% of the time and your hormonal levels are still low, then going all the way will not take you to high levels. Only exogeneous hormones will.

[Kieran]

How bad is coffee and fluoride for testosterone? I drink coffee as a pre-workout before my weight training sessions four times a week, and drink a huge amount of tap water, which in my area contains added fluoride.

I don't feel too bad at all, but at 31 I definitely don't feel as competitive, driven, horny, etc., as I did in my late teens and early twenties. I think beer is probably the main culprit, which I've managed to get somewhat under control, although I still binge here and there. I did have some liver issues from booze, and became pretty badly anaemic as a result, but that righted itself after I managed to cut back on beer for a year or so. Maybe not entirely though because I got a small spider angioma (spider vein thing) come up on my face after a really heavy session recently, and I think they're related to the liver.

Another thing I think I could probably get more of is sun exposure. But while my body is fine, my face tends to burn bright red if I go in the sun even for a short time, and every sunscreen I've tried gives my skin a bad reaction. That's something else that I think alcohol caused, because as a kid I'd be outdoors all day and just looked healthy with a few freckles. I'd consider a tanning salon or something if necessary, and just cover my face or something.

[redbeard]

(06-13-2015 01:11 AM)VincentVinturi Wrote:  

The whole idea of hard work has been Tim Ferriss-ified.

"Hack this, hack that", "80/20", "30 pounds of muscle in 30 days". GTFO with that bullcrap.

Once I realized that every seemingly 'big' thing is just a combination of little things, I started paying attention to the details and acquired a newfound patience with hard, complicated endeavors like weightlifting and business.

If only more guys thought like this when it came to things like money and girls.

[Rikardo]

(06-12-2015 12:55 PM)SamuraiJack Wrote:  

I agree with Vincent that if you have low testosterone, you should focus on your lifestyle first before considering TRT.

In a 6-week period this year, I was able to increase my testosterone naturally. I went from sub-300 ng/dL to over 400 ng/dL. Physically, the most notable difference is waking up almost daily with an erection, more hair growing on my body (i.e. most noticable on my back), and beard growing faster. I'm continuing with the lifestyle changes to see how high I can get it to go before it levels off.

Before I go into the lifestyle changes I made, a little background.

I'm in my mid-40's. I first tested my testosterone levels several years ago as I was showing symptoms of Low T. The tests confirmed I had low T. I got my T levels checked at least once a year since then as part of my annual checkups. It was always below 300 except for one test where it went to just above 300 when I was applying a testosterone gel for 1 month.

Prior to my recent lifestyle changes, I tried two different approaches for increasing my T.

The first approach I tried was a testosterone gel as noted above. It did increase my T levels. In 4 weeks, my total T increase to just over 300 ng/dL (22%) and my Free T increased by 1 pg/mL (16%). My doc simply said to try it, so I did. I didn't start to research it until I was on it for 2 weeks. When I found out that it stops your natural T production, combined with the inconvenience of having this gel on my chest, I decided I didn't want to continue, even though I saw a small improvement.

The second approach I tried was taking Chlomid to basically block the signals that tell your body to stop producing testosterone. I did this for about 6 weeks earlier this year. Physically, the two things I noticed were I was getting morning wood more often, but I was also very short-tempered (I'm normally very calm and patient). I didn't have any tests done after taking Chlomid, so I don't know the actual changes in testosterone/estrogen levels in my body. At this point I decided I wanted to see if I could do something naturally without taking pills or gels. This was earlier this year.

Here are the key lifestyle changes I focused on to increase my testosterone naturally...

1) Diet
For years, I've been doing a low carb diet in an attempt to keep my weight under control. To increase my testosterone, I changed to a more balanced diet: 40% Carbs, 31% Fat, 29% Protein. Now I focus more on the carbs and fat than on the protein. This change had an effect on my libido and morning wood within 24 hours. I wasn't expecting that, but it gave motivation that I was on the right track.

