Given the prevalence of sexual relationships — it may be the least likely to be skipped physical activity — the answer is important. extent to improve.
But perhaps the most pressing question about sex and exercise is: Is sex exercise?
The answer seems to be yes in many ways.and review Researchers from the University of Almeria and the University of Murcia in Spain were published in the Archives of Sexual Behavior.
There weren’t many. Intercourse as an activity is difficult to study for reasons ranging from politeness to politics. , were frequenting the laboratory to scientifically observe their locomotion. Occasionally intercourse took place in volunteer homes. Some couples wore heart rate monitors and other trackers. Others were filmed and their movement patterns analyzed. No one was blind as to whether sex was taking place.
But even with these limitations, Spanish researchers found patterns emerge.
sex is considered moderate exercise
Most obviously, sexual relations increased the speed of the heart and burned energy. In studies where people wore trackers, heart rates averaged between 90 and 130 beats per minute, with peaks between 145 and 170 bpm. Women’s heart rate tended to be lower than men’s.
Average calorie consumption during intercourse also varied widely, depending on people’s location, gender, and untold factors such as whether they were at home or observed in the lab. In one study, total energy expenditure during her single session of sexual activity reached 130 calories, while in another experiment, it reached about 101 calories for men and 69 calories for women.
These measurements “indicate that sexual activity can cause moderate or intense physical demands,” said Jose, a professor at the Center for Health Research at the University of Almeria, who led the review study. M. Muyor says.
The numbers were similar to those for gentle running, but heart rate peaks were higher than normal during jogging and orgasm, which was unusual at the time.
The length of sexual episodes varied as well. In one study, sex lasted an average of 32.38 minutes in young, healthy couples, while in another study of couples with health conditions such as heart disease, sex lasted only about 19 minutes.
In all studies, periods were thought to begin with foreplay and end with male orgasm. Whether these parameters adequately capture the experience of both partners is debatable, but “each study is limited to a description of the methods and protocols it conducted,” Muyor said.
Other researchers have recently investigated whether sex can temporarily boost the mind, but under certain circumstances, it can be stopped – not figuratively.
2022 to watch Learn at JAMA CardiologyFor example, a study of casualties from sudden cardiac arrest within an hour of sexual relations in London found such deaths to be encouragingly rare.
Of the 6,847 fatal sudden cardiac arrests referred to one London pathology center between 1994 and 2020, only 17 occurred during or almost immediately after intercourse.
However, six of those 17 were women, which was unexpected and mostly relatively young. The average age was 38 years old.
Similarly, 2018 survey In Paris, about 0.6% of those who survived sudden cardiac arrest between 2011 and 2016, or 17 in total, were men, mostly in their 50s, who suffered cardiac arrest during or shortly after sex. I understand. By comparison, 229 of the other cases occurred during sports or other exercise, and 2,782 occurred in other settings.
Interestingly, resuscitation attempts for men who suffered during or immediately after sex tended to be initiated later than in other situations, possibly due to partner mistrust or “a degree of embarrassment,” said the University of Paris. said Eloy Mullijon, a professor of cardiology at Physiotherapy and co-author of the study.
“We don’t have a partner’s marital status,” he added.
But the main finding of his and other research in the field, he said, is that there are very few cardiac arrests during or from sexual activity. decreases.
During any physical activity, including sex, “the risk of cardiac arrest is higher than at rest,” he said. But the heart, like any muscle, strengthens and becomes more resistant to arrest the more a person exerts force, including sex. “Sex should not be considered a dangerous situation,” he said.
And despite a widespread myth to the contrary, it’s unlikely to spoil tomorrow’s competition or workout. warned him in the 1976 film. )
2022 Review published in Scientific Reports It was concluded that “sexual acts under the age of 30” [minutes] up to 24 [hours] Before it appeared to have no effect on aerobic fitness, musculoskeletal endurance, or strength/power.
The review, which pooled data from nine studies involving 133 people (nearly all men) who had had sex several hours before any physical examination, also found that intercourse did not improve physical performance.
In other words, sex is a wash, perhaps comforting to both sexually active and non-active people.
“I see no reason to avoid or promote sex before racing or sexual competition,” said Gerald Zavorsky, incoming professor of physiology and membrane biology at the University of California, Davis, in a review. led the
Of course, to think of sex as a tool of competition, or just another form of moderate exercise, runs the risk of undermining some of its poetic mystery and intimacy.
On the other hand, if you should always choose to think of exercise as a way to improve sex, that seems fine. 2019 survey In more than 6,000 men and women, the more people exercised, the less likely they were to report erectile dysfunction in men and sexual dysfunction in women.
Have a fitness question? e-mail [email protected] I may answer your question in a future column.
