How Does Testosterone Affect Muscle Mass and Muscle Strength?

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Testosterone is tied to many things such as sex drive, but it is quite important for a wide range of other things as well.

One aspect of male body health heavily affected by testosterone levels is muscle mass. The amount of muscle mass a person can build and maintain is heavily impacted by the level of testosterone in their body. Those who are low in testosterone may experience a loss of muscle mass or difficulty building back muscle mass.

If you want to understand the role that testosterone has on muscle mass, then you are in the right place. We’re going to conduct a complete analysis of the effects of testosterone on muscle mass and the role that testosterone plays in maintaining muscle mass. Whether you want to learn more about testosterone and muscle mass or you are a frequent gym-goer who wants to understand more about testosterone, your body, and muscle mass, we’ll provide you with everything you need to know about testosterone and its effect on your muscles.

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Testosterone: Not Just for Men

While many people associate testosterone with being a male hormone, it is necessary for the bodies of both men and women. Testosterone’s roles in sexual function, red blood cell production, facial and body hair growth, fat mass regulation, and masculine characteristics are well-documented.

It’s also important for muscle growth in men and women, despite being more commonly associated with men. It’s produced by testicles (in males), ovaries (in females) and adrenal glands (in both) after receiving signals in the form of luteinizing hormone and follicle stimulating hormone from the brain.

Though testosterone is present in normal males and females, it is the primary dominant hormone in men. Men with low testosterone production can feel several negative side effects. For that reason, many men are worried about the level of testosterone in their bodies.

How Does Testosterone Help Build Muscle?

One of the many important roles of testosterone is building muscle by stimulating protein synthesis – the process that repairs and enlarges muscle fibres after resistance training.

When boys go through puberty, it is testosterone that helps increase their muscle mass and bone density to transform their physique.

Higher testosterone also increases nitrogen retention in muscles which further helps with muscle growth and recovery.

5 Benefits of Testosterone for Muscle Mass and Muscle Strength

Testosterone is an androgen hormone that produces various anabolic effects in the body, including the building of muscle mass, increased bone density, and other growth of the body.

Here are its top 5 benefits for muscle mass:

1. Increases Protein Synthesis

Testosterone stimulates muscle cells to produce more muscle protein which is required for muscle growth, repair, recovery and regeneration. In this way, it contributes to an increase in muscle mass over time.

2. Maintains Muscle Mass

Having a regular amount of testosterone will allow your muscles to develop correctly and help you maintain muscle mass. Men who are low in testosterone can have trouble building and maintaining muscle mass.

3. Supports Muscle Growth and Satellite Cell Activation

Satellite cells are the muscle stem cells that differentiate into new muscle fibres when activated.

Testosterone promotes satellite cell activation and formation, causing fibre enlargement, muscle hypertrophy and an increase in muscle growth capacity.

4. Increases Nitrogen Retention

By inducing nitrogen retention, testosterone creates an environment where muscles can grow and repair quickly.

5. Shortens Recovery Time

Higher testosterone levels shorten recovery time between workouts. It helps you work out more consistently and reduce muscle breakdown.

One thing to be aware of is that even with the proper amount of testosterone, you cannot build much muscle mass unless you are working out and eating the right food regularly. If you want to maximise your muscle mass, increase your testosterone levels, do regular exercise and eat healthy food.

Can You Still Build Muscle with Low Testosterone?

It’s possible to build muscle with low testosterone levels but it’ll take much more time, energy and consistent effort.

Low testosterone can make a person lose muscle mass and even motivation to work out. In this way, it can turn the entire muscle-building process more challenging.

With consistent training and proper diet, you may still be able to see some gains with time but progress will likely be slower.

It’s best to first restore your testosterone levels with medical interventions like testosterone replacement therapy (TRT).

Get your testosterone levels checked via a testosterone blood test to see if they are within the normal range or not.

Does TRT help build muscles?

