Don't take a testosterone boosting supplement until you have these four things taken care of already.
We sell the most research-backed, natural testosterone booster on the market: LJ100 Longjack. And believe it or not, we don't want you to buy it.
Well, not yet anyway.
We want you to use only the supplements you need. Maybe your T levels aren't what they used to be, and you could use a boost to get them back to healthy, high-normal levels. But you might be getting ahead of yourself by taking Longjack. There are a few other things to take care of first before you whip out the big guns.
A recent narrative review provides guidelines for optimizing your natural testosterone production. And no surprise, it's mostly about your diet.
The study
The review in the journal Nutrients examined how manipulating energy intake and macro-/micronutrient composition affects circulating testosterone concentrations. Here's a summary:
1. It's mostly a calorie thing.
In science-speak, it's called energy availability. Prolonged low-calorie intake suppresses reproductive hormone axes (hypothalamic–pituitary–gonadal axis). Dieting too hard for too long – or just unknowingly undereating – reduces circulating testosterone levels.
That doesn't mean you need to walk around chubby all year to maximize T-levels. Getting downright fat tanks testosterone, too. Stay lean but save "ripped" for special occasions. Evidence suggests that sub-10% body fat wrecks natural testosterone production. A man with a healthy T level can become hypogonadal (below 300 ng/dL) once he drops below 10%.
2. Eat some fat.
Cholesterol/lipid availability and the supply of fatty acids affect the capacity for steroid hormone synthesis. Diets with higher fat (especially saturated and monounsaturated fat) favor higher testosterone compared to low-fat diets. Correspondingly, low-fat diets decrease total and free testosterone.
This doesn't mean you need to eat a very high-fat diet, only that you need adequate fat intake. Most human studies find that testosterone begins to decline noticeably when dietary fat dips below 20% of total calories. It tends to be higher when fat makes up 30-40% of calories. That's the upper effective range.
Let's call 30% the sweet spot. If you eat 2000 calories per day, that's 67 grams of fat. If you eat 3000 calories per day, that's 100 grams of fat.
3. Training hard? Don't skip the carbs.
Carbohydrates moderate testosterone declines during heavy training by modulating cortisol and LH (luteinizing hormone).
That just means when you eat enough carbs during hard training, your body produces less cortisol. Lower cortisol helps your brain keep releasing LH, which signals your testes to keep making testosterone.
Remember, very low-carb diets are useful but temporary fat-loss strategies for lifters, but they're mainly for people who don't move around very much or pick up heavy things.
4. Take your vitamins and minerals (mostly minerals).
Taking magnesium, zinc, and vitamin D won't skyrocket your T levels if you're already getting enough of them, but having low levels is clearly detrimental to testosterone synthesis. This is especially true for zinc and magnesium.
Optimal testosterone: Your action plan
- First, make sure you're eating enough. Energy availability is the dominant lever. Think maintenance or slightly above maintenance. Don't get fat, though.
- Second, make sure a healthy percentage of those calories comes from fat. Roughly 30% is a good goal.
- Third, consume some carbs, mainly around training and especially when using heavy volume.
- Fourth, don't be deficient in magnesium, zinc, or vitamin D.
Now you can buy our supplements
If you have all the above covered and your T levels still aren't where you want them to be, now it's okay to use our Longjack supplement, Omega-Man (Buy at Amazon). Longjack boosts T by synthesizing testosterone by blocking its aromatization into estrogen and stimulating testosterone production in Leydig cells. It also lowers SHBG production, freeing up natural testosterone.
If you need zinc and magnesium (and most people have insufficient levels according to the latest research), take Elitepro Vital Minerals (Buy at Amazon) which contains Albion-chelated minerals for maximal absorption and unmatched bioavailability.
Vitamin D deficiencies are also incredibly common, even among people who take standard vitamin D daily. Being over 40, certain genetic variants, and excess body fat all interfere with absorption and utilization. So take microencapsulated D Fix (Buy at Amazon) to ensure absorption and quickly raise your vitamin D status.
Get the right testosterone-supporting carbs at the right time by taking Surge (Buy at Amazon) before and during hard workouts (lifting or endurance). The main functional carb source is HBCD, the athlete's carbohydrate. In this context, Surge will keep testosterone-sapping cortisol under control and boost recovery.
Having a Fini Protein-Energy bar before workouts is another option.
Reference
- Zamir, Amit, Tavor Ben-Zeev, and Jay R. Hoffman. "Manipulation of Dietary Intake on Changes in Circulating Testosterone Concentrations." Nutrients, vol. 13, no. 10, 2021.