Hey! I hope you had a great weekend.
I have a new article for you today. This one is all about testosterone.
Testosterone isn't just about muscles and masculinity. Of course, it is about that, but it also impacts every area of your life. Getting your testosterone in check is one of the first places to look if you want to optimize your health. Yet, our modern lifestyle is
littered with pitfalls that can send Test plummeting. The fact that men's testosterone levels are falling demonstrates this. And it's not just impacting the unhealthy among us. Hardcore fitness fanatics (like you and me) are not immune to some of these mistakes.
In this article, I will unveil the top 8 testosterone killers you need to avoid at all costs. A few small changes can make a noticeable difference not only in your physique but also in how you feel on a daily basis.
So, without further ado, let's get on with it.
1: Being Overweight
Being overweight is the second leading cause of decreasing testosterone levels in males, trailing only aging. And since no one has found the fountain of youth, it's the number one factor that you can control. It's not a recent discovery, either. Researchers have known that obese men have lower testosterone levels than lean men since the 1970s. [1]. The problem is only more apparent now, with
a higher percentage of the population struggling with body weight.
The good news is that low testosterone levels caused by obesity are entirely reversible. All you need to do is keep your body lean with regular exercise and nutrition. As a young and healthy gym goer, this might not seem like it applies to you. However, staying lean is particularly important for middle-aged and older men struggling to keep their testosterone up [2]. Last I checked, we all get older eventually.
And when we do, it's best to do so with a lean physique.
So, the bottom line is this: regardless of your age, if you are overweight or obese, losing fat is the first step in improving your testosterone levels. It's a two-for-one deal. Not only will you look and feel better from losing weight, but also from the boost in testosterone.
2: Being Too Lean
I admit, after talking about how obesity lowers testosterone, I'm about to sound
contradicting. Yes, being overweight lowers testosterone, but so does being ridiculously lean.
Let's look at natural bodybuilding to understand the toll of extreme leanness. You've probably seen a natural bodybuilder's physique on the day of the competition. It's a sight to behold: a deep tan, a chiseled mid-section, paper-thin skin, and almost no body fat. Bodybuilders look like superheroes. But this is just the outward appearance. The reality inside is a different
story.
The preparation needed to get contest lean is incredibly taxing on the body, specifically testosterone levels. A bodybuilding contest prep requires months of low calories and lots of cardio as body fat is gradually stripped away. It's a form of controlled starvation. A classic case study on a natural bodybuilding competitor showed his testosterone declined from 9.22 to 2.27 ng/mL during his contest prep [3].
How does this apply to you? You don't need to
be a bodybuilder to diet too hard. A natural bodybuilder goes through hell to compete, but they start recovering as soon as the show ends. The super lean look is unsustainable.
Yet, many people use a bodybuilder's physique as the standard for leanness. It's an unrealistic goal. Plus, pushing your body to extreme levels of leanness is a recipe for disaster for your testosterone levels. The guy in the case study got down to 4.5% body fat. Unless you are going to compete, you
don't need to be that lean. A great goal for most people is to aim for 8-12% body fat as a man and 16-20% as a woman. Not only will you look great at that body fat percentage, but it's maintainable, and your testosterone won't fall off a cliff trying to achieve it.
3: Eating an Extremely Low Fat Diet
Nutrition is a cycle, with diets gaining and losing popularity as the seasons change. However, understanding what's truly "healthy" can be more challenging
than keeping up with fashion trends. Low-fat diets, once a trend in the bodybuilding community, have pros and cons. While they can be beneficial from a calorie reduction standpoint, they can also lead to a drop in testosterone levels.
A comprehensive meta-analysis conducted in 2021, encompassing six studies and over 200 participants, showed a significant decrease in testosterone levels among those on low-fat diets compared to high-fat diets [4]. It appears low-fat diets decrease
testicular testosterone production.
I'm going to be honest. Eating too little fat is a mistake I made in the past. The truth is I love lower-fat diets. Or, rather, I love high-carb diets. Since fat and carbohydrates exist in an inverse relationship, higher carbs equal lower fat and vice versa. But eating virtually no fat is problematic in other ways beyond just lowering testosterone. Fat is an important part of your diet because it provides energy, improves brain health,
absorbs fat-soluble vitamins, promotes healthy skin and hair, and the list goes on. Plus, there are essentially fatty acids you must get from your diet. These include omega-3 fatty acids found in fish like salmon.
As with most things, balance is best. Aim for at least 20% of your total calories to come from fat to optimize your natural testosterone production. For example, if you eat 2,000 calories a day, 20% of that is 400 calories. Four hundred calories from fat (fat = 9
calories/gram) is about 45g of fat. You can eat more fat than this but set 20% as your minimum.
4: Lack of Sleep
Ensuring you are sleeping enough is one of the best things you can do to boost your gym performance. It improves recovery, mood, energy, hunger signaling, and testosterone levels. It's almost impossible to be at your best with inadequate sleep.
The worst part is that it takes little time to see the negative impact of not
sleeping enough. Research shows that even one week of inadequate sleep reduces testosterone levels in healthy young men [5].
On paper, this is an easy one to implement. Just get your ass to sleep. Aim for 7-9 hours in bed per night. That said, it's easier said than done.
Here are a few tips to help you get more sleep:
*Get Tired: One often overlooked sleep tip is the impact of physical and mental
exertion on sleep quality. I've observed that days with hard training or high cognitive demands lead to falling asleep quickly. Challenge yourself physically and mentally throughout the day to promote better sleep at night.
*Consistent Schedule: Sticking to a regular sleep schedule, even on weekends, is vital for regulating your body's internal clock. Many people try to catch up on sleep during the weekend, but this can create a never-ending
cycle of trying to catch up. Go to bed and wake up at the same time every day.
*Watch Your Caffeine Intake: I'm a big caffeine fan, but it's a double-edged sword. While it boosts alertness and workout performance, it can hinder sleep. To manage caffeine intake effectively, consider both the amount and timing. Stay under 400mg daily, roughly the equivalent of a Grande coffee at Starbucks or most pre-workouts. Also, be mindful of timing;
caffeine's effects can linger for up to 6 hours, so it's wise to cut off consumption at least 8 hours before bedtime, ideally by mid-afternoon or even earlier.
5: Overtraining
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