Modern Science and Sex
Most people have heard the notion from fighters that “sex kills your legs” or “women weaken legs,” but is there any truth to the matter? A study by the University Hospital in Geneva found that “sexual activity had no detrimental influence on the maximal workload achieved and on the athletes' mental concentration. However, the higher post effort HR [heart rate] values after the maximal stress test on the morning of sexual intercourse suggest that the recovery capacity of an athlete could be affected if he had sexual intercourse approximately 2 hours before a competition event.” (Note: the study was performed on male athletes.) Fortunately for most athletes I know, the two hours before big events are usually spent in and out of the bathroom evacuating everything but our sexual fluids.
Another study went on to say, “the results from a 1995 randomized cross-over study suggested that sexual intercourse 12 hours prior to the test had no significant effects on maximal aerobic power, oxygen pulse, or double product.” So, if modern Western science says there’s no danger in having sex before a competition, where does this notion of sex being bad for the legs come from? Is it simply a wives’ tale used to keep up-and-coming (no pun intended) athletes home at night and not out philandering until the wee hours of the morning with the fairer sex?
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