Sex Is Good Exercise!
Sex is good for your health. Most people enjoy sex for its own sake, but a recent study suggests that men who have sex at least three times a week cut their risk of a heart attack in half.
Researchers started out studying the benefits of vigorous exercise, looking at an activity lasting 20 minutes or longer and making the exerciser sweaty or out of breath. Most of the men they questioned thought that sex fit this description just as well as soccer.
This surprised the scientists, but they decided to study the issue. About 2,400 men in the town of Caerphilly in Wales were questioned about their habits, including how often they had sex?once, twice or three times a week or more. Then they were followed up for ten years. Those who reported the most frequent sexual activity were only half as likely to suffer a stroke or heart attack during that time.
The doctors conducting the study concluded that intercourse is good exercise. Other research has shown that even walking briskly for 20 minutes at least three times a week can help ward off such cardiovascular crises, so that explanation may be adequate. But there may even be something else at work.
A great deal of research points to the benefits of social interaction and social support in helping heart health. While many different types of relationships may be supportive, the relationship with a partner willing to engage in sex three times a week or more often is likely to be very close indeed.
Promiscuity isn't likely to have such health benefits. Japanese scientists recently announced that people engaging in adulterous relations were more susceptible to fatal strokes. (source: www.healthcentral.com)
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Regular Exercise Gives Energy For Sex And Everything Else
The surest way to whet sexual appetite and increase sexual activity is through physical exercise. Potent medicine, aerobic exercise revs up hormones, flushes stress, whittles away fat and rejuvenates the body, filling us with renewed vigor, greater confidence and the glow of good health. Regular exercise also increases blood flow to the genitals, priming men and women for sex.
"Beginning a fitness routine has made a difference in our sex life," remarks 42-year-old Mary Jane Platt, a mother of three. "Since we began biking together, we have so much more energy for each other. It's wonderful."
Mary Jane's experience isn't unusual. A University of California study of middle-aged, sedentary men found that after just one hour of exercise three times a week, the men demonstrated improved sexual function, more frequent sex and orgasms and greater satisfaction.
Similarly, researchers at Bentley College in Massachusetts found that women in their 40s engaged in sex more often (about seven times per month), and enjoyed it more than a sedentary group of peers. Since sex can be an act of endurance, improving cardiovascular fitness with aerobic activity such as walking, running, cycling or swimming for at least 30 minutes, three times per week, will help both partners perform longer and more often.
Push-ups and sit-ups or crunches are also beneficial exercises to add to an aerobic routine. They strengthen the shoulders, chest and abdominals, all of which are utilized during sexual intercourse. Keeping these muscles strong helps increase strength and stamina, adding to prolonged, more pleasurable sex.
"Warm Ups" for Sex — Practice the Squeeze
Unlike the muscles in our arms or legs, sex muscles are rarely active during the course of the day. However, by strengthening these "secret" muscles, couples can enjoy more intense sex. Kegel exercises firm the muscles of the vagina, helping women gain muscle control (to grip the penis) and reach orgasm more easily.
Men can use this exercise to delay ejaculation by contracting the pubococcygeal (PC) muscles just before orgasm, then fully relaxing them. Named after Los Angeles physician Arnold Kegel, these exercises strengthen the PC muscles in the pelvis. Though sometimes confused with the abdominal muscles, PCs are the muscles used to stop the flow of urine midstream (not the muscles used to hold in your stomach or tighten your buttocks).
Here's how Kegels work: Contract your PC muscles by clenching, as though stopping urine, and hold for at least two to three seconds per squeeze. Inhale as you squeeze each time and try to fully relax your muscles between each contraction. So you don't get sore, start with just 10 or 20 squeezes. Kegels can be practiced nearly anytime and in any place.
Try them in the morning with each bite of breakfast, while chatting with a co-worker, while watching television or flipping the pages of a magazine until you can do at least 100 to 200 each day. "The squeeze" is fun and easy, and can stimulate erotic feelings. Daily workouts for about one month should yield results.
