Love timing Why sex feels worse in the evening for some people
If you know your chronotype, you can not only optimize your working hours, your sleep or your sports program - but also your love life. Because sexuality also follows the body's rhythm.
No time? blue News summarizes for you
- Our internal clock not only influences our sleep and energy levels, but also our sexual desire.
- Melatonin lowers libido in the evening - but many people still have sex right then.
- Sexual desire is biologically highest in the morning - especially for early risers.
- If you know your chronotype, you can optimize your love life in a natural way.
- Couples with similar chronotypes find it easier to find common times for fulfilling intimacy.
In search of our hidden potential, we change our diet, take targeted supplements and create training plans - but what if it's not just what we do, but when?
Our sexuality is subject to the influence of our circadian rhythm - the internal clock that clocks our entire system.
It not only influences when we are tired or have energy, but also when we feel desire, seek closeness and are particularly receptive to arousal.
Sex for comfort - instead of pleasure
Our body's clock is called the circadian rhythm. It is a kind of internal clock that determines when we are awake and when we are tired; it influences our body temperature, hormone balance and metabolism.
It is controlled by the sun.
Health of the future
This article also appears in the new "Sanitas Health Forecast". The annual publication comes as a coffee-table book and is published by Wörterseh-Verlag. The book contains many other texts plus the latest findings from the first study on the health of the future, for which 2,000 Swiss people are surveyed every year. An editorial team of 30 independent journalists is responsible for the content. You can order the 400-page book at this link or buy it in bookshops from next week.
The photoreceptors in our eyes register light and send signals to the so-called "master clock", the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN), which synchronizes our sleep-wake cycle, body temperature, hormone production and metabolism with the time of day.
A mechanism that determines the rhythm of our lives from as early as the third month of life.
The hormone melatonin, which is produced in the pineal gland, plays a key role in this. When it gets dark, the SCN signals the pineal gland to release more melatonin, which makes us tired and prepares the body for sleep.
At the same time, melatonin has an inhibitory effect on sex hormones such as testosterone and oestrogen, which explains why libido is often lower in the evening and at night.
In addition, the cardiovascular system is in resting mode at midnight, sexual desire is low and fatigue is high - and yet this is exactly when most people have sex, writes the Journal of Circadian Rhythms.
The study cited examined when most people have sex and found that most sexual encounters take place between 11 pm and 1 am.
Sex in the morning acts as a natural energy booster
The researchers attributed these patterns mainly to external factors such as working hours, family commitments and partner availability, rather than internal biological rhythms. This is because good sex would be more likely at a different time of day.
With the onset of daylight, melatonin production is inhibited and the stress hormone cortisol is released. This promotes alertness and, in moderate amounts, can increase sexual desire as it provides energy and motivation.
Testosterone peaks in both men and women in the morning and many men wake up with an erection - a biological signal for increased sexual desire. Morning sex therefore acts as a natural energy booster:
It activates the reward system, releases dopamine and endorphins, curbs stress and boosts creativity.
The circadian rhythm not only influences our sleep and waking phases, but also our body temperature and metabolism. For example, body temperature drops at night, which contributes to better recovery, while it rises during the day to prepare the body for activity.
Healthy sleep is also crucial for sexual desire. During deep sleep, important sex hormones are regenerated, and chronic sleep deprivation can significantly lower libido. The circadian rhythm also regulates insulin levels and other metabolic processes, so that the body is better able to process food and store energy at certain times of the day.
While the circadian rhythm sets the basic rhythm, there is another factor that explains why it doesn't work for every couple to get intimate early in the morning - before the first coffee and before the stress of everyday life sets in: the chronotype.
It describes the individual characteristics of the circadian rhythm and determines whether you are full of energy in the morning and want to be close to your partner, or whether you just want to sleep on.
Healthy living - but in the right rhythm
Which chronotype we are is genetically predetermined. The PER3 gene in particular determines how we literally tick. People with a long PER3 gene are usually early risers and need more sleep, while people with a short PER3 gene need less sleep and tend to be late risers. Most people fall somewhere in between.
People who permanently live against their individual rhythm - for example, night owls who always have to get up very early - create what is known as social jet lag, i.e. a subtle but noticeable time shift, which can lead to sleep disorders, concentration problems, chronic fatigue and, in the long term, metabolic disorders and depression.
The libido also suffers from this permanent internal shift - hormonal imbalances can significantly reduce sexual desire.
So what if we could synchronize intimacy with our internal clock so that our inner nature supports sex qualitatively and helps us to develop our full potential?
Instead of feeling emotionally disconnected and watching our pleasure thin out, our love life could become something that sustains us:
By releasing dopamine and endorphins, sex can wake us up and energize us in the morning - comparable to a strong cup of coffee. Stressful thoughts or nervous phases can be cushioned by the cuddle hormone oxytocin, which is released during sex, promoting emotional closeness and lowering stress levels. And thanks to rising testosterone levels, we could feel more motivated and focused.
Chronotypes: When you have sex best
Sleep physician Michael Breus developed four chronotypes to help us understand our natural body rhythms and adjust them accordingly in everyday life.
The chronotypes - bear, wolf, lion and dolphin - which he classifies in his book "The Power of When", serve as a guide for recognizing sleep and activity patterns and optimizing performance.
Early risers, the so-called lions, often experience their strongest desire at around six o'clock in the morning, when testosterone and energy are at their peak.
Bears, who are common average types, feel particularly receptive to intimacy at around eight in the morning. For wolves, the night people, the best time tends to be later in the morning, around ten o'clock, when they really wake up.
Sensitive dolphins, on the other hand, prefer the evening, around 8 p.m., which also helps them to relax and fall asleep
It gets difficult with different chronotypes
Couples with similar chronotypes, such as two bears or a lion and a bear, usually find it easier to find common times for intimacy, as their internal clocks tick similarly. Wolves and dolphins can also harmonize well if they accept their different activity phases and adjust flexibly to each other.
It is often more difficult with couples whose chronotypes are very different, such as a lion, who is active early in the morning, and a wolf, who only really gets going in the evening.
This requires a lot of communication and a willingness to compromise in order to create shared moments. Ultimately, it's about respecting your partner's rhythm and consciously finding time slots in which both can share pleasure and energy - because this is the only way to create a fulfilling and lasting connection.
