how do i combat low testosterone?

TRT injections/gel. It would improve your quality of life significantly. If you are no longer competitively running, it doesn't matter for anything.

Androgel is good if you can get a script for one. There are coupons out there that make it affordable.

Lifting is supposed to raise T naturally, or so I have been told.

what are your symptoms?

Truth- cut down mileage, lift weights, do some speed work, have more sex

Not even trolling. Read into diets with more fat and protein, less carbs. And get into some light weightlifting.

If you run enough miles to begin with, doing fairly light deadlifts, squats, cleans, pullups, etc won't make you gain weight. Maybe a few pounds, but not like 20-30lbs.

There are plenty of peer reviewed articles out there that will support this.

Only running 100mpw and eating carbs as your only calories will contribute to low T.

Check out zinc supplementation like in ZMA:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ZMA_

(supplement)

Bypass the Androgel completely. I tried it, and it doesn't work very well. Go straight to injectable. My urologist put me on it and levels went up quickly.

However, my running didn't improve one bit. I just felt better.

Do NOT use this to plug yourself into the (dishonest) supplement industry. ZMA and other options work if you have deficiencies in those things (Zn, Mg, etc), which most Westerners do not. Talk to your physician and consider testosterone replacement therapy.

Going to a doctor (MD) first, is NOT simple logic. A six-week trial of added dietary fats and a weight training program is simple logic.

There are a lot of variables that we do not know about this person/question, but what we do know, is that hormonal deficiencies are often balanced by the aforementioned components.

erratic/unpredictable absorption w both gel and spray

Get your vitamin d levels checked. Both times when my Vitamin D levels were low, I supplemented with it and got into the upper range. When that happened, my testosterone levels went up over 200 points each time.

1. How old are you? What you should consider if you're 70 is different than age 40.

2. What is your level? "Low" is a vague term. Are you at 200? 300? 150? Are you experiencing any problems?

3. Androgel tricks your body into thinking it's producing enough T. Your testes shrink and reduce their output. If you don't exercise hard enough (see below) the excess turns into estrogen, giving you man boobs and prostate problems. At 70, this is no big deal. At 40, you could be increasing your risks of various types of cancer.

4. A better approach is to ensure your body is getting all the raw materials to create T naturally and then take steps to speed up your natural T production. These steps include...

a. Enough sleep

b. Reduce stress

c. High intensity, short duration exercise every day, to include weight lifting, hill reps, sprints. etc. Basically, 8 reps of 8-30 seconds of all out effort.

d. Increase healthy proteins and healthy fats in diet.

There are some other good recommendations here. Good luck.

If you take any Testosterone please do not run any USA Track and Field races as this would be considered cheating and doping.

There is no TUE allowed for steroids. In my opinion you should not do any races while taking any performance inhancing drugs including fun runs.

Run Around wrote:

There is no TUE allowed for steroids. In my opinion you should not do any races while taking any performance inhancing drugs including fun runs.

Sure you can get a TUE for testosterone. Not that he should be expected to go through that just for the local 5k.

You can apply for a TUE but show me any competitive runners who have a TUE for steroids. There are none including masters runners.

Quality post. Also, date hotter women.

cliffordgeertz wrote:

When I went to my yearly checkup recently, my doctor told me that I have low testosterone. I'm a fairly competitive post-collegiate runner, but for the last year have been kind of just running for me, doing varied levels of volume ranging from 30 miles a week to 80, so basically whatever i feel like. No real speedwork or even strides though. Does anyone know any dietary tips or training advice to help improve this situation?

Whatever you decide to do, do NOT fall into the "reduce carbs, add fat" trap. Unless your diet is low in healthy polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fats, adding more fat into your body isn't going to raise your testosterone levels.

Our bodies are incredibly good at maintaining homeostasis. We cannot "trick" our complex biological systems by adding in extra precursors to various hormones.

Being around beautiful women regularly is actually great advice. Otherwise, listen to your doc.

Running high mileage will lower your testosterone.

simple logic wrote:

Do NOT use this to plug yourself into the (dishonest) supplement industry. ZMA and other options work if you have deficiencies in those things (Zn, Mg, etc), which most Westerners do not. Talk to your physician and consider testosterone replacement therapy.

Yeah, they do, at least for Mg. It's not possible to detect a deficiency without dissecting someone, but no way do most people get their recommended daily value of 500 mg/2000kcal. Not even close.

Almost all the foods high in Mg have it bound up in fiber (bran, almonds), or are also high in competing minerals like calcium (milk), or are impossible to healthily consume in high enough amounts (coffee.) To make matters worse, people drink purified bottled water and filter their tap water, so they don't get elemental magnesium either through drinking or bathing.