Healthy Lifestyle For Better Sex

Living a healthy lifestyle can provide you with many benefits, including better or even great sex!

Nearly half of American women—43 percent—suffer from some kind of sexual dysfunction, the Journal of the American Medical Association recently reported. But simply changing your everyday behaviors may help. "A decline in your sexual health may mean something's wrong with your overall health," says Hank C. K. Wuh, M.D., M.P.H., co-author of Sexual Fitness (Putnam, 2001). There's evidence that the lifestyle program Wuh created works:
In a 30-day study of 25 men and women (median age: 42):

• 82 percent said they experienced sexual desire more frequently
• 50 percent said their level of desire increased
• 40 percent reported an improved sexual relationship

Wuh's seven strategies in a nutshell:

• eat a healthy diet
• take certain herbs
• avoid medications that can cause sexual dysfunction
• stimulate your senses
• exercise regularly
• get enough sleep
• most importantly, learn healthy ways to manage stress

Try this position for better sex

Over 20 percent of Shape readers say their bedroom romps feel more stale than steamy. But according to a review published in the Journal of Sexual Medicine, practicing yoga regularly can help ignite a spark.
"Some women have trouble focusing during lovemaking, which makes it hard to get aroused even when they're physically ready to go," says Lori Brotto, Ph.D., an assistant professor of obstetrics and gynecology at the University of British Columbia. "Yoga encourages you to concentrate on how your body responds to each pose—improving this skill makes it easier to zero in on sensations during sex."
Any type of yoga can give you this boudoir benefit, so join a class and get back that loving feeling.

Work out, have more fun in bed with better sex

People who regularly work up a sweat outside the bedroom feel more sexually desirable, finds a study at the University of Arkansas. Other research from Duke University Medical Center shows that when overweight men and women lost just 10 percent of their body weight, they enjoyed sex more. Get moving and watch your between-the-sheets confidence soar.