Testosterone treatment (TRT) is a proven hormone therapy used to treat hypogonadism or testosterone deficiency in men. Studies show it offers many benefits including an increase in muscle mass and skeletal muscle strength.

In a study of 43 men, researchers divided participants into four groups:

1. No testosterone and no exercise group
2. Testosterone with no exercise group
3. Exercise but no testosterone group
4. Testosterone plus exercise group

They found out that men who got testosterone without exercise gained more muscle size compared to men who only got a placebo (fake treatment). And men who got testosterone plus exercise had the biggest improvements overall. Similarly, the exercise but no testosterone group also improved strength and size but not as much as when combined with testosterone.

In addition to supporting muscle growth, TRT offers many other benefits such as improved mood, increased energy, and improved bone density (low fracture risk). TRT also has some side effects, including acne, mood changes, and worsening of some health conditions, such as prostate cancer, breast cancer, etc.

How Long to Build Muscle on TRT?

The duration for muscle building can vary from person to person based on your age, nutrition, overall health and training consistency.

Studies show that TRT muscle growth begins to show in 12 to 16 weeks (about 3 to 4 months). And then the progress stabilises after around 6 to 12 months. Small, gradual improvements still happen for several years.

What are Anabolic Steroids?

Those who are seeking to maximise their muscle growth may have heard of anabolic steroids before.

Anabolic steroids are drugs designed to increase the amount of testosterone in the body. People use high doses to stimulate muscle growth and increase the positive muscle growth effects that testosterone has on the body.

Even though taking high doses of steroids increases muscle mass and strength and athletic performance, it comes with some serious side effects, especially with long-term steroid use. These include an increased risk of cardiovascular disease, blood clot formation, liver damage, male infertility, etc. Also internal testosterone levels drop significantly in men who take high testosterone doses.

Read the difference between anabolic steroids and TRT here.

Natural Ways to Boost Testosterone

A boost in testosterone could change your life and help you overcome some of the side effects that come along with low testosterone.

Here are some ways that you can naturally increase testosterone in your body.

Change Your Diet

One of the best ways to raise the level of testosterone in your body is to change your diet and get proper nutrition. Your testosterone levels correspond to your level of overall health. So, if you eat poorly and don’t exercise, then it can negatively impact your testosterone levels.

There are specific foods that you should be eating if you want to increase your testosterone. These include testosterone-boosting foods like broccoli, brussels sprouts, mustard, turnip, cabbage, cauliflower, and kale. These are foods that will lower estrogen levels, thus raising testosterone levels.

However, you should also know that it doesn’t always have to be complicated when it comes to choosing foods to include in your diet. Having a healthy diet goes a long way when it comes to raising your testosterone levels.

Reduce Stress

Another step that you can and should take if you want to raise your testosterone levels naturally is to reduce stress whenever possible. Stress is generally seen as bad for your general health and your body. This is backed up by studies and statistics.

What many people might not know, however, is that heavy and prolonged stress in your life can bring down your testosterone levels. Having too much stress in your life or not managing stress effectively can cause low testosterone and associated symptoms.

If you hope to avoid having low testosterone from stress, you should seek to do one or two things about it. The first is that you should seek to reduce stress whenever possible. While this can sometimes be difficult, the payoff from being able to do this is immense.

The next thing you should do is try to handle the stress more effectively. If you can handle the stress in your life more effectively and not let it impact your general health as much, you can experience huge health benefits.

Sleep More

One of the most common reasons that men experience lower testosterone and poor general health is that they don’t get enough sleep. Subjecting your body to prolonged periods wherein you don’t get enough sleep is a surefire way to set you up for decreased testosterone.

If you are looking to naturally increase your testosterone, you need to be sure that you are giving your body every opportunity possible to get the sleep and rest that it needs. Not doing so could mean that you start to experience lowered testosterone. Your muscle tissue and many other things could suffer as a result.

