Main anabolic hormones (insulin, testosterone, growth hormone, and IGF): what is needed for them?

Author: Mikhail Ziborov - author of the site makefitness.pro.
2024-12-19

Anabolic hormones are hormones (protein-fat organic substances) that increase anabolism in the body. Simply put, anabolism is the formation of new high-molecular structures. For example, muscle cells or energy substrates in our body – ATP molecules, glucose, or glycogen.

In general, anabolic hormones are those hormones that allow our body to develop, grow, and strengthen.

In a recent post on our Telegram channel Yourfit, we showed how, for example, insulin reacts to certain protein foods, how quickly it rises from regular foods and whey protein. A lot has also been said about growth hormone. Subscribe and read.

The main anabolic hormones include:

- Insulin;
- Testosterone;
- Somatotropin (growth hormone or GH);
- Insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1).

I will not discuss dihydrotestosterone despite its greater anabolic activity compared to regular testosterone. The thing is, dihydrotestosterone is primarily produced from testosterone.

Insulin

Insulin is a hormone produced in the pancreas. From an athlete's perspective, it is interesting because it has an anabolic effect on muscle tissue (stimulating its growth) and promotes the formation of glycogen (energy reserves) in the muscles. Insulin levels in the blood rise upon the consumption of carbohydrates and proteins. In both cases, it serves as a transport hormone, delivering carbohydrates and proteins to their sites of incorporation in the body's tissues.

And don’t believe those who claim that insulin is the main cause of excess weight. Although this hormone does affect fat synthesis in the body, the accumulation of EXTRA weight occurs only with a calorie surplus in your diet.

If you eat carbohydrates but do not exceed your caloric norm, insulin will still be produced, it will still synthesize fats in the body (for the body's needs), but extra weight will not be stored under the skin. Conversely: if you overindulge in calories – you will gain extra kilograms.

What is needed for insulin?

1. Amino acids. Since this is a protein hormone made up of many amino acids, it is necessary to include a sufficient amount of protein in your diet for the pancreas to be able to produce it.

However, the main condition for its production is the intake of carbohydrate or protein foods (or a mixture of these two nutrients). That is, if you aim to gain muscle mass and eat accordingly (increased amounts of carbohydrates and proteins), you naturally stimulate the production of insulin and provide an anabolic effect on your muscles. By the way, here is a nutritional plan for athletes to enhance muscle growth.

2. Calcium. The production of insulin is also a process dependent on the concentration of calcium in the cells. Therefore, it makes sense to consider the mineralization of your diet.

3. Frequency of meals. Insulin sensitivity decreases with constantly high concentrations in the blood. This occurs when you snack throughout the day, and then continue to nibble. For example, sweets, pastries, and even protein.

Almost continuous food consumption (snacking, nibbling – taking bites of this and that) is a direct path to weight gain and a deterioration in cells’ sensitivity to insulin (i.e., a decrease in its anabolic action). The best way to maintain the normal functionality of this hormone is to eat only at the table, i.e., during breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

That’s all you need for the natural stimulation of your insulin synthesis, provided there are no health deviations.

Testosterone

Testosterone is a male sex anabolic hormone produced in the testes in men, in the ovaries in women, and in the adrenal glands in both sexes. And despite the fact that testosterone is called the male sex hormone, it is also necessary for women: it is from testosterone that estrogens – female sex hormones – are created in women.

What is needed for testosterone?

1. Cholesterol. Testosterone is synthesized from cholesterol, which you can obtain from common foods such as chicken eggs and butter.

2. Sleep. It turns out that the duration of sleep directly affects testosterone levels. According to a study, the hormone level in men decreased by 10-15% if they slept for 5 hours (sleep-deprived). Conversely, the level normalized if individuals slept 8 hours or more.

3. Physical activity. Strength exercises directly influence testosterone production. Maintaining a consistently high hormone level is aided by systematic training. They do not have to be heavy. By the way, here are training programs.

4. Zinc. This mineral is crucial for the entire process of testosterone creation. Low concentrations of zinc in the body directly affect the decrease in testosterone levels. Therefore, it is worth taking care of the mineral content of your diet: calcium for insulin, zinc for testosterone. For example, this can be achieved through vitamin and mineral complexes.

Growth Hormone

Somatotropin is a hormone produced in the pituitary gland (in the brain). It is called the growth hormone because it is responsible for the growth of bones and internal organs in children and young people, and for the growth of muscle tissue (muscle protein synthesis) and fat burning in adults. Moreover, it regulates carbohydrate metabolism in the body.

However, the main feature of somatotropin is that most of its effects are manifested only with the participation of other hormones – insulin-like growth factor 1 (which will be discussed below) and insulin. For somatotropin to have an anabolic effect, the presence of insulin and IGF-1 is crucial: one must take care not only of increasing this hormone but also of all the others.

What is needed for growth hormone?

In addition to the fact that the synthesis of somatotropin is influenced by other hormones (some stimulate production, others inhibit it), the main conditions for its creation are simple things – training, sleep, and nutrition. Let's go through them in order.

1. Training. Just like with testosterone, physical activity affects the synthesis of growth hormone: it is structured in such a way that these hormones are needed for muscle tissue cell division. It is best when training has a “golden mean” – not too rare but also not too frequent (which can push you into constant fatigue and overtraining).

Read about how to increase GH through training here.

2. Sleep. In addition to the duration of sleep, the sleep schedule is also important. That is, it should not happen that you sleep for 8 hours every day (and everything seems normal), but today you fall asleep at one time, tomorrow at another, the day after tomorrow at a third time. This results in a certain looseness in the sleeping and waking schedule. This negatively affects growth hormone production: it decreases.

Somatotropin begins to rise maximally 1-2 hours after falling asleep!

3. Nutrition. It is essential to focus not just on any diverse diet, but on a protein-rich diet. More specifically, you need to ensure that your diet includes amino acids such as arginine, lysine, ornithine, and glutamine. Where can you obtain these amino acids? Either from familiar protein foods or from dietary supplements – glutamine or EAA (Essential Amino Acids) complexes (you can find them all here).

Insulin-like Growth Factor 1

IGF-1 or IGF1 is a hormone that is similar in function to insulin. It is produced in the liver and in small doses – in the brain (when deficient in the blood – produced by muscles). It determines the functionality of somatotropin. Without IGF-1, somatotropin, even in high concentrations, will be ineffective.

The level of insulin-like growth factor is influenced by other hormones:

- Sex hormones (androgens, including testosterone, estrogens, and progestogens);

- Thyroid hormones (T3 and T4);

- Glucocorticoids (specifically, cortisol);

- Insulin.

To maintain normal IGF-1 levels, one must ensure the functionality of all the listed hormones. For example, monitor iodine intake (for thyroid hormones); the intake of amino acids necessary for insulin synthesis; minerals and cholesterol for testosterone production, as well as cortisol.

In general, the state of these hormones determines how much insulin-like growth factor 1 will be synthesized.

Conclusion

These are the 4 main anabolic hormones that affect how much muscle mass you can gain and what your primary physical qualities will be – strength and endurance. Although the influence of hormones on muscles and physical performance is secondary. The primary factors are training, nutrition, and recovery (sleep).