Here are eight evidence-based ways to increase your testosterone levels naturally. Interestingly, testosterone also plays an important role in female health and sexual well-being. Additionally, increasing your testosterone to optimal levels may increase muscle mass and strength.
Whether magnesium supplementation is effective in augmenting testosterone synthesis as an anabolic agent is not well understood. Magnesium deficiency appears to increase testosterone binding to SHBG, potentially decreasing its bioavailability . Magnesium appears to bind to SHBG resulting in the blocking of testosterone’s ability to bind to SHBG, subsequently enhancing testosterone bioavailability.
Protein intake is an essential component of this process, as it provides the building blocks for new muscle tissues. This physical activity increases muscle protein synthesis, which is crucial for muscle mass development. Insulin is crucial as it facilitates the entry of glucose into cells, ensuring your body’s energy requirements are met.
It is also important to note that protein supplementation regardless of its source (soy or whey), when combined with resistance training can result in a significant increase in lean body mass . However, they are consistent in demonstrating that whey protein supplementation may be the superior protein supplement for enhancing the testosterone response to training. Subsequent research, using the same three groups, albeit for 12 weeks and combined with resistance exercise, also reported no significant pre- or post-training changes in serum estradiol concentrations in any of the study groups . Additionally, testosterone concentrations were significantly lower during SPS compared to both WPS and PLA during the post-exercise period. Although testosterone concentrations were significantly elevated from baseline during and up to 5-min post-exercise, only the WPS and PLA trials resulted in significant increases in testosterone concentrations at the 15- and 30-min post-exercise measures. Although soy protein consumption has been demonstrated to have significant benefits on strength performance following 12 weeks of resistance training , its role in androgen biology has made it a topic of interest. Dietary protein supports the replenishment of skeletal muscle protein as it is degraded or damaged by intense exercise 94,95.
Recall that GnRH (gonadotropin-releasing hormone) is what triggers the production of testosterone. Elevated cortisol levels compromise your body’s ability to produce testosterone (20). Carbs are your body’s preferred energy source, and not getting an adequate amount of them means putting your body under stress in the form of elevated cortisol levels (19). As a result, they also have lower testosterone levels compared to meat-eaters (13)(14)(15). Mind you, a 15% drop is not much, but it proves the positive correlation between fat intake and testosterone. They found that saturated and monounsaturated fat intake were the strongest predictors of T levels.
Beyond their role in energy provision, carbohydrates have a significant impact on hormones, particularly testosterone. Elevated cortisol, the primary stress hormone, can suppress testosterone production. Consuming a balanced meal or snack within minutes post-workout can maximize muscle repair, glycogen replenishment, and testosterone production. One study found that magnesium supplementation can help return testosterone levels to normal if the cause of the decrease is a deficiency. One study found that regular supplementation of Vitamin B6 is a good way to make sure your testosterone levels stay elevated.
You may be able to increase your levels naturally by lifting weights and getting more of certain nutrients. Testosterone affects many aspects of your health, from sexual function to disease risk. Just like in yesterday’s post "How to Increase Testosterone Naturally" we have prepared a free ebook for you on eating and testosterone. This is not the typical anti-gluten craziness – it’s just you should avoid excess prolactin to optimize testosterone. The reason for that is because grains contain a lot of gluten, and gluten is known for its prolactin increasing effects (study, study). If your goal is to eat the testosterone boosting carbs, you should eat most of your carbs from the group 1, and less from the group 2. So you should be eating plenty of carbs but not all sources are equal when it comes to boosting testosterone.
The importance of supplementing these vitamins and minerals appears to become efficacious when the body becomes deficient in these specific micronutrients. Most circulating testosterone is bound to SHBG; however, the bioavailability of testosterone is related to the free testosterone concentrations, which is only a fraction of circulating testosterone . Low-grade chronic inflammation has been shown to decrease testosterone concentrations by suppressing testosterone secretion from Leydig cells, resulting in both an inhibitory effect on LH secretion and reduced LH sensitivity at the Leydig cell 183,184. Magnesium deficiency has been demonstrated to increase production of oxygen free radicals, increase oxidative tissue damage, decrease antioxidant enzyme activity, decrease cellular antioxidant levels, and increase oxygen peroxide production 176,177,178. Several investigations have reported a relationship between magnesium and testosterone concentrations 168,169,170. In contrast, others reported no difference in either the TT or FT response to exhaustive exercise between male cyclists supplemented with zinc sulfate (30 mg) for four weeks compared to a placebo-controlled group .
One type of protein that has received considerable attention regarding its effect on circulating testosterone concentrations is soy protein. Exercise and inadequate protein intake can result in a catabolic response of muscle. Skeletal muscle, the site for force production, is predominantly comprised of protein . The LFD had a small-to-moderate effect on decreasing total testosterone concentrations compared to the HFD. Although both groups had similar increases in muscle thickness, lean body mass, and strength measures (1RM squat and bench press), only the KD group experienced a significant increase in TT concentrations. Both study groups consumed a diet high in fat (75% vs. 65% for the KD and NKD, respectively). The minimum recommendation for dietary fat consumption should be not below 25% for both the general and athletic populations 82,83,84.

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