Does Routine Sexual Relations Help Lose Weight? This Is According To Research

Illustration of expert explanations about routine sexual intercourse losing weight (Freepic)

YOGYAKARTA Regular exercise is one way to burn a pile of fat more. But what about'sports' in bed or having sex? Does having sex regularly help lose weight?

As many as 66 percent of people are currently on a diet, reported by Medical News Today, Friday, July 5. In addition, physical activity is an important part of maintaining weight including losing excess weight, according to the US Department of Health and Humanitarian Services. So it is recommended at least 150 minutes of moderate intensity exercise each week. In line with this information, in fact, sex is also good for health because it burns calories and makes you happy.

Of course, the fact proves, having sex does burn calories even though it's not as much as when you do heavy exercise. However, this recent research also shows that sport alone is not the only effective activity to lose weight. Well, that's why a number of experts and research have explored in its relevance answering the question of whether routine sex can be effective in helping to lose weight or not.

Professor Anthony D. Karelis, in 2013 with his colleagues studied exactly how many calories burned when we started active. Karelis explained that only a few studies highlight physiological effects during sex with human subjects. All previous studies only showed an increase in heart rate.

Karelis works involving 21 heterosexual couples aged between 18-35 years. The couple is asked to have sex once a week for 4 weeks. This instruction aims to track activities that allow to calculate how much energy is spent every time sexual intercourse. Starting from foreplay, sexual intercourse, to orgasm have their respective duration according to the couple's wisdom.

This study found that the average calories burned during sex in 101 calories and 69 calories in men. The average intensity is higher than walking but lower than jogging. So from these findings, sex is used as moderate intensity sport.

The range of calories burned during sex varies widely. The average duration of foreplay, anggama, and orgasm is 24.7 minutes. But actually the time couples spend having sex ranges from 12.5 to 36.9 minutes.

This data is still unclear how the intimate moments of the two are spent by the couple. Is it just enjoying free time or fluid sex. Even so, researchers drew conclusions. That if you want to increase the calories of burning during sex, everyone is proactive and active to be seen, doing longer, or the combination of both.

Karelis compared regular exercise in the gym of moderate-intensity sessions in treadmill, men burned 149 and 390 calories while women were between 120 and 381 calories. When comparing, all male participants and 95 percent female participants in the study said that sex was more fun than playing treadmill.

Research conducted by Karelis and his colleagues did not reveal the participants' weight during the 4 weeks of routine sex programs once a week. That means, actually, any kind of sport is fun, not the only determinant of weight loss.

Eating the right portion is also important in losing weight. Moreover, having to be selective in choosing healthy foods to meet the adequacy of daily nutrients and getting enough rest. In a study by Elizabeth A. Lawson of the Neuroendocrine Unit at the Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, an experiment was conducted to prove that in primates and humans, the oxytocin issued was one of them after getting an orgasm, reducing calorie consumption.

Well, it's important to note that oxytocin does not last long in the body. Within 2-8 minutes after release, half of the hormones will disappear. So the effect after one sexual relationship in relation to food intake is only temporary.