Enhanced Sexual Function Through Yoga Practice: Insights on Improved Intimacy and Satisfaction
Getting down to the nitty-gritty: Is there any truth behind the claims that yoga can revolutionize your intimate life? We got curious and hit the books to find out.
In the ever-growing world of wellness blogs, there's no shortage of stories claiming yoga can give your sex life a boost, sometimes a mind-blowing one. But does science back up these tales? Let's take a dive.
Now, yoga's been around for quite a while, and modern research has finally started digging into its many health benefits. Things like anxiety, stress, depression, metabolic syndrome, diabetes, and thyroid problems are all on yoga's to-help list.
As it turns out, yoga works some serious magic on your body. It lowers inflammation, counters stress-related genetic expressions, reduces cortisol, and bumps up a protein that supercharges the brain, keeping it young and healthy. Feeling good? You should be.
Now, onto the million-dollar question: Can yoga's flexible poses pump up your sex life? Let's have a look at the research.
Yoga's magic touch for women
Remember that study in The Journal of Sexual Medicine? It found that yoga indeed improves sexual function – especially for ladies over 45. The researchers had 40 women practice 12 weeks of yoga, and after the sessions, their sexual function soared across the board on the Female Sexual Function Index: desire, arousal, lubrication, orgasm, satisfaction, and pain. A staggering 75% of these women reported a better sex life after their yoga adventures!
In the study, all the women learned 22 poses – yogasanas – believed to bolster core abdominal muscles, digestion, pelvic floor strength, and mood. Poses like trikonasana (the triangle pose), bhujangasana (the snake), and ardha matsyendra mudra (half spinal twist) made the cut. You can check out the full list here.
Yoga for the boys
Did you think it was just the ladies who could reap the benefits? Guess again, buddy! Dr. Vikas Dhikav – a neurologist at the Dr. Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital in New Delhi, India – led another study examining the effects of a 12-week yoga program on male sexual satisfaction. At the finale, the guys reported a serious upgrade in their satisfaction levels, as evaluated by the Male Sexual Quotient. They saw improvements across all aspects of their sexual lives: desire, intercourse satisfaction, performance, confidence, partner synchronization, erection, ejaculatory control, and orgasm.
A comparative trial conducted by the same team of researchers found that yoga is an equally fantastic alternative to the pharmaceutical Prozac for treating premature ejaculation. This bad boy included 15 yoga poses like Kapalbhati, Kaparradhastasana, and the "bow pose."
Yoga's secret sauce for better sex
So, how does yoga work its magic on our hormones? A review led by researchers at the University of British Columbia provides some insight. It turns out that yoga regulates attention, breathing, and stress levels, as well as activates the part of the nervous system responsible for relaxing your bod. All these effects are linked to improved sexual response.
"It's fair to say that yoga might also boost our sexual health," explain the researchers.
There are also psychological mechanisms at play. "Female yogis have been found to be less likely to objectify their bodies, and more aware of their physical selves," reveals the review. "This, in turn, may lead to increased sexual responsibility, assertiveness, and possibly arousal."
The power of moola bandha
Tales of unleashing blocked energy in root chakras and moving kundalini energy up and down the spine to trigger ejaculation-free orgasms? Not exactly a hard science, buddy. But Moola bandha – a yogic concept – might be more up your alley.
"Moola bandha is a contraction of the perineal muscles that activates the pelvic nerves, which control the genitals," write the researchers. "It may help relieve period pain, childbirth pain, and sexual difficulties in women, and control testosterone secretion in men."
Moola bandha is like the sex-therapy-recommended Kegel exercises that help women (and men) enjoy sex longer. Many sex therapy centers even recommend this yoga practice to help women connect with their sensations of arousal down below, thus improving desire and satisfaction.
Another yoga pose that gives the pelvic floor some love is Bhekasana, or the "frog pose." On top of enhancing sex, this move may help alleviate pain in the vestibule of the vagina and involuntary vaginal muscle contractions, also known as vaginismus.
Just how reliable is this evidence?
It's easy to get carried away by the buzz around yoga's potential for boosting your lingam or yoni, but it's essential to remember that we're talking pretty limited research here. While the stories flooding the Internet are weighted heavily on the anecdotal side, the actual studies nailing down yoga's impact on sexual function are slim.
Most of the studies we've mentioned so far – which show improvements in sexual satisfaction and function for both genders – have pretty small sample sizes and lack a control group. But, recent studies focusing on women with sexual dysfunction in addition to other health issues have provided stronger evidence.
For instance, a randomized controlled trial looked at the effects of yoga on women with metabolic syndrome, a condition with a higher risk of sexual dysfunction. For these women, a 12-week yoga program led to "significant improvement" in arousal and lubrication, while no such improvements were seen in the non-yoga group.
Improvements were also noted in blood pressure, leading the researchers to conclude that "yoga may be an effective treatment for sexual dysfunction in women with metabolic syndrome and for metabolic risk factors."
Also, a 3-month randomized controlled trial examined the sexual benefits of yoga for women living with Multiple Sclerosis (MS). The women in the yoga group "showed improvement" in physical ability and sexual function, while the control group's symptoms worsened.
So, we may not have the answer to the elusive "yogasm," but there's certainly enough evidence to encourage a bit of yoga in our routines. And, if our pelvic muscles don't thank us, we'll just chalk it up as a stretch.
- In the realm of health-and-wellness blogs, frequent stories emerge claiming that yoga can enhance sexual function, with some even suggesting a mind-blowing effect.
- Research substantiates that yoga aids in improving various health aspects, including mental health, sexual health, and physical fitness through managing inflammation, reducing stress, and bolstering brain health.
- A study published in The Journal of Sexual Medicine found that practicing yoga for 12 weeks can significantly improve sexual function in women over 45, covering desire, arousal, lubrication, orgasm, satisfaction, and pain.
- Equally intriguing findings were observed in men, where a 12-week yoga program led to enhanced sexual satisfaction, as evaluated by the Male Sexual Quotient, showcasing benefits in desire, intercourse satisfaction, performance, confidence, partner synchronization, erection, ejaculatory control, and orgasm.
