Test Boost Max Review

Nutritionalist and PT John Dixon brings us this Test Boost Max review. If you are considering buying this T-booster then be sure to read this first…

test boost max featured image

Some people may suffer from hypogonadism – clinically low testosterone levels. However, this isn’t too common. Far more common – in fact, somewhat inevitable – is age or lifestyle related testosterone decline.

We all begin to lose testosterone as we age. This can begin as early as thirty, after which most men will typically lose around 1% of their natural testosterone levels per year. Excess weight, sedentary lifestyles, poor diet, poor sleep quality, high stress levels, and alcohol consumption can exacerbate this, leading to naturally diminished testosterone levels.

This is important. Testosterone plays a central role in physical factors like muscle and bone health, immune function, athleticism, body hair development, energy levels, depth of voice, and so forth. It also helps to regulate mood and emotions, keeping you energized, focused, and happy.

Low testosterone levels can interfere with all of these, negatively impacting a range of natural bodily and emotional functions.

There are several ways to optimize your testosterone levels. In extreme cases, medical intervention may be necessary. However, for most people, a few nutritional and lifestyle changes can make all the different.

As above, lifestyle factors contribute. Just as excess weight, sedentary lifestyles, poor diet, poor sleep quality, high stress levels, and alcohol consumption can diminish testosterone levels, so too can a lean, muscular physique built on an active lifestyle and healthy diet combined with plenty of rest and relaxation contribute to elevated levels.

Supplementation can also play a part. Natural testosterone boosters like Test Boost Max can play a vital role in optimizing natural testosterone output.

Test Boost Max – In A Nutshell

Test Boost Max bottle

Test Boost Max is a pretty straightforward testosterone booster supplement from the supplement company Sculpt Nation. It is designed primarily to support healthy testosterone output in a broadly athletic context – Sculpt Nation specialize in sports nutrition, after all. However, it is suitable for athletes and non-athletes alike, though is of course more geared towards men than women.

Sculpt Nation claim that Test Boost Max is ‘guaranteed to increase your testosterone levels’. I never like this kind of talk. As soon as you guarantee anything, you know you are open to refutation. If you don’t care about this, it looks like you don’t care about results in general. Therefore, I get quite skeptical of any supplement brand whose marketing deals in absolutes.

Nevertheless, Test Boost Max looks promising.

As I mentioned above, stress levels can impact testosterone production. This is through heightened levels of the stress hormone cortisol in your body, which has been shown to have an inverse relationship with testosterone. The more cortisol you have, the less testosterone, and vice versa, broadly speaking.

A good t-booster will generally try to combat this effect, bringing cortisol levels down. This is where Test Boost Max begins its work, reversing stress related testosterone decline.

It also claims to aid in lean muscle production, to burn body fat, enhance training and recovery, and improve your libido. This is an odd claim to make. It doesn’t do all these things, thus enhancing your testosterone levels… it’s the other way around. A t-booster should elicit these effects by increasing testosterone levels.

It also isn’t immediately clear which health experts, what lab, and so on, came up with Test Boot Max’s formula. Nor is their research process clearly shown. In fact, there is quite a worrying dearth in academic literature underpinning their claims.

Nevertheless, Sculpt Nation have included seven pretty decent looking core ingredients which may go a long way towards promoting healthy testosterone output, as we’ll see below.

As you may imagine from such a profoundly important corner of the supplement market, there are plenty of natural testosterone boosters out there. I have tried plenty and really rate a few of them. Though Test Boost Max looks promising, I’m not sure how well it can measure up to some of the more obviously top shelf supplements out there – supplements like TestoPrime for example.

Testo Prime uses a decent combination of D-Aspartic acid and ashwagandha root, two of the best boosters out there. It includes them as part of a well-rounded formula and is priced incredibly competitively for the results you get.

Depending on how Test Boost Max works out for you, it may be a safer bet.

Testoprime bottle

TestoPrime – Our No.1 Rated T-Booster

TestoPrime has consistently performed well in our T-Booster testing and we highly endorse it over Test Boost Max.

It’s all natural ingredients are scientifically supported and in our testing it out-performed the competition.

The Benefits of Test Boost Max

This isn’t to write-off Test Boost Max straight away. As above, their formula looks promising, if a little under-researched and nebulously supported. It should bring about a few good benefits if all works out as the manufacturer claims.

Primarily, of course, it should diminish cortisol levels in your body whilst promoting heightened levels of natural testosterone.

