Does regular weightlifting cause an increase in baseline testosterone levels?

[Oceano]

Yeah, does weightlifting without steroids cause an increase in baseline testosterone levels over time (i.e. months)?

and does having a high % bodyfat cause a decrease in baseline testosterone?

thanks for all your replies in advance.

 

[thegoodfoods]

An ex-professional bodybuilder from the 80's once told me that doing Deadlifts, over time, may in fact increase your natural testosterone levels. So i do think it's a possiblity.

Don't know about the BF fact, though

 

[perp69]

So it has been said. Also growth hormone levels. Which makes sense I guess if you think about it. How else will we grow when we lift?

Perp

 

[dsh89]

I cannot site any studies, but this is something that you should research. It would make sense that it does, and I do believe that I have heard it does.

 

[solidspine]

I did a quick search and could not confer or refute this, none of the studies I looked at, addressed your question.

But as mentioned above, it seems that it must?

 

[solidspine]

Good study

http://www.trygve.com/mfw_faq.html

 

[jochensa]

http://www.medical-library.net/sites/framer.html?/sites/_human_growth_hormone_(hgh).html

 

[talus29]

I once read in a magazine that a bunch of scientist had two groups of people training twice a week. One group would only train legs and the other would circuit train the entire body without legs.. The conclusion was the first group who only did legs had gained more mass on the entire body than the second. They concluded that leg traininig would release more testorone/hormones than any other body part ..

 

[Magick69]

yes

: Int J Sports Med. 2006 Oct 6

Hormonal Responses after a Strength Endurance Resistance Exercise Protocol in Young and Elderly Males.Smilios I, Pilianidis T, Karamouzis M, Parlavantzas A, Tokmakidis SP.
Department of Physical Education and Sport Science, Democritus University of Thrace, Komotini, Greece.

This study examined testosterone, cortisol and growth hormone responses in elderly and young men after a strength endurance protocol. Eight elderly (age: 69 +/- 5 yrs) and nine young (age: 23 +/- 1 yrs) males with recreational experience in resistance training performed a strength endurance protocol, which included six exercises. At each exercise, the subjects performed 3 sets of 15 reps at 60 % of 1-RM with a 90 s rest interval between sets. The subjects also participated in a control session. Hormonal and blood lactate concentrations were measured before exercise, immediately after exercise and 15 min after the end of exercise. Blood lactate increased (p < 0.05) with resistance exercise in both age groups with the highest increases observed in the young males. Testosterone and cortisol concentrations were higher (p < 0.05) immediately and 15 min after exercise as compared to the respective control session values in both young and elderly subjects, whereas no differences were observed between groups (p > 0.05). Growth hormone concentration increased (p < 0.05) after resistance exercise compared to the control session in both age groups. This increase was higher (p < 0.05) in the young as compared to the elderly group. The above results show that a moderate intensity - high repetition resistance exercise protocol for the improvement of strength endurance, seems to be a sufficient stimulus that increases testosterone, growth hormone and cortisol concentrations in elderly males. These hormonal responses may create an optimal metabolic environment, which improves muscular function after a strength endurance program although the elderly subjects present an attenuated growth hormone response compared to younger ones.

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Can J Appl Physiol. 2002 Jun;27(3):213-31. Links

Effects of heavy resistance/power training on maximal strength, muscle morphology, and hormonal response patterns in 60-75-year-old men and women.
Hakkinen K, Kraemer WJ, Pakarinen A, Triplett-McBride T, McBride JM, Hakkinen A, Alen M, McGuigan MR, Bronks R, Newton RU.
Department of Biology of Physical Activity and Neuromuscular Research Center, University of Jyvaskyla, Finalnd.

Eleven women (TRW; 64 +/- 4 yrs) and ten men (TRM; 65 +/- 5 yrs) participated in the strength/power training twice a week for 24 weeks. Basal concentrations of serum total and free testosterone, growth hormone (GH), dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate (DHEAS), cortisol and sex hormone binding globulin (SHBG) as well as acute responses of serum total and free testosterone, growth hormone (GH) were measured. Maximal 1RM strength in the squat, chair rise time and muscle fibre distribution and areas of type I and IIa and IIb of the vastus lateralis were also examined. 1RM squat increased in TRW by 26 (SD10)% (p < .001), and in TRM by 35 (7)% (p < .001) and chair rise time improved in both groups (p < .001). Fibre areas increased in type I, (p < .01), IIa (p < .01) and IIb (p < .01) in TRM and type I (p < .05) and IIa (p < .05) in TRW. The proportion of type IIa increased from 31% to 43% (p < .05) in TRW and that of type IIb decreased from 27% to 17% (p < .05) in TRW and from 25% to 17% (p < .05) in TRM. Individual concentrations of testosterone/cortisol ratios correlated (r = 0.63; p < .05) with the individual increases in 1RM strength in TRW. The exercise sessions resulted in acute increases in serum GH in both groups (p < .05) with a further increase (p < .01) up to 10 minutes post-loading in TRM at post-training.

PMID: 12180315 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]