健身風險:劇烈運動可能導致男人性慾下降

Men might think that by spending hours in the gym, honing their bodies until they resemble a buff Adonis, women (or other men) will throw themselves at them, powerless to resist the sexual attraction they feel.

男人們或許以爲，當他們花大量時間在健身房塑造自己的軀體，成爲健碩美男後，女人們（或其他男人）會蜂擁而至，無法抗拒他們身上散發的性吸引力。

But it turns out strenuous exercise could be doing your sex life more harm than good.

但結果是，劇烈運動可能會對性生活產生負面影響。

According to a new study, high intensity workouts may actually lower a man's libido.

一項最新研究顯示，其實高強度運動可能會降低一個男人的性慾。

The research by the University of North Carolina assessed 1,100 men who considered themselves to be athletes. The men were asked questions about their sex lives but also their exercise habits.

美國北卡羅來納州大學的這項研究評估了1100位自認爲身強體健的男性，調查了他們的性生活和鍛鍊習慣。

The men who participated in the survey were divided up based on how much and how intensely they exercised, then also based on whether their libidos were high or low.

研究者先根據受訪者鍛鍊的時間和強度進行分組，隨後再根據他們性慾的強度分組。

Incredibly, the patterns which emerged were extremely clear: the men who exercised moderately or lightly reported higher libidos than those whose workouts were longer and harder.

難以置信地，調查結果非常清晰：與進行輕、中度運動的男性相比，進行長時間和劇烈鍛鍊的男性性慾偏低。

They found that men who exercise a lot reach a "tipping point", where they're too tired or no longer interested in sex.

他們發現進行大量運動的男人會到達一個"臨界點"，使他們要麼太疲憊，要麼對做愛失去興趣。

Of course, the authors cannot definitively state that intense exercise results in a lower libido, just that they are linked.

當然，研究者並不能定論高強度運動一定會降低性慾，只能說兩者有聯繫。

Lead researcher Dr Anthony Hackney, however, believes both physical fatigue and reduced testosterone levels likely play a role.

不過，首席研究員安東尼·哈克尼博士認爲，劇烈運動後的身體疲勞和較低的睾酮水平很可能起了作用。

It's one of the first studies to look into the link between exercise and sex drive in men, and the findings are so great that fertility experts are now considering changing the advice they give to men who are trying to conceive with their partners.

這是第一項關注男性鍛鍊和性生活關係的研究，而研究結果如此有意義，以致生育專家現在考慮要對嘗試與另一半備孕的男性更改建議。

Previous research on women has concluded that intense exercise -such as the training done by professional marathon runners -can result in menstrual abnormalities. It is believed that a woman's hormone balance can change after intense exercise,which results in lower fertility and diminished sex drive.

過去對女性的研究已經發現，高強度運動--比如職業馬拉松運動員所進行的高強度訓練 會導致月經不調。這是因爲高強度運動會使女性荷爾蒙失調，從而影響女性的性慾和懷孕能力。

"Fertility specialists will often ask a woman about whether and how much she exercises," said Dr Hackney. "Based on our data, we think they should also be asking the man."

"生育專家常常會詢問女性的鍛鍊情況，" 哈克尼博士說，"然而數據表明，他們也應該問男人同樣的問題。"