It is common knowledge that having low testosterone levels can affect a man’s muscle mass, energy levels, libido, mental health and much more. There has been a lot written about the advantage of certain types of exercise for men suffering with low testosterone levels, because along with testosterone replacement therapy testosterone levels can be boosted by certain types of exercise. But which type of exercise is best to help flagging levels of testosterone?
There is no doubt that suffering from low testosterone can affect a man. Often he will feel less like exercising and generally feel depressed and unmotivated. However there are certain exercises that can help bolster that flagging testosterone and help with weight loss as well.
Research has identified lifting heavier weights as being the best type of exercise to give testosterone a boost. Doing this type of exercise will build up muscle and more muscle equates to greater production of testosterone. Initially you should attend a gym and take the advice of a personal trainer as to which weights would be the best for you. Most gyms will work out an exercise programme for you if they know what you’re aiming for. If you have not worked with weights before then you should start with supervised exercise until you get used to the weights. It is easy to injure yourself lifting weights so it’s important that you learn the correct way to carry out this type of exercise so that you will be successful in the long term. Sessions of around 30 to 45 minutes two to three times a week are recommended as being optimum for helping flagging testosterone levels.
Not every exercise is good for increasing testosterone levels and in fact endurance exercise such as long distance running or cycling has actually been proved to decrease testosterone levels. Athletes in these disciplines tend to have higher cortisol levels which have the opposite effect to testosterone. That is not to say that cycling or running is bad for you but you should be aware that this type of endurance exercise and it’s cortisol building tendency may have an impact on your sleep patterns on your mood and also on your muscle mass.
Cycling or running for 30 minutes a day 5 days of the week should be fine and will not lead to excess cortisol production.
The timing of your exercise sessions is important if you are looking to increase testosterone levels. exercising in the afternoon is the best for giving testosterone a boost one exercise in the morning can be relied on to kick start your metabolism. You could consider doing a session of cardio exercise in the morning and weight training in the afternoon. However because we know that lower testosterone levels can often leave men feeling exhausted and demotivated, with visits to the gym after work out of the question, whatever time works best for you is the right time to exercise.
Because we know that low testosterone levels often need to be addressed by lifestyle changes, testosterone boosting exercise will have the triple effect of making you feel better about yourself and will also help you to lose weight and boost your testosterone levels as well. You could consider taking a testosterone supplement to help jump start your exercise and lifestyle changes.
Reaching middle age does not have to be the end of your sex life or the beginning of chronic depression. Exercise and supplements can work wonders to help you cope with the natural changes in your body and get you back to your best self again.