- Now, I'm sure this thumbnail,
despite looking pretty cool, has probably raised some questions, like how noticeable could the effect of any natural increase
in testosterone really be? Well, as you're about
to see in this video, the answer is extremely noticeable. Changes within the natural range, including drops that lead to low levels and increases that cause
naturally elevated testosterone can have several major effects, both mentally and physically,
and although I have used the methods we're going to
cover to successfully increase my own levels, you won't be expected to just take my word for it. Every beneficial effect
included in this video will be cited and backed by research. This also includes the methods
we're going to investigate to boost our testosterone levels later on. Valuable research on the
effects of health, lifestyle, and social mechanisms, as
well as dietary studies and a look through
clinical trials on the best testosterone booster supplements will all contribute to our
testosterone maxing plan. Before we can see how to
raise levels and the effects this has, first we need
to answer the question of what is testosterone and what does it do? Have you ever wondered why testosterone, given its importance in the male body, has a natural range that varies so widely? I mean, take two men and let's say one day they both take an at
home testosterone test. It comes in the mail. They both provide their samples and send them off to be analyzed. Quick side note, while I
get more into the specifics of testing levels later, I
know since I mentioned it now, I'll still get a bunch of
questions, so don't worry. We're going to cover it
coming up in full detail, and the specific testing service I use is even going to be linked below. Two weeks later, they log
in and see their results. Frank's results come back a 304. Well, Dave's come back a 915. They're both within the normal range, and yet one man's levels
are three times higher. Compare that with the blood
range of something else, say sodium, for example,
where the difference between the top and bottom of
the normal range is just 9%. So if our body is capable of
regulating sodium so closely, why does it let levels of
a key signaling hormone like testosterone fluctuate so randomly? The answer, as you might be
able to guess, is exactly that. It's a signaling hormone,
and these varying levels aren't random at all. Now to explain this properly, we need to start this video
off a little differently. Instead of just kicking it
off with a bunch of studies that link improved
testosterone levels in men, with everything from
increasing muscle mass, improving their mood and motivation, and even in some studies
earning more money, none of this will actually
help you if we don't also discuss how you might
personally be able to increase your testosterone
levels and actually see these positive changes for yourself. Now, if we're gonna do it this way, it's gonna require taking
a bit of a step back in how we understand testosterone. So by the end of this first section, you'll understand why testosterone levels can control so much. For it to really make sense, though, we're going to need to
start at the beginning and see what life was
like before testosterone. I guess it means I have to say it now. It all started in the Protozoic era, specifically at the end of
it, 500 million years ago. Over the billions of years
leading up to this moment, life had evolved to pretty much resemble a swimming pool during
a chlorine shortage. Then, seemingly out of nowhere, the fossil record showed there was a sudden explosion in life. Arthropods, the ancestors of
today's insects and crustaceans and chordates, which are creatures with rudimentary spinal cords that later became mammals, birds, and fish all trace their lineage back to this one moment. Researchers sequencing ancient
DNA from this time period recently discovered a
mutation that occurred just before this, which
may be responsible. This mutation altered the binding affinity of the estrogen receptor, which until that point was
the only hormone of its type. With this mutation, new
receptors could now suddenly detect two additional hormones,
cortisol and testosterone. When hormone receptors
and cells are triggered, they activate DNA that causes
specific changes to the cell. Having multiple hormones to
work with these organisms could now be far more adaptable
than they were before, and because different
kinds of cells will react to the same hormone in different ways, by releasing one hormone,
(bubbles popping) an organism could adjust all its bodily functions at once. The physical and behavioral changes that get packaged together
are usually all related to optimizing for success
in a specific scenario, including for example,
a scenario that requires an individual to compete for resources and access to females. Then the brain simply
watches for indicators of that situation and responds
by releasing hormones. Instant adaptation. Multiple hormones also
meant that now creatures in the same species to be subdivided into male and female versions, heightened testosterone
levels during development are responsible for the
differentiation of the male body and throughout life, elevated
testosterone levels in males continue to be responsible
for maintaining much of their physical and
behavioral differences. Because of this general
function, many of the effects of circulating testosterone
remain fairly consistent across all mammals, from physical effects, like reducing fat and
increasing muscle mass, to behavioral changes that
