Remember that old adage about not having sex before a big game because it would give you weak legs?
Foolish as it sounds, many athletes hold to it (except players on Argentina’s World Cup team).
Well, if a new study proves accurate, the actual thing that men should be avoiding to keep their libido out of harm’s way is to avoid exercising before having sex, not the other way around.
Researchers at UNC Chapel Hill developed a series of questionnaires about health, exercise and sexual behavior and were able to get 1,100 physically active adult men to complete them.
Based on their answers, the researchers found that “men who exercise strenuously may have a lower libido than those whose workouts are lighter,” according to The New York Times.
The study also found men who exercised lightly or moderately “were far more likely to report moderate or high libidos” than men who worked out intensely, even when controlled for age.
After analyzing all the data, this was the ominous conclusion: “Clinicians who treat male patients for sexual disorders and, or counsel couples on infertility issues should consider the degree of endurance exercise training a man is performing as a potential complicating factor.”
To be clear, this is just what one study determined and, given that most research on the subject has involved women, there are more studies to be conducted. Translation: don’t quit the gym just yet.
That said, if you wanna skip cardio for a few days, at least you’ve got a good excuse for it.
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