I also eat at a slight calorie deficit so that I'm losing about .5 lb every week. I combine this diet with intermittent fasting (basically skipping breakfast). The goal is to lose bodyfat slowly as to avoid messing with metabolism and the endocrine system. As Galahad noted, losing bodyfat is critical for maintaining or raising testosterone.

2) Sleep
For years I survived on 4-6 hours of sleep a night. I now prioritize my sleep and target between 7-9 hours a night. On average, I get 8 hours of sleep every night.

3) Exercise
I've exercised regularly for years, mainly lifting weights. I've continued with that, but lift only 3 days per week now. I perform 5 exercises per workout, 2 sets per exercise, with a focus on lifting heavy. This takes me just under an hour to complete. I used to add in cardio like running or tabata. Instead of that, I now walk briskly for about 45 min on the other 4 days (about 2.5 miles for me). So I now exercise 7 days a week, 3 days of heavy lifting and 4 days of brisk walking.

4) Reduce Stress
Another big factor is reducing stress in order to keep cortisol low. As RockHard noted, Cortisol will impact Testosterone (they have an inverse relationship). That is one reason I replaced running/tabata with brisk walking.

Since making these changes, my Total T has increased by more than 150 ng/dL (57%) and Free T has increased by 6.3 pg/mL (86%). The numbers aren't huge, but it was just over a 6 week period. I will be testing again in a few months to see if these changes will continue to show improvements.

Since these changes I feel much better. Not surprising since I went from a low T level to at least being in the range considered normal. Erection quality is better, frequency (i.e. morning wood) has increased significantly, libido is also higher.

The lifestyle changes I made are based on a program called TestShock by Christopher Walker. He goes into the details and theory about increasing testosterone naturally. I would highly recommend that program if you are interested in increasing your testosterone naturally. If you get it, buy the upsell (Aggressive Shred Program) as well, it has more practical things to do (i.e. calculating how much of each macro nutrient you should eat, workout program, etc). He has a lot of free articles on the web, so take a look at those to see if it fits with your goals before purchasing.

no need to advertise testshock it's just basic stuff if you slept 4-6H day that was single biggest issue it's just common sense, about low carb diet yes that also wrong carbohydrates need for dopamine as well and I think it affect through dopamine test levels,

[Galahad]

As mention already sleep is so important. 1 hour more sleep every night beats every other stuff. I have times where I sleep about 10 hours per night. Mostly in winter combine with heavy workout. I hate it because its a lose of time in some way but such an important health improvement in the long run. Modern society is on high speed and nobody takes the time to listen inside yourself.
Its not only your body also your mind.

Some people think about life hacks but it to improve your situation in the long run its a life change. Exercise more, eat better, sleep better, take time to rest and calm down. Reduce negative stress.
What's also a killer is alcohol.

[CaptainCrazy]

PhDre Wrote:

- I have sex 4-5 times a week – with a very pretty girl.

PhDre Wrote:

Despite all of this my this test level is only 450 ng/dL and my dhea level is only 110 microg/dL at age 28. And I feel and perform like shit (or at least I used to before HRT).

Try fucking fresh girls 18-23 years old 4-5 times a week. Work for me every time.

[SamuraiJack]

(06-14-2015 01:45 PM)Rikardo Wrote:  

no need to advertise testshock it's just basic stuff if you slept 4-6H day that was single biggest issue it's just common sense, about low carb diet yes that also wrong carbohydrates need for dopamine as well and I think it affect through dopamine test levels,

Implementing the TestShock program is what made the difference for me. It filled in pieces of the puzzle that I was missing that were preventing me from having normal T levels. Biggest piece being my diet did not have enough carbs. Once I changed that, it made all the difference. But it is important to note that I had most of the other pieces in place already (i.e. sleep, exercise). As others have said, it is the combination of things. I also made small changes in other areas based on the program.

