Too Much Exercise Can Kill Your Libido, Study Says

Research shows that exercise boosts testosterone. Studies also suggest that testosterone can kick your sex drive up a notch. Logically, that would mean if you want to get laid more, working out should help. But a new study says that crushing it at the gym could actually be crushing your libido, and the secret to getting laid might mean sitting on your couch more. That should really be in the fine print of your gym membership.

To come to this conclusion, researchers tracked the sexual emotions and behaviors of 1,077 men. Subjects were asked about their libidos, general health, and exercise regimens using “pre-existing validated questionnaires” — that is, questions based on past behavioral studies like how often men think about sex. Then they were broken into groups according to both sex and exercise habits. Researchers didn’t count them as the same thing, even if you do.

When they compared both groups and controlled for age, some clear patterns emerged. Men whose workouts were moderate or light in intensity/duration were more likely to report moderate to high libidos. Whereas, prolonged and intense exercise routines were associated with lower libidos. So, exercise isn’t bad for your sex life, you just don’t want to be fit as a fiddle. You want to be fit as a horn. A big horny horn.

And if you want to get physical with your partner, maybe stop listening to Olivia Newton John for starters. For the sake of your health, though, don’t write off exercise completely and embrace the perfect antidote for too much exercise: having a kid. Since they came along, the only thing getting swole in your house is your spouse’s feet. And rubbing those definitely can’t hurt your sex life.

[H/T] New York Times