As an English girl born and bred, I couldn’t help but notice the contrasting attitudes towards personal health between Europe and America. Stressing over time spent at the gym is definitely not something that concerns myself or any of my female friends back in the UK. Contrastingly, during my short time here in America, I’ve met a huge amount of girls who seem to have a regular, if not obsessive gym pattern. Attitudes towards physical fitness are definitely more forward thinking here than they are in Europe. I do think, however, that one area of personal health Europeans are more open to/familiar with is female masturbation. While here it is taboo and rarely spoken about, Europeans seem much more comfortable with solo-sex—even the girls! For those of you who want to be as healthy as possible, it may be worth incorporating solo-sex into your weekly schedule in place of a trip or two to the gym, as obsessive gym-going has its fair share of downsides.
I’ll begin with the physical aspect, as that’s always the most interesting: excessive exercise can damage tendons, ligaments, bones, cartilage, and joints. Especially when the physical activities place a lot of pressure on certain areas of the body. When minor injuries aren’t allowed to heal, they often result in long-term damage. For people unwilling to relax their exercise schedule, this can lead to severe pain and inconveniences later on in life. It has also been recognized that instead of building muscle, too much exercise actually destroys muscle mass, particularly if the body isn’t getting enough of the right nutrition. The muscle mass is forced to break down for energy. For women, there is an added worry of hormone imbalance caused by excessive exercise. This can result in changes to menstrual cycles and an increased risk of premature bone loss or osteoporosis. Some women lose their periods altogether, a condition known as amenorrhea, which can damage fertility and thus the ability to have children. In my opinion, these are definitely worth thinking about.
More important to consider, however, is the emotional impact of compulsive exercise. An article on Kid’s Health suggests that, “much like with eating disorders, many people who engage in compulsive exercise do so to feel more in control of their lives, and the majority of them are female. They often define their self-worth through their athletic performance and try to deal with emotions like anger or depression by pushing their bodies to the limit. In sticking to a rigorous workout schedule, they seek a sense of power to help them cope with low self-esteem.” These examples are all quite clearly extremes and don’t apply to the majority of us, but they shouldn’t be easily dismissed. Nobody is born a compulsive athlete—it’s something that one grows into and, as with eating disorders, it can be difficult to know when to stop. Even for those who use exercise in a more positive way, there can still be psychological harm. While the competitive environment of the gym can be a good source of motivation, it can also serve as a harmful tool by which people compare themselves. Similarly, the disappointment felt on days you can’t make it to the gym, or your usual two-hour session has to be cut short, is essentially unhealthy as well.
Now, before I get into the interesting stuff, I would like to point out that I am not condemning all exercise. Not at all. I appreciate its place in a healthy lifestyle and recognize the multiple benefits it provides if it isn’t abused. Nor am I suggesting that orgasms should be used as a substitute for regular exercise. Having said that, for those days where you’re simply too busy or too tired to hit the gym, there is an alternative to feeling terrible about yourself and reprimanding your lack of effort or motivation: masturbation.
In society at large, and especially in America, female masturbation is viewed with an oppressive negativity. Nobody wants to even talk about it, and given the progressive, open-minded century that we live in, this seems absurd. Sadly though, most girls won’t orgasm during sex, so female masturbation is the only way for most of us to experience the sensational pleasures of an orgasm. Despite its (undeserved) taboo reputation, there have been multiple studies into solo-sex orgasms that demonstrated the physical and emotional benefits of spending a little quality alone time. If you’re feeling reserved about the whole idea, reading about these benefits may just persuade you to let your hair down.
Orgasms are good for your physical health.
Women to Women reported the following health benefits of regular masturbation (it may take a while to read as there are just so many!)
1. Masturbation helps prevent cervical infections.
2. Helps relieve urinary tract infections.
3. It is associated with improved cardiovascular health.
4. Solo-sex can lower risk of type-2 diabetes.
5. Masturbation can help work against insomnia naturally, through hormonal and tension release (think dopamine!)
6. It can relieve menstrual cramps and headaches.
7. Last on this particular list: it can increase pelvic floor strength.
Do two hours at the gym have so many health benefits rolled up into a moment of ecstasy? I think not.
Orgasms make you feel good.
A huge rumour surrounding orgasms is that they are good not only for your health, but for your mood too, and it has been proven true! A number of hormones are released during arousal: oxytocin, dopamine and endorphins, all of which have powerful mood-enhancing effects. Another article from the Huffington Post recognized that “orgasms serve the brain in a similar way to cardiovascular exercise.” So along with crosswords, we can cross a few trips to the gym off our to do list and spend a little healthy alone time!
Orgasms are good for your mental health.
Women to Women similarly suggest that, “because we are in control of our bodies when we masturbate, we can learn a lot about who we are.” So we can see masturbation as a significant road to self-discovery. But it is also beneficial on a much simpler and grounded level: as sex therapist Lonnie Barbach notes in her book For Yourself, it relieves stress. As a busy college student dealing with exams, relationship drama, homesickness, on top of a million other things, a quick form of stress release is invaluable. There is also an absence of the competitive environment that dominates gym culture. There is no pressure to achieve a specific goal in a certain amount of time, and there is nobody to compare yourself to. Any ensuing orgasms, including masturbation, are all about you!
Orgasms are better for your brain than logic puzzles.
An article by the Huffington Post reported the experiment of Rutgers researchers Barry Komisaruk and Nan Wise, who study human pleasure. They recruited female subjects willing to bring themselves to orgasm while lying in an MRI machine that measured blood flow to different parts of the brain. Through this they discovered that “orgasms increase blood flow to all parts of the brain, bringing nutrients and oxygenation along, too.” Contrastingly, mentally stimulating puzzles like Sudoku and crosswords only increased brain activity in “relatively localized regions.” Essentially, instead of stressing yourself out over a laboriously difficult crossword, you can have ten minutes of fun and give your brain a good workout simultaneously!
Orgasms can make you look younger.
According to a 1999 study conducted by David Weeks (clinical neuropsychologist at the Royal Edinburgh Hospital), “genetics is only responsible for 25% of how we look. After studying 3,500 men and women, Dr. Weeks concluded that people who had one or two orgasms a week looked around 10 years younger than those who didn’t. Sexual activity in women releases human growth hormone, which helps us maintain our girlish looks.” And it’s worth noting that orgasms, unlike anti-aging products, are free. No complaints from me.
While regular exercise clearly has its own benefits, it is not always convenient to spend two hours of your day travelling to and from the gym. If, like me, you’re all about instant gratification and struggle with time management, occasionally skip the gym and try a little ‘self-help.’ Of course, you could always have somebody enjoy the time with you. That way you would not only enjoy some of the benefits listed above, but you would be engaging in a physical exercise of sorts. Win-win situation. And okay, the title was slightly misleading–orgasms aren’t necessarily better for you than exercise. But I bet you’re glad I tricked you into reading this. Now go light some candles and enjoy your wonderful ‘me’ time!