increase competitive traits and the drive to reproduce. What you might not have known
is that testosterone levels between two males of nearly any species will usually vary considerably. It's not just in humans. I think the confusion about varying levels is often underpinned by
a belief that all males should have the same testosterone levels. So therefore something must
be wrong if they don't, but research shows this assumption
has one major oversight. See, due to genetic and behavioral
differences between them, in any given environment some individuals will simply perform
much better than others. Multiple cues that
indicate high performance are then detectable by the
brain, from obvious ones like health status to
more surprising ones, including the ability of some animals to comprehend their social rank, access to resources
and territorial claims. Because genetic differences often underlie these differences in performance, the odds of reproductive success, where their offspring
survive into adulthood, also wouldn't be equal for every male. It wasn't long before the brain's testosterone-releasing mechanisms evolve to take this information into account learning to release the
greatest amounts in individuals where reproduction was most
likely to be successful while reducing levels
in those where survival of the offspring seemed less likely. This system works even
better if the females are in on it too. So in many species, higher
levels of testosterone in these high performing individuals triggers the development
of obvious physical traits, which females can easily
pick out and are drawn to. Not only does the system
benefit the species as a whole, but it even has advantages
for the lower performing male. Lower testosterone levels
increase fear of danger, threat avoidance, and fat storage, all things that would
actually be useful to a male who is already struggling to survive. So rather than acting
like an on-off switch, think of the variation
in levels like a slider with small adjustments constantly working to fine tune testosterone levels and keep reproductive drive
highest in individuals whose brains see indicators
of high performance. This research into social
endocrinology explains why one man can have levels
four times higher than another and while medically
their levels would both be considered natural, the
differences in how they think, feel, and even look might be
as different as night and day. For a long time, medical science held, let's call it a much simpler
view of testosterone. We'll pick it up in 1889 when physiologist Charles Edouard Brown-Sequard
decided it would probably be a good idea to extract
liquid from the testes of guinea pigs and administer it directly into his bloodstream. To everyone's surprise,
the 70 year old researcher began reporting increased strength and improved mental function. In 1935, Ernst Laqueur
finally managed to isolate this mystery hormone, which he named after its source, testosterone. Up 'till now, doctors had been
noticing a strange pattern of symptoms in many of
their male patients. Men, all complaining of low energy, depression and loss of libido. Some of the earliest
studies on testosterone were done on these men
where they discovered replacing testosterone
in them would almost immediately resolve these symptoms. Through the '50s and '60s,
The research focus shifted to its potential medical applications as a muscle building agent,
possibly because it was the effect that was the
most easily observed. It's only been recently
that researchers figured out how mammals' brains can
read species-specific performance cues and then
respond with testosterone as part of a larger system to modify a range of physical and mental traits, all intended to either
increase or decrease their social rank and mating success. To me, this opens up an
intriguing possibility. If we can see the mechanisms
that control it in humans and develop a plan to maximize our levels, the benefits could go
far beyond just muscle. Imagine tapping into
a whole set of traits, geared to help us as the research puts it, increase our social status, resources, and physical attractiveness. Okay, enough imagining,
let's now check the research and see exactly what effects
have been proven in humans, starting with the mental ones. If testosterone levels are low enough to create medical problems,
it's called hypogonadism. The exact level this starts at, though, depends which medical
organization you ask. As a general rule though,
total blood levels will usually need to fall below
350 nanograms per deciliter before you'd notice negative symptoms, and if you're thinking there's no way this would ever apply to you, I've seen studies where
the proportion of men below 350 is as high as four in 10. Some negative symptoms
associated with low testosterone are obvious like decreased libido, male factor infertility
and E.D., but there's also a much broader range of troubling effects, which include depression,
anxiety, difficulty sleeping, increased irritability, fatigue,
and cognitive impairment. In one study which compared
mood and cognitive test scores between men with average
levels of testosterone against those with low
levels, while mood scores in several areas dropped
considerably in the low T men, The greatest discrepancy was actually in their cognitive
scores, with the low T men demonstrating far worse concentration, slower psychomotor performances, and lower levels of executive functioning. Remember, research in mammals shows that testosterone's broad
