Exercise Boosts Male Sexual Arousal

A study in Germany found that men who performed 3 minutes of physically demanding exercise had more intense reactions to pictures with sexual content compared to a control group. The sympathetic nervous system, which regulates our “fight-or-flight” responses, is activated in times of stress, threat, or arousal. The study provides evidence for enhancement of sexual processing by acute stress exposure in men and suggests differential involvement of parasympathetic versus sympathetic mechanisms. However, the study has limitations, and results in more naturalistic situations and on different age groups might not be the same.