Summary: A recent systematic review challenges long-held beliefs about abstaining from sex before competition and finds no reliable evidence that sexual activity the day before an event harms athletic performance.
Sex before sport does not appear to harm performance and may even be harmless or beneficial.
During the Rio Olympics, around 450,000 condoms were made available in the athletes’ village—an indication that the idea of strict abstinence before competition is not universal. That traditional belief, which holds that sexual activity reduces physical or mental readiness, has been examined in a new analysis of available scientific evidence.
This systematic review, published in the open-access journal Frontiers in Physiology, evaluated existing studies that examined whether sexual activity prior to competition affects athletic performance. The lead author, Laura Stefani, Assistant Professor of Sports Medicine at the University of Florence, noted that the review found no robust scientific proof that sexual activity negatively influences sporting outcomes.
The authors screened hundreds of potential studies but, after applying strict inclusion criteria to identify reliable evidence, only nine studies met the standards for detailed review. Among those, one study reported no change in strength for female former athletes after sex the night before testing. Another small study observed a possible positive effect for marathon performance. Overall, the available investigations were limited in number and scope.
The review identified several important gaps and biases in the literature. Most studies focused on men, with few investigations including female athletes or directly comparing effects between genders. Cultural attitudes toward sex—which could influence psychological responses and reported outcomes—were rarely considered. The authors also noted that the type of sport and its distinct physical and mental demands were largely ignored in prior research.
One consistent finding across the studies is the importance of timing: sexual activity appears unlikely to impair performance if it occurs more than two hours before competition. The review found that a negative effect, when reported, was most likely linked to activity taking place within two hours of an event. Other potentially confounding behaviors—such as smoking or alcohol use—may also affect performance and have sometimes been conflated with the effects of sexual activity.
Data on specific aspects, such as the effects of masturbation, are lacking. The authors stress that current evidence mostly excludes a direct, generalizable negative impact of sexual activity on aerobic capacity or strength, but they also emphasize how limited and low-quality the available studies are. High-quality randomized controlled trials and research that accounts for gender, sport type, psychological state and cultural context are urgently needed.
Given the current body of evidence, the authors conclude that the traditional abstinence rule is not supported: athletes should not feel guilty about their usual sexual activity up to the day before competition. The only clear caveat is avoiding sexual activity in the immediate two-hour window before an event, where any negative effects would be more plausible.
Source: Frontiers in Physiology, authors Laura Stefani, Giorgio Galanti, Johnny Padulo, Nicola L. Bragazzi and Nicola Maffulli. The review is titled “Sexual Activity before Sports Competition: A Systematic Review.”
Image credit: Image used for illustration and is publicly available.
Sexual Activity before Sports Competition: A Systematic Review
Sexual activity before competition has long been suspected to influence athletic performance. This systematic review followed PRISMA guidelines and searched multiple scientific databases without time or language restrictions, also consulting gray literature. Only studies that reported measurable athletic outcomes following sexual activity were included. The evidence remains sparse and heterogeneous, but most studies do not support a direct negative effect of sexual activity on aerobic or strength performance. Timing matters: activity less than two hours before competition appears most likely to impair performance. Concurrent unhealthy behaviors (for example, alcohol or tobacco use) might confound outcomes. There are no studies assessing masturbation in this context. Overall, sexual activity the day before competition does not seem to impair performance, yet high-quality randomized studies are needed to confirm these conclusions.
The present summary synthesizes the findings from the systematic review and highlights research gaps. It aims to inform athletes, coaches and sports professionals that current evidence does not justify blanket prohibitions on sexual activity before competition, while underscoring the need for further rigorous study.