So you want to increase your testosterone levels naturally and are looking for a list of tools and resources to get you started?
No problem.
We got you covered in some of the most essential (but also surprising) items that can greatly help your process.
The list may be bit exhaustive and detailed, but I promise you will be learning a lot of new stuff that you can implement into your life immediately, which will result in great benefits.
Let’s get to it. ↓
1. Non-Plastic Gym Bottles & Flasks
Many types of plastics are down-right horrible for your testosterone levels and the little swimmers in your ‘nads.
Everyone and their dog knows about Bisphenol A (BPA) which has been linked time and time again to suppressed natural testosterone and DHT production and drops in male fertility.
It’s also suspected as a potential cause of erectile dysfunction in men who work at the production plants.
Then there’s BPS or Bisphenol S which is sometimes used instead of BPA so that the manufacturers can slap a nice “BPA-free” label on their products, which isn’t much better.
Some chemicals used to make plastics more flexible (like phthalates) are also – surprise, surprise – shown to lower male testosterone levels. It’s quite scary to think that most of the people in the US have high levels of phthalates in their urine 24/7.
I could continue this list of xenoestrogenic substances lurking in plastic products for many paragraphs more, but I’m sure you get the idea; Plastic ain’t a buddy of testosterone, and microwaving/heating plastics is like a literal kick to your nuts.
So what can you do about it?
The easy answer is just to not to use so much plastic products, especially in your culinary items.
The big problem, however, is that plastic is everywhere and sometimes avoiding it is just unreasonable. Still, that doesn’t mean there aren’t any low-hanging fruits that can help you lower your plastic exposure immediately…
One of the easiest is swapping your plastic drinking flasks and gym bottles into stainless-steel kind.
These are the ones I personally use and recommend:
The growler and reflect series are my favorite since both have stainless-steel caps (unlike the plastic and rubber caps found in most other brands).
2. Non-Teflon Cookware
Teflon and other perfluoroalkyl compounds (PFCs) are used as coating materials in cookware.
Sadly they’re also one of the things that could end up suppressing your natural testosterone production.
Two of the most commonly used chemicals used in making the non-stick coatings include PFOA and PFOS.
Both can bind with the human androgen receptors and block it from binding with the things it should; testosterone and DHT.
Since the coating materials block the receptors, scientists have discovered that exposure to Teflon coating materials can result in…
- increased plasma testosterone (less is used by the body)
- reduced sperm count
- smaller testicles
One of the particularly alarming findings was the reduction in anogenital-distance (AGD) in baby boys (a sign of reduced androgen exposure).
Of course, manufacturers are quick to mention that you need to scratch the surface of the pan before it may pose any harm.
Their reassurances are hardly satisfying considering the fact that DuPont (the inventors of Teflon material) has a solid track record of hiding information about the real effects of their chemicals and misleading regulators.
Personally, I’d just get rid of the Teflon pans altogether and use something better.
Ceramic coating, for example, is most often free of PFOA, PFOS, and other testosterone suppressing chemicals.
And if it’s sold in the US and manufactured properly, it should also be free of cadmium and other heavy metals (be aware that some cheap Asian made ceramic pans may not be).
You could also opt for fully ceramic pans, which are likely the healthiest option. But these tend to have quite short lifespans, usually as little as 6x less than for a Teflon pan.
If you can manage a little bit more maintenance, even a cast iron skillet like this could work.
I used a cast iron skillet for years – and still, do occasionally – but recently I switched my main pan over to Fiskars All-Steel ceramic coated frying pan, which as a Finnish brand is likely unavailable in the US…
Something that’s almost identical to the one I’m currently using and available in the US would be this Vesuvio Ceramic Pan (which I 100% recommend over any Teflon junk.)
3. Water Filtration Jug or ROS System
Tap water has some nasty stuff in it these days, simply because not everything can be filtered at the water plant anymore.
The beforementioned Teflon byproducts, BPA, phthalates, fluoride, cadmium, chlorine, mercury, lead, and much more known testosterone suppressing compounds are found in tap water.
Even here in Finland, which has one of the cleanest tap waters in the World.
So what can you do to make tap water better for your hormones?
Easy, get a water filter jug or if you want to go all-in, get a filtration system installed under your sink.
These are not perfect, but they do filter out most of the bad stuff and not so surprisingly also make the water taste better.
Some drawbacks exist for sure.
If you get a filtration system, it can get pretty expensive and unless you’re a master DIY man, and probably requires a plumber to assemble it. Once done though, it’s the best and most effective method to filter tap water.
When it comes to the filtered water pitchers, they can be much cheaper and almost as effective. However, the containers are usually made from plastic and the filters need to be changed quite often.
They’re also a bit of annoying to clean.
I had the luxury of having an installed tap water filter on my last apartment, but now that I live in my own house I’ve been slacking a lot to get one installed, so I’m using the Brita Water Filter Pitcher instead, and once the water has been drained through the filter I pour it straight into the stainless steel growler mentioned above so it doesn’t have to sit in plastic too long.
It’s hard to recommend a specific filtration system for you guys in the US since they’re vastly different in Finland, but I’ve heard lots of praise from APEC filtration systems and Berkey countertop filters.
Whichever you decide to get, it will likely be worth it, as filtered tap water is the second best alternative to owning your own fresh spring.
4. Proven T-Boosting Manual / Routine
I spent years running around in circles trying to increase my natural testosterone production.
I never got anywhere because I didn’t have sufficient information yet, and I was following some insane gurus on their wild claims about keto, paleo, the greatness of PUFAs (especially fish oil), high protein, very high fat, all that typical jazz.
Later on, I started learning how to ignore the guru BS and go directly at the sources to understand what the studies are saying about natural hormone optimization instead of following the latest hype-wagon.
This meant that I started consuming more carbs, fixing micronutrient imbalances, optimizing my training, cutting back on polyunsaturated fatty acids and excess protein intake, etc.
Pretty quickly my testosterone levels jumped above 1k ng/dL and I’ve been holding close to 1000 ng/dL ever since without putting too much effort into it.
I don’t keep a log but here’s a picture of an older test from 2015 I had on my laptop with 922 ng/dL
This was also when I found the Testosterone I/O program by Christopher Walker and started recommending it (now known as TestShock).
Chris had managed to lift his low levels up to ~1200 ng/dL using almost identical routine, which he based on the available research on the topic.
(it turned out later that I had stumbled upon most of these studies as well and started to implement the findings).
The point I’m trying to make with this story is that if I wouldn’t have followed a proper evidence-based routine, I would still be spinning my wheels with keto and other nonsense, had I found something like the TestShock program back then, I would have saved myself from years of trial and error, mostly error.
I’m currently running a Father’s Day Week Sale for TS and all of our courses (40% off) so if you’d like to try a routine that lifted Chris’ testosterone from the ground up, worked well for me, and has worked for thousands of guys of all ages and locations, then by all means click the link and grab yours
(we have a 30-day money back guarantee so if it’s not your cup of tea, no worries, just shoot me an email and I’ll refund you 100%).
5. High-Quality Multivitamin
If there’s one supplement you should be taking to increase your testosterone, it would have to be a good multivitamin.
I know, I know, I’ve said this a million times by now, but taking a multi is just such an easy way to fill out some of the gaps in your nutrition.
You may easily be lacking on things like boron, zinc, vitamin D, selenium, vitamin K2, vitamin E, and many more, which are sure to bring your natural testosterone levels down during a deficiency.
By taking a high-quality multi, you can expect to correct some of these possible deficiencies and restore that hormonal balance.
It’s not a magic pill, and your levels may rise only a little bit, but correcting micronutrient deficiencies is never a bad idea.
And hey, sometimes it can absolutely skyrocket your progress; zinc deficiency, for example, can nearly halve your T-levels, and correcting that is easier than putting butter on a toast.
I have taken the Thorne 2 / Day Multi for quite some time now, and I believe it’s the most complete high-quality vitamin & mineral product currently available (which is why we recommend it).
6. Proven Training Routine
Doing anything other than being sedentary – almost any type of training except prolonged endurance kind – has the ability to raise serum testosterone levels.
I’m talking chopping some wood, playing a friendly game of soccer, walking daily, resistance training, etc.
The best way though is to do something called neuromuscular training, which was introduced first by Chris Walker in Testosterone I/O (now TestShock).
The theory was greatly extended and fully broken down into an actionable routine in THOR v2.o training program.
Training your muscles by giving them the proper neuromuscular stimulus will allow you to increase testosterone production and androgen receptor activation, without raising your cortisol levels too much or spending countless hours in the gym doing the basic gym bro routines.
And as this 2018 study showed, one of the best predictors of muscular gains is indeed your androgen receptor activation, so I guess it’s not just a theory anymore.
The most important thing though, is that you do something. Walk, chop wood, anything recreational, hit the gym, whatever keeps you from slouching in the couch all day long.
And if you want to go all in with a routine that is specifically formulated for testosterone and androgen receptor optimization, you should check out THOR v2.0 at the Anabolic Academy (the same 40% off Father’s Day Week price works for that course as well).
7. Good Pillow and Blue-Light Blockers
Sleep quality is huge for testosterone, and sleep duration is massive.
There are many studies that attest to this, and they all draw the same conclusion…
Sleeping more and sleeping deeper is a sure-fire way to increase your testosterone production naturally.
Some evidence going as far as suggesting that it may be as much as 15% more testosterone for the next day per each extra hour of sleep the night before.
I’m inclined to say that sleeping more is the easiest way to boost testosterone, but in this day and age, you probably agree that it isn’t that easy to go to bed early.
With Netflix, you have an endless supply of shows to binge on until the morning hours, and once you finally go to bed, you’ll be likely to fire up your smartphone and binge on some social media and news.
This is bad in two ways; it delays your sleep and makes you sleep less in total, and it greatly disrupts your sleep quality by exposing your eyes to bright blue light, inhibiting melatonin production.
So what are the essential testosterone boosting tools that enhance your sleep?
8. Loose Boxers
You might be thinking what in gods name are underpants doing in a list like this, but hear me out.
Tight underwear is killing your nuts, as the sack has to operate at a cooler temperature than the rest of the body.
(this is why it’s a sack in the first place, the boys are hanging there so they can be in a cooler environment).
So what happens when you squeeze into the latest 1 size too small Calvin’s?
Well, a small scale testosterone-disaster, as your nuts press up against your thighs and heat up, effectively suppressing the natural production of testosterone and hurting your fertility as well.
Do this daily and you are constantly hurting your natural production, and it feels uncomfortable as well!
Easy fix?
Loose boxers. Or go commando if that’s your thing.
Conclusion
There you go, eight essential testosterone boosting items every man should own.
Were some of them surprising? Probably, but I hope you learned something new that you can use and utilize in your own life.
If you made it this far, thanks for reading!
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