How to Optimize Testosterone & Estrogen

In this episode, I discuss testosterone and estrogen hormones and how they impact the brain, body, and behavior after puberty. I also discuss how various behaviors such as exercise (resistance and endurance training) and sex or observing sex impact these hormones and their levels. I ask: "what specifically is it about such activities that impact testosterone and estrogen?"; the resounding theme is that when our nervous system is activated in particular ways, it drives our endocrine system and vascular system to activate or repress certain hormone networks in predictable ways. I also discuss peer-reviewed studies and protocols addressing (at a mechanistic level) how light, cold and heat, and respiration (breathing) can positively or negatively impact testosterone and estrogen. We discuss specific supplements and compounds that peer-reviewed studies illustrate can adjust testosterone and estrogen levels by changing their binding to other proteins, raising them directly, or changing other hormones released from the brain and pituitary. I discuss optimization in the normal reference ranges for these hormones, and I discuss pheromones, apnea, menstrual cycles, menopause and andropause. Read the full show notes for this episode at hubermanlab.com. Thank you to our sponsors AG1: https://athleticgreens.com/huberman LMNT: https://drinklmnt.com/hubermanlab Waking Up: https://www.wakingup.com/huberman Timestamps 00:00:00 Introduction   00:00:26 Sponsors: AG1, LMNT & Waking Up   00:05:50 Hormone Optimization   00:07:00 Salutogenesis: A Powerful Way to Conceptualize Health   00:10:03 Estrogen and Testosterone: Sources, Levels and Ratios   00:15:46 The Power of Competition, Plus: Anxiety, Persistence and Dopamine   00:20:58 Testosterone and Libido Pre-Ovulation   00:21:48 Estrogen and Sexual Receptivity; Libido In Males   00:23:10 How Sex Behavior Impacts Testosterone: Observing vs. Actual vs. Abstinence   00:26:46 Testosterone and Prolactin: Sex Seeking vs. Pair Bonding   00:27: