So, the summer is pretty much here and you want to feel good about yourself? For some of us (more likely most of us) the stresses of work and family mean there’s not much time to focus on preparing ourselves for the summer onslaught. It doesn’t matter how old you are, when the sun starts shining you want to be ready for it… that’s why we’ve come to the rescue with some basic fitness tips to boost testosterone and set you on your way.
You want to look good and feel good and you want that mojo to be right there with it!
Daily pressures take their toll on your testosterone and mojo leaving most of us with little time to exercise. We’re here to show you that with just a little effort you can get your fitness up there and your sex drive back into shape.
Testosterone is essential for sexual health, muscle mass and bone density. Exercising won’t solve low testosterone levels but it will give it a temporary boost and improve your moods. If you have low testosterone levels then the best treatment to use is testosterone replacement therapy, like AndroForte. We always recommend taking on a good exercise regime while using our testosterone replacement therapy. The combination of active therapeutic therapy combined with exercise gives you optimal results for the short and long-term.
Here are 5 fitness tips to boost testosterone, rejuvenate your mojo and get your body image back.
Lift some weights
Do at least 2 heavy strength training workouts a week. It needs to be slow and intense so if you are weight lifting then lift heavier weights, in slow formation and have less repetitions, rather than using lighter weights with many repetitions. Focus on exercises like squats, bench presses and dead lifts that use large amounts of muscles, they are more of a full body workout. The more muscles you use the bigger the testosterone boost, especially when combining lower body and upper body. Make sure you rest between repetitions but keep the rest short. Ideally choose 4 different full body strength training exercises and do 8 repetitions per set. So, for example, do 8 squats followed by a 90 second break and repeat it four times. The move to the next exercise and do the same thing.
Short bursts of exercise
Short bursts of high intensity exercise followed by a break, repeated 5-10 times is more beneficial than spending an hour solidly exercising or bike riding for example. Long endurance sports are not always best and can sometimes even reduce testosterone levels. Want to boost testosterone? Try sprinting, this can be on the spot, round the block or on the treadmill. Warm up first so you don’t strain any muscles. Sprint for 15 seconds as fast as you can, really push yourself to beyond your limit. Then, take a break and continue at a slow leisurely pace for 90 seconds. Repeat this 5 times. Once you get the hang of it, you can gradually increase the sprint time to 30 seconds and the number of repetitions to 10 but for many a shorter sprint time has better results…. Like we said longer isn’t always better.
Take care of your diet
Reduce sugar intake and increase healthy fats. Sugar and high insulin levels can cause a decrease in testosterone levels, that’s why there’s such a strong link between type 2 Diabetes and low testosterone in men. Reducing sugar intake is hard to do, there’s sugar in most foods that we eat! Try to avoid foods with added sugar and fructose and stick to one that have natural sugars. Reducing sugar intake can boost testosterone levels. Fat on the other hand is good for you, who would have thought! This includes saturated fats derived from animals and vegetables as well as mono-unsaturated fats. You should be having at least 40% fat in your diet to help build and keep up your testosterone levels. People consider fatty foods to be bad for your health, weight and body shape and generally consider them unhealthy but it’s actually the opposite. They actually help to optimize testosterone production and even help increase it when combined with an exercise regime. This leads to leaner muscle mass, high bone density, steadier moods, better sexual function and good hormone balance – all the things you need to look and feel good.
Vitamin supplements
Whey protein, Zinc and Vitamin D, all these minerals are important for testosterone production so make sure you are getting enough of them! There are tons of commercials out there claiming that specific vitamins and supplements aid testosterone production and fitness but these are the 3 most important. It’s recommended that you get 15-20 minutes’ sunshine a day so you can stock up on the vitamin D (essential for testosterone production) but it’s not always possible and the sun is not always shining, at least not all year round so taking a supplement might be a good idea. Zinc on the other hand can be obtained for eating the right food so it’s recommended to choose your food wisely rather than use zinc supplements. Zinc is good for the libido and it’s also great for the immune system. Food that have high levels of zinc include spinach, nuts & seeds, cheese, beans, meat, yogurts, seafood, fish and dark chocolate. If you do take zinc supplements, then keep it below 40mg a day otherwise it can start to interfere with how your body processes and absorbs other nutrients and vitamins. Whey protein is a supplementary form of protein. Taking a whey protein supplement before your workout helps to boost testosterone reception and it acts like fuel for your muscles so it improves your body’s recovery time after the workout.
Get some sleep!
Did you know that lack of sleep contributes to lower testosterone levels? Getting at least 7-9 hours’ good quality, uninterrupted sleep a night can help boost testosterone production. Testosterone levels are highest in the morning after a good night sleep, this is because the endocrine system and hormone production happens mostly at night during the REM period of sleep. As the day goes on your testosterone levels decline and the cycle is repeated again, night after night. Also, your body heals while it sleeps too so more sleep means more recovery and regeneration time for your muscles, allowing your body to regain energy. On the days when you work out try to ensure you get maximum sleep. Turn out the lights, turn off technology and enjoy the rest while your body does all the hard work! The more you sleep the better your chances of higher testosterone come the morning.