NAFC NewsBlast - October 2017 | Ed 3

Hormones - HGH/Testosterone, Yes or No?

Written by: Dr. Max MacCloud, DO, ND, PhD, The Health, Fitness & Nutrition Ninja

Source: My Body Symphony

Copyright: ankabala / 123RF Stock Photo

People Always Ask Me…

Should I try and get my doctor to prescribe HGH and/or Testosterone to help me add muscle?

Athletes have been looking for “an edge” from the earliest times. These days it has spilled over into the general population. It’s not just competitive athletes who are looking for an edge, it’s almost everyone, even people that barely workout! It’s INSANE.

Here’s what I tell

people when they ask about taking supplemental hormones to build muscle. First I ask them why they want more muscle. Of course, there are several legitimate reasons but I just want to see if they actually have one. Next, I ask them what they’ve been doing and what their results are. If they aren’t training hard and eating right I just walk away in disgust and tell them to stop wasting my time (freaking morons).

Now, for those that are serious

and have been doing the basic essential things, I’ll dig a bit deeper. I ask what they are doing to stimulate the production, release, and balance of their own endogenously produced anabolic hormones (hGH, testosterone, estrogen, and insulin). Typically I get a blank stare at this point. Then I explain that there are several things that they can do to increase their own HGH and Testosterone production and secretion of these important hormones and before they should consider taking exogenous hormones (i.e., pharmaceuticals) they should at least maximize their body’s production and release first.

Here are my quick and dirty recommendations

to do just that. First and foremost, make sure you’re getting enough quality protein and healthy fats in your diet, they are the building blocks of hormones. Next, make sure that you’re doing some heavy movements at least a few times a week. It takes significant, nearly all-out effort to stimulate the release of key anabolic hormones like HGH and Testosterone. Get enough high-quality sleep and pay attention to proper sleep hygiene. Incorporate High-Intensity Interval Training a few times a week. Try doing some Intermittent Modified Fasting a few days a week.

The science and physiology

behind all of those recommendations gets pretty intense so feel free to spend some time searching them for a better understanding of why they work to boost HGH, Testosterone, and to balance many other hormones BUT in the meantime start experimenting with them.

Many books have been written

So, just when people were finally starting to “get it” there is this insane resurgence of high meat consumption. Much of the frenzy was fed by the “CrossFit” phenomenon. That will be the topic of another post (yes, I have some issues with it as well).

See the link below to my 21 Day Build-It Intensive that helps to explain each of the recommendation in more detail and puts them in the context of a program to try.

Click here for our Website: My Body Symphony

Written by: Dr. Max MacCloud, DO, ND, PhD, The Health, Fitness & Nutrition Ninja