During cold and rainy months, many people have a hard time finding a variety of options for physical activity. You might have a gym membership or some exercise equipment in your home. You might develop ways to adapt your fair-weather activities to poor-weather conditions like the folks over at BikeWinter.org. Or, you might think outside of the box and come up with new activities altogether.
Sex is not a new activity, but it is probably one that most people overlook when they think of exercise or physical activity. Below, we share with you 10 reasons for why you should consider sex to be among your repertoire of physical activity options, especially in poor weather. The first eight points are taken directly from a recent paper by Loren Cordain and colleagues. We have added the last two points.
1. Sexual activity has always been an integral aspect of human existence and qualifies as a prototypical component of an organic fitness program.
2. Large, long-term, epidemiological studies consistently indicate that engaging in regular sexual activities confers a multitude of quantifiable benefits to health, well-being, and improved longevity for both men and women (assuming that safe sex practices are followed so as to minimize the risk of contracting sexually transmitted infections).
3. After adjusting for baseline characteristics, such as age and cardiovascular risk factors, men and women who report the highest frequency of sexual relations have lower mortality rates, improved immune system function, lower risk of prostate cancer, and reduced risks for cardiovascular disease.
4. Sex, at the very least, requires physical exertion. A vigorous 30-minute session of sexual activity will burn up to 200 calories—about the same as walking 2 miles, or running 15 minutes on a treadmill.
5. At orgasm, the peak heart rate is typically 120 to150 bpm, and systolic blood pressure can reach 200 mm Hg, resulting in a cardiac workload similar to that produced by moderate physical exertion.
6. Intercourse exercises the pelvis, thighs, buttocks, arms, neck, and thorax muscles.
7. Sexual activity and orgasm also boost production of testosterone, which promotes improved bone and muscle strength.
8. Sexual intercourse stimulates the production of prolactin, which has been linked to improvements in mood, psychological bonding, and sense of smell.
9. Sex is a good indoor activity. It can be practiced in all types of weather.
10. Sex is fun.