Testosterone Replacement Therapy (or TRT) can be a dream solution if you’re suffering from low testosterone – it can increase energy levels, restore a perhaps flagging sex drive and improve your mood (not to mention your weight!) [1]. But it’s not the only answer to low testosterone – after all, testosterone begins to decrease naturally as a man ages, so not everyone is going to plump for a medical solution straight away.
If you’ve got a phobia of needles, or applying a gel because you’ve got young children (who can experience problems if they come into contact with TRT medications), prefer to avoid medical intervention for as long as possible or you want to get the most out of your TRT by naturally supplementing it, look no further. There are natural ways to boost your T levels and we’ve selected the most effective ones – so prepare to experience “the change”. We’re not talking about the menopause; we’re talking about the reversal of the manopause – so read on!
Double-Dose Your Vitamin D
And that’s meant literally – because chances are, you’re getting nowhere near enough of it. In Britain, it’s now considered to be impossible to hit the recommended daily intake of vitamin D through sunlight alone [2], and considering how few foods contain the vital substance, that’s cause for concern.
But what does vitamin D have to do with testosterone, I hear you ask? Well, not only has vitamin D been linked to weight loss [3] (which is important given that being overweight has been shown to decrease testosterone levels), increasing vitamin D intake has also been demonstrated to actively increase testosterone levels, irrespective of whether weight was lost as well [4]. So pick up some high quality vitamin D supplements, for an easy way to help optimise your levels of T.
Get Fighting Fit
Getting weight off and muscle on is, without a doubt, the most effective way to boost your testosterone naturally. I know, I know – it’s harder to build muscle when your testosterone is low, and it can seem an upward slog, but if you’re overweight, that could be what’s causing your low testosterone in the first place – and it certainly isn’t helping it.
Study after study have demonstrated the effects of weight loss on reversing low testosterone, with some studies even showing it can reduce the prevalence of low testosterone levels in middle aged men by up to 50% [5] – so no more slacking! Increasing your muscle mass has also been shown to have a positive effect on testosterone levels, to boot [6] – so if you’re fighting low T, getting fighting fit is the way forward. Try a regime which includes both cardio and resistance or weight training, for maximum results – it’ll boost everything from your cardiovascular system to your mental well-being in the process.
Get Fighting Fit
Of course, as you age, the fight against low testosterone can become a losing battle, and if your low testosterone has exacerbating factors, there may be only so much you can achieve without TRT. But any doctor worth his salt will advise you to do everything you can to raise your T levels naturally, in conjunction with TRT – and these two simple measures are a pretty good place to start.
[1] http://www.webmd.com/men/guide/testosterone-replacement-therapy-is-it-right-for-you
[2] https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2015/aug/02/britain-not-sunny-enough-healthy-vitamin-d-levels-supplements
[3] http://www.catie.ca/en/treatmentupdate/treatmentupdate-185/nutrition/can-vitamin-increase-testosterone-concentrations-men
[4] http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21154195
[5] https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/06/120625124914.htm