Increase Sexual Activity

A very common side effect of lowered testosterone is decreased sex drive and libido. However, if you want to increase testosterone naturally, you should have sex more.

Testosterone is produced by sex organs and when you have more activity with those organs, the level of testosterone may rise.

This assertion is backed up by an Australian research study that showed that a decline in serum testosterone levels was partially linked to decreased sexual activity.

Click here for more natural ways to increase your sex hormone testosterone.

Who Should Increase Their Testosterone?

Though there are a variety of ways to increase testosterone, many men are left wondering if increasing testosterone is the right step for them. Sometimes, the natural approach is enough but for some men, stronger methods are required.

To determine which approach is best for you, always speak with a medical professional who can evaluate your specific set of circumstances and help guide you to a solution that is best for you. You should seek out a medical professional who specialises in testosterone or a testosterone clinic.

Reasons to Boost Testosterone

You may be wondering what some of the reasons there are for men wanting to raise their testosterone. Here are some of the reasons that men choose to boost their testosterone.

Low Testosterone

If you have ever had low testosterone before, then you know that it’s not the most fun thing to deal with in the world.

Men who are going through low testosterone in their bodies are often very eager to address the issue because of how much it can interfere with their daily lives.

Men who are experiencing low testosterone will often experience symptoms such as low sex drive, decreased muscle mass, depression, lack of motivation, and many other symptoms that can have a heavy impact on their lives. That is the reason that so many men are very adamant about wanting to raise total testosterone hormone levels.

Once normal testosterone levels are gained, there are plenty more benefits you can enjoy by continuing to boost testosterone such as a higher sex drive, more confidence, and increased self-esteem.

Low Testosterone Symptoms

Muscle Building

Another reason that many men seek to raise the level of testosterone is to enjoy the benefits that raised testosterone has on the ability to build muscle in the body. It’s no secret that testosterone is one of the main ingredients in the body that helps to build muscle.

Building muscle with increased testosterone is very feasible. There are several products and medications that will allow you to do so.

However, you cannot rely solely on taking increased testosterone in order to build muscle mass. It will not happen overnight. If you are looking to increase your muscle mass by taking testosterone supplements, then you should be prepared to dedicate yourself to the cause and not only take testosterone supplements but also go to the gym and work out.

However, you could indeed experience enhanced fitness and muscle mass by taking testosterone boosters and using testosterone replacement therapy while you are also working out and taking care of your body.

Watch Our Video Discussion Around TRT and Muscle Mass

FAQs about Testosterone and Muscle Mass

Does increased muscle mass increase testosterone?

Building muscles via strength training and resistance exercise can increase healthy testosterone levels. However, having more muscle mass by itself doesn’t directly cause an increase in testosterone.

Does testosterone make you stronger?

Testosterone can help men gain strength through increased muscle mass and bone density.

How much testosterone do bodybuilders take?

Bodybuilders take supraphysiological doses (much higher than medical recommendations). Reports suggest that bodybuilders take 400mg or more testosterone per week.

Does testosterone increase muscle mass in females?

Yes, testosterone also increases muscle mass in females by increasing their muscle protein synthesis.

Final Thoughts

In conclusion, testosterone plays a crucial role in male health, especially in maintaining muscle mass and lean body mass. Understanding its impact can help you address issues related to low testosterone, such as muscle loss, difficulty in muscle building, mood swings and erectile dysfunction.

By maintaining normal testosterone levels, through both natural methods and testosterone therapy if necessary, you can improve your overall well-being and physical performance.

If you think you may be suffering from low testosterone, get in contact with us today. Book your FREE consultation by clicking the button below. Our specialised doctors can assess your symptoms and potential treatment options.

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References

Zhang, W., Cui, Z., Shen, D., Gao, L. and Li, Q., 2025. Testosterone levels positively linked to muscle mass but not strength in adult males aged 20–59 years: a cross-sectional study. Frontiers in Physiology, 16, p.1512268.

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