Testosterone is an androgen hormone. Healthy levels promote typically ‘masculine’ characteristics, including low pitched voice and facial hair.

As we have already seen, however, it goes a lot deeper than this. It helps to regulate your mood, staving off depression and keeping you focussed and energized. It helps to regulate the immune system, keeping you healthy and protected against infection. It also plays a key role in maintaining healthy muscle and bone mass, and in promoting physical strength and athleticism, as well as keeping your libido and sexual function high.

Low testosterone will negatively affect these aspects of your health. It can open you up to low mood, depression, and lethargy. Athletic performance will be drastically affected. Muscular dystrophy can occur (loss of muscle mass) – or, at the very least, you will find it hard to build muscle mass. Bone density can be impaired, raising your risk of injury and chronic conditions such as osteoporosis. Your sexual function and libido can be impaired, as can your overall immune function.

Any test booster should, as the name suggests, boost natural levels of testosterone. In turn, you should benefit from improvements to all of the above – everything that healthy, optimized testosterone levels should bring. Given the ingredients profile – including trusted compounds like ashwagandha and ginseng root – Test Boost Max should manage this pretty well.

Ingredients

As above, Test Boost Max relies on seven core ingredients, of which several are well-known, effective testosterone boosters. Though the formula as a whole neglects scientific veracity, the individual ingredients and the doses in which they are included make for a very promising recipe.

In brief, you get 500 mg of Tribulus Terrestris, 600 mg of 4:1 ashwagandha root, 20 mg each of American ginseng root, cordyceps mushroom and longjack root, 40 mg of hawthorn berry extract, and 160 mg of horny goat weed.

Some of these seem pretty redundant. For example, Tribulus Terrestris is an odd inclusion. A rare few other testosterone boosters do indeed use it. However, any studies hinting at its efficacy don’t look at it in isolation. Rather, they study multi-ingredient compounds. Any work isolating Tribulus Terrestris show lacklustre results at best.

Similarly, many of the ingredients are common aphrodisiacs. Ginseng and cordyceps mushroom both show a decent amount of promise in this regard, raising libido and sexual desire. This makes a little sense. Low libido and poor sexual function are symptoms of low testosterone levels, after all. However, there is no evidence that either ginseng or cordyceps mushroom will actually raise testosterone levels – they address symptoms, rather than treating the core problem.

To call them ‘t-boosters’ is therefore quite misleading.

Similarly, longjack root is a rare ingredient in this kind of compound. It is mostly used to treat erectile dysfunction, with good-quality studies backing its efficacy. Again, not a bad thing, especially given some of the symptoms of low testosterone levels. One study has also found that it can increase testosterone levels amongst men suffering from late-onset hypogonadism. 

However, there is no evidence to suggest that it can raise testosterone levels in men with normal levels of testosterone, which is who these kinds of supplements are aimed at (those suffering with hypogonadism will be able to receive medical treatments, without having to rely simply on supplements).

Hawthorn berry extract is an interesting inclusion, and one that I actually quite admire. There has been no proven or discernible benefit to testosterone levels associated with it. However, it may be able to improve blood flow. Though studies looking into this are riven by methodological issues, it’s still potentially quite a promising add-on.

The real benefits come from the final two ingredients.

I’ve already stated my admiration for ashwagandha root. It is one of the better scientifically supported testosterone boosters out there. It has well-founded, proven benefits for testosterone production and strength and athleticism. It may also be a great stress reliever, reducing cortisol levels, though more data is needed to fully back this claim.

It is the best ingredient in this list by far, and in large part carries the others, lending them the veneer of efficacy where it isn’t particularly deserved.

We finish up on horny goat weed, or Epimedium. It is mostly used in natural medicine to boost libido, where its effects have been very well studied and documented. However, more recent studies have shown that it, too, has some promise for boosting testosterone levels.

It’s a useful list – or, at least, it’s a list with a few useful inclusions. However, there are some useless additions and a fair few oversights. I would ditch half the ingredients. I would also want to see some common vitamins and minerals that are known for raising normal testosterone production. Not least among these, I would like to see zinc and magnesium, deficits of which are both common and ruinous to testosterone levels. Vitamin D also shows a great deal of promise. They are common, cheap, easily sourced ingredients that are far, far more effective (and have proven to be so) than things like Tribulus Terrestris and cordyceps mushroom.

Testoprime bottle

TestoPrime – Our No.1 Rated T-Booster

TestoPrime has consistently performed well in our T-Booster testing and we highly endorse it over Test Boost Max.

