Circulating throughout your body as you scroll down this page, natural testosterone molecules are seeking out your muscles, fat stores and other organs to optimise them for full-body performance. Of course, you didn’t have to ingest or inject these molecules; your body is forever synthesising testosterone and other related compounds (collectively referred to as androgens). The amazing human body finely controls this production as its needs change in response to its environment.
Modern observations of our non-human brethren have provided enormous insight into the role of testosterone in the animal kingdom and the factors causing it to spike and drop naturally.
Below are some take-home messages from modern research and a few practical tools to help you boost your testosterone naturally; simulating the hormonal profile of the alpha-male:
One. Adopt an alpha-like posture for two minutes
This may sound ridiculous, but the science is pretty solid.
Innovative TED-talker Amy Cuddy and her team from the Columbia and Harvard Universities are the leading experts in the phenomenon of power posing. Their large body of research has shown that small adjustments in posture for as little as 60 seconds, significantly affected the production of testosterone in regular, every-day people.
High-power displays of open-armed and dominating positions (imagine trying to recreate the classical gorilla-king stances) were found to significantly increase testosterone production. Whereas low-power displays of crossed arms and sunken shoulders (think Napoleon Dynamite) significantly dropped levels of the hormone. The high-power displays also resulted in an immediate improvement in confidence and assertiveness.
How: As part of your everyday strategy for topping up testosterone, try holding a high-power display in either a seated or standing position for as little as two minutes (or just improve your upper thoracic posture generally by rotating your hands outwards, from the shoulders) for a slight but potentially significant increase in the production of your most anabolic hormone.
Be warned: The study also showed that adopting powerful stances increased the subjects’ propensity to exhibit risk-taking behaviour. So, listen to Mum and try not to slouch (unless you’re harbouring a gambling problem).
Two. Hit the pillow, early
Declining levels of testosterone as we age is an old association that’s slowly losing support in the world of hormone research. Testosterone levels may be generally lower in older segments of the population but we now understand this is more likely due to the effects of factors such as fatherhood, the financial pressures associated with raising a family and the general decline of activity as we grow older and become less physically active.
One of the most strongly correlated factors that influence testosterone release is the amount of sleep we clock each night; a factor very closely linked to the perils of fatherhood and financial struggles. Although the eight hour recommendation may sound impossible if you’re a modern male working a double life, your testosterone-rich future may depend on your respect for shut-eye.
How: Try treating sleep as a critical piece of your training puzzle. Appreciate the possibility that exercising hard without sleeping hard may be as sleeping hard without training hard.
Be warned: Sleeping too much or irregularly can be just as disruptive to your hormonal rhythms. Stick to the doctor’s orders of eight to 10 hours and try to avoid sleep-ins and afternoon naps on weekends.
Three. Go after that promotion
A truly groundbreaking and insightful article by Laurence Gesquiere of Princeton University reported detailed observations of the dynamically changing social ranks in baboon populations. Albeit a superficially bizarre research area, there are striking elements which translate directly into the corporate world.
The article, confronting for CEOs and Company Managers globally, revealed that life may be more stressful when you’re sitting at the head of the table but the payoff may be in natural testosterone production.
In male baboons, climbing the ranks towards becoming the alpha male is associated with a step-wise increase in natural testosterone levels. And, as expected, the alpha-males observed in this study produced more testosterone than any of his kin or “colleagues”.
I don’t know about you, but I’ve witnessed first-hand the phenomenon of the “boardroom alpha”, and on rare occasion I’ve swivelled in the big-chair myself. I’d quite assuredly testify to the unspoken separation between President, Pion and everyone in between. However, whether Presidential status is worth the responsibility and stress that comes with it, might be another thing altogether.
How: Get some quality sleep and take a few minutes to yourself before you face your boss (remember to sit up tall and play gorilla for a couple of minutes). Stick to positive talk and swap words from your vocabulary like “but”, “can’t” and “difficulty” to “so”, “can” and “opportunity”.
Be warned: With great power come great levels of stress to suit. In the same baboon study, circulating levels of the stress hormone cortisol inversely dropped as the baboons climbed in their hierarchy. Except for the Alpha, who interestingly yet understandably had the highest cortisol levels of all.
For more about this research, a comprehensive perspective piece was written by Standford University’s Robert Sapolsky explaining the symbolic ties in an article titled Sympathy for the CEO, published in Science.