For the 3 months prior to starting TestShock, I had been eating clean (whole, unprocessed foods), sleeping 7-8 hours most nights, and exercising. In January, I had done a strict 30-day whole diet change (i.e. Whole30 program, but still low to moderate carbs). My T-levels after the Whole30 were slightly lower than my levels before starting it (Total T in the 200's and Free T about 7). I was frustrated that my test results showed I still had low-T. But I kept at it because it made me feel much better.

I found the TestShock program about 2 months later. As I stated before, once I implemented the protocol, I noticed the impact very quickly. I was on it for 6 weeks, got tested at that point, and the results showed a significant increase in testosterone. This confirmed what my body and libido were already telling me. I'm continuing the protocol to try to increase it further and will get tested again in about 3 months.

All of the information in the program can be found on the internet or in research papers. Maybe over time I would've have finally come across that article that would've made me add more carbs or maybe I would've done it out of dumb luck, or maybe I would've just given up and figured I was destined to have low T. Who knows, but up until that point I was still missing pieces of the puzzle. In the end it cost me less than what I spent on Testerone gels, by a long shot. I'm not advertising the program, just telling you what worked for me. If another man with low-T purchases the program and is able to increase his testosterone naturally because he read about my story, then I'm more than happy to share the name of the program that made a difference for me.

[PUA_Rachacha]

(06-13-2015 10:56 AM)PhDre Wrote:  

Despite all of this my this test level is only 450 ng/dL and my dhea level is only 110 microg/dL at age 28. And I feel and perform like shit (or at least I used to before HRT).

How is this possible? You need to understand that the maximum test level that your body can reach is determined by genetics. Your hypothalamus contains the set point for your test level and you can do nothing to change this. By living as healthy as possible, you make sure that all of the organs that are involved in test production further down the chain (pituitary, liver, adrenals, testicles) are functioning optimally and that you have the necessary nutrients for hormone production. However, when your setpoint is low, the outcome will remain low no matter how good these organs do their job.

Consider this example. Guy A has a good natural setpoint of 1000 ng/dL. He parties 3 times a week, doesn’t eat very healthy and has 10-20 drinks a week. As a result, his hormone production only reaches 70% of his genetic setpoint and he is left at 700 ng/dL. Guy B was a weak kid for as long as he could remember. He has finally realised that his test levels are low and he does everything in his capacity to raise them. He goes to extremes and manages to make his body work at 99% of optimum. Since his setpoint was 400 ng/dL, that leaves him at a test level of 396 ng/dL…

Unfortunately, the setpoint for your testosterone levels later in life is determined by your test and estrogen exposure in the womb. For instance, if your mother was on birth control until a couple of weeks before she conceived you, there’s a chance you’ve been royally screwed before you were even born.

This is why my advice might come over as “just get on TRT”.

If you feel great at the moment, do not go on TRT.
If you do not feel great, please look at your sleep, stress levels, diet, physical activity and exposure to endocrine disruptors.

However, if you do these basic things right 90% of the time and your hormonal levels are still low, then going all the way will not take you to high levels. Only exogeneous hormones will.

This is an excellent synopsis of what many experience as they begin to age.

I'm in a similar boat as PhDre: sleep well, have an awesome attractive girl, low-stress job, plenty of savings, eat very healthy, don't drink much, hit the gym 4-6x per week. Despite this my libido is probably half of what it was five years ago (I'm 36). I have a slight tire on my stomach that won't go away unless I completely watch what I eat every meal; five years ago this stomach would've melted off based on my current diet. My squat and bench press have plateaued and whatever I do, I can't make it go higher unless I increase my caloric intake a lot. Which will cause fat gain and major bloat. I have dysthymia and have difficulty motivating myself to do things. All subtle hints that more than something's off than just my serotonin levels.

Try as I might, my testosterone has ranged between 350-450 the last two years. I'm due for my annual physical and expect no change based on how I've been feeling. It's as if a yoke is around my shoulders at all times.

If you're doing everything right and it's still not really moving the needle, then you may have to resort to other means. Especially if you feel suboptimal for a long time.

@ Dre: what's your dosage and how much do you pay per month? Did you go to a clinic?