It’s all natural ingredients are scientifically supported and in our testing it out-performed the competition.

Pros and Cons

Pros
  • Good amount of ashwagandha root, which is almost worth the price of entry on its own
  • Lifetime guarantee with a simple price structure
  • Good discounts on offer
  • Easy to take
  • Comes with a free, if basic, workout program
Cons
  • Includes plenty of ingredients of questionable efficacy
  • Includes a couple of quite controversial ingredients
  • Lacks the basic vitamins and minerals you would expect to see
  • Poorly backed up in many cases by verifiable claims

How to Take Test Boost Max

Test Boost Max is easy enough to take. The recommended daily dose is three pills, which in theory can be taken all at once.

However, specifics are hard to come by. Most supplements will tell you when to take them, under what conditions, and how many at once. For example, they may tell you to take them in the morning, or on an empty stomach. Or, alternatively, they may recommend you take them on a full stomach. Doses might be taken all at once or split across the day.

I would suggest taking Test Boost Max all at once, just before breakfast, but this is a best guess based on the ingredients. Who knows what the actual manufacturers would suggest, if indeed they would know what to recommend at all?

Do note there are a few potential side effects associated with Test Boost Max. The ingredients are all included in safe doses, so these side effects should be rare and, when they do occur, pretty mild, they are still worth looking out for.

Tribulus Terrestris may cause minor reflux and stomach cramps and aches. In very, very rare cases it can contribute towards the development of seizures.

Ginseng can lower blood pressure. This is a good thing in general. However, it may interfere with certain medications. If you’re on any medications for blood pressure, or that drop your blood pressure as a side effect, or that thin your blood, consult your doctor before taking ginseng.

Hawthorne berry may also interact with some medications and can sometimes cause dizziness, nausea, and digestive upset.

FAQs

Is Test Boost Max safe?

Test Boost Max is largely safe. The worst that most people will experience is a lack of efficacy. As above, there are a few side effects associated with some of the ingredients. However, as above, the ingredients are all in small enough doses to be safe and mostly harmless.

Why boost testosterone?

Naturally high levels of testosterone lead to improved body composition, including lean muscle mass and bone health, as well as to improved mood and mental wellbeing, focus, drive, and immune health, among other things. As we gave seen, these are all negatively affected by low testosterone levels.

Does Test Boost Max contain hormones?

Test Boost Max is a natural testosterone booster. As such, it contains no actual testosterone or any other hormones. Rather, the ingredients involved all work to naturally boost testosterone production whilst simultaneously fighting some of the common side effects of low testosterone levels.

Does Test Boost Max work?

Ashwagandha root generally works to boost natural testosterone production. This is a far cry from claiming that Test Boost Max works. Most of the ingredients are ineffective, poorly researched, and dubious in their inclusion. A lot of common ingredients for normalizing healthy testosterone output have been omitted, including zinc, magnesium and vitamin D.

How do I know if I have low testosterone?

If you suffer from any of the symptoms we’ve listed today – low energy and focus, diminished libido and sexual function, fatigue, muscle loss or weakness, a lack of athletic ability, and/or an inability to keep body fat levels in a healthy range, among others – you may have low testosterone levels.

You can get your levels checked by your healthcare provider with a simple, un-intrusive blood test.

Testoprime bottle

TestoPrime – Our No.1 Rated T-Booster

TestoPrime has consistently performed well in our T-Booster testing and we highly endorse it over Test Boost Max.

It’s all natural ingredients are scientifically supported and in our testing it out-performed the competition.

Verdict

You will probably find your testosterone levels raising a little if you take Test Boost Max. However, this will be almost entirely due to the ashwagandha root extract. You may also find your libido raising, but this is treating a symptom, not the cause. It’s not what we’re here for.

You can get ashwagandha root extract on its own. Couple it with a good multivitamin and you’ll have a better testosterone booster, with fewer potential side effects, for a lot less money, than Test Boost Max represents.

Or, as I mentioned, there are plenty of high quality alternatives you can go for. There are lots of supplements that can help to boost your testosterone output through several ingredients, all underpinned by good quality research, nothing wasted, nothing random. 

TestoPrime is a fantastic option. I would suggest it over Test Boost Max any day.

Written by John Dixon

John is a personal trainer and part time (although he might say full time) writer here at PathMed. He uses his knowledge of fitness and physiotherapy to deliver real insight in to our reviews and health guides.

John’s military background also brings a real-life perspective to his work.