While under the care of physician for low testosterone, your diet will play a role in your responsiveness to your injections. A strong, healthy endocrine system is not just based upon visits to your doctor, but also your diet and exercise program. Getting the right foods and intense exercise will assist you in recovering healthy testosterone levels. The ability of your body to produce testosterone is partially dependent on your intake of dietary sterols, which are found in fats. Consult your health-care provider before beginning any diet or exercise program.
Step 1
Consume a diet that is at least 20 percent fat. A diet too low in fat limits your ability to produce testosterone. Still try and get most of your fats from healthy sources, such as lean red meat, oily fish and nuts.
Step 2
Eat foods high in omega-3 fatty acids. These foods include oily fish such as salmon, olives, olive oil and walnuts. Omega-3 fatty acids do not just play a role in testosterone production, but also in your ability to maintain lean muscle mass secondary to improved testosterone production.
Step 3
Eat plenty of vegetables to get minerals in your diet. The minerals magnesium and zinc are critical factors in your ability to produce testosterone. If, for some reason you cannot do this, you may wish to supplement your diet to avoid a deficiency. The recommended daily allowance of zinc is 12 mg for women and 15 mg for men. The RDA for magnesium is 400 mg a day for men and 320 mg a day for women.
Step 4
Eat plenty of protein. To get the most out of your therapy, you need to maintain lean muscle mass. Eating foods such as lean red meat, milk and eggs gives you additional protein while providing the fat you need to produce testosterone. If you are trying to gain or maintain lean muscle mass, you may need more protein than someone who does not exercise.
Step 5
Exercise to support your dietary program. Intense resistance training does not just build your muscles or burn fat, it improves your ability to generate many hormones. A heavy training session with short rest periods can boost both your testosterone and growth hormone levels.
Tips and Warnings
- You will get the most out of your therapy when you support it with a combination of diet and exercise. Improving your health is a lifestyle, not a treatment.
- Discuss changes in both diet and exercise with your physician.
Things You'll Need
- Red meat
- Oily fish
- Olives and olive oil
- Walnuts
- Vegetables
References
- "Journal of Steroid Biochemistry"; Decrease of Serum Total and Free Testosterone During a Low-fat High-fibre Diet; E.K. Hamalainen, et al.; March 1983
- "American Journal of Clincial Nutrition"; Dietary Omega-3 Fatty Acid Supplementation Increases the Rate of Muscle Protein Synthesis in Older Adults: a Randomized Controlled Trial; G.I. Smith, et al.; February 2011
- "Textbook of Biochemistry with Clinical Correlations"; Thomas M. Devlin; 2010
- "Journal of the American College of Nutrition"; P.W. Lemon; Beyond the Zone: Protein Needs of Active Individuals; October 2000
- "Mechanisms of Ageing and Development"; Effects of Progressive Resistance Training on Growth Hormone and Testosterone Levels in Young and Elderly Subjects; B.W. Craig, et al.; August 1989
