Get Your Motor Running
Reignite passion in the bedroom.
How long has it been? A month? A few months? While you’re busy wondering about the frequency of other couples’ intimate relations, take heart in knowing that more than a few of them are probably dealing with similar desire droughts.
According to Dr. Jennifer Landa, chief medical officer of BodyLogicMD in Maitland and author of The Sex Drive Solution for Women, 40 percent of women will have issues with libido at some point in their lives. “Women experience a biological ‘urge to merge’ in their 20s,” says Landa. That amorous blend of hormones peaks around age 25 and then begins a slow downward spiral. Toss in the dirty dishes, the stressful job, and the chaos of raising kids—it’s no wonder that lovemaking starts to seem almost like another task.
Enter 50 Shades of Grey. More than 20 million copies have been sold of the erotic tale Dr. Mehmet Oz has been touting as the new prescription for the female libido. Landa is a fan, too. “Desire is most often the issue for women,” she says. “Read a chapter from 50 Shades of Grey and all of a sudden you’re feeling a little heat. Erotica is one of those things that really helps to bring back the spark.”
She also recommends women and men look at their habits, attitude, relationship, and stress and hormone levels. “Part of keeping your libido strong is living a pro-libido lifestyle,” Landa says. Besides a healthy diet and regular exercise, she suggests the practice of creating mindfulness. “Women are great multi-taskers, but we’re really bad at focusing on one thing at a time,” she says. “If we were able to be present and immersed in the moment, sex would be so much more enjoyable.”
Stress is the biggest culprit when it comes to lack of drive, especially for guys. Thirty percent of Dr. Landa’s clients are men. “Stress robs them of their testosterone. They lose their motivation, their self-confidence, their edge.”
Besides being proven to boost immunity, improve heart function, and lower blood pressure, a good sex life creates swagger, mojo…it’s how Stella got her groove back! And for those who are coupled, not having regular sex can become the elephant in the room. “It affects the balance in a relationship in a big way,” Landa says.
Also consider that libido can be a sort of barometer for life: If you are lacking the energy and motivation for sex, it’s likely that you’re lacking energy and motivation for other areas of your life as well. Start to heat things up between the sheets and you never know, that could be just the thing you need to put some pep back into your step all day long.
Bringing Sexy Back
Strip: Take a fitness-oriented pole-dancing class at Vixen Fitness (vixenfitnessonline.com). This Sand Lake-area fitness studio offers more than 50 seductive classes each week.
Pose: Channel your inner Marilyn Monroe during a boudoir photo shoot with Bon Bon Studios (bonbonstudios.com) in Sanford. Each client is treated to a full makeup and hair makeover.
Read: Already made it through the 50 Shades trilogy? Try the romantic Bared to You series, written by Sylvia Day, for a literary libido boost.
