Sex is an important part of any romantic relationship, and hopefully, you and your partner have sex on a regular basis. What many people wonder is if sex is a substitute for exercise. If you have sex can you skip the gym? If you and your partner are planning an evening of romance, can you skip your aerobics class?
Sex is Exercise
Because sex gets your heart beating hard, and it requires the use of so many different muscle groups, most people actually do consider sex to be exercise. Because of this, and for other reasons, they make it a point to have sexual intercourse several times a week. While it may be the most enjoyable type of exercise you ever do – unfortunately, it usually is not enough exercise to count.
Sex is Not Enough Exercise
While sex may seem like exercise, and it actually is a bit of exercise to an extent, it usually is not enough exercise. This is because it does not last long enough to be viewed as exercise. Proper aerobic exercise is defined as anything that keeps the heart rate up by a certain amount for a period of time not less than twenty minutes – and preferably for at least thirty minutes.
Unless you and your partner can keep the sexual activity up for a long enough period of time, sex will not be enough exercise to skip a workout in most cases. This is especially true if one partner is doing way more in terms of activity than the other, or in cases where the lovemaking is extremely slow in pace.
Can You Turn Sex Into Exercise
Sexual encounters with your partner could be turned into exercise – depending on how creative you want to get. You both have to be willing and able to keep your heart rates up for approximately thirty minutes, however, for it to actually count as exercise.
Naturally, you can also use sex as the opportunity to do interval exercises, but this will take the cooperation of both partners in order for it to be successful, enjoyable, and to actually count as exercise. Naturally, if you and your partner set out to make sexual activity an actual workout, this is entirely possible as well, and in this case, if you are successful in your intentions, you will find that sex is a substitute for aerobic exercise or interval exercises.