Test boosters don't work. These 8 levers do, in priority order:
The supplement industry sells testosterone optimization in a bottle. The actual research says fix the basics first. In order of effect size:
Sleep 7-9 hours per night. Leproult & Van Cauter (2011) showed 5 hours of sleep for one week dropped total testosterone in healthy young men by 10-15%. Sleep is the single biggest lever.
Resistance training with compound lifts. Squats, deadlifts, presses produce acute T spikes. Long-term lifting raises baseline. Effect size beats any supplement.
Body fat under 20%. Adipose tissue contains aromatase, which converts testosterone into estrogen. Obese men have ~25% lower free T than lean men. Losing body fat raises T mechanically.
Vitamin D 2,000-4,000 IU/day if deficient. Get a blood test first. Supplementing past sufficient (~30 ng/mL) does nothing.
Zinc 15-30 mg/day if deficient. Same rule, only works if you're low.
Magnesium 200-400 mg/day. Most lifters are low. Glycinate or citrate. Don't bother with oxide.
Chronic stress management. Cortisol directly suppresses LH (luteinizing hormone), which suppresses T production. Meditation, walking, lower training stress, better sleep all help.
Cut alcohol. More than 2 drinks/day is measurably T-suppressive. Acute binges drop it for ~24 hours.
Things that don't move T in healthy men:
- Tribulus
- D-aspartic acid
- Fenugreek
- Most herbal "test boosters"
If you're in the "low T" range and have never fixed sleep, body fat, or alcohol, those need to come before any conversation about TRT.
Full article: https://virtusapp.ai/blog/how-to-increase-testosterone/