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  • Writer's pictureSarah Holgen MS, CNS

Boosting Testosterone Naturally

Updated: Dec 18, 2019

I recently received a few questions all about how to optimize testosterone levels. You asked and you shall receive...


Testosterone is secreted in what’s called a circadian rhythm, meaning levels peak at night through early morning (5-8am) and then go back down throughout the day only to rise again the following sleeping period.


So if testosterone replenishes itself while you sleep, and you aren’t sleeping... you guessed it. You may not be maximizing your testosterone.

There are many factors that affect testosterone: 💪🏼Sleep/Circadian Rhythm

💪🏼Stress (overtraining in athletes) 💪🏼Nutrient Status 💪🏼Plastic exposure 💪🏼Bad fats in your diet


Let’s briefly discuss athletes and low testosterone...

When you workout, it’s a stress on the body (good stress) but your body will still make cortisol the stress hormone. When you train or workout TOO much, your body makes TOO much cortisol and this competes with your sleepy hormone called melatonin. This means not being able to sleep even though the athlete is exhausted. Same thing happens with non-athletes and too much work-stress, family-stress or stress from toxic exposure.


Some professional athletes like professional NBA player, Lebron James, makes sleep a PRIORITY! ...and even past crossfit champions said they make sure to sleep 9-10 hours a night in order to be an ass-kicking machine!

Testosterone (T) also needs a few nutrients in order to be made. One of them being Zinc and when we eat too much processed fast food or get sick often this depletes your Zinc stores and your T suffers. (PS. Almost everyone in cities is zinc depleted)


Magnesium is another biggie for Testo levels. This nutrient is not only dubbed the ‘anti-stress’ mineral which can directly help you fall asleep, but it’s also important for making testosterone too! Green food is the highest in magnesium alongside nuts and seeds, so putting a serving of green foods (spinach, broccoli, green beans, peppers, lettuce etc.) next to your carbs and protein is a must for optimizing sleep and your T levels. Just do it guys, your energy, stamina and performance will thank you.


The last thing we will talk about is bad fats. These bad boys are the trans-fats or hydrogenated oils from fried foods and fast food. These bad fats can even make more estrogens in your system too!

Testosterone is a hormone and hormones are made from fat. When you eat healthy fats your body can make good hormones!

Eat less bad oils and more of these: - Wild caught fish (like Alaskan Salmon) - Nuts and seeds (like pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, almonds and walnuts) - Pasture raised eggs 🌴Coconut oil, avocado and olive oil - Avocados

Overall, make sleep a priority, eat healthy fats, make sure you have adequate rest in between stressors like work or workouts, and get adequate zinc and magnesium. Track your sleep for 1-2 weeks and how you feel each day after incorporating these principles.


Testosterone levels are greatly influenced by our diet and lifestyle and boosting it naturally can certainly be done!



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