People make all sorts of resolutions when it comes to the New Year, but often the motivation to stick with them just isn’t there. But what if the end game was more tangible and immediate than a thinner waistline or more energy?
What if you ended up with a hotter sex life?
There are so many healthy things you can do for your body that will not only improve your quality of life, and perhaps even your lifespan, but that will also improve your sex life tenfold. Keeping your mind and body in the best possible shape can really help turn up the volume when it comes to desire and performance.
With that in mind, here are seven healthy ways to improve your sex life in the New Year.
1. Move your body – Yes, I know, it sounds terribly simple. But it’s all too true. And it’s effective on so many different levels. First, when you exercise, you improve your heart and lung function; your strength and endurance; and your flexibility and mobility. Second, it improves the way our bodies look, which can make us more attractive to our partners as well as feel better about ourselves. Third, it makes us feel more energized, making the prospect of sex more appealing.
2. Fuel up – There’s just no arguing it. What you put in your body directly affects both how you feel about your body and what you feel like doing with your body. Remember “Super Size Me?” After eating fast food, you feel lethargic and bloated. It’s hard to imagine being in the mood when you feel like that. But when you eat fresh fruits and vegetables, whole grains, lean meats, fish, and other healthy foods, you feel a whole lot better. Not just in the moment, but in the long run, too.
3. Hydrate, hydrate, hydrate – Most people don’t drink as much water as they should. Dehydration has some serious side effects, including fatigue, dry mouth, headache, and even an altered mental state, none of which make one feel very sexy. The trick to drinking enough water is to make it a habit, which common wisdom says takes about six weeks. The added benefit is improved skin, since your skin gets hydrated from the inside out. And few people will argue that great looking skin is always sexy.
4. Give it a rest – Being exhausted does not generally equal feeling sexy. It doesn’t make you look great, either. You make time for your job and your kids and your pets and your house. So make some time for you. You don’t have to feel badly about taking the time to sleep. You need food and air to live, and you wouldn’t think of depriving yourself of those. The human body needs rest as much as it needs food to eat and oxygen to breathe. So, get some shut-eye. Your body will thank you.
5. Get your daily dose – You probably get the idea by now – feeling good and looking good leads to having a better sex life. Most of us don’t get all of the vitamins we need from the foods we eat. So, taking vitamins is essential. If you’re not a big fan of pills, try chewables like the ones you took when you were a kid; test out gummy vitamins that are almost like eating candy–or you might even experiment with a product like ZipFizz, which you add to water and tastes like a fizzy drink. No matter how you do it, making sure you get all of the vitamins you need will help to support all of your other efforts.
6. Play mind games – Not those kind of mind games. The kind that make you smarter. The brain is the most important sex organ. So, it’s important to keep it in shape. It’s a great excuse for playing all sorts of games from crossword puzzles to Sudoku. Playing games can stave off diseases like Alzheimer’s and rev up your sex life at the same time.
7. Heal your body – If things are broken, fix them. Feeling sexy is about feeling whole. So if something doesn’t seem right, ask your doctor and get it right. Sure, it can be no fun to see the doc, take meds, or go through therapies of one kind or another. But once you get the problem resolved or at least under control, you’ll be all the better for it, sexually and otherwise. There’s nothing that feels sexier than feeling like your best self.
In other words, do your best to kick all of your unhealthy habits when it comes to caring for your body and mind. A better sex life is worth the change. Speaking of habits, better sex is also yet another great reason to finally quit smoking; drinking excessively; or using drugs. There’s nothing sexy about bad breath and yellow teeth or hangovers and withdrawals. If a healthier you isn’t enough motivation, how about a sexier you?
If you want to have great sex, you need to take great care of yourself. It’s as simple as that. And don’t feel like you have to do it all at once. Take steps every day to a healthier you, and you’ll be amazed at how many strides you’ll achieve in terms of a sexier you as well.
Jenny Block is a freelance writer based in Dallas, Texas. She is the author of "Open: Love, Sex, and Life in an Open Marriage." Her work also appears in "One Big Happy Family" edited by Rebecca Walker and "It’s a Girl: Women Writers on Raising Daughters" edited by Andrea Buchanan. Visit her Web site at www.jennyonthepage.com.