Sex is fun, feels great and brings you closer to your partner—and regular intimacy is also good for your mental and physical health.
Making love can improve your heart function, lower your stress and anxiety levels, reduce aches and so much more.
Unfortunately, some seemingly innocent habits before and after sex could cause problems in the sack, ruining your healthy fun
Of course, some level of awkwardness is to be expected — and that can be true whether you’re in a new or established relationship — but there are some ways to make your time between the sheets better
There are many things you can and should consider doing before you hop into bed with your chosen plus-one — and there are also plenty of activities you should avoid.
Trying to make an upcoming sex sesh a little more special and, well, climactic? Read on to learn the best and worst things you can do before having sex.
- Eat spicy food or an overly heavy meal
If you know things are going to get heated in the bedroom, make sure they’re not quite as spicy at the dinner table. You may be burning with desire, but heartburn is a wholly unpleasant issue. What’s more, there are several specific foods you may want to avoid altogether before sex.
Anything heavy that sits like lead in the belly is not going to motivate your magic.
- Shave or wax right before sex
You surely want to prep and primp for the marathon night ahead. But one thing you should consider skipping: shaving or waxing your pubic hair.
Shaving, in particular, can be risky before sex as even the tiniest nick or cut could make you more susceptible to getting a sexually transmitted disease.
- Drink too much alcohol
Hoping for a wild night in bed? Consider making it a tame night at the bar. Drinking too much alcohol can impede your desire and your performance.
Consumption of excessive booze can diminish a woman’s libido, make orgasm more elusive, and cause a reduction in vaginal lubrication. For men, it can make it challenging to get or keep an erection and impede ejaculation.
- Engage in intense exercise
If you have been pushing super hard at the gym, your at-home, in-bed workouts may be suffering as a consequence.
An intense and excessive workout routine can cause a man’s libido to plummet
Regular, moderate exercise can improve sexual wellness. Moderation is the key to health, happiness, and, apparently, sexual prowess.
- Douche just before sex
Want to feel extra clean down there before a big date? Take a shower or have a soak, but resist douching before sex. In fact, don’t do it.
The vagina is a self-cleaning organ” that plays host to specific bacteria that keep harmful microbes out. What’s more, since the vagina is acidic, it actively works to reduce some infection risk. Douching flushes out the normal bacteria in the vagina that are there to fight vaginal infections.
