Does too much rowing diminish your testosterone?

[lindsayh]

People don't like to see doctors because they may not like what they hear from them. Not seeing not seeing a doctor because of that reason reminds me of the sayings, "Ignorance is bliss" and "What you don't know won't hurt you". What you don't know about your health can hurt you badly. It could possibly even kill you. I've always said that this forum has great value when it comes to advice concerning training, taking care of equipment, and the topic of rowing in general. But when seeking medical advice is involved, it's not very good at all. In some cases, it could even be harmful. You get opinions of well meaning amateurs who really know very little about specific medical problems. Occasionally, someone qualified in the field of health care will take part in a discussion, but that's pretty rare. The only place to get meaningful advice concerning these matters is by making an appointment to see (you won't like these words very much) a medical professional.
If you don't care to know the state of your health, that's your choice. However, if you continue to stay away from doctors, the next time you see one may unfortunately be if you become very ill or even worse, actually are dying. If that should happen, talk about testosterone levels won't mean very much.

Sekitori I couldn't agree more thanks for saying it (I had held back!). Anth - if you haven't found a doctor you trust (first) and like (second) then IMO it is best to find one - by and large whilst not perfect they are the best trained professional people in our community with a commitment to what is best to their patients (they actually take an oath about that). I reckon it is absolutely essential to establish a long term relationship with a medical professional if you want to stay well and live a long time. Even if you are well now. Even if you only 35y now.

[Gammmmo]

I HATE DOCTORS. Unless i feel like i'm dying, you couldn't drag me to one.

People don't like to see doctors because they may not like what they hear from them. Not seeing not seeing a doctor because of that reason reminds me of the sayings, "Ignorance is bliss" and "What you don't know won't hurt you". What you don't know about your health can hurt you badly. It could possibly even kill you.

This. I can never understand people's reluctance to see a doctor - you've paid your taxes so go to them - it's their job. Not going out of burying one's head in the sand is madness as is some men's idea that it's not a macho thing to do and that "there's nothing really wrong with them" or they should just put up with things. It's almost like self sabotage.

[Anth_F]

In all fairness my GP and doctors are absolutely useless... they would have trouble diagnosing a cold ffs. I have no clue as to how they even make the grade in their profession.

And after what happened with my mum (which is another story i don't want to go into) They should have been taken to the cleaners.

If i ever feel really sick for any long period then i would go. I DON'T FEEL SICK... I FEEL GOOD, +things are picking up elsewhere... which i have already mentioned enough in here, and it seems to be either going over heads, or just not registering. Feeling good overall generally, and going to the doctors about that seems like a bit of a head scratcher!!

In fact the only times i have been feeling a bit bad lately is when i come on here and get halfwits giving me a ribbing for my workouts

Wonder if i can get something off the Doc for it

[left coaster]

Others on this forum have mentioned how easy it is to overtrain on the erg. The consensus seems to be that the low impact nature of the exercise, combined with the ability to train at high intensity, creates optimal conditions for overtraining. I did this a bit in the early days when I got my erg. The indicator wasn't a change in sex drive for me, it was an early plateau in progress with my times. I progress faster on the erg with at least 2 days off a week regardless of how may 'slow and steady' sessions I do etc.

I wonder if this thread has derailed a bit with the focus on testosterone levels. Perhaps, as you indicated earlier in the thread, you were just training too hard too soon. AuzieLuke makes a great point about needing to develop awareness of different intensity levels so he could train more frequently without overtraining. For many, overtraining is associated with a state of feeling chronically exhausted -- this on it's own would be enough to make getting it on with your lady seem like a chore. Beyond that, you could have been opening the door to many other health related problems if you continued down that path. Perhaps it's a good thing that you noticed this bit and made some changes.

[Anth_F]

Others on this forum have mentioned how easy it is to overtrain on the erg. The consensus seems to be that the low impact nature of the exercise, combined with the ability to train at high intensity, creates optimal conditions for overtraining. I did this a bit in the early days when I got my erg. The indicator wasn't a change in sex drive for me, it was an early plateau in progress with my times. I progress faster on the erg with at least 2 days off a week regardless of how may 'slow and steady' sessions I do etc.

I wonder if this thread has derailed a bit with the focus on testosterone levels. Perhaps, as you indicated earlier in the thread, you were just training too hard too soon. AuzieLuke makes a great point about needing to develop awareness of different intensity levels so he could train more frequently without overtraining. For many, overtraining is associated with a state of feeling chronically exhausted -- this on it's own would be enough to make getting it on with your lady seem like a chore. Beyond that, you could have been opening the door to many other health related problems if you continued down that path. Perhaps it's a good thing that you noticed this bit and made some changes.

Thanks for your understanding and input left coaster. Things have slowly improved since cutting back on training long periods "daily". I am going to take at least 2 days a week off from the erg. And now some sessions last 10-12 minutes (Greater intensity) and are probably doing me a lot more good than the much longer 40-45m steady moderate sessions. This lack of sex drive was probably that sign telling me i was overdoing my training, as i must admit i didn't feel exhausted or lacking for energy. I mean i was still doing 7-8 mile walks and other bits and pieces of exercise during the day after the longer erg sessions. My focus now is going to be all about strength as i have lost a lot of BF now... time to build some strong muscles up. My diet is good too... getting lots of protein, to help supplement building my muscles.

[left coaster]

We all respond to things differently. Combining all that erging with lots of walks and other endurance type things may have pumped you full of cortisol. High cort levels are bad for testosterone levels, but the issue isn't low T, it's hight cort. Going to a doctor to get a T supplement would simply mask the high cort issue which would on its own lead to a bunch of health problems over time. Elevated cort is also toxic to our brains as it shuts down neurogenesis and over time leads to hippocampus atrophy and memory problems (many believe this is at the root of ptsd). Perhaps that's why roid monkeys use such short sentences

[Anth_F]

We all respond to things differently. Combining all that erging with lots of walks and other endurance type things may have pumped you full of cortisol. High cort levels are bad for testosterone levels, but the issue isn't low T, it's hight cort. Going to a doctor to get a T supplement would simply mask the high cort issue which would on its own lead to a bunch of health problems over time. Elevated cort is also toxic to our brains as it shuts down neurogenesis and over time leads to hippocampus atrophy and memory problems (many believe this is at the root of ptsd). Perhaps that's why roid monkeys use such short sentences

Right on the money... i bet i sent my cortisol levels through the roof now that i think about it. As i was also doing regular 20 min non erg related cardio workouts too Definitely overloaded, because i was simply obsessed in losing chest & belly fat.