No Fap - see mod warning below

lucasmaximus

Just wondering if any of you gents have done a No Fap challenge or refrained from mastur-debating? What were your reasons/results? How long did you last and how difficult was it?

Heard very positive things about it, so thinking of giving it a go. The longest i've gone without in recent memory is 1 day! So I know I won't find it easy anyway.

Lalealea

Why would anyone do this?

Pat Mustard

Locked.

Pat Mustard

Mod:

Apparently this is has been the topic of serious discussion in the past.

Thread now reopened after discussion with OP, moderator discussion, etc.

Serious replies only, please. Otherwise, the thread will be closed.

Messing and joke posts are unwelcome on this thread, so please bear that in mind before posting.

galwayjohn89

I did it for 45 days although not really on purpose. Got to 28 days without evening thinking about it and then decided to continue it for the rest of the trip. I did notice better mood etc but then again I was on holiday!

idnkph

Vuzuggu wrote: »

I did it for 45 days although not really on purpose. Got to 28 days without evening thinking about it and then decided to continue it for the rest of the trip. I did notice better mood etc but then again I was on holiday!

better mood.. really??? Iv always used it to get me out of a bad mood...

DiegoCosta

I've been trying no fap lately. It really did make me realise that I have an addiction to masturbating. The longest I have gone is 8 days, but nevertheless I noticed benefits. I became much more motivated and just felt better overall mentally and emotionally. I don't think I'll ever be able to stop masterbating but I think it's important to limit yourself as it can really mess with your physiology and mental health when you become addicted to masturbation.

AndreaCollins

i would advise guys to stop masturbating altogether. there are other ways to get yourself satisfied. prostitution itself is not an offense under irish law.

Pat Mustard

AndreaCollins wrote: »

prostitution itself is not an offense under irish law.

Mod:

Off topic. Please don't post in this thread again. Any more of your trolling and you will be getting cards or bans.

Galwayguy35

4 days is the longest I have gone, don't see any benefit in holding off doing it for weeks on end.

Pawwed Rig

Can someone explain to me what the point of this is? Genuine question

Tokyo

Pawwed Rig wrote: »

Can someone explain to me what the point of this is? Genuine question

From what I gather, there are various reasons for doing this, depending on the person.

Some people take it on to test their own willpower, for others the theory is that the modern world being what it is and the easy availability of porn etc, men are overstimulating themselves to the point of apathy, not actually getting turned on in real life situations with partners, girlfriends and so on.

One of the negative associations with it is that it can also tie into the whole PUA movement too, theory being that by 'taking control' of your sex drive, being able to talk to women without the sole intention of having sex with them - i.e. this translates in to confidence and you can get more women.

puddinboxxx

I did this last year,actually, lasted just under 4 months but I have a girlfriend so I dunno does that make it easier,I found no difference in myself which is why I gave in

SPM1959

When I do it (14 days the max I have went), it has certainly motivated me to go out and get the 'real thing' a lot more. I would recommend it.

fullstop

puddinboxxx wrote: »

I did this last year,actually, lasted just under 4 months but I have a girlfriend so I dunno does that make it easier,I found no difference in myself which is why I gave in

Hardly counts when having regular sex, as you wouldn't need to sort yourself out, or does it?

DiegoCosta

fullstop wrote: »

Hardly counts when having regular sex, as you wouldn't need to sort yourself out, or does it?

Well I'm married and up until recently I master bated to porn everyday. When I refrain from masterbating my enthusiasm for life returns.

Mister Vain

The longest I went was 2 weeks. I was hospital recovering from an op. It got to the stage where I was getting uncontrollable erections whenever a half decent nurse entered the vicinity.

newport2

Pawwed Rig wrote: »

Can someone explain to me what the point of this is? Genuine question

I've read that after a lull period your energy levels are supposed to increase dramatically, along with focus, drive like some other posters have mentioned.

I expect if you're doing it on a daily basis, you're expending quite a bit of energy into it. So perhaps you're feeling slightly tired all the time without realising you are, because it's the norm. If you stop, your energy levels increase to what they should be again, which is higher than you're used to.

Or maybe not. It's probably worth a try. "Fovember" perhaps?

I have not seen the point of it myself. I have a healthy sex life by any standards - and a healthy masturbation life - and abstinence from either has never crossed my mind.

A close friend has done it and recently celebrated his 1st year. Asking him about "benefits" - he has not really reported any except perhaps an increase in his free time related to other activities due to the time saved not masturbating or engaging in porn use.

I am somewhat sceptical of any other benefits listed - mainly because they are the same benefits many people list when engaging in some kind of crazy dietry fad or some such. The same reasons people believe those fads are benefiting them seem to map onto this subject too. Such as it being part of an over all life style change and not really an isolated one off change. Mental placebo. And a number of other factors such as genuinely feeling good about yourself for successfully engaging in an exercise of will power and self discipline.

I have seen very little however to support the notion of any _actual_ benefits other than these subjective ones. But that does not mean to write off any benefit at all. Subjective benefits are still benefits.

lucasmaximus

Hi OP here,

Fairly mixed responses so far...

There are clearly a number of factors which play a part in the overall perceived benefits that someone may experience. I think perhaps that, as every person's libido has differing 'capacities' if you will, it may translate then that people with high libido's would see or experience little or no benefit to a no fap challenge, and vice versa, if someone with a low libido combined with regular use of their favoured hand may be using up most of their 'sexual energy' with themselves. Thereby a sudden discontinuation of this practice would spark a drive to seek out the only alternative to self-pleasure; partnered pleasure. Would people agree?

Also, when I was in school, it was common that on the lead up to yearly Rugby Schools Cup that many of the players would abstain from the practice in a belief that it would build up testosterone and increase aggresiveness therefore increasing the quality of their game. I also know of lads who will make sure not to do it before a gym session, or who would do it less for the sole purpose of perceived greater gains in the gym. Opinions/experiences?

Unfortunately there is two ways to read that libido thinking.

If masturbation is CAUSING low libido then by all means stopping it will reverse the problem. The statistics people trot out to support the "no fap challange" are skewed by this. They are not straight statistics supporting the benefit of engaging in such abstinence. They also include people who genuinely have some problem caused by masturbation, or masturbation to excess, that clearly are going to see benefits to stopping.

For example if one wanted to do a study testing if abstaining from alcohol has benefits - one would not include alcoholics in that study - because that _they_ would see benefits is clear and you would skew your results. Alas the same care for statistics is not seemingly taken when discussing the No Fap Challange.

But if someone already has low libido issues I would question whether abstinence from masturbation would have much effect at all. Perhaps even quite the opposite. Keeping the sex drive stimulated probably _helps_ with libido problems, not exacerbates them. We would need an expert on sexual health to come in and tell us that one - I am simply not sure or convinced either way.

Certainly what we do know is that masturbation - like over eating - is often a "The more you do the more you want" category of thing. So I would not be surprised to see that engaging in it actually helps up libido and sexuality, rather than the vision of a limited pot that one is using up with themselves rather than with others. Certainly from my own perspective I know that no amount of masturbation I engage in - small or large - has even the remotest effect on my sexual libido - desires - or capabilities with my girlfriends any more than engaging in Fast Food at lunch time removes by desire for a lovely dinner when I get home.

H3llR4iser

Deleted User wrote: »

...Certainly what we do know is that masturbation - like over eating - is often a "The more you do the more you want" category of thing. So I would not be surprised to see that engaging in it actually helps up libido and sexuality, rather than the vision of a limited pot that one is using up with themselves rather than with others. Certainly from my own perspective I know that no amount of masturbation I engage in - small or large - has even the remotest effect on my sexual libido - desires - or capabilities with my girlfriends any more than engaging in Fast Food at lunch time removes by desire for a lovely dinner when I get home.

You might be on a winner here. In my experience, a somewhat prolonged abstinence of about three weeks, which happened a few years ago while I was recovering from a circumcision operation, kind of put the whole thing "out of my mind" so to speak. It didn't make a difference regarding anything else - I didn't change character, mood or whatever, wasn't any more focused and most certainly I didn't have a "surge of energy" of any kind .

newport2

Deleted User wrote: »

Certainly what we do know is that masturbation - like over eating - is often a "The more you do the more you want" category of thing.

Good analogy, but the issue that I've read about is that you're flooding your brain with feel-good chemicals from watching porn. And the more you get, the more you want, true enough. But - like over-eating - the harder it becomes to satisfy yourself. There is a point you can reach where "ordinary" one-to-one sex with your partner doesn't do it as much for you any more, because you don't get the same kick from it. Like any drug which releases chemicals in your brain, the more you do it, the more you need next time to get the same kick.

Again, this is just stuff I've read, not necessarily my opinion. But as regards needing more and more to generate the same high over years, I think it makes sense. Anything you over indulge in results in degrees of tolerance being built up.

(Also, fapping and porn not necessarily the same thing, but I'm assuming they are going hand in hand in this discussion. I wouldn't see the same issues in fapping without porn.)

HalloweenJack

I've had to reduce my masturbation drastically recently as I'm trying to get over a bout of phimosis.

Honestly, haven't noticed any difference in my energy levels or motivation. Still want to do it as much as previously but I can resist. The only thing I've noticed is that I don't watch as much porn, though that's no surprise.

newport2

newport2 wrote: »

Good analogy, but the issue that I've read about is that you're flooding your brain with feel-good chemicals from watching porn. And the more you get, the more you want, true enough.

As you noted however we have switched from a conversation about masturbation to one about porn now. The two are not synonymous. One can do either without the other. Many people often do. Though I see no reason yet to think masturbation with porn is any better or worse - in its effects - than without. Either way one is stimulating oneself with imagery. The question is just where the imagery comes from - internally or externally.

I understand why it is easy to shift between the two in this conversation - but we should be hyper alert to when we are doing it and why.

And anyway, flooding the brain with feel good chemicals is not a bad thing. In the same way as drinking alcohