You may know what testosterone is, but do you know how to test your testosterone levels at home, without having to go to a medical professional?
When it comes to muscle building, we all know that testosterone is king.
Odds are, you have read tons of articles on this anabolic hormone, so for this article, we will tell you how to measure its levels.
Sometimes, people mistakenly come to the conclusion that they have low testosterone levels, so with this article, we’ll help you determine whether or not this is a false alarm.
How to measure your testosterone levels
A medical test is certainly the best and most accurate option.
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However, there are indeed ways to measure your hormonal levels at home, which too give results within high proximity.
And so, in this article we are giving you a full-on guide, that contains actionable steps that will help you determine if you’re on the low or high side.
Needless to say, this guide won’t really involve blood testing.
Instead, we’ll tell you the traits of a high-test male and you’ll objectively judge for yourself.
Understanding testosterone
And so, what are the traits of an individual with high testosterone levels?
It is important to understand the physiological benefits that high test gives you.
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The testicles
As you may or may not know, testosterone is a hormone that is produced in the testicles.
This is also the exact body part, responsible for an array of physiological processes, mainly linked to sexual functions.
Here’s the first thing you can do:
Determine the size of your testicles
The size of your testicles is one of the main clues that can show you whether you’re on the high or low side of the testosterone chart.
If you have a hand, you know how to test your testosterone levels, without going to a lab.
Logically, if your testosterone-producing organs are big and full, you probably have at the very least, normal testosterone levels, away from the lower side of the chart.
If however, they are small and shrinked, this is more than likely a sign that your test levels are on the low side.
This can easily be tested with testosterone increasing or decreasing activities.
For example, if you get piss drunk with alcohol, you probably won’t wake up with a morning erection on the day after.
Why? Because alcohol affects testosterone levels in a negative way.
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On the flipside, if you do a couple days of intense training & good eating, you will more than likely feel more energetic, have increased libido and so on.
That is simply because intense training leads to the release of anabolic hormones, including testosterone.
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Now of course, we’d recommend the second option, as purposely decreasing testosterone levels with alcohol is no good.
As a matter of fact, not only do we recommend you to just test this, but rather include regular exercising & establish proper nutrition habits.
If you feel like your test levels are low, then doing this will more than likely help you fight this issue.
Sexual functions
As we mentioned, testosterone is not only a muscle-building hormone, but it is also responsible for other functions.
One of those is the erectile function, which is to a big degree testosterone-driven.
So, how to test your testosterone levels by monitoring sexual function>
Well, if you wake up without a morning erection more often, we have bad news for you.
To put it simply – If your testosterone levels are high, your sex-drive & erectile functions will improve.
Other physical traits
Sweat
Have you ever though about the reason why the sweat of babies and females doesn’t really smell all that much?
Well, this is because their testosterone levels are low.
The human body has sweat-producing mechanisms that are hormonally driven.
Those work with the apocrine glands, which produce the sweat.
In simple words – If your sweat doesn’t really smell, odds are your testosterone levels are on the low side.
Factors that may influence testosterone
Controllable factors
Body fat percentage
When the body has low testosterone levels, it tends to store more fat.
A higher body fat percentage would be a sign of low testosterone levels.
And this is science, ladies and gents, not just a hypothesis.
The proof of it are the elevated levels of the aromatase enzyme.
This is the enzyme which the body produces in bigger quantities, when our body fat levels go up.
The aromatase enzyme will in turn transform the testosterone into estrogen, which is the hormone that develops female bodily traits.
An increased estrogen production will in turn signal the brain to decrease testosterone production.
Now, even if that’s true for you, worry not.
After all, this is an easily controllable factor.
We need to acknowledge that the body is a hormone-producing machine.
That machine of course, can be given fuel to, through these 3 factors – Exercise, nutrition & supplementation.
Let’s go over those.
Exercise
If you don’t demand testosterone production of the body and sit on your ass all day, well, your test levels will logically be low.
Generally, testosterone production requires a degree of physical challenging activities, in order to stimulate the hormone-producing systems.
Now, not every exercise activity is the best for the goal of increasing testosterone levels.
For example, low-intensity, long duration cross runs might not be the best stimulus for test production.
We need to note here that the MOST EFFECTIVE types of exercises, when the goal is increasing testosterone, are high-intensity, short-burst movements.
Those are strength & bodybuilding training or any other exercise, in the ~20 second range, per set.
And so, if you primarily do aerobic exercises and feel like your test levels are low, then it would be good to modify those workouts.
To do so, you can go from long cross-runs, to intense, short-burst sprints, that will really give you a challenge.
Exercise assessment
Now, if you don’t wanna go to a lab to test your hormonal levels, then what you can do is observe your levels of motivation for training.
If you’re lazy, unmotivated and even a light weight in the gym feels heavy, well… Odds are your testosterone is on the low side.
On the flipside, if you’re constantly driven and at peak performance, have massive pumps, it is more than likely that your testosterone levels are sky high – Congrats!
Nutrition
If you’re constantly consuming crap food in a caloric surplus and do little to no exercise, your test levels will go down.
However, as we already mentioned, a proper nutrition plan, focused around organic, whole foods, will help you boost that testosterone.
As a matter of fact, a very important part of your nutrition for that goal, is the fat intake.
It has been shown in many studies that if we severely deplete the body of dietary fats, the hormonal levels will plummet.
Make sure to get at least 20% of your daily energy intake from fats.
Some of the best sources of fat are red meats, fatty fish, nuts, avocados and olive oil.
Supplements & prescription drugs
There are many prescription medications that may negatively impact your testosterone production.
If you are combining 2 or more medications and wonder why you’re feeling like a slob – Say no more.
Chances are, the combination of those medications are affecting your endocrine (hormonal) system.
Medications like painkillers & anti-depressants are your balls’ biggest enemy.
Those however are just 2 medications that have a negative impact.
The list goes on, so we do warn you to be careful with what you’re putting into your body.
Factors we have no control over
Age
Well, the human body is quite a complex organism, which peaks in development at around the age of 25 for men.
At one point however, many processes start reversing, as we age.
For the most part, the decreases in testosterone levels start in the mid to late 30s and mid 40s for active individuals.
And so, a sedentary lifestyle will lead to a decrease in testosterone levels and that is especially true for adults.
If you’re past your prime and not young anymore, do include test-boosting activities and good nutrition.
Those are the stepping stones of your balls’ test-producing ability.
Testosterone level test kits
Now, observing the physical traits is one thing, but are there actual testosterone tests you can do at home?
Of course there are!
In some countries, you can find test kits that generally require you to get either a saliva or blood sample.
Though that’s the case, you will still have to send the probe to the address of the laboratory and wait a couple days for your results.
Note that hormonal levels may vary throughout the day.
Testosterone levels are usually at their peak in the morning, making this the best time to take the test.
Of course, these test kits we’ll give you below give an approximate result.
If you want 100% accuracy, go to your doc!
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- https://www.amazon.com/Hormone-Imbalance-Home-Test-Kit/dp/B00Y3J9LEK/
Control these to increase testosterone:
- Physical activity, eating & sleeping habits
If you want to boost your testosterone production, focus on high-intensity training sessions, that require short bursts of power.
Focus on whole, unprocessed organic foods, red meats & quality sources of fats.
Sleep should be at the very least 7 hours per night, depending on levels of physical activity.
Some individuals may require upwards of 10 hours of sleep per night, given that their daily routine is exhausting.
- Supplements
Supplementing with vitamins and herbs or extracts is one of the things that you can do to boost test levels.
If possible, eliminate prescription drugs, as they negatively impact your testosterone levels.
Bottom line
There are certain physiological factors and traits that you can observe, which can tell you how high your test levels are.
Here are all of those, summarized in a couple of points:
- Testicle size – As the testicles are one of the test-producing organs, they get bigger and harder, as testosterone levels increase.
- Erectile function – Observe the frequency, intensity and duration of your erections, as well as the levels of sex drive. The higher, more frequent and longer in duration, the better.
- Sweat – If your sweat is smelly, you might get called “The skunk” at your local gym, but rest assured – This is a trait that shows high test levels.