S-t-r-e-t-c-h-e-s
The following pelvic stretches will help keep the muscles used during sex limber and flexible and help facilitate orgasm. Each stretch can be done in the bedroom on a firm mattress or on the floor. Wear either loose clothing or nothing at all, and consider playing your favorite music. As these exercises can arouse strong sexual desire, you may wish to try these with your partner.
Pelvic Lifts
Lie on your back with knees bent and slightly apart. Feet should be flat on the floor and arms at your side. Inhale, clenching your abdominals and buttocks and lifting the pelvis until your back is straight. Take care not to arch your back. Breathe as you hold the position for at least 10 seconds. Exhale as you lower your body and repeat the exercise. After you complete your lifts, try a few pelvic bounces, an exercise that can "evoke powerful sexual feelings," according to sex therapists David and Ellen Ramsdale.
As with the pelvic lift, knees are bent and slightly apart. Your palms should face up. Inhale and lift your pelvis just slightly off the ground. Then, exhale and let it down so your lower back bounces gently against the floor. Experiment with variations. Your goal is to feel a sense of openness and release.
The Butterfly
Lie on your back with knees bent. Feet should be together and flat on the bed. Next, pull your feet in until they touch your buttocks. Turn your ankles so the soles of your feet are facing each other and touching. Your knees will point out to the sides of the bed.
Lower your knees toward the bed taking care not to force them down. You or your partner may gently press downward on your inner thighs. When your knees are as far apart as is comfortable, hold for 60 seconds. Gently bring the knees back together with your hands and relax.
This exercise can also be done sitting up, back-to-back with your partner. Sit up as straight as possible with your spines pressed gently together. Relax your shoulders and keep your head in line with your spine. Bring your feet in as close to your body as possible, and turn them so your soles touch and knees point out. Clasp your feet. Breathe deeply and watch as your knees begin to lower, taking care not to force the knees down.
The butterfly is also beneficial for menstrual irregularities urinary problems and is thought to help ease the pain of childbirth.
Sexual Fitness
There are many other exercises and stretches that can enhance not only our sex lives but our mental and physical health. Yoga and dance classes offer great workouts and help stretch the pelvic region. Swimming and other sports that involve kicking motion, are also beneficial.
Regular exercise of almost any kind helps elevate energy, stamina, passion, pleasure…all aspects of our sex lives. So exercise and enjoy! The benefits are many (source: www.health.discovery.com)
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POST-PREGNANCY EXERCISE
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When beginning an exercise routine after your pregnancy, it is extremely important that you take it very slow. Your body is still recovering from the ordeal it just went through. Do not start exercising again until you feel steady again. Many women wait until after their six week postpartum checkup to start exercising again, but if you are feeling ready before then, you may be able to start sooner. Be sure to talk it over with your health care provider before starting any exercise routine. Here are a few very easy post pregnancy exercises.
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Pelvic Floor Strengthener
- Lie down on your back with knees bent and feet flat on the floor
- Tighten the muscles of your vagina as if you were trying to stop the flow of urine when going to the bathroom
- Hold for a count of 5, then release
This exercise is great for improving circulation in your pelvic region, as well as keeping your vaginal canal in good shape.
Head and Shoulder Raises
- Lie down on your back with knees bent and hands behind your head
- Flatten the small of your back against the floor by tightening your abdominal muscles. Take a breath and as you exhale, slowly raise your head and shoulders off the ground. Be sure not to pull on your neck with you hands. Lower yourself slowly and repeat the sequence eight to ten times, being sure to keep the small of your back pressed against the ground the whole time.
Pelvic Tilt
- Lie down on your back with knees bent and feet flat on the floor.
- Take a breath in and allow your abdomen to expand.
- As you exhale, lift your tailbone toward your navel, while keeping your hips on the floor.
- At the top of the tilt, tighten and release your buttocks. Repeat these steps eight to ten times.
The most important thing to remember when getting back into an exercise routine is to take it slowly. These gentle exercises will help get you started. You may want to include some light cardiovascular exercise, like walking, swimming, or light weight training.
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