range of effects exists to regulate competitive
and status-seeking effort. It does this because with this higher rank comes access to limited resources as well as increased mating opportunities, but the specific traits modified to achieve this are species-dependent. For example, elevated testosterone increases competitive behavior in sheep through a sudden desire
to headbutt their enemies. In humans, with our far more
complex social structures, enhancing competitiveness
is achieved through a far more delicate set of traits. This is why rising
testosterone levels in humans have been shown to
promote both persistence and competitive motivation
while reducing stress and fear. Testosterone is also
understood to contribute to the likelihood of future
success, and sure enough, in humans we see studies
showing increased energy levels, as well as enhanced memory,
learning, and cognitive ability. So does this mean having high testosterone will make you successful? Well, in some studies,
there is a relation. In a study that followed a
group of financial traders, researchers wanted to see if they would perform better on the days where their morning testosterone
tested above average. On days where they came into
work with higher levels, they actually ended up earning three times more profit than their daily average. Experienced traders did even better on their high testosterone days. Men that had worked
there for over two years saw profits more than four
times higher than normal on their high testosterone
days, but despite this, studies that bring subjects
in to compete in a lab setting usually don't find a major association between their testosterone
level and performance, which really shouldn't be that surprising because remember, while
obviously higher testosterone will increase competitiveness
and motivation to win, a major confounding factor will always be your individual skillset. If someone who was
terrible at financial math walked onto the trading
floor off the street, having very high testosterone
wouldn't magically make them a better trader than the guys who have been doing it for years. Remember, it was the
most experienced traders who responded to higher
testosterone with the best results. One final thing before we
move on to physical effects is that it might've seemed
odd that irritability was actually heightened
in low testosterone men. You think aggression would be instead increasing with high levels. This was investigated by
researchers in a recent study where half the participants
were administered testosterone to artificially raise their levels. They had the subjects
participate in a game that required two players
to split a sum of money. Depending how the subjects
felt about the offer they were given, they had
the option to either reward or punish the other player. They found the testosterone
group dished out significantly harsher punishments in response to small offers
which they perceived as unfair, and yet they also behaved more generously with their rewards. When they felt an offer
they were given was fair, they tended to actually gift
more money to the other player. So rather than increasing
general aggression indiscriminately, it
appears added aggression is mostly saved for situations that mimic social threats and dominance challenges. Because human interactions are complex, status may be equally
obtained by non-aggressive, even pro-social means such as generosity, explaining why research shows testosterone increases multiple pro-social behaviors, including cooperation,
fairness, and reciprocity. When you really step back
and look at these qualities, they don't sound like
the personality traits of some overly dominant bully. Instead, these sound like
the personality traits of a good leader. I have to say, looking at this wide range of mental benefits,
trying to optimize levels really does start to
seem like a smart idea. Let's first though quickly run
through the physical effects testosterone has on bone, muscle and fat. Now a common myth in the fitness community is that testosterone changes
within the natural range won't affect body composition. This myth stems from the
fact that the majority of medical research into testosterone is conducted on the extremes. So while studies into
these hypogonadal men reliably show low testosterone
results in muscle loss and fat gain and studies where added doses push levels far above the
natural range show the opposites, when it came to the
middle, for a long time, we simply didn't have the data. Identifying this blind
spot, researchers devised an experiment to move man's
levels within the natural range and then compare before and after for changes to body fat and muscle. 198 men entered the study and
had baseline measures taken. Then they were given a GnRH analog, a type of drug that stops
natural testosterone production. They divided them into groups
and assigned each group its own testosterone replacement dosage. This meant average levels
in each group would shift to a new spot in the natural range, from just 44 nanograms per deciliter, which is severely deficient, all the way up to the highest
group, which averaged 805. They were kept at these new levels for the duration of the 16 week study, after which the men were retested to see if their body composition changed in response to their new level. Before the study, the group
that got the highest dosage had levels that averaged
529 nanograms per deciliter. So, going up to 805 meant an increase of about 275 nanograms per deciliter. If testosterone's ability
to control body composition is part of its adjustable
status enhancing role we talked about, for
example, maybe to help you overcome physical threats
or signal rank like how other animals do, even
in a change of this size, you'd think we could expect to see some sort of body re-composition response and checking the results,
that's exactly what we see. Even after just 16 weeks
at their new level, there was already evidence
of a body re-composition. Average lean mass had increased by 2%, while average body fat was down 3%. The more concerning part is
what happened to the other men. Since going into it, they
all had average levels around 500 nanograms per deciliter. These 16 weeks actually
represented a decrease for them. Here, we see the opposite trend. Fat mass increased with the
lowest testosterone levels correlating with the most
fat gain while lean mass, which includes muscle,
also dropped significantly in the two lowest level groups. So it turns out that changes,
even within natural levels, really can noticeably change your body. The challenge with
interventional studies like this is they can't risk
doing any longterm harm. Since low testosterone
levels are shown to result in harmful bone loss over time, the study couldn't go beyond 16 weeks. So although the researchers acknowledged the effects of testosterone
on muscle and fat are shown to be time dependent, we can't ever know just
how far these changes would have gone if the
study had continued, and now that we've seen
its effects are pretty much a genetic formula for
competitive drive, motivation, and even now physical health, whether you want to be like me and actively take steps to
naturally increase your levels, or you simply want to
understand the factors that control levels to avoid
inadvertently doing things that could lower them, in this
next half we're going to go through everything to do with how these levels are
controlled, but first we need to quickly review how testosterone
is released and measured. When we hear studies refer
to testosterone levels, they are referring to how much
is circulating in the blood. The most common unit of measurement tells you how many
nanograms of testosterone are in one deciliter of blood, sometimes called the total value. This measure provides a solid
idea of how much testosterone your body has to work
with, with levels below 350 marking the start of
what's considered low. There are a few more
measures you may hear about, because testosterone can
actually circulate the blood in three different ways. About 60% circulates
the blood tightly bound to a specific glycoprotein called SHBG. Another 38% is weakly bound to albumin, and the remaining 2% of
testosterone is what's free at any given moment. Being free from these
binding proteins allows it to be the most active,
easily passing into cells where it can then activate
the androgen receptors inside. You'll sometimes hear that
only the 2% of testosterone that's free does anything,
but up to date papers are quick to point out that
because the bond is quite weak, the additional 38% bound
to albumin turns out to be biologically active also, able to break away and trigger effects. Recent evidence also suggests
that there are unique cell surface receptors that
are specifically triggered by the SHBG-bound testosterone. So although when I check my testosterone, I do also opt to check SHBG
levels since I'd want to know if it started getting too high and interfering with free levels, and while measures of free testosterone definitely have their place in diagnosing more complex conditions, total testosterone levels
are really what I use to track my longterm improvements, and considering they're
also what's measured in most of the research, that's where I'm going to focus the most. Instead of constantly going to the clinic to get these regular
tests, I use a service that will mail me the
test, which I can then just send back for my results. It's actually pretty affordable. Their total testosterone
test is less than $100. (computer dinging) If you want to know where your levels are or start tracking them
more regularly, like I do, I linked it below if you're interested and I actually managed to get a sponsored affiliate link from them. So if you take the test, it supports the channel too. Something really important to remember when you check your levels though is that testosterone release
follows a daily rhythm with a noticeable spike
occurring each morning. Based on research recommendations, this is the time when you
want to take your measurement, since the difference between
men with low and high levels is usually the most pronounced here. As far as where it comes from,
the majority of testosterone in the bloodstream is
produced by specialized cells in the testes called Leydig cells. It forms when cholesterol within the cell is pulled into their mitochondria. Once inside, an enzyme
turns it into pregnenolone, which exits to another part of the cell where it's converted into testosterone. How quickly cholesterol
gets converted is controlled by luteinizing hormone, a
hormone that binds with receptors in the Leydig cells. More luteinizing hormone means
more testosterone production. Luteinizing hormone originates
far off in the brain, specifically in a pea-sized gland called the pituitary gland. In men with low
testosterone, the specialist will sometimes want to MRI this region to look for abnormalities. The release of this luteinizing
hormone from the pituitary is itself controlled by receptors, which as you might've
guessed are triggered by yet another hormone, called
