ok ive always known squatting is the king exercise but only recently did I read stuff like: "squats are proven to add about 15-20% to your UPPER body mass, by virtue of the free flowing testosterone that squats release."
its more just floating within the body. i see that quote, and its from the article that i wrote, so here's my response.
it raises test levels for a few hours post workout. this will bind to any receptor that it can, most being in your legs, because of the increased blood flow to it, but also the rest of your body in smaller amounts, again provided there's an open receptor. its not going to spike test for a day - thats not what i'm saying. but it does increase your free flowing test, and makes all your muscles bigger.
i'd ask you to think about all the super skinny guys in the gym, and watch them train. you'll probably notice that they don't do squats or deads, and its probably their hanging point in their workout. diet is the other one obviously. here's some links which hopefully will clear the issue up.
from :
The Ultimate Hard Body Exercise - DeepFitness.com
As you may have already discovered, the squat is at the top of the heap (along with deadlifts) as one of the most effective overall exercises for stimulating body composition changes (muscle gain and fat loss). This is because exercises like squats and deadlifts use more muscle groups under a heavy load than almost any other weight bearing exercises known to man. Hence, these exercises stimulate the greatest hormonal responses (growth hormone, testosterone, etc.) of all exercises. In fact, university research studies have even proven that inclusion of squats into a training program increases upper body development, in addition to lower body development, even though upper body specific joint movements are not performed during the squat.
from :
13 Ways to Naturally Boost Your Testosterone Levels
To beef up your testosterone levels, the bulk of your workout should involve "compound" weight-lifting exercises that train several large muscle groups, and not just one or two smaller muscles. For example, studies have shown that doing squats, bench presses or back rows increases testosterone more than doing biceps curls or triceps pushdowns, even though the effort may seem the same. This is why doing squats could help you build bigger biceps.
from :
Muscle Building Blog
Research indicates that the larger more involved excercises, like squats and deadlifts, will have the largest increase in Testosterone and Growth hormone. Although all resistance training has this effect, a curl for example, would have only a very small increase in Testosterone and Growth hormone.
from :
The power of proper suqatting - Myths about squats, by Sean Nalewanyj
Squats have packed more muscle onto skinny frames than any other lift out there. Because of the degree of difficulty, squats also force your body to release higher amounts of important anabolic hormones, such as testosterone and growth hormone, thus resulting in total body muscle growth.
hope this clears up any confusion. also, i do like to squat twice a week - it works for me.
EDIT : a few hours of raised testosterone levels is not going to cause baldness or hair growth. that would be like a week or more of elevated test. it should raise your sex drive, but not by much. if you're at 6x in two weeks, it may raise it to 7-8x every two weeks. its not a drastic raise, but it should elevate slightly.
