My #1 Super Saiyan Sleep Hack, Fasting Increases Testosterone by 1300%!
"My enemies don't sleep, and that's why they will lose"
The #1 Sleep Hack according to…ME.
Nope. It’s not meditation, it’s not eating a bowl of tart cherries, it’s not guzzling melatonin pills, and it’s definitely smoking a blunt before bed =)
In fact, contrary to popular belief, smoking weed before bed has ANTI-quality sleep effects - but that’s for another newsletter.
The sleep hack I’m talking about is getting yourself HOT with an evening sauna.
Sounds counter-intuitive, right? Why would you want to heat up your body before bed when your body requires it’s core temperature to decrease as the signal to sleep?
Let me get into the benefits of sauna for sleep, and then I’ll get into my weekly sauna protocol for the best sleeps of my life.
Promotes Relaxation: The heat from the sauna helps relax muscles and soothe tension, leading to a calming effect on the body. This relaxation can make it easier to fall asleep and improve sleep quality.
Enhances Circulation: The warmth of the sauna increases blood flow and circulation, which can reduce stress and promote a sense of well-being, contributing to better sleep.
Improves Sleep Onset: After leaving the sauna, your body temperature drops, mimicking the natural drop in body temperature that occurs before sleep. This can help you fall asleep more quickly.
Reduces Stress Hormones: Sauna use has been shown to lower levels of cortisol, the stress hormone. Lower cortisol levels can make it easier to relax and prepare the mind for sleep.
Boosts Endorphins: The sauna stimulates the release of endorphins, the body's natural "feel-good" hormones. These can enhance mood and promote a more restful sleep.
Supports Deep Sleep: Regular sauna use may help increase the amount of time spent in deep sleep, the most restorative phase of sleep, leading to better overall rest and recovery.
Aids in Detoxification: Sweating in a sauna helps eliminate toxins from the body, which can contribute to overall health and improve sleep patterns.
So, what is my personal experience with evenings sauna?
I’ll tell it to you straight: an hour after a sauna session, my eyes go blood-shot red (I don’t think it’s a bad thing), I feel super light as if I’m floating, and I get a huge wave of drowsiness hit me like a ton of bricks.
It’s a great feeling.
I notice that my sleep is deeper by the alertness I feel the next day.
I notice that I dream more vividly.
And I notice my energy levels increase for my training.
Hands down, a good night’s sleep is the most potent pre-workout supplement in the world. Nothing comes close.
Here’s my sauna protocol:
6PM - I turn on the sauna in my condo
7PM - I get in and do 3 rounds of 10-minutes
9:30-10PM - I sleep like a baby.
I do this as many times as I can throughout the week and average ~5 days/week.
If you don’t have the luxury of gaining access to a sauna, there is decent evidence that hot baths and/or showers can have a similar effect, but it’s just not as powerful.
If you do have access to a sauna, what in the world are you waiting for?
Go and take advantage of the sleep gains and then reply to this email 2 weeks later to thank me 🙂Blogs help you connect with your audience on a more personal level and allow them to interact with you in an individual capacity. Blogging also helps to present viewers with fresh content regularly.
Fasting increases testosterone levels by 1300!
Watch the controversial video here (Couldn’t find the original video. I think she deleted it)
Are these claims by Dr. Mindy Pelz actually true?
Let’s break it down.
Claim: Men see a 1,300% increase in testosterone from a 13-15 hour fast.
This review of the effects of intermittent fasting on reproductive hormone levels in females and males showed that fasting reduced testosterone levels in lean physically active young males (1 to 27% reduction)
Seems like she pulled these numbers out of thin air, as there are other studies showing either no change or a decrease in testosterone levels from fasting.
She’s likely mixing up testosterone with growth hormone, except growth hormone is not anabolic to skeletal muscle. It only increases connective tissue and total body water. The studies also show that even though there may be a rise in growth hormone, it comes back to baseline after 48 hours. Therefore, the short term rise in growth hormone isn’t significant a tall.
But Darren, what about autophagy?
The unpopular truth is: you don’t need to fast to increase autophagy. You can simply restrict calories to increase autophagy. (PMIDs: 30172870 & 30430746)
Takeaways:
Careful listening to chiropractors on fitness and nutrition using big platforms
Always look at the research from Randomized Control Human Trials.
Get in the habit of questioning anything that sounds too good to be true, because it probably is.
Client Of The Week: Meet Nicholas!
The Singaporean diet is tough to navigate…
Heavily greasy.
Fatty meats.
Super calorie-dense delicacies.
BUT — if you had the right system and support, it is 100% possible to achieve lasting fat loss and better health 🤙
We taught him how to track.
We taught him how to navigate social meals.
We taught him how to be efficient in the gym.
We didn’t program extra cardio.
We didn’t restrict any food.
We didn’t promise him a quick fix.
He committed to the work and it’s showing. Proud of this guy!
Next phase: LEAN-BULK 💪⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
It’s time to put on more muscle to elevate that quality of life.
Thanks for reading, friends! See you next week.
- Darren
Is it your turn? Here’s how we can help:
1. If you’re a crazy busy professional, executive, or entrepreneur that’s also a parent looking to lose fat, build muscle, and gain loads of energy… Apply for our VIP private coaching here.
2. Subscribe to my YouTube to get a deeper look into my lifestyle and how we help people crush their fitness.
