Bad news: sex burns less calories than you think

New research shows sex isn't a gym alternative

Sexercise. Or not. New research has found that, despite the myths, sex does not make up for a missed gym session.

The average six minute session equates to a 21 calorie workout, or in chocolate terms, less than two Maltesers.

The study, published in the New England Journal of Medicine by David Allison, a biostatistician at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, was aimed at debunking a series of weight loss myths, including whether snacking or skipping breakfast is bad, or whether physical education classes make a big difference to children's weight.

Dr Allison found that PE isn’t intense enough to make a difference and skipping breakfast depends on what the body is accustomed to.

He also concluded that no study proved that snacking is detrimental, nor that people who lost weight slowly were more likely to keep it off than those who lost it quickly, in fact he found the reverse is true.

Similarly he found that setting overambitious weight loss goals was more effective for some people in motivating them to succeed.

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