Fake news. Or is it? For us men, masturbating is a big part of our lives, but we feel we can’t talk about it and to be honest, the whole situation is surrounded with shame and uncomfortable willy talk. Why?

Back in 2018, we worked with Men’s Health and ran a survey to address the situation – you can read that survey here – but as lockdown hit, we ran another study to see if ‘pulling the pud’ could beat the virus!

From April – May 2020, we interviewed 152 men to understand their perception of masturbation, how they masturbate, how it affects their relationship, and what’s changed in restricted times.

It’s safe to say we’ve all been ‘at it’ a lot more, and boy have we been thrashing ‘em out! Luckily for you, this masturbation reality check, comes with health benefits too.

Do all men masturbate?

No shocks here, 100% of the guys we spoke to masturbate! It’s certainly deemed a must for all men. And that’s fine!

There’s often a taboo that comes with pleasuring yourself, and a shame that surrounds the act. All you need to remember is that your todger is there to please you. Don’t worry about playing with yourself, after all it’s consensual!

FACTS: Masturbation won’t cause unsightly hair to grow on your palms, but it may help you boost your immune system and beat off at least one type of cancer. That’s according to two studies that examined the effects of masturbation on the immune system and the incidence of prostate cancer. In this time of COVID-19, travel restrictions, and self-quarantines, many people are looking for every opportunity to bolster their immune systems – so get tugging!

You & your mates are all at it!

Men we asked in 2018 masturbate an average of 6 times per week, but during the virus this has grown to 9x a week. It varies massively on sexual appetite, age and relationship status.

That being said, we found men in their late teens and early forties pull their puds on average once a day!

Even men in relationships wank!

Does your relationship status matter when it comes to solo sex? No, we found singles report masturbating 21 times monthly and those in relationships masturbate 10 times per month on average.

In fact, we found men living alone (regardless of relationship status), were bashing the bishop most, clocking up 2 or 3 per day.

Turns out we look forward to doing it!

81% said they look forward to being able to masturbate at an open opportunity, with most of the chaps pre-planning when they can toss their todger and feel good.

A vast majority of men said ‘boredom’ was the main reason for reaching into their pants more times since the pandemic began, but still managed to climax every tine, during alone time whilst wrestling the snake.

How Long For?

Before lockdown, on average, men spent 20 minutes beating themselves off, with some millennials spending over an hour fondling their junk and ‘edging*’ – that statistic in lockdown has decreased to lads spending around 14 mins, but obviously an increased frequency.

When asked how quick you can bring yourself to orgasm, if aroused, our survey found it would take most men around 2-4 minutes.

Why have we been doing it more?

The most common reasons for masturbating? The survey found the top three reasons were: relieving sexual tension, stress and boredom. Sounds about right!

More 30-40 year olds reported masturbating because they enjoy it, with one participant saying “I love doing it.”

51% of over 40s and 46% of over 50s said sexual appetite and stress relief were main factors to lead them to pleasuring themselves.

Hey, we’re all human.

We’re creatures of habit

A whopping 78% percent of the men in the survey have a masturbation routine, which makes sense, because why fix something that isn’t broken?

Most men find morning or evening times in the bathroom, away from family and partners is safer. 87% use porn, 58% use their imagination, 34% think of a past experience, 26% look at pictures, and 19% use sex toys.

Caught out!

57% of chaps in the survey had been caught masturbating by a partner, parent or friend at least once in their lifetime.

3% of those were caught out at the moment of climax. *Insert awkward jizz face here*.

As we reach the climax…

It’s totally normal to masturbate! 100% of males agreed masturbation is a healthy part of their lives and of being a man.

Masturbation is good for your health, both mentally and physically. And it’s pretty much the safest sex out there!

When you have an orgasm, your body releases endorphins, which are hormones that block pain and make you feel good. The good feelings that accompany an orgasm happen whether you’re by yourself or having sex with a partner.

Plenty of research has shown the health benefits of masturbation. Masturbation can:

• release sexual tension
• reduce stress
• help you sleep better
• improve your self-esteem and body image
• help treat sexual problems

Besides, the NHS even says that sexual arousal sends the heart rate higher, and the number of beats per minute reaches its peak during orgasm.

So if you are feeling a little under the weather, or simply want your immune system firing the way it should, simply whip out your play mate and enjoy the time indoors.

…so what are you waiting for? Go knock one out now and report back!