Why You Should Get Sweaty on Valentine’s Day

When you think about Valentine’s Day, you think about romance, love and… chocolates! In fact, we love chocolate so much that during Valentine’s week, collectively we buy more than 58 million pounds of chocolate candy goodness! Talk about having a sweet tooth. Sparkling wines also pop this week, in fact Valentine’s Day is the fourth-largest holiday for sparkling wine sales. So it turns out Cupid loves chocolate and bubbly – his dentist must love him.

Here’s one thing you don’t usually think when you think about Valentine’s Day: fitness! (Unless you’re like us, but we’re fitness geeks, so there’s that). Chocolate and bubbly, yes. Fitness, not so much. But why not? Romance and good health go hand-in-hand, don’t they? Well you’ve probably already heard something about the many health benefits exercise has on both your physical and psychological well-being. But maybe you don’t already know that it can do wonders for your romantic well-being too. And it goes far and above just looking good naked (although, let’s face it, that always helps).

So now that I’ve piqued your interest, you may be wondering: “Just what are these romantic benefits you speak of?” And if you are, that’s good, because as luck would have it, I’m about to get into them right now.

Promotes closeness and intimacy.

Like they say: “sweat together, stay together”. Not only will the exercise get those endorphins and other feel-good chemicals flowing through your body, but just by virtue of doing your workout together you’re going to feel more connected. You can be sweaty sweethearts together! And it doesn’t just have to be in the gym, you can go to classes, go dancing, play volleyball, whatever you want – when you do new things together it makes this coupling effect even more powerful.

Reduces stress.

Working out is a great way to blow off steam because it provides a healthy outlet for negative emotions. In addition, there is ample evidence that consistent, vigorous exercise helps to buffer against the effects of stress and as a result enables you to better deal with emotional conflict. Ultimately, the less stressed you both are, the more fun the two of you can have together, and as we all know fun is just a heartbeat away from romance.

Makes you more attractive.

Exercise helps you to look younger and healthier, which are both biological signals of attractiveness because they are associated with reproductive fitness. In fact, many people find that working out enhances their confidence, sometimes dramatically, and healthy self-confidence is sexy! A study done by the University of Arkansas found that people who exercise rated themselves as more attractive, so get sweating and you’ll boost that confidence.

Boosts your libido.

We’ve already talked about how exercising makes you look and feel sexier, and the sexier you feel the more sex you’re going to be having. It’s just that simple. When you’re comfortable in your own skin, you’re not afraid to show it, after all a big part of the reason we work out is to look good. Exercise releases beneficial hormones which enhance libido, as well as gets the blood flowing… to all areas, in addition studies have shown that lower body fat (especiall around the midriff) leads to greater blood flow to the pelvis. And this may be stating the obvious, but studies have shown that frequency of sex is a big indicator of satisfaction in relationships.

Makes sex better.

So all that work the two of you do on the treadmill, or in the weight room, or in your yoga class, or salsa dancing, or fill in the blank – all those benefits are directly transferrable to the bedroom. So if you need a little more motivation to work out, you just found it – you’ll never look at the treadmill again in the same way.

Those are just a few of the reasons you want to get you and your sweetheart breaking a sweat this Valentine’s Day. It makes sense, chocolate releases endorphins and other feel-good hormones and so does vigorous exercise. Even better, you’re also much more likely to stick to your workouts when you do it together.

Valentine’s Day Workouts You Can Do Together

• Salsa Dancing.

Any type of Latin dance is sensual and sexy, perfect for Valentine’s Day, plus you’ll burn a ton of calories in the process.

• Yoga.

Doing yoga together is a great way to cultivate openness and connection between the two of you. Yoga helps you to develop much greater awareness and sensitivity to communication as well as giving your muscles a workout and making you more flexible at the same time.

• Hit the gym.

At the gym you’re spoilt for choice: you can try out a class, something like a spin class that gets your heart rate up, or you can hit the treadmills together or even work in with each other in the free weights area.

• Crossfit.

A little more intense, you could give a local Crossfit class a go. You’ll get a serious workout, burn through a slew of calories, and really get that blood pumping – just don’t expect it to be a walk in the park.

• Explore the Great Outdoors.

If you can, what better way to be together than in the fresh air? You can go hiking, canoeing, rock-climbing, skiing – the sky’s the limit.

• Go for a jog.

And to keep it simple, just put on a pair of sneakers and hit the road. Easy!

• Home workout.

Or if you prefer to stay in, you can bring the workout to your home. Partner up with some bodyweight exercises.

So there you have it 7 easy ways to get active this Valentine’s Day. Now you can enjoy the chocolates and the bubbly and still make it your fittest Valentine’s Day ever. Enjoy!

Are you ready to get sweaty this Valentine’s Day? What’s your workout of choice? Let us know in the comments below!

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