Enhanced Sexual Performance Through Yoga: Unveiling the Role of Yoga in Sexual Health
Yo, let's get down to the nitty-gritty on whether yoga really does the trick in the bedroom. The web's buzzing with gurus peddling yoga for better sex, but does the science back it up? We're here to investigate.
Yoga, the ancient practice that's gradually taking over our gyms, boasts a myriad of health benefits, from alleviating depression and stress to improving metabolic syndrome and diabetes. But its effect on our sex lives? We're diving in.
Some recent studies have delved into yoga's intimate mechanisms. Turns out, it lowers your body's inflammatory response, suppresses stress-related genes, slashes cortisol levels, and boosts a protein that keeps your brain young and healthy - all which can add up to a satisfying night.
But can it truly elevate our love life? Here's what the research says.
Yoga amplifies sexual function in women
One commonly referenced study, published in The Journal of Sexual Medicine, found that yoga could indeed supercharge sexual function, particularly for women over 45. The study examined the consequences of 12 weeks of yoga on 40 women who rated their sexual function before and after yoga sessions.
After the 12-week yoga stint, these women's sexual function significantly skyrocketed across all areas of the Female Sexual Function Index: desire, arousal, lubrication, orgasm, satisfaction, and pain. As many as 75% of the women reported improved sexual experiences after yoga training.
The entire cohort learned 22 poses, or yogasanas, believed to strengthen core abdominal muscles, boost digestion, fortify the pelvic floor, and lift mood. Poses included trikonasana (the triangle pose), bhujangasana (the snake), and ardha matsyendra mudra (half spinal twist). Here's the full list.
Yoga amps up sexual function in men
Yoga doesn't leave the guys behind. Dr. Vikas Dhikav, a neurologist at the Dr. Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital in New Delhi, India, led a study examining the effects of a 12-week yoga program on men's sexual satisfaction.
By the end of the study, participants reported a significant improvement in their sexual function, as gauged by the standard Male Sexual Quotient. The researchers found improvements in desire, intercourse satisfaction, performance, confidence, partner synchronization, erection, ejaculatory control, and orgasm.
In a comparable trial led by the same team of researchers, yoga was found to be a non-drug alternative to fluoxetine (Prozac) in treating premature ejaculation.
The trial included 15 yoga poses, ranging from the simple Kapalbhati (involving sitting with legs crossed, an open chest, closed eyes, and contracted abdominal muscles) to the complex dhanurasana (the "bow pose").
Yoga's inner workings for better sex
But how, exactly, does yoga stoke our bedroom fire? A literature review by researchers at the Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology from the University of British Columbia, Canada, helps explain some of its sex-boosting mechanisms.
Dr. Lori Brotto, a professor in the Department of Obstetrics & Gynaecology at UBC, led the review.
Dr. Brotto and her colleagues explain that yoga regulates attention and breathing, lowers anxiety and stress, and governs - that is, activates - the part of the nervous system that tells your body to chill out, relax, and focus on digesting.
"All of these effects are associated with improvements in sexual response," write the reviewers, so it's "reasonable that yoga might also be associated with improvements in sexual health."
There are also psychological mechanisms at play. "Female yoga practitioners have been found to be less likely to objectify their bodies," explain Dr. Brotto and her colleagues, "and to be more aware of their physical selves."
"This tendency, in turn, may be associated with increased sexual responsibility, assertiveness, and desires."
Moola Bandha – the game-changer
Stories of unblocking energy, moving "kundalini energy" up and down the spine, and producing orgasms sans ejaculation, promptly known as "coregasms," lack rigorous scientific evidence. However, other yogic concepts may make more sense to skeptics. Moola Bandha is one such concept.
"Moola Bandha is a perineal contraction that stimulates the sensory-motor and the autonomic nervous system in the pelvic region," write Dr. Brotto and her colleagues in their review, "and therefore enforces parasympathetic activity in the body."
"Specifically, moola bandha is thought to directly innervate the gonads and perineal body/cervix." A video here incorporates the movement into a practice for pelvic floor muscles.
Some studies cited in the review have suggested that practicing moola bandha relieves period pain, childbirth pain, and sexual difficulties in women, as well as aiding in testosterone secretion in men.
Moola Bandha resembles the modern, medically recommended Kegels, which are believed to prevent urinary incontinence while enhancing sexual pleasure for both men and women.
In fact, many sex therapy centers recommend moola bandha to help women heighten their genital arousal awareness, thus boosting desire and satisfaction.
"[Moola Bandha] stretches the muscles of the pelvic floor, balances, stimulates, and rejuvenates the area through techniques that increase awareness and circulation," explain Dr. Brotto and her team, referring to the work of other researchers.
Another yoga pose that reinforces the pelvic floor muscles is bhekasana, or the "frog pose." This pose may help alleviate symptoms of vaginismus, a condition causing involuntary vaginal muscle contractions, and vestibulodynia, pain in the vestibule of the vagina.
The extent of the evidence
While it's undeniably exciting to contemplate the possible sexual perks of yoga, it's wise to remember the vast divide between the abundance of anecdotal evidence and the scarcity of empirical, or scientific, evidence.
The Internet hosts a plethora of anecdotes, but experimental research that confirms yoga's positive effects on sexual function remains limited. Moreover, most studies on sexual satisfaction and function improvements for both men and women have inadequate sample sizes and lack a control group.
However, more recent studies, focusing on women with sexual dysfunction together with other conditions, have yielded stronger evidence. For instance, a randomized controlled trial assessed the impact of yoga on women with metabolic syndrome, a risk group with a higher likelihood of sexual dysfunction.
For these women, a 12-week yoga program led to "significant improvement" in arousal and lubrication, but such improvements were not observed in the women who did not practice yoga. Improvements were also seen in blood pressure, prompting the researchers to claim that "yoga may be an effective treatment for sexual dysfunction in women with metabolic syndrome, as well as for metabolic risk factors."
Another randomized controlled trial looked at the sexual benefits of yoga for women living with multiple sclerosis (MS). The participants underwent 3 months of yoga training, consisting of eight weekly sessions. Crucially, women in the yoga group "showed improvement in physical ability" and sexual function, while women in the control group exhibited greater symptoms.
"Yoga techniques may improve physical activities and sexual satisfaction for women with MS," the study concluded.
So, while more research is needed to validate yoga's effects on sex lives, the seeds have been sown. Until future research settles whether "yogasms" are real and achievable, we reckon there's enough reason to incorporate yoga into our daily routines. Giving it a shot? It could prove incredibly enriching - and our pelvic floor will undoubtedly appreciate it.
- The journal, The Journal of Sexual Medicine, published a study that found yoga could enhance sexual function, particularly for women over 45, with significant improvements in all areas of the Female Sexual Function Index after a 12-week yoga program.
- In a study led by Dr. Vikas Dhikav, a neurologist in India, a 12-week yoga program showed significant improvements in men's sexual function, with improvements in desire, intercourse satisfaction, performance, confidence, partner synchronization, erection, ejaculatory control, and orgasm.
- According to a literature review by researchers at the University of British Columbia, yoga improves sexual health by regulating attention and breathing, lowering anxiety and stress, and activating the part of the nervous system that promotes relaxation, which are all associated with improvements in sexual response.
