3 Signs of Low Testosterone and What You Can Do About It
Men's Health · Testosterone
Medically reviewed by TWC Editorial Team
Joe Rogan is many things. Most know him as the host of The Joe Rogan Experience, the most popular podcast on Earth, drawing somewhere in the neighborhood of 11 million listeners per episode. But he is also a longtime actor (a five-season run as Joe Garrelli on NewsRadio), a reality-TV pioneer (host of Fear Factor from 2001 to 2006), a stand-up comedian, and a black-belt martial artist who has called UFC fights since 1997.
In other words, he's busy.
So, when he started losing his oomph in his late thirties — energy slipping, recovery dragging, motivation not where he expected it to be — he knew something was wrong. He started testosterone replacement therapy around age 38, initially with creams (which he found ineffective) before moving to weekly injections at 39 under medical supervision. He has been on TRT, in some form, ever since.
His own assessment, delivered with his usual lack of varnish:
"[TRT] makes a big difference. It's real simple. If you're fine with not feeling good — good! If you're not fine with it, hormone replacement therapy exists for a reason, and that reason is it makes you feel way better."
— Joe Rogan, The Joe Rogan ExperienceRogan is not unusual. Population-level analyses of National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) data place the prevalence of testosterone deficiency in adult American men somewhere in the neighborhood of 25 to 30 percent. Roughly one in three. Among men over 45, the well-cited Hypogonadism in Males (HIM) study by Mulligan and colleagues put the figure even higher — 38.7 percent.
Most do not know they have it. Most file the symptoms under stress, age, the kids, or work.
What 'Low T' Actually Is
Testosterone is the primary male sex hormone, produced almost entirely in the testes (with a small assist from the adrenal glands). It governs a lot more than libido — energy, muscle mass, mood, cognition, bone density, even the depth of your voice.
You can ask your doctor for a blood test. The two numbers worth knowing are total testosterone and free testosterone, drawn in the morning, because testosterone peaks early.
Here is where it gets confusing.
| Measure | Units | Typical Range | "Low" Threshold |
|---|---|---|---|
| Total testosterone | ng/dL | 300–1,000 | <264 (Endocrine Society); 200–400 in practice |
| Free testosterone | pg/mL | 9–30 | Varies by lab and age |
Total testosterone values are usually in the hundreds (ng/dL), while free testosterone values are in the tens (pg/mL). If your result seems "low" compared to someone else's, always confirm the units.
Sign 1: No Energy
Not regular tired — exhausted. You get eight hours of sleep most nights, yet wake up feeling like Jake Paul after he was introduced to Anthony Joshua's right hand. Coffee no longer helps.
This is the symptom that most men dismiss the longest. They assume it's age. Sometimes it is, but often it isn't.
Sign 2: Brain Fog
Frontiers in Endocrinology has associated low testosterone with significant declines in verbal memory and mental function, as well as higher rates of depression. This does not mean that every man with brain fog has low T, but it makes sense to get checked.
Sign 3: No Drive
Libido matters. But the larger story is "drive" in the broader sense. The ambition to build something. The willingness to compete. The edge.
The Massachusetts Male Aging Study, which followed more than 1,700 men over nearly two decades, reported that low total testosterone was associated with a meaningfully elevated risk of all-cause mortality. The men with low T did not just feel worse. They died sooner. The association held after adjusting for age, smoking, and chronic disease.
It is not a small finding.
What You Can Do About It
The honest answer is a sequence.
Step 1 · Get Tested
A morning blood draw for total and free T. Do not self-diagnose off a YouTube video. The number is a guide, not a verdict — symptoms can appear at the bottom of the "normal" range.
Step 2 · Fix the Fundamentals
Sleep 7–8 hours; testosterone production runs on the night shift. Lift heavy. Drop visceral fat — belly fat literally aromatizes testosterone into estrogen. Cut down on alcohol. No supplement can correct these.
Step 3 · Consider a Test Booster
Only after Steps 1 and 2. A research-backed formula like Zeus — tongkat ali, zinc, boron, shilajit — not the random stimulant stacks at the gas station.
Here, though, is the part the supplement industry would rather you not think about.
A test booster is most useful for the man whose testosterone is being suppressed by lifestyle, deficiency, or stress — and who has not crossed into clinical hypogonadism. If your sleep is poor, your zinc and magnesium are tanked, your cortisol is high, and your levels are sub-optimal but not bottomed out, a well-formulated booster can move the needle.
Customer Result
One Zeus customer reported a jump from 412 ng/dL to 504 in about two months — exactly the patient profile these formulations are built for: already in range, looking to climb.
If your levels are genuinely in the basement — sub-200, every symptom flashing red — a supplement is not going to do the work your testes have stopped doing. That is a doctor's conversation, and likely a TRT conversation. Pretending otherwise wastes months you do not have.
The men who get the best results from a product like Zeus are the ones who use it to restore a sub-optimal system, not resurrect a dead one — and who pair it with the fundamentals above. Many feel meaningfully better in six to twelve weeks. Some do not.
Still Feeling Off?
If you are sleeping well, lifting, eating clean, dialing back the alcohol, and supplementing intelligently — and still feel sluggish — get the blood draw. Consult your doctor or a low-T clinic. The number on the page tells a story your gut already knows.
Learn MoreReferences
- Mulligan, T., Frick, M. F., Zuraw, Q. C., Stemhagen, A., & McWhirter, C. (2006). Prevalence of hypogonadism in males aged at least 45 years: the HIM study. International Journal of Clinical Practice, 60(7), 762–769. pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/16846397
- Araujo, A. B., Esche, G. R., Kupelian, V., et al. (2007). Prevalence of symptomatic androgen deficiency in men. Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism, 92(11), 4241–4247. (NHANES analysis.) pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/17698900
- Bhasin, S., Brito, J. P., Cunningham, G. R., et al. (2018). Testosterone Therapy in Men With Hypogonadism: An Endocrine Society Clinical Practice Guideline. JCEM, 103(5), 1715–1744. academic.oup.com
- Cherrier, M. M., et al. Testosterone, cognition, and mood. Frontiers in Endocrinology. frontiersin.org
- Araujo, A. B., Dixon, J. M., Suarez, E. A., et al. (2011). Endogenous testosterone and mortality in men: a systematic review and meta-analysis. JCEM, 96(10), 3007–3019. (Massachusetts Male Aging Study lineage.) pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/21816776
Author
Works alongside our network of US-licensed clinicians and the McCullough Foundation research team.
This article is for informational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of a qualified healthcare provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition.
