Enhanced Sexual Performance: The Role of Yoga Practice in Improvement
Revamped Article:
Hey there! You've probably heard the buzz about yoga allegedly boosting your bedroom antics—let's dive into whether there's any truth to it.
Yoga, an age-old practice, is getting modern recognition for its multitude of health benefits. From battling stress to taming diabetes, yoga's touted for its role in a plethora of health issues. But can it up your game between the sheets? We crack the whip.
Sexy yoga for women over forty-five
In a study published in The Journal of Sexual Medicine, research revealed that certain yoga poses could indeed enhance sexual function, with a focus on ladies over forty-five.
These ladies participated in a twelve-week yoga regimen and self-reported on their sexual function before and after. Post-yoga, they reported significantly improved sexual function across the board, with splendid improvements in desire, lubrication, orgasm, and satisfaction. In fact, 75% of the women claimed an improvement in their sex life after the yoga training!
The routine consisted of 22 poses (yogasanas) like trikonasana (the triangle pose), bhujangasana (the snake), and ardha matsyendra mudra (the half spinal twist). You can catch the full list of asanas here.
Yoga's seductive powers for the opposite sex
Fellas—don't feel left out! A study led by neurologist Dr. Vikas Dhikav, based in New Delhi, India, investigated the impact of a twelve-week yoga program on men's sexual satisfaction.
By the study's end, the participants reported a significant uptick in their sexual function, as gauged by the Male Sexual Quotient. Improvements were detected across all facets of male sexual contentment: desire, intercourse satisfaction, performance, confidence, partner synchronization, erection, ejaculatory control, and orgasm.
Notably, a comparative trial carried out by the same research team also discovered that yoga may serve as a nonpharmacological alternative to fluoxetine (Prozac) for treating premature ejaculation.
This study involved fifteen yoga poses, ranging from the easier Kapalbhati, to more complex poses like dhanurasana (the "bow pose").
The science behind yogic thumping
Wondering how yoga blows your bedroom blues away? A review by researchers from the Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, University of British Columbia (UBC), Vancouver, Canada, peers into the matter.
Dr. Lori Brotto, a professor in the Department of Obstetrics & Gynaecology at UBC, is the first author of the review.
Dr. Brotto and her colleagues explain that yoga emphasizes attention control, breathing regulation, and stress reduction. All these elements are tied to improvements in sexual response. Therefore, it's "reasonable that yoga might also be associated with improvements in sexual health."
Additionally, practicing yoga fosters a more profound connection with one's body. "Female yoga devotees are generally less likely to view their bodies objectively, and more cognizant of their physical selves," say the researchers. This heightened body awareness could contribute to sexual responsibility, assertiveness, and libido increases.
Teasing the mysteries of moola bandha
While tales of energy blockages and kundalini awakening remain based more on quackery than science, other yogic concepts could catch the skeptic's attention. Moola bandha, for instance, is one such idea.
Moola bandha is a perineal contraction that stimulates the pelvic region's nervous system and revs up the parasympathetic nervous system. As the researchers suggest, it has a direct influence on reproductive organs and the pelvic floor.
Some studies allude that practicing moola bandha may ease menstrual pain, manage stress, and address sexual difficulties in women, as well as tackle premature ejaculation and manage testosterone secretion in men.
Moola bandha shares similarities with the modern, medically-backed kegel exercises, popular for preventing urinary incontinence and elongating sexual sessions for both sexes.
Many sex therapy centers suggest this yoga practice to help women recognize and amplify sensations of arousal in their genital areas, consequently boosting desire and tactile satisfaction.
Another yoga pose that beefs up the pelvic floor muscles is bhekasana, or the "frog pose." Aside from improving sexual experiences, it may alleviate symptoms of vestibulodynia (vaginal pain) and vaginismus (involuntary vaginal muscle contractions) in women.
The evidence conundrum
While the tantalizing potential for yoga to improve your sex life might have you reaching for the mat, it's vital to remember the difference between supposed empirical evidence and anecdotal evidence.
The Internet thrives with anecdotal accounts, but well-designed studies examining yoga's impact on sexual function are relatively scarce.
Most of the studies referenced above—those reporting improvements in sexual satisfaction and function for both men and women—have small sample sizes, leaving room for improvement. That being said, more recent studies with larger sample sizes, focusing on women struggling with other conditions, exhibit stronger findings.
For example, a randomized controlled trial looked into the effects of yoga on women with metabolic syndrome. After a twelve-week yoga regimen, these ladies experienced significant enhancements in arousal and lubrication—improvements absent in the non-yoga group.
Improvements were also observed in blood pressure, prompting the researchers to posit that "yoga may be an effective treatment for sexual dysfunction in women with metabolic syndrome as well as for metabolic risk factors."
Another study focused on the sexual benefits of yoga for women grappling with multiple sclerosis (MS). The participants completed a three-month yoga course, consisting of eight weekly sessions. Significantly, the yoga group demonstrated improvement in their physical abilities along with sexual function, while the control group faced exacerbated symptoms.
"Yoga techniques may improve physical activities and sexual satisfaction for women with MS," the study summed up.
Though more scientific research is needed to substantiate yoga's benefits for our sex lives, it's clear that intriguing insights are on the horizon. Till the question of 'yogasms' is answered beyond doubt, we think adding yoga to our daily lives is a promising option worth trying—and of course, our pelvic muscles will thank us!
- The study published in The Journal of Sexual Medicine suggests that certain yoga poses can enhance sexual function, particularly for women over forty-five, leading to significant improvements in desire, lubrication, orgasm, and satisfaction, with 75% of the women reporting an improvement in their sex life after the yoga training.
- A study led by Dr. Vikas Dhikav found that a twelve-week yoga program improved sexual satisfaction in men, as measured by the Male Sexual Quotient, with significant improvements noted across all facets of male sexual contentment.
- The science behind yoga's impact on sexual health can be attributed to its emphasis on attention control, breathing regulation, and stress reduction, which are tied to improvements in sexual response, and the practice of specific yoga poses like Moola bandha and certain pelvic floor strengthening poses such as bhekasana (the "frog pose").
