We already know that sex can help burn calories, but can masturbation do the same — and potentially help you shed pounds? Exercise is key to maintaining your overall health and well-being, but if jerking off could make you drop a few pant sizes, you’d probably do it more often.
To find the answer, we spoke to experts to find the answer to the question, “Is masturbating an exercise that can lead to weight loss?” Plus, we’ll discuss masturbation myths and the true benefits of this sexual activity.
Understanding Masturbation
You likely already know what it is, but as a refresher, masturbation is the act of pleasuring yourself to achieve an orgasm. You can use your hands or get help from an object or sex toy. Masturbating is a normal behavior with many benefits, which we’ll discuss later.
Does masturbation cause weight loss?
Before discussing if jerking off can help you shed a few pounds, let’s discuss what can influence weight loss.
Caloric or energy intake is the number of calories (energy content) you consume from food and drinks. To lose weight, you need to consume about 500 calories less per day to shed 1 to ½ pounds a week. Caloric or energy expenditure is the amount of energy your body needs to maintain your metabolic function (the process of turning food and drinks into energy). When caloric expenditure exceeds caloric intake, your energy balance is negative, leading to weight loss.
This is often expressed as the common weight loss advice of "calories in/calories out." In other words, the number of calories you eat plus the number of calories you burn from exercise needs to be lower than the number of calories necessary for metabolic function to lose weight.
Myriad variables factor into weight loss, including how fast or slow your metabolism is, which you cannot change. You can burn more calories by being more physically active, though, so it's a good idea to get at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity physical activity a week, which could be split into 30 minutes a day, five days a week.
Editor's note: Current research shows weight loss is not as simple as "calories in/calories out" or just increasing the amount of calories you burn from exercise and reducing the number of calories you consume. Research also shows that even though many people are able to lose weight in the short term, only about five percent of people maintain that weight loss for five years or more, and some research suggests chronic dieting can actually lead to weight gain in the long-term.
How many calories does masturbating burn?
A 2013 study reveals that burning calories sexually is a possibility when it comes to vaginal or anal penetrative sex, but does masturbating burn calories too?
Yes, but unfortunately, not enough to have a significant impact.
“You need to masturbate very intensely (like fingering yourself hard or jerking off aggressively until you feel it in your forearm) for a very long time (10 to 25 minutes) to really burn calories that equals more than a cucumber,” says Sofie Roos, a licensed sexologist, couple therapist, and author at Passionerad.
To give you an idea of how low that number is, a raw cucumber is 15 calories. With the limited number of calories you can burn, masturbation won’t be too helpful for weight loss. But it is beneficial in other ways!
“[Masturbation] can contribute to overall well-being and be part of a healthy sexual expression,” says Ashish Sabharwal, MBBS, MS, DNB, a board-certified urologist and robotic prostate surgeon.
How many calories does orgasming burn?
So, if masturbation isn't a big calorie burner it itself, can you at least burn calories when you orgasm? Sabharwal says you can burn about 10 to 15 calories when you orgasm, but that can vary for everyone. And it still leaves your grand total for calories burned by masturbating to completion at around 25-30.
Masturbation Myths vs. Reality
There’s a lot of misinformation surrounding masturbation, which may discourage people from engaging in this very beneficial sexual act. Now that we’ve debunked masturbation as a weight loss method, here are some common myths surrounding this solo act that are completely untrue.
Masturbation causes infertility
Some believe that jerking off can lead to a low sperm count or make you unable to have children. However, research shows that people with penises who have normal sperm quality will maintain sperm motility and concentrations with frequent solo sessions.
Masturbating can make you blind
How terrifying would it be to lose your eyesight after busting a nut? Thankfully, this is completely untrue. Eye injuries and masturbation have absolutely no correlation to each other.
Masturbation can cause sexual dysfunction
There’s the belief that frequent masturbation can lead to sexual problems, such as erectile dysfunction (ED). Yet, a 2023 study found that masturbation frequency rarely affected erectile functioning for men and people with penises.
Potential Benefits of Masturbation
Even though you can't lose weight by masturbating, there are other plenty of other health benefits associated with masturbating.
These benefits include:
- Reducing stress and increasing relaxation: According to Roos, masturbating can release endorphins, which can help lower stress levels. Sabharwal adds that a higher level of endorphins can also cause relaxation, which is why you might end up taking a nap after a good solo session.
- Lowering risk of prostate cancer: Prostate cancer is the most common cancer and the second leading cause of cancer death among men and people assigned male at birth (AMAB). Research reveals that the risk of prostate cancer is reduced by 20 percent for men and people AMAB who ejaculated 21 times a month compared to those who ejaculated four to seven times a month.
- Boosting self-esteem: Sabharwal says that one of the emotional benefits of masturbating is that it can increase your self-esteem.
- Pain relief: If you have migraines, masturbation may help. A 2015 study suggests that the endorphins released from masturbating may relieve a migraine attack.
Takeaway
Masturbation is great for improving your overall health and well-being, but it is not the best way to lose weight. You can burn a few calories during intense solo play, but it’s just not enough to shed pounds.
While masturbating is beneficial for your sexual well-being, make sure you find a healthy balance, as doing it in excess amounts could pose negative consequences.