gonadotropin-releasing hormone, which itself is released from neurons located in the nearby hypothalamus, which is the H in the HPG axis. What you barely hear talked about though is what areas of the brain
can activate this chain. It turns out, a lot of them. I found a great academic
review that outlines how senses of sight,
sound, touch, and smell, as well as multiple brain
areas involved in processing health and social information
have all been shown to not only activate
the HPG axis, but also they can adjust receptor
sensitivity at every level of it. This explains why so
many different factors can affect testosterone. In some animals, it's
seasonal cues that trigger group-wide level changes
for their mating season. In others, it's their individual social status and health signals. It's also important to distinguish
between a momentary spike and a longterm adjustment. Sudden temporary spikes occur in response to specific situations,
since brain regions are able to recognize these events and trigger the HPG axis to release a burst. These are intended to
cause just a temporary behavior change, for example,
to influence the choice to respond to a sudden challenge by competing or backing down. With each spike, the brain watches to see how the situation plays out,
and if the added testosterone leads to a favorable outcome, like say, you do decide to compete
and end up winning, it can up-regulate the entire system. Over time, this can lead
to longterm adjustments in the axis, shifting your
baseline testosterone levels up or down, giving rise to the emergence of a distinct behavioral
profile, for example, a dominant or submissive personality, While the temporary spikes
tend to be studied more, as we jump now into the ways
we can maximize our own levels, it's evidence for longterm
changes that I'm going to mostly focus on. First is research on dietary deficiencies and testosterone-boosting supplements. This seems like the best place to start, because these would be
the easiest to change while still being capable
of having a big impact. There's considerable evidence
to suggest deficiencies in vitamin D, zinc, and magnesium can all lower testosterone. Vitamin D in its active form
isn't technically a vitamin. It's a hormone synthesized within our body from inactive vitamin D, which we get through diet and sun exposure. It binds with vitamin D
receptors, including ones located in the Leydig cells
that make testosterone. In two separate studies,
just correcting deficient vitamin D raised testosterone
levels by 18 and 30%, important when you consider
European medical stats that suggest that 12.5%
of the entire population have vitamin D levels in the range that was supplemented in these studies. Associations between even
mild zinc deficiencies and low testosterone
inspired researchers to see if zinc deficiency was
playing a causal role. They measured testosterone
in a group of 40 healthy men and then eliminated zinc
from their diet for 20 weeks. When they remeasured, testosterone
was down significantly. They also found a group of men who were already
zinc-deficient and put them on supplemental zinc and
testosterone improved, from 239 to 409 nanograms per deciliter. Using a linear regression
model, researchers also found magnesium showed a strong and independent positive correlation with testosterone, even after adjusting for age. However, the studies
that have shown magnesium raised testosterone levels,
unlike the other two, involve its use in combination
with physical activity, presumably because intense activity can drop magnesium levels. So to protect your testosterone levels, always ensure you're
getting an adequate intake of these vitamins and minerals. The testosterone booster supplement I personally take already
has all three in it. So I kind of see that as my insurance. The main reason I picked it though was for its other ingredients that show evidence that they can actually increase levels. I'm actually thinking about
doing a complete video just on testosterone-boosting supplements, so I'm only going to run
through a few quickly here. One of the ingredients
you may have guessed I'd mention is ashwagandha. I actually have an entire video on it where I referenced several studies. In one, two groups of young
men worked out for eight weeks, and the only difference between the groups was one received 600 milligrams
of ashwagandha extract. By the end, the men
who got the ashwagandha had testosterone levels up
from an average of 630 to 726, whereas the group that didn't get it didn't significantly change. This is slightly less
than the increase shown in a 90-day study on men
with fertility problems that saw testosterone increased by 17%. Another one we've talked about a really long time ago is fenugreek. I take a specific
standardized extract of it, which during a clinical
study in men over 40 showed a small, but
significant 12% increase in serum levels of testosterone. Now, this one's more tricky
because similar studies in younger men don't always
show the same effect. Despite that though, both
studies in young and old men do show a significant increase in libido, presumably through other mechanisms. There are actually two more
supplements I want to mention from the list I take,
but I think they will actually fit best in
the upcoming sections. Since you guys usually comment in DM asking me what I use personally, I link the specific blend
I take in the description. It has all the ingredients
I'm going to mention and in doses similar to what's actually used in these studies.
(scribbling) Since there's some crossover between this and the adaptogen blend I
mentioned taking in another video, I'll say I tend to take this
the majority of the time, especially before dates for
reasons you'll understand if you try it, but if life
starts getting overly stressful, I switch over to the
adoptogen blend instead. So we've talked about
how testosterone levels can affect your personality,
making you more confident, driven, energetic, and social. Something as innocuous
as a mineral deficiency essentially being able to
change your personality, dropping motivation
and reducing confidence is something that really makes
sense to be taking seriously, but remember, while these
levels do enhance traits designed to help you climb social ladders, ultimately they do also adjust over time to reflect your current standing. In primates, social cues that
signal rank, while complex, play a large role in
regulating the HPG axis, causing both short and longterm
changes in testosterone. In a study on a group of
recently introduced monkeys, they immediately began fighting for rank, and when the dust settled, the
winner's testosterone levels were elevated 10 times
higher than baseline, while the loser's levels dropped to just 10% of where they were. A study that tracked a
group of baboons found that higher levels of testosterone
significantly predicted the males who would go on to achieve high rank and access to females. Aggression, being used as a primary tool to climb rank in primates
where hierarchies depend on physical dominance
caused a lot of confusion when researchers tried
to adapt these findings to look for longterm changes in humans. The problem though is that
within human societies, climbing rank in a hierarchy is rarely just about physical dominance. So in conclusion, I think
if given this new role, I can share some valuable information to advance the entire company. (polite applauding) - You make a very compelling
pitch. Mr. Wilson. Now you, Mr. Bananas. (chimpanzee laughing) It's your turn. (chimpanzee screeches) Show me why advancing you instead is the right choice to bring
prosperity to our company. (paper ruffling) (crunching) Mister-- (screams) - As humans rely far more on
intelligence for survival, we've evolved to favor
leaders we can learn and seek advice from
versus those that rely just solely on threats and intimidation. This led researchers to
a new form of status, separate from dominance called prestige, which finally explains why the traits we see testosterone increasing in humans are geared towards strengthening
our social relationships. For example, studies have
shown that while winning a competition triggers a
temporary testosterone increase, winning in front of a supportive audience significantly increases
the size of that spike. In elite hockey players, even
just watching back a game where their team won causes a temporary 40% spike in testosterone. In 2018, a study was published
to look for longterm changes in men's testosterone in response to newly acquired prestige. It followed a group of 220 individuals. They were all members of their
university marching band. Since it was an elite band, the time commitment often
exceeded 20 hours per week. Four weeks into the new term, they tested everyone's
testosterone levels. As well, they surveyed
everyone and asked them based on initial impressions
to nominate the individuals they looked up to on the
basis of their talent, as well as nominate
individuals they would be likely to go to for advice. Two months later, they
remeasured everyone's levels. Their prediction was that,
like with the monkeys who won dominance fights, earning prestige early on would lead to increased testosterone over time, reflecting their high social rank, and after checking the results, they found a strong correlation between prestige and changes in testosterone level. If a man received 10 nominations, it was enough to put him
in the 90th percentile. These men had testosterone
levels up by over 20%. Meanwhile, what's more concerning to me, the men who were deemed low prestige didn't just remain the same. Their levels actually dropped. After running the data,
the model predicted going from the bottom 25th percentile
to the 90th percentile would result in an average difference of about 80 nanograms per deciliter. So what lessons can we take
from this to apply to ourselves? First off, just knowing
that earning prestige can result in the benefits
of higher testosterone should in itself be
added motivation for you. Use this as fuel to push
yourself to gain respect in your own field and focus on becoming the type of person who would
have earned more nominations. This research even inspired
me to personally increase my own exposure to signals of prestige. So if you check the description below, I've put a link where
you can enter a question. Once per week, I'll pick someone randomly for a free 20 minute video call to see if I can help answer it. This is also why I check my
testosterone levels regularly to watch for these kind of shifts in response to life's changes. Finally, I also think
realizing that low prestige men had their levels fall,
which itself can have negative effects, should
really be a wake up call. If you're being treated
badly and gaining prestige doesn't really seem possible
in your current situation, maybe it's time to consider
the positive benefits to leaving that toxic environment. While I haven't actually seen
a study like this in humans, in monkeys, even just leaving the group where they were a lower rank
increased their level somewhat. Okay, next is research
