Lifting Weights And Hair Loss: Bad For Your Hair?

waynakyo

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A veteran here. Never really got into lifting because of the fear it would cause more hairloss.
Clearly the link is there. Anabolic exercise--> Higher T and DHT --> hairloss.
I just wanted to get a sense of how bad it might get if I start lifting weights. Really good for me, but is counter productive for my hair regimen.
Experiences to share?

Cheers
 

Outsider626

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Yes lifting weight, jerking off and having sex is bad for our hair. Can't even enjoy life.
 

DeterioratingWolf

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from what I understand via research, lifting weights only becomes a problem when you consume foods and drinks or supplements and protein poweders that directly or indirectly increases your entire body's overall testosterone and/or dht. steroids is another thing that does it as well.

so if you don't take any of those foods, drinks, protein powders and steroids you should be okay on paper, but then well.... your muscle gains will be greatly reduced, but the trade off is you'll have your hair.
 

Retinoid

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Protein powders or supplements like creatine will not cause hair loss. This is a MYTH (yes I am aware high doses of creatine can increase DHT in the serum by a small amount). As long as you are not taking designer DHT based pro hormones and steroids your hair loss will be fine.
 

Bklyn_23

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I've noticed an increase in the rate of loss in the past 2.5 years (and I'm almost 40), and that corresponds to when I started lifting weights. Not sure if it's causal, and haven't had my testosterone checked in the past 1.5 years to see if it's increased (historically I've had very low T levels, like 250-300). So if I get blood work done and my T is like 400+ (which is still low for my age, but a big jump for me), then maybe that will be more evidence of a link.
 

Retinoid

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I've noticed an increase in the rate of loss in the past 2.5 years (and I'm almost 40), and that corresponds to when I started lifting weights. Not sure if it's causal, and haven't had my testosterone checked in the past 1.5 years to see if it's increased (historically I've had very low T levels, like 250-300). So if I get blood work done and my T is like 400+ (which is still low for my age, but a big jump for me), then maybe that will be more evidence of a link.

I am telling you there is no link to EXERCISE and hair loss. This site is full of people and their anecdotes about their hair loss. Unhealthy people who smoke and drink all day have hair loss and body builders have no hair loss and vice versa. True male pattern baldness is not a LIFESTYLE disorder.

Lift your freaking weights, Jesus...
 

max.b

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No one in my family has any serious male pattern baldness. I started lifting at 19 (no steroids or supplements), and I noticed thinning top hair and receding hairline in mid 20s. Now at 41, my hair looks about like this:
https://i.dmarge.com/2015/05/Receder.jpg

Maybe a coincidence. Maybe not.

I doubt that they did any serious studies to show that there is no connection. There is a difference between "no known connection" and "no connection". Post sources if you know of such studies.
 

Retinoid

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No one in my family has any serious male pattern baldness. I started lifting at 19 (no steroids or supplements), and I noticed thinning top hair and receding hairline in mid 20s. Now at 41, my hair looks about like this:
https://i.dmarge.com/2015/05/Receder.jpg

Maybe a coincidence. Maybe not.

I doubt that they did any serious studies to show that there is no connection. There is a difference between "no known connection" and "no connection". Post sources if you know of such studies.

That is like saying you noticed your hair thinning after eating some peanut butter and crackers. It MIGHT have caused the hair thinning. Prove that it didn't.
 

max.b

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I'm just saying there is a difference between "I'M TELLING YOU THERE IS NO LINK" and "NO KNOWN LINK". The difference is that someone at least studied this. Don't even us natties have higher testosterone levels?
 

max.b

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.. Also, there is a KNOWN link between anabolic use and hair loss. Anabolic steroids just mimic testosterone, don't they? So, it's plausible that people with higher testosterone levels would be more likely to develop male pattern baldness.
 

Retinoid

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.. Also, there is a KNOWN link between anabolic use and hair loss. Anabolic steroids just mimic testosterone, don't they? So, it's plausible that people with higher testosterone levels would be more likely to develop male pattern baldness.

You can do what you want and blame exercising 20yrs ago for your hair looking like an average 40yr old's hair. It is ridiculous, but you can do it.
 

max.b

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You can do what you want and blame exercising 20yrs ago for your hair looking like an average 40yr old's hair. It is ridiculous, but you can do it.

