Yoga and Sex
October 12, 2011 by admin
Filed under Yoga Articles
Question: Can Yoga Improve My Sex Life?
If your sex life is a little lackluster of late, doing yoga regularly may be just the thing to bring some new energy to the bedroom (or wherever). Yoga can improve your sex life on two levels: mental and physical. Yoga counteracts stress, fatigue, and poor self-image, all of which can suppress your libido. You’ll also benefit from increasing your physical fitness, particularly strength, flexibility, and muscle control.
Mental Benefits
Reduce Stress and Fatigue
Nothing puts you “out of the mood” like feeling stressed and tired. Doing yoga regularly is proven to reduce stress and, like any form of exercise, will give you more energy.
Improve Your Body Image
Feeling good about yourself and comfortable in your body is key to a healthy and fulfilling sex life. When you do yoga, you become intimately familiar with your body and what it can do. You also learn to accept and be sensitive to your body as it is today (and not 15 years ago when you were in high school or after you lose the baby weight and get back in your skinny jeans). At the same time, you will be developing strength and muscle tone, so you will also look and feel better.
Be in the Present
Yoga encourages us to be in the present moment, improving concentration and awareness. If you’ve ever found yourself thinking about your grocery shopping or Law and Order during sex, you will learn techniques, such as focusing the breath, to bring yourself back to the present.
Physical Benefits
Heighten Your Body Awareness
Yoga asks you to move your body in very specific ways. For instance, to improve your alignment, you learn to isolate the pelvic halves by moving one side of the pelvis while keeping the other still. Eventually, you learn to sense the correct alignment within your own body and adjust yourself. This extreme sensitivity to the body’s mechanics develops the mind-body connection, making you more in tune with your own body.
Increase Your Flexibility, Sensitivity, and Control
Flexibility is increased through poses like hip openers, which allow for wider range of motion. Assuming these types of positions, which counteract the hours each day you spend sitting in the car or at a computer terminal, may also improve circulation and blood flow through the pelvis, increasing sensitivity. The instruction of mula bandha (the root lock), which is the drawing in and up of the pelvic floor, much like a Kegel, may create an awareness and control of this area as well as strengthening these new-found muscles.
Notes:
- If your partner does yoga or is open to trying it, you may find a spark by practicing together. Partner yoga books and classes are readily available for those wanting to explore this avenue.
- Keep in mind that there are cases in which a sexual dysfunction needs to be treated by a physician or therapist.
