Thirty-five percent increase in testosterone level without hormone therapy

The right kind of exercise can significantly raise your testosterone level, while some forms of exercise will lower it. Testosterone affects more than just sex drive; it positively influences bone density, fat distribution, muscle strength and mass, metabolism, memory, and red blood cell production. It is vital for both sexes.

Steady state activities like long-distance running cause your testosterone level to fall, while high intensity activities such as sprint training and high intensity strength training  increase it1.  How much of an increase?  I wanted to find out. My urologist informed me that my testosterone level was low. It was not from too much long-distance running. I had not exercised for the better part of a year and had gained weight. 

I changed my diet and began exercising again – high intensity strength training once a week and stationary bike sprints one to two times a week.  On average it amounted to less than an hour of exercise a week. The first session of sprints liked to kill me. All I could do was two sprints before ending the session. I slowly build up to eight 30-second sprints.

In the four months that followed I lost 30 pounds.   I had my testosterone level tested again and tested a second time just to make sure the number was accurate. I was surprised to see that my testosterone level had increased 35 percent increase.

Testosterone is the most potent fat burning hormone we have.   High intensity strength training increases testosterone. Increased testosterone leads to fat reduction. The body adapts to its environment.  It does this using feedback loops.  The outcome of a feedback loop can be negative - weight gain and lower testosterone level – or it can be positive - weight loss and higher testosterone.

At our Austin Personal Training facility we do supervised sprint training and high intensity strength training.  We can help you start that positive feedback loop.

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1 https://kellypersonaltraining.com/blog-overview/2013/08/15/long-distance-running-lowers-testosterone-sprint-training-increases-it

How to reduce dangerous visceral fat

Visceral fat, found in and around the organs, can be a serious danger to your health. There is a hormone called adiponectin that will prompt the body to reduce visceral fat and increase lean tissue. 

A quote from The Secret Life of Fat:

"Exercise increases adiponectin, the hormone emitted by fat tissue that moves fat away from the viscera to the limbs and hips. It improves insulin sensitivity, too, leading to lower blood glucose and triglyceride levels. The added benefit of most of these hormones is that they won’t just burn fat, they’ll increase lean tissue, which also leads to higher metabolism. So even at rest, we’ll burn more calories."

The best way to increase adiponectin levels?   According to one study: “A progressive high intensity exercise program demonstrated increased adiponectin concentrations in overweight and obese children.”  Another study concluded: “The results show that high intensity interval training (HIIT) positively changes blood lipids and adiponectin variables in obese adolescent girls, resulting in improved insulin sensitivity, as attested by a lower HOMA-IR, and achieving better results compared to moderate-intensity exercise. “

The hormones of your endocrine system can work against your fat loss efforts, or they can make fat loss more achievable.   In addition to adiponectin, HIIT simulates a cascade of fat-burning hormones; among them testosterone, human growth hormone, and irisin.

HIIT is what we do at New Orleans Personal Trainers and Austin Personal Training.   For those who are extremely out of shape, all you have to do is a little more than you are used to handling.  Each week you will improve, and soon your hormones will work for you rather than against you.

Increasing Human Growth Hormone Naturally

Human growth hormone (hGH), while essential for growth, it is also important for burning fat and building calorie-burning lean tissue in adults. Unfortunately hGH declines with age. To increase the hormone you can take synthetic hGH along with its side-effects, or hGH can be increased naturally in response to a certain type of exercise (exercise-induced growth hormone response - EIGR).  From the study The exercise-induced growth hormone response in athletes:

“An exercise intensity above lactate threshold and for a minimum of 10 minutes appears to elicit the greatest stimulus to the secretion of hGH.”

This is how you get less of hGh, another quote:

“Recent evidence suggests that endurance training [i.e., running, cycling] results in decreased resting hGH and a blunted EIGR.”

And finally:

“A growing body of evidence suggests that higher intensity exercise is effective in eliciting beneficial health, well-being and training outcomes. In a great many cases, the impact of some of the deleterious effects of ageing could be reduced if exercise focused on promoting the EIGR.”

 Austin Strength Training and at New Orleans Strength Training we specialize in the type of high Intensity training that increases hGH levels.  In addition to increasing hGH, a properly designed high intensity training workout will increase energy,   bone density,  mental acuity,   testosterone, and strength.   This is a workout anyone of any age or fitness level can do.  You build up to it slowly, you improve each week, and over time you will “impact of some of the deleterious effects of ageing” - kind of like a fountain of youth.

Testosterone..., kind of like shampoo

Testosterone is vital to both sexes for controlling fat, boosting metabolism, and maintaining lean muscle mass. Testosterone increases the body’s fat burning ability, as fat decreases testosterone increases. Repeat this positive cycle for best results (kind of like shampoo!?). A quote from the book, The Secret Life of Fat:

“Testosterone, which is critical for both sexes, also decreases, causing a reduction in lean body mass and energy, ultimately leading to slower metabolism. Though we tend to think of testosterone as the male hormone, there is more of it in a woman’s body than estrogen at most times of the month, and certainly during the perimenopausal or postmenopausal years... Testosterone is perhaps the most potent fat burner we have."

Another quote:

"Testosterone is important for everyone's weight management because it helps build and maintain muscle mass."

And this:

"The relationship between fat and testosterone in men is circular - lower testosterone leads to and increase in fat, particularly belly fat: in turn, higher fat lowers testosterone."

One can increase testosterone naturally. From This study, Effect of altered reproductive function and lowered testosterone levels on bone density in male endurance athletes:

"Relatively short duration exercise bouts at maximum or near maximum intensity appear to increase serum testosterone levels.

Near maximum intensity can be problematic for those with injuries or those who are out of shape. At New Orleans Personal Trainers and Austin Personal Training  we use MedX exercise equipment with special rehab features, and we use an exercise protocol that is safe for those with limiting conditions.  For those who are extremely out of shape, all you have to do is a little more than you are used to handling.  Each week you will improve.  You will start the positive cycle and burn more fat.

How to increase human growth hormone naturally

Human growth hormone (hGH) is necessary for:

• Growth when we are young
• Maintenance and repair and of our body after stresses such as exercise 
• Combating the adverse effects of aging

You can increase hGH without a prescription.  From this article The Exercise-Induced Growth Hormone Response in Athletes: 

"Resistance training results in a significant exercise-induced growth hormone (EIGR) .…An exercise intensity above lactate threshold and for a minimum of 10 minutes appears to elicit the greatest stimulus to the secretion of hGH."

And this:

"A growing body of evidence suggests that higher intensity exercise is effective in eliciting beneficial health, well-being and training outcomes. In a great many cases, the impact of some of the deleterious effects of ageing could be reduced if exercise focused on promoting the EIGR."

High intensity training will naturally increase hGH and slow the aging process. It’s the type of training we do at Austin Personal Trainers and New Orleans Personal Trainers. People of any age and any level of fitness can do this. We conduct HIT workouts on MedX equipment.  The equipment’s special medical rehab features make it safer and more accommodating to those with limiting conditions.  Aging is inevitable, however with our program it wiil not happen as quickly.

Exercise shown to increase fat burning hormone Irisin

“High Intensity Training (HIT) enacts a hormonal cascade that is the antithesis of the metabolic syndrome.” - From the web site, Body By Science. 

Part of that cascade is Irisin, a hormone associated with fat burning that correlates positively with muscle mass. From this article, Exercise releases hormone that helps shed, prevent fat:

"Irisin has a positive effect by turning white fat into brown fat and that it increases the body's fat-burning ability." 

And from this article, Effects of Obesity, Diabetes and Exercise on Fndc5 Gene Expression and Irisin Release in Human Skeletal Muscle and Adipose Tissue: “Irisin was positively linked to muscle mass, strength and metabolism.”

While losing fat is primarily an eating-less proposition you can help it along by increasing irisin production. To produce more irisin it helps to do exercises that will increase strength and muscle. The high intensity training (HIT) we do at New Orleans Strength Trainers and at Austin Strength Trainers will do that.