Lifestyle & Low Testosterone

These are my thoughts on how lifestyle impacts low testosterone levels - inspired by a Facebook post I commented on.

I’ve personally witnessed how adjusting overall lifestyle across diet, physical activity, sleep hygiene, and stress management has yielded increases in testosterone for a lot of people registering low (ages 19-85).

I don't necessarily think following proper lifestyle "increases" test. To be specific, I believe it actually removes the things suppressing or hindering test production, and allows the body to return to natural baseline when the right building blocks are introduced.

Chronic inflammation from the wrong foods, constant stressors, and toxins can definitely negatively effect testosterone. Also, not having the right foods to fuel every cell in the body can result in certain systems getting prioritized while others get neglected (i.e. hormone regulation and production).

Some general examples across various areas that can help:

Diet

- Consume enough animal protein based on grams (building blocks for tissues+)
- Consume enough animal fat based on satiety (building blocks for hormones)
- Don't eat /too/ many carbs for your individual physiology (maintain healthy blood sugar levels, blood pressure, and keep inflammation low) [Zero carbs is viable and even ideal in many cases]
- Avoid seed oils where possible (inflammation source)
- Periodic electrolytes if needed (proper hydration)
- Walking after meals (digestion and blood sugar regulation)

Physical Activity

- Regular resistance training
- Walking/Moving to break up periods of being sedentary
- Doing fun physical activities with no goal outcome other than enjoyment

Sleep Hygiene (Circadian Rhythm)
[Bleeds over into Stress Management]

- No caffeine with 10–12 hours of sleep time (or none at all)
- Cold, Dark, Quiet sleep environment
- 7+ hours of sleep -or- enough that you wake up feeling refreshed
- Limit or eliminate screens (phone, tv, pc) after dark -or- wear blue light blocking glasses after sunset
- Get 30+ min of direct sunlight per day (watch sunrise/sunset if possible)
- Ideally, no food 2-3hrs before bedtime (reduce load on digestion going into sleep state)
- Ideally, no fluids 1hr before bedtime (fewer interruptions during sleep; urinating)
- Magnesium Glycinate supplementation (help get into restful state and more)
- Warm shower prior to bedtime (helps drive core cooling in preparation for sleep)
- Going for an evening walk

Stress Management
[Sleep quality and exercise dramatically improve stress management]

- Avoiding doom-scrolling when intentionally taking mental breaks
- Breathwork (Wim Hof Method or Physiological Sighs - on YT)
- Sauna/Cold Plunging
- Journaling
- Meditating

I've found that getting most of these practices in place will do a lot to get a human back to functioning well when coming from a chronically diseased state. I like to think if it can help people in distressing places heal their hormones, it can work for folks who aren't in a critical place.

That being said, TRT has helped a lot of people get their lives back and feel good every day. I get it if making a bunch of lifestyle changes isn't feasible for some at the moment. Individual circumstances vary greatly, and that is not lost on me.

I'm still happy for someone no matter what route they go, as long as it positively affects their health and happiness. However, I like to ensure people are aware of how truly impactful lifestyle change alone can be.

Hope this is helpful to someone! Be well 🤙🏼