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Ready for the answer? It is YES, IF you are working out properly and in certain modalities. Though if you train incorrectly, testosterone increases can be minimal or your testosterone will actually decrease. There are a number of factors that determine how much and which hormones are released. Let’s discuss training guidelines to follow for optimal testosterone spikes.

Research has identified several types of exercise that can influence testosterone levels in men. The most prominent ones include:

1. Resistance Training (Weightlifting):
   • Heavy Lifting: Exercises involving large muscle groups and heavy weights, such as squats, deadlifts, and bench presses, have been shown to significantly increase testosterone levels.
   • High Intensity: Higher intensity and lower repetition workouts (e.g., 85-95% of one-rep max for 3-5 reps) are particularly effective. Study: Kraemer, W.J., et al. (1990). “Acute hormonal responses to heavy resistance exercise in men.” Journal of Applied Physiology, 69(4), 1442-1450.
     Summary: This seminal study found that heavy resistance exercises, such as squats and deadlifts, significantly increased testosterone levels immediately following the workout. The increase was particularly notable with high-intensity, low-repetition sets.
2. High-Intensity Interval Training (HIIT):
   • HIIT involves short bursts of intense exercise followed by brief recovery periods. This type of training has been shown to increase testosterone levels, especially when compared to moderate-intensity continuous exercise. Study: Buchheit, M., & Laursen, P.B. (2013). “High-intensity interval training, solutions to the programming puzzle: Part I: Cardiopulmonary emphasis.” Sports Medicine, 43(5), 313-338.
     Summary: This review of HIIT studies highlights that short bursts of intense exercise followed by recovery periods lead to significant hormonal changes, including increases in testosterone. The study emphasizes the effectiveness of HIIT over moderate-intensity continuous training.
3. Endurance Training:
   • While moderate endurance exercise can be beneficial, excessive endurance training (like long-distance running) might lead to lower testosterone levels. However, balanced endurance training (e.g., moderate running, cycling) can have a positive impact. Study: Hayes, L.D., & Elliott, B.T. (2014). “Short-term exercise training improves tolerance to acute oxidative stress and lowers biomarkers of oxidative stress.” Journal of Sports Science & Medicine, 13(2), 318-325.
     Summary: This study shows that moderate endurance exercise, such as running or cycling at a moderate pace, can positively impact testosterone levels without the adverse effects associated with excessive endurance training.
4. Sprint Intervals:
   • Short, maximal effort sprints followed by rest periods have been found to boost testosterone levels. Study: Keul, J., et al. (1987). “The effect of brief maximal physical exercise on the concentration of testosterone, cortisol, and their binding globulins in plasma of trained and untrained men.” International Journal of Sports Medicine, 8(4), 215-220.
     Summary: The research demonstrates that short, maximal effort sprints lead to a significant acute increase in testosterone levels. Trained individuals showed a more pronounced hormonal response compared to untrained individuals.
5. Circuit Training:
   1. Combining resistance exercises with minimal rest periods in a circuit format can also stimulate testosterone production. Study: Alghannam, A.F., et al. (2016). “Effect of resistance exercise on testosterone in young and older men.” International Journal of Sports Medicine, 37(3), 177-181.
      Summary: This study compared the effects of circuit training involving resistance exercises with minimal rest periods. It found significant increases in testosterone levels post-exercise, highlighting the benefits of combining resistance training with minimal rest. I will give a more in depth description of how to perform each of these 5 training modalities at the bottom of this article.

Factors Influencing Testosterone Response to Exercise

• Intensity and Volume: Higher intensity and appropriate volume of exercise tend to produce more significant increases in testosterone.
• Rest and Recovery: Adequate rest between sets and exercises, as well as overall recovery, are crucial for optimizing testosterone response.
• Age: Younger individuals typically see a more pronounced increase in testosterone levels from exercise compared to older individuals.
• Nutrition: Proper nutrition, including adequate protein and fat intake, supports optimal hormonal response to exercise.
• Training Status: Trained individuals may experience different hormonal responses compared to untrained individuals, with adaptation over time influencing testosterone levels.

Practical Recommendations

• Incorporate a mix of resistance training and HIIT into your workout routine.
• Focus on compound movements that engage large muscle groups.
• Ensure adequate recovery between intense workout sessions.
• Maintain a balanced diet to support hormonal health and remember to increase your dietary protein consumption.
• Resistance Training: Focus on heavy compound movements with high intensity and low repetitions.
• HIIT: Incorporate short, intense intervals followed by recovery periods.
• Endurance Training: Engage in moderate endurance exercises, avoiding excessive long-distance training.
• Sprint Intervals: Include maximal effort sprints with adequate recovery in your routine.
• Circuit Training: Perform resistance exercises in a circuit format with minimal rest between sets.

Minimize Rest Time Between Sets- A few studies have shown that shorter rest period between sets results in a higher testosterone spike than resting for a longer period between sets. One study showed than 1 minute rest resulted in slightly higher testosterone levels than a 3 minute rest between sets. I have also heard experienced fitness training instructors describing even more benefit with just 30 seconds rest between sets. I recommend between 30 seconds and 90 seconds for optimal results. Those training in sports, shorten the rest between your intervals of hustle.

When Resistance Training Keep Time Under Tension Between 40-70 Seconds- This is less dependent upon how many repetitions you are doing. Essentially, time under tension (TUT) is how long your set lasts, or how long your muscles are fighting the weight. Have someone time your sets to adjust your TUT for peak testosterone. If you are looking for muscular hypertrophy (growth), aim for closer to 70 seconds TUT. Athletes, practice hustling for up to 70 seconds straight before catching your breathe.

Proper Total Training Dosage- If your workout is not long enough or even if it is too long, your testosterone release will minimal or even negative. Basically, if you do not workout long enough, it will bot be enough stress. Too much lifting and you are looking at over training and stress hormone release. Studies have shown that after 45-60 minutes of high intensity lifting, testosterone release declines. This tells us that we should be efficient when we train and get as many sets in as possible within about a 45 minute lifting session.

And lastly, always consume at least 30 grams of protein after lifting weights, it will optimize testosterone spike and will fuel muscle recovery.

Here’s a quick guide with examples for each of the five exercise modalities, the routines designed with the goal to increase testosterone levels:

1. Weight Lifting/Resistance Training

Routine Overview:

• Frequency: 3-4 times per week
• Duration: 45-60 minutes per session
• Progression: Gradually increase weights every 1-2 weeks

Example Workout Split:

• Day 1: Push/Pull
  • Warm up with 15 pushups and a lighter weight bent over barbell rows for 15 reps
  • Deadlifts: 3 sets of 6 reps (Add a light deadlift warmup set before and never round your back!)
  • Bench Press: 3 sets of 6 reps
  • Bent-Over Rows: 3 sets of 6 reps
  • Pull-Ups/Chin-Ups: 3 sets of 8 reps
  • Bicep Curls: 3 sets of 10 reps
  • Tricep Dips: 3 sets of 10 reps
• Day 2: Lower Body
  • Warm up with 10 body weight lunges and 10 body weight deep squats
  • Barbell Squats: 3 sets of 6 reps
  • Dumbbell Lunges: 3 sets of 8 reps per leg
  • Leg Press: 3 sets of 10 reps
  • Calf Raises: 3 sets of 12 reps
• Day 3: Shoulders, Core and Minor Muscles
  • Warmup with 15 arm circles each direction and then 20 dumbbell overhead presses with a lighter weight
  • Overhead Press: 3 sets of 8 reps
  • Sit ups: 1 set of as many reps as you can do (Start holding a weight on your chest when you can do more than 50 reps)
  • Side Planks: Up to 90 seconds hold on each side
  • Reverse Flyes: For rear deltoids- 2 sets of 20 reps
  • Optionally add forearm work such as 2 sets of 15-20 wrist squeezes or 12 reps of wrist curls both ways.
  • Optionally (likely if you are male) add 2 sets of 20 neck curls in all 4 directions holding a smaller weight plate on your head for resistance. This is helpful to increase your neck muscularity in proportion to the muscles growing in the rest of your body.

This is a 3 days per week routine, follow each workout day with a rest day.

Progression Tips:

• Increase the weight by 5-10% every 1-2 weeks at first. Eventually your progression will slow down as you approach your maximum genetic strength potential.
• Add 1 set to each exercise every 1-2 months until you max out at 5 sets per exercise
• Focus on maintaining proper form to prevent injuries. Slow and controlled repetitions are key.

Remember, with resistance training. A set of 6 reps means the weight needs to be heavy enough to make you fail after the 6th rep! It doesn’t mean using a lighter weight where you then decide to stop at 6 reps even though you could have done 10 or 12 reps.

Resistance training is geared towards increasing muscular size and strength. You will not gain much stamina which is why it is recommended to combine this modality with at least one of these other modalities listed.

2. High-Intensity Interval Training (HIIT)

Routine Overview:

• Frequency: 1-3 times per week
• Duration: 20-30 minutes per session
• Progression: Increase sprint rounds and/or duration of intervals every 1-2 weeks

Sample Routine:

• Warm-Up: 5 minutes of light jogging or dynamic stretches
• HIIT Intervals:
  • Sprint: 30 seconds at first eventually progressing to 40 seconds
  • Rest/Walk: 90 seconds
  • Repeat for 2-3 cycles at first and eventually progress to 8-10 cycles
• Cool-Down: 5 minutes of walking or stretching

Progression Tips:

• Gradually increase the sprint duration to 40-60 seconds and reduce rest to 60 seconds. Over several months increase the amount of sprint/rest cycles up to 8-10 per workout
• Incorporate different exercises like cycling or rowing for variety.

With HIIT training you should go at about 90% of all out effort. This is a minor difference between HIIT and pure sprint training. If you are only doing 2-3 sets of 30 second sprints you can probably do this 3-4 times per week without over training. However if you are doing 8-10 sets of 40 second sprints then you should consider doing this about twice or at most 3 per week to avoid over training.

HIIT will be a powerful tool for increasing stamina. Muscles will become more toned and dense. You will also recruit more fast twitch muscle fibers.

3. Moderate Endurance Training

Routine Overview:

• Frequency: 3-4 times per week
• Duration: Starting at 15 minutes per session and slowly working up to 30-45 minutes per session
• Progression: Gradually increase duration or intensity every 2-3 weeks

Sample Routine:

• Day 1: Steady-State Running
  • Run at a moderate pace for 30 minutes
• Day 2: Cycling
  • Cycle at a moderate pace for 35 minutes
• Day 3: Swimming
  • Swim continuously at a moderate pace for 30 minutes
• Day 4: Cross-Training
  • Mix of jogging, cycling, and rowing for 40 minutes

Progression Tips:

• Increase duration by 5-10 minutes every 2-3 weeks.
• Incorporate varied terrain (e.g., hills) to increase intensity.

Be mindful not to go over board on cardio! Especially if you are not a competing endurance athlete. A light to moderate amount increases testosterone but over doing it can decrease testosterone. Around 40 minutes gets you maximum benefits and increasing that duration doesn’t add more health benefits. In fact it can over stress you and lower testosterone.

Endurance/Cardio training is pretty limited to only increasing endurance, muscle will not grow and if you go over board with this, your muscles can even be reduced. In addition this will recruit more slow twitch muscles as the intensity is lower.

4. Sprint Training

Routine Overview:

• Frequency: 1-2 times per week depending on how many sprint sets you do
• Duration: 20-25 minutes per session
• Progression: Increase number of sprints or sprint duration every 1-2 weeks

Sample Routine:

• Warm-Up: 5 minutes of light jogging and dynamic stretches
• Sprint Intervals:
  • Sprint: 30 seconds
  • Rest/Walk: 2 minutes
  • Repeat for 6-8 cycles
• Cool-Down: 5 minutes of walking or stretching

Progression Tips:

• Increase the number of sprints to 8 over time.
• Gradually increase sprint duration to 45-60 seconds.

Remember sprinting means 100% effort here! That is the minor difference between pure sprints and HIIT. Pure all out sprints require longer rest times between sets and you can’t do these as often as you can over train more easily. Listen to your body, if you feel ready and eager to sprint you likely are not yet over trained.

Sprint training is the premiere modality for becoming more explosive physically and recruiting more fast twitch muscles. Your stamina and explosiveness will improve and your muscle will become more dense, especially in the haunches.

5. Circuit Training

Routine Overview:

• Frequency: 3 times per week
• Duration: 30-45 minutes per session
• Progression: Increase the number of circuits or intensity every 1-2 weeks

Sample Routine:

• Warm-Up: 5 minutes of light cardio or dynamic stretches
• Circuit: Perform each exercise for 45 seconds, followed by 15 seconds of rest
  • Squats
  • Push-Ups
  • Bent-Over Rows
  • Lunges
  • Plank
  • Burpees
• Rest: 2 minutes between circuits
• Repeat: 3-4 times

Progression Tips:

• Increase the duration of each exercise to 60 seconds.
• Reduce rest periods to 10 seconds between exercises.

Circuit training is balanced and will provide some muscular gains as well as endurance.

Consistency and Monitoring

1. Regular Exercise Routine:
   • Consistency: Maintain a consistent exercise routine, incorporating a mix of resistance training, HIIT, and endurance exercises.
   • Progressive Overload: Gradually increase the intensity and volume of your workouts to continue challenging your body and promoting hormonal adaptation.
2. Track Progress:
   • Monitor Performance: Keep track of your workouts, noting improvements in strength, endurance, and overall fitness.
   • Regular Check-Ups: Consider regular check-ups with a healthcare provider to monitor testosterone levels and overall health.

Lifestyle and Nutritional Tips

1. Ensure Adequate Sleep:
   • Sleep Duration: Aim for 7-9 hours of quality sleep per night. Poor sleep can significantly lower testosterone levels.
   • Consistency: Maintain a regular sleep schedule to optimize hormonal balance.
2. Manage Stress:
   • Relaxation Techniques: Practice stress-reducing activities such as meditation, yoga, or deep-breathing exercises.
   • Avoid Overtraining: Ensure your workout routine includes adequate rest and recovery days to prevent chronic stress on the body.
3. Balanced Diet:
   • Healthy Fats: Include sources of healthy fats in your diet, such as avocados, nuts, seeds, and olive oil. Fats are crucial for hormone production.
   • Protein Intake: Ensure adequate protein intake to support muscle repair and growth. Good sources include lean meats, fish, eggs, and plant-based proteins.
   • Micronutrients: Consume a variety of fruits and vegetables to ensure sufficient intake of vitamins and minerals, particularly zinc and vitamin D, which are important for testosterone production.
4. Maintain a Healthy Weight:
   • Body Composition: Focus on maintaining a healthy balance between muscle mass and body fat. Excessive body fat, particularly visceral fat, can negatively impact testosterone levels.
5. Limit Alcohol and Avoid Smoking:
   • Moderation: Limit alcohol consumption as excessive drinking can lower testosterone levels.
   • Avoid Smoking: Smoking negatively affects overall health, including hormonal balance.

Summary

Incorporating specific exercise modalities into your fitness routine can significantly boost testosterone levels, enhancing overall health and fitness. Weight lifting or resistance training with compound movements, high-intensity interval training (HIIT), moderate endurance training, sprint training, and circuit training are all effective strategies. Each modality, when performed with the right frequency, intensity, and progression, can stimulate hormonal responses that increase testosterone and human growth hormone (HGH) levels. Coupled with a balanced diet, adequate sleep, and proper recovery, these exercise routines can optimize your hormonal health, improve muscle mass, and elevate physical performance. Consistency and mindful progression are key to achieving long-term benefits and maintaining hormonal balance.

Good luck and fortune in your journey of health and fitness!