into the effects of health. Something we talked about
earlier is how testosterone diverts more energy towards processes designed to influence competitive
success, like muscle mass, and away from processes
designed to maximize longterm survival, like fat storage. Another area this extends
to is the immune system, where naturally elevated testosterone actually down-regulates
certain energy-intensive immune processes,
reprioritizing that energy. The consequence of this
is that testosterone needs to be sensitive to markers of health and be ready to drop if the
individual becomes sick. In nature, only individuals
who are very healthy can support high levels. Countless human studies show
dramatic drops in testosterone in response to serious illness and injury. It makes sense. When an individual's immune
system is challenged, energy needs to be refocused
back on immune function. This is partially controlled
by the HPA stress axis, which responds to illness
with stress hormones that suppress testosterone. Now what about the association with age? The idea that testosterone
will always decline with age at a steady and unavoidable
rate is really being questioned. The first clue that
there was more going on was in multiple studies
that have shown older men who remain in good health don't
experience a drop in levels. This prompted a recent study
that tracked the levels in over 1,500 men for five years. They also tracked multiple
health markers besides just age. They performed a multi-variant
regression analysis, which simply means they
used computer modeling to look for the most
consistent factors in the men whose testosterone fell
over the five years. Across everyone, the decline
in levels averaged out to a drop of about 0.8% per year, but when they took a look
at the men who remained free of any chronic health conditions, like obesity or hypertension,
the steady decline in levels disappeared below
statistical significance. They found the strongest predictor of a decline wasn't increased age. It was increased weight. A separate meta analysis
of 13 studies that measured testosterone in men of all ages revealed the true variation over the male lifespan. While average levels do indeed peak at 18 and fall slightly until the age of 40, beyond that the average across men of different age brackets
remains fairly steady. While the variance does
increase a bit with age, levels are surprisingly
variable at all ages, with low levels clearly affecting not just older men, but young men too. Just by age 27, 30% of men are already below that 350 threshold. Meanwhile, at more than twice their age, 10% of 60 year old men
still have levels above 650. If you want to see something
with a more clear association, look instead of these studies on obesity. One meta analysis found
when obese individuals lost just 9% of their body weight,
testosterone increased by on average 84 nanograms per deciliter, and after surgical weight losses, which averaged 32% weight reduction, those increased levels
by a staggering average of 251 nanograms per deciliter. While I personally use fasting
to keep my body fat low, something that impressed me
about the testosterone booster I settled on is that it contains EGCG, a molecule extracted from green tea that, in its own meta-analysis
was shown to increase daily fat burn by up to 16%. Considering that reducing
body fat may have the single biggest effect on testosterone that we've seen so far, I see including it as fitting well into the big
picture of raising levels. Let's round this off with a
few final lifestyle factors that research has shown
can also affect levels. One social factor we haven't
covered yet is a distinct shift in testosterone and behavior
that's shown to occur when men become fathers. Considering that fathers
perform parental duties in just 5% of mammals, it's
no surprise a system exists in humans to divert male behavior away from what's associated
with high testosterone. Evolutionary researchers
believe this change exists to refocus the father's attention to childcare and nurturing. In a study that followed men
for four and a half years, those who became fathers saw
their testosterone levels fall by 27%, an average drop
of 170 nanograms per deciliter. Based on the evidence though, there's one factor that can
significantly reduce this drop, and that would be how often they engaged in reproductive activity. Just a note, I'm using the
term reproductive activity so YouTube doesn't flag this video. Every time I say it, you can
just take it to mean this. Any way, back in the
study, they also surveyed the fathers to see how many times per week they engaged in this
reproductive activity. They found that testosterone
levels fell far less in the fathers who did
it more times per week. The idea of this influencing
testosterone levels isn't new. The last study even showed
if unmarried childless men did it more often, they too
tended to keep up higher levels. The short term ability of
sex to spike a man's levels is even more profound. Interestingly, though, this
elevation doesn't usually occur until the next morning. Since an increase in testosterone also signals the dopamine reward pathways, researchers think this
boost the next day may serve as a reward for successful
reproductive behavior. The spike appears to be even
larger when the activity occurs in a situation where
multiple males are competing, such as when it's with a new
partner, which in one study increased levels the next
morning between 60 and 330%. Tribulus is a key ingredient in many testosterone-boosting blends,
