1. Exercise Regularly for the Most Benefits
According to a study done at the University of Texas, women who had finished 20 minutes of cardio exercise were more subjectively and objectively aroused from seeing an erotic film than a similar group of women who had not exercised. This means that even after one workout session, your body gets aroused faster and more intensely. Another study at the University of California showed that men who exercised for 1 hour at least 3 times per week had sex more often, performed better sexually and were happier with their sex lives than they were before they began exercising.
Scientists have several explanations for exercise improving your sex drive. First, endurance exercise like swimming and cross-country skiing boosts your stamina. Second, you can become more flexible through aerobic and gymnastic exercise. Third, exercise of any type can prevent you from cramping up during orgasm. Finally, exercise causes the release of endorphins into the limbic and prefrontal areas of the brain, as proven by a 2008 study. The increased level of endorphins may also influence the buildup of hormones that power your libido. Endorphins also reduce stress, which is a major sex drive inhibitor.
Exercise provides a psychological boost, as well. Regular exercise leads to a higher self-esteem. As you become more fit, you feel more confident and enjoy sex more. Behavior therapist Patricia Esperson at Duke University believes that exercising also puts you more in touch with your physical body and enables you to feel more sexual, as opposed to the sense of detachment you have if you are ashamed of your body.
2. Start Practicing Yoga
Yoga has a reputation of increasing not only your sex drive, but also your sexual prowess, capacity and enjoyment. While these benefits have not been scientifically validated, many yoga practitioners claim to have benefited from the exercise.
Physically, yoga is said to increase sensitivity by stimulating the blood flow in your pelvis, particularly your genitals. The increased blood flow can also increase your desire for sex. The yoga positions also condition your body's torso and pelvic muscles. According to practitioners, this gives you a stronger orgasm due to the stronger contractions your muscles generate. Yoga experts also allege spiritual effects, such as increased energy flow to the chakras.
The camel, the upward-facing dog and the butterfly are three good beginning yoga positions for you to try if you want to boost your sex drive. You may also get some benefit from trying the bound angle pose and the wide straddle forward bend.
3. Pump Some Iron
Lifting dumbbells or barbells can cause testosterone surges, and testosterone increases sexual pleasure for both men and women. A man with more testosterone in his blood gets more erections, has better bone density and is stronger. Women with more testosterone tend to be more aroused and enjoy sex more. They also enjoy higher bone density and stronger muscles. Your body is also producing epinephrine, also known as adrenaline, when you lift weights. Combining adrenaline with endorphins and testosterone is a potent sexual cocktail.
Multiple repetitions and weights heavy enough to exhaust your muscles at the end of your set will produce more testosterone surges. However, don't push yourself too hard while weight lifting. Overreaching your abilities will not only lead to injury but also to over training syndrome--a condition in which you surpass your body's capacity to recover from exercise, actually decreasing your sexual performance!
