Endurance running may not only be just great for your heart, but your sex life as well. According to a new study published in the journal PLOS ONE, there is a link between testosterone levels of both men and women, their hands and the speed at which they run.
It's been shown that long distance running (running anywhere between six or more miles) helps you do three (3) things: lose weight, build muscle mass and build fat.
Losing weight is dropping pounds on the scale. It puts a smile on your face because endorphins are released. It’s the universal unit of measurement on your quest to look sexy. Awesome!
Muscle Mass is more dense than fat. Which is why you look so lean when you have a lot of it. And it increases your metabolism, which means you don’t have to work for hours on end to get the look you want.That’s sexy.
Losing fat means losing inches. It’s how you fit into your old clothes and how you look in the mirror. It’s eliminating fat and gaining muscle mass. And muscle mass is important. It’s more dense and takes up less space than fat, which is gives you that lean and sexy look and more attractive. Despite the fact you might weigh the same or even a couple of pounds more. Looking lean is sexy.
Now I’m sure this all sounds very strange, but there is in fact some scientific evidence behind all of this. After testing a large pool of marathon runners have higher testosterone exposure, which equates to a higher sex drive in women and healthier sperm count in men.
The females of the test group that had longer ring fingers (and therefore high testosterone levels) completed the race about 12 minutes faster than those with shorter finger. The males of the group with longer ring fingers ran almost 25 minutes faster.
"The observation that endurance running ability is connected to reproductive potential in men suggests that women in our hunter-gatherer past were able to observe running as a signal for a good breeding partner," said the study's lead author Dr Danny Longman in a press release.
By today's standards, the endurance running theory could indicate a man has other key traits for being a good provider, such as generosity and intelligence - two very sexy qualities.
Now, before you go sizing up your index to ring finger ratio, know that the study does note that people who don’t naturally come with higher sex drives, can train their way up to one. Healthy diet and strict workouts can actually help with both your speed on the track, as well as your abilities between the sheets. So don’t lose all hope just yet!