and a bottle of just tribulus was actually my first experience with a testosterone booster. I was only 22 years old at the time, but within a few days of taking it, I immediately noticed a major change. I felt more intense
motivation during my workouts and became more interested in girls. This positive experience
was why it was one of my first YouTube videos. Enough anecdotes though. Tribulus is actually a
source of some controversy because although it's shown
to reduce symptoms of E.D. and increased libido,
studies show it doesn't directly increase testosterone levels unless they're already quite low. That hasn't stopped me from
continuing to take it though. I look at the bigger picture because, looking at the data from before, it certainly promotes an
activity that clearly does. So that's something I
also recommend trying. Look specifically for
the Bulgarian variety. You can usually find it in
your local supplement store. That's where I bought it before
I started taking the blend I linked below, which
contains a full dose of it. Oh, and one more thing. Based on the research,
this kind of activity performed solo doesn't result
in a boost the next day, confirming it's the social
cues that really matter here. While this information might
give you new motivation in the bedroom, don't
let it hurt your sleep. Remember how testosterone
has a daily rhythm with a morning spike? Well, this spike also turns
out to sleep dependent. Reduced sleep seems to
hit older men the hardest with one study showing 4.5 hours of sleep corresponded with testosterone levels between just 200 and 300 the next day, while getting 7.5 hours
of sleep showed levels ranging from 500 to 700. A study on young men
found reducing sleep time for five nights from their typical average of eight and a half hours to
just four hours and 45 minutes per night reduced their
average testosterone well into the afternoon from
515 to an average of 446. So it appears if we can
care about our levels, we should really be aiming for at least eight hours of sleep. Finally, while the relationship
between working out, muscle, testosterone, and fasting is going to get its own video, I'm going to quickly
show how going to the gym can at least temporarily spike levels. Specifically, it's been
found that workouts that stress large amounts
of muscle over many sets with moderate to high intensities
and short rest intervals tend to produce a big spike
in testosterone levels, which can sometimes even exceed the size of the standard morning spike. So while this added spike
would likely benefit you by significantly increasing
testosterone exposure on the days you work out, evidence that working
out could cause some kind of separate longterm increase in levels has been really inconclusive. This might be because the body is able to actually increase receptor density in the trained muscle specifically, meaning it can already precisely adjust a muscle's testosterone
exposure without needing to resort to full body increases. Now that we've nearly reached the end, one last thing I wanted to
include was the medical solution called testosterone replacement therapy, where an endocrinologist
will assess a man's levels and write a testosterone
prescription to raise low levels. While I think it's a really good thing that this option exists
for men who are suffering, I hope now that you've seen that many natural factors can influence levels, you might really consider
trying those first. Usually your endocrinologist
will work with you to see if there are any lifestyle changes you might be able to make
before jumping right into TRT, because keep in mind that
testosterone plays a role in our dopamine reward
system, with small spikes working to reinforce
behaviors related to success. A fixed replacement dosage,
while it would resolve a lot of the negative symptoms, would theoretically
make it harder for this situational reward system to function. Personally though, I do
think I would still do it if nothing else was working for me. So as we wrap up now, I've put
together a complete outline of all the T-maxing strategies I use, all based on what we've
covered in the video, and there you have it. Unfortunately, there's so much more stuff I found researching that I really wanted to include in this video,
stuff on all the other hormones and how they all interact together, stuff on muscle and fasting. So I think I'll definitely be revisiting this topic in the future,
and if you want to see that, consider subscribing, or who knows, you may never see me again. Also, feel free to follow
me on my personal Instagram, shoot me a DM, like all
my photos, it's up to you, and as always until next
time, D-man signing off. (inquisitive music)
I just watched this last Sunday, found it really interesting
Man up and increase your sex drive while maintaining. If you release with a real girl every 30 days or 60 days so what your still way ahead of other guys
I believe lots of us started to feel the results of high T levels when on semen retention and I believe this video can make lots of us to learn more about it.
RE: If it is not according with the community standards I'll remove it.
Thanks for sharing this video i was looking for something like this.
Awesome video! Thanks a lot
Thanks for sharing 👍
This is one of the biggest reasons I practice semen retention. I always had low T levels when I was a daily fapper and my body was growing out of proportion. Now I can keep my body and health in check with confidence. My voice has deepened much noticeably aswell.
That’s why people on here who say you should lower your sex drive is dumb.