For the third (and last) time, I'm not saying there is a link. I'm saying you shouldn't state definitively that there is none, unless there's been serious studies done.
 

Bklyn_23

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I am telling you there is no link to EXERCISE and hair loss. This site is full of people and their anecdotes about their hair loss. Unhealthy people who smoke and drink all day have hair loss and body builders have no hair loss and vice versa. True male pattern baldness is not a LIFESTYLE disorder.

Lift your freaking weights, Jesus...

I didn't say it was conclusive or anything, I was just relating my own experience. However, wouldn't higher T lead to greater conversion to DHT and thus hypothetically more damage to the hair? Hence wouldn't anything which raised your testosterone possibly have an effect on hair loss?
 

Afro_Vacancy

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There is no convincing link or argument suggesting that weightlifting can either accelerate or inhibit hair loss.
 

Afro_Vacancy

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I didn't say it was conclusive or anything, I was just relating my own experience. However, wouldn't higher T lead to greater conversion to DHT and thus hypothetically more damage to the hair? Hence wouldn't anything which raised your testosterone possibly have an effect on hair loss?

Not necessarily.

1) Exercise definitely increases T in the serum, but not necessarily in the scalp.
2) Increased levels of T might also down regulate the androgen receptor.
3) Increased fitness might increase your levels of SHBG, where higher levels of SHBG are associated with less hair loss. Higher SHBG should also decrease DHT levels.
4) Increase fitness can raise brown fat and autophagy levels, which are associated with hair growth.
5) Increased fitness can reduce/delay/prevent atherosclerosis, which is associated with hair loss.

On the other hand, increased fitness can reduce estrogen levels by reducing aromatase, which might inhibit hair growth.

It's fairly complicated, and will vary from person to person. There's no definitive data at this time, so you can't use your hair as an excuse to be lazy.
 

Bklyn_23

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Not necessarily.

1) Exercise definitely increases T in the serum, but not necessarily in the scalp.
2) Increased levels of T might also down regulate the androgen receptor.
3) Increased fitness might increase your levels of SHBG, where higher levels of SHBG are associated with less hair loss. Higher SHBG should also decrease DHT levels.
4) Increase fitness can raise brown fat and autophagy levels, which are associated with hair growth.
5) Increased fitness can reduce/delay/prevent atherosclerosis, which is associated with hair loss.

On the other hand, increased fitness can reduce estrogen levels by reducing aromatase, which might inhibit hair growth.

It's fairly complicated, and will vary from person to person. There's no definitive data at this time, so you can't use your hair as an excuse to be lazy.

Interesting. Thanks for the information!
 

max.b

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CNN had an "expert answer" to this very question:

http://www.cnn.com/2010/HEALTH/expert.q.a/11/19/weight.lifting.hair.loss.jampolis/index.html

Most relevant part:

He explained that testosterone is converted to dihydrotestosterone (DHT), which can shrink hair follicles in genetically susceptible individuals.

However, because of the extended duration of hair growth cycles (three to five years), it is unlikely that this effect would be seen soon after starting a weight lifting program. In addition, weight lifting causes a transient increase in testosterone after each weight lifting session, which is not likely to have a long term effect on hair loss.
It sounds to me that the experts don't really know (The argument hinges on some delay in cause and effect. This is how much delay I actually saw)
 

DHTcel

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A veteran here. Never really got into lifting because of the fear it would cause more hairloss.
Clearly the link is there. Anabolic exercise--> Higher T and DHT --> hairloss.
I just wanted to get a sense of how bad it might get if I start lifting weights. Really good for me, but is counter productive for my hair regimen.
Experiences to share?

Cheers
whenever I am in the gym I have increased shedding, no lie
 

anon082

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I've been lifting weights for about 10 years and balding for around 9 years, i'll say that when i started working out more seriously is about the time my hairloss progressed even more, although i can't really be sure it's not just male pattern baldness progressing with age..

I thought about the option of lifting is making things worse but it's just something i enjoy too much to stop just for the chance that my hairloss will become slower
 
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