Let’s be honest, men don’t talk testosterone. I wouldn’t say it’s a touchy subject, but it’s just not talked about. Want to hear somebody laugh? Ask someone what their T levels are.

The fact is that males start to decrease in testosterone at about age 30. I actually just turned 35, so I am very interested in this topic. I am particularly interested in how to increase testosterone naturally. No pills, but maybe with some luck and hard work. Thrills!

Here are the natural ways to naturally boost testosterone and how an infrared sauna can help.

• Lose weight – If you are overweight, losing weight will get your testosterone levels back to normal levels. I’m not saying that if you are overweight that your t levels are down – it’s just more likely. I have dealt with this myself when I was 40 pounds overweight. Besides lack of concentration, I just felt lethargic in all avenues of my life.

While consistently using an infrared sauna will help with weight loss, the best way will be through your diet. Counting your calories allows for you to take inventory of what you are putting in your body. One of the easiest ways to cut some calories is by not drinking them. I only drink coffee, water and sparkling water and maybe some fresh juice on the weekends. Try and create a budget of an amount of calories you want to eat each day and stick to it. When I’m trying to lose weight I’ll shoot for 1800-2000 calories per day. It’s not that hard if you just monitor your intake and stick to it.

The following 8 bullet points will help with weight loss as well as naturally boosting your testosterone levels.

• Eat saturated fats – Who doesn’t like avocados? Guess what? They just got better! Eating avocados will actually increase testosterone levels! What you want to do is make sure that half of your diet consists of saturated fats that includes nuts, meats, and eggs. By doing this your testosterone levels will rise over time.

So next time you’re snacking, reach for some nuts or slice up an avocado – or do both!

• Reduce stress – As we know from this blog and my book on infrared saunas, stress is very bad. It’s especially bad for testosterone levels. When you are stressed, your body releases the stress hormone cortisol. This actually blocks the effects of testosterone. What you will want to do is to start slow. Don’t expect a rapid change overnight. But when I’m in a funk mentally, I will start going for long walks, go for a nice long swim and watching what I eat. Limiting alcohol is also very important. I also notice that I tend to get out of rhythm when I’m not using my sauna everyday. The sauna just has such a nice way of physically and mentally draining you of all negative thoughts and feelings. My infrared sauna tip that I have for anyone interested is to take a very hot steam shower right after you get out of the sauna.

• Weight Training – Lifting very heavy weights is great for boosting your t levels. Make sure you ease into this one. Like everyone, I have fallen out of lifting and then gotten back in to it. In order to lift to boost testosterone, make sure you are lifting so that on your last rep you are barely finishing. I aim for 6 reps; for maximum effect, do your reps slow. This will also help to build muscle faster.

• High intensity training – Short 30 second bursts of exercise can really help to boost testosterone. Sprinting is a great way to accomplish this. However, if you have had previous injuries like I have, I prefer to swim sprint. On a related note, a great way to boost lung capacity when swimming is to do fewer laps but swim as fast as you can. Do this everyday and you’ll be happy you did.

• Zinc – Research has shown that men who have low t levels who take zinc have experienced a large increase in testosterone over the span of just six weeks. Meats and fish are a great source of zinc, however, the more you cook either meat or fish, the more zinc gets cooked out of it.

If you decide to take a zinc supplement, make sure you ease your way into taking zinc. I originally bought 50 mg tablets, but I ended cutting them in half into 25 mg and taking one per day.

• Get outside – Vitamin D is a great source of free testosterone. Additionally, it’s actually a steroid hormone that is essential to maintain healthy sperm and sperm count. I personally recommend not taking a supplement on this one. However, get outside as close to noon as possible and expose as much skin as possible to the sun. I try to time my daily swim to get the maximum amount of sun exposure per day.

• Eat more protein – Without question, your diet is going to be the most important thing on this list. Eating healthy is going to help you with every other item on this list. From losing weight, getting a natural source of zinc and saturated fats from lean meats, allow for great muscle building and recovery, and allow for a better night sleep which will result in reduced stress.

• Get in the sauna! – Like I always say, infrared saunas are not cure alls. However, they can do a great job to reduce stress, help you lose weight and keep you healthy. All things being equal, if you are healthy now, it really is the best time to start using an infrared sauna. It is much more of a preventative device than retroactive5