The diet that boosts testosterone and burns calories

As men age, their once sky-high testosterone levels can begin to dip. And with that dip can come some issues.

Low testosterone can mean flabby muscles, more weight around the middle and that infamous “Dad Bod.” Crashing levels of the hormone can also crash a man’s sex drive, possibly contributing to sexual dysfunction.

So what can be done? Are men just supposed to accept that going from stud to dud is a normal progression of aging and give up?

No way! Not when the fix could be as simple as changing to a diet that increases both testosterone and calorie burn…

Slimmer, trimmer and raring to go

The study, presented to the European Congress of Endocrinology, set out to determine the hormonal effects of following a low-calorie, ketogenic diet for men whose testosterone needed a boost.

The researchers chose a ketogenic diet because of the effects previous research had demonstrated for weight loss.

You see, for men, obesity and low testosterone levels can go hand-in-hand and are often a chicken and the egg situation. Obesity can kick off testosterone decline. And low level so testosterone can leave the body burning fewer calories and lead to weight gain.

Talk about a cycle you don’t want to get stuck in!

But since a very low-cal keto diet has been shown to help take off the weight, especially in men, the research team theorized it could also lead to rising T-levels.

So, they chose 17 overweight or obese men to follow the diet for four full weeks. And they tested their hormones after one week and at the end of the study.

And sure enough, following the diet made a big difference…

The research determined that after following a recommended low-calorie ketogenic diet for four weeks:

• Bodyweight, fat mass and body mass index (BMI) significantly decreased
• Total testosterone levels went way up
• A substantial increase was noted in all sex hormones
• Improved testicular function

And that’s good news for men everywhere since testosterone is responsible for healthy sexual function, a strong sex drive, and a lean, mean metabolism.

So what was this low-cal keto diet the men followed?

Well, according to the research, the men stuck to a daily limit of 800 calories, eating little protein and very little carbohydrates. Basically, keto focuses on healthy fats and low-carb veggies.

Pretty simple!

One more testosterone secret

Don’t forget to consider other factors that could lead to testosterone suppression. A big one to keep in mind is the hormone problem known as estrogen dominance.

This issue is due to xenoestrogens — hormone disruptors that you come in contact with every day in the form of plastics, personal care and household products, building supplies, pesticides and even foods, especially takeout foods. These slip into your body and mimic estrogen, throwing your natural male hormones out of balance. Estrogen dominance can affect both men and women.

For men, estrogen dominance can mean decreased testosterone, less stamina, flaccid muscles and an increase in body fat — in addition to prostate problems like the frequent need to urinate and low libido.

Luckily, there’s a way to beat these artificial estrogens and flush them out of your body.

The secret is a compound called Di-Indole Methane, or DIM for short.

DIM is found in cruciferous vegetables like broccoli, cauliflower, and cabbage. But it takes far more of this little compound than what you can get by sitting down to a dinner packed with veggies.

In fact, it would take a minimum of three pounds of broccoli every day to grab all of DIM’s hormone-supporting benefits. Fortunately, the nutrient is available in supplement form.

Sources:

New research reveals that a low-calorie ketogenic diet can help testosterone levels in overweight men – EurekAlert!