Anyone who talks about sex with friends or takes part in debates on the subject may have already left with a few doubts. After all, how often is sex considered “normal”? How often should we have sex?
Some people say they need sex all the time, while others are more relaxed on the subject, managing to go longer without activity. So, do we make love often enough?
And that’s where the doubts come in. As with almost everything to do with sex, when you see that others don’t behave in the same way, your certainties are called into question. And like everything else in sex, this frequency is a personal matter and depends on each person’s experiences and needs. After all, is there a rule about what’s normal and what’s not when it comes to sexual relations? How many sexual encounters should we have per week? Or a month? If we don’t have sex, is it because our partner is cheating on us? Or is love over?
Female sexual frequency is intimately linked to the moment in her life, the type of relationship she’s in, as well as past sexual experiences. And what about men? Is there a big difference between their needs?
Does age influence the frequency of sexual relations?
According to research, two factors are more important when it comes to frequency of sexual relations: age and type of relationship. Married women tend to have a more active sex life, while single women say they have much less sex. Age groups also show substantial differences, such as a sharp drop in sexual intercourse after the age of 50.
“It’s natural for the number of relationships to decline throughout life. Some of the factors that contribute to a decline in desire may be physical (such as a drop in hormones) or psychological, affecting 70% of women, such as feelings of rejection, loss of vanity, excessive concern for children, lack of complicity between the couple, among others.”
How many sexual relationships should a couple have?
There’s no right answer to how often you should have sex. It’s up to you to define what’s best for your relationship or sex life. How often you have sex can depend on many physical, emotional and even social factors. Have you ever tried virtual sex?
Young people between the ages of 18 and 29 have sex, on average, three times every seven days. For adults between 30 and 39, the average drops to 1.6. The 40-49 age group has sex 1.3 times a week. The data come from a study by the Kinsey Institute for Research in Sex, Gender and Reproduction in the USA, which focuses specifically on heterosexual relationships among young adults.
Once a week is a common baseline, say the experts. This statistic depends slightly on age. Those in their 40s and 50s tend to hover around this baseline. Whereas 20- to 30-year-olds tend to have sex on average around twice a week.
The average adult has sex once a week, but that doesn’t always mean you should. However you choose to be physically intimate with your partner, where and how often matters far less than the quality of the sexual relationship itself.
Having sex more often doesn’t guarantee the success of your relationship. Instead, focus on the quality of the experience itself. This will probably improve your and your partner’s sexual satisfaction more than simply increasing the number of sexual encounters you have.
