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Older men with low levels of testosterone can literally haul themselves away from frailty by combining supplemental doses of the male sex hormone with fast-movement weight training.

O'Grady and his colleagues studied 32 men whose average age was 75. Testosterone levels normally fall as people get older, but these men had low levels even for their age, and were showing symptoms. These included weak muscles and impaired memory, as well as a low interest in sex. The men were barely able to walk safely around their own homes.

Before the year-long experiment, all of the men had passed a screening to exclude those with conditions that testosterone could worsen, such as previously undetected prostate cancer. They were divided into groups of eight. One group received two 5-milligram testosterone supplement patches and did exercise. Another only exercised. A third only wore the patches. The fourth, a comparison group, received only fake patches. Testosterone levels doubled in the men with the patches.

The exercisers did eight-repetition power lifts twice a week to strengthen their legs, using heavier weights as they got stronger. But the point was not only to make the men stronger; it was to have their muscles respond quickly, as they might do to prevent a fall.

At the end of the year, both exercise groups had improved, but lifters who got testosterone supplements improved more. The exercise-plus-supplement group had raised performance by close to sixfold, while the exercise-alone group had improved by almost fivefold. Some men were lifting 600 pounds - weights that young college athletes used.

The gains were so striking that men who had walked with canes before no longer needed them. The exercisers were walking faster and could get out of a chair more easily. Even after the study, the men continued to do their exercises.

Men with medical conditions that preclude prescriptions of testosterone can get some benefit from exercise alone according to the researchers. The data was presented in October 2001 regional meeting of the American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists.