Lifestyle improvement more important than TRT for obese men with low testosterone

Definition: "An ergogenic aid is any substance or phenomenon that enhances performance "

17.05.2023

Obese men with testosterone levels that are too low become slimmer, fitter and stronger if they lose weight and start exercising. If they also start using testosterone replacement therapy [TRT], the added value is modest.

Study

Researchers at the Veteran Affairs Medical Center in Houston, USA, experimented with about 80 males over the age of 65. All subjects were obese and hypogonadal. So their BMI was higher than 30 and their testosterone level was lower than 10.4 nanomoles per litre.

The researchers got the men to train for an hour in a gym three times a week for six months. At the same time, they let the men lose weight.

Half of the men also received testosterone replacement therapy [LT+Test]. In this case, this meant that the men applied 40 milligrams of testosterone in the form of a gel to their skin in the morning. In theory, this should raise their testosterone levels considerably. If tests showed it wasn't, the men increased their dose.

The other half of the men received a gel without testosterone [LT+Pbo].

Results
The effect of the lifestyle change - read: the weight loss program and the training program - outweighed the administration of testosterone. Alle men became leaner, stronger and scored better on tests that gave an impression of the subjects' physical functioning. TRT was not a factor in most cases.

Click on the table for a larger version.

The slimming program was at the expense of 2.4 kilos of muscle mass, but administration of testosterone halved this loss of muscle tissue. The training program improved the men's ability to absorb oxygen, but administration of testosterone added even more.

Finally, the men in the lifestyle group lost a little bone mass, while the men who also received testosterone gained a little bone mass.

The researchers also assigned the subjects a total score for all measured physical effects [PPT]. The increase in this score was the same in both groups.

Source:
J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 2021 Mar 8;106(3):e1096-e1110.

More:
Strength training with or without anabolic steroids | This is the difference 01.02.2021

Archives:
Anabolic Substances
(Anti-)Aging Muscles



Testosterone not a miracle cure for older men Amazing stuff, testosterone. Put it in a gel and get older men to spread it over their skin, and lo and behold: fading Lotharios come back to life.	Testosterone helps depression Men experiencing a mid-life crisis perk up after a six-week course of testosterone injections.	DHEA improves body composition of older men Meta-study.