WORDS: JUSTIN GUTHRIE | ARTWORK: PETER CROWTHER | PHOTOGRAPHY: GETTYONE WORD
ANSWER #59
QUESTION
What thrilling
TV drama can spike
your levels of
muscle-building
testosterone?I
n 1986, Wayne Shelford was just 20 minutes
into his second Test for New Zealand against
France when he plunged into a dog-pile. He
had already earned a reputation as one of the
toughest players in rugby – a hard man in a
sport of resolutely hard men – but by the time
he extricated himself from the mound of bodies,
that reputation had been cast into legend.
Like any legend, the story changes with
each retelling, but one fact is certain: when
he emerged from the tangle of limbs and
razor-sharp studs, his scrotum had been torn
open, leaving one of his testicles hanging out.
With frightening calm, the No8 jogged to the
side of the pitch and, ignoring the four teeth he
had also just lost, instructed the physio to stitch
him up. He played on for another 40 minutes
in “the Battle of Nantes”, before the coach was
forced to take him off – because a blow to the
head had knocked him unconscious.
Fortunately, simply watching rugby doesn’t
present the same threat to your manhood. In
fact, researchers at the University of Valencia
suggest that a thrilling match can boost your
male hormone levels. In 2010, a group of 50
Spanish sports fans provided saliva samples
during a World Cup. Not only did the results
reveal a rise in testosterone secretion on the
day of the final, but the levels increased in line
with the level of each fan’s dedication
to their national side. That means the more
you love your team, the more testosterone
your body produces when you watch it.
Testosterone is quite literally what
separates the men from the boys.
The hormone plays a crucial role in
boosting muscle, sex drive and heart
health. Without it, you’re more likely to
store fat, break our bones and lose your
hair. A study in the Journal of Clinical
Endocrinology & Metabolism found that
T-levels among men are at an all-time low,
so take any boost where you can. You never
know when your production line could come
under threat from a misplaced boot.Rugby
ANSWER
146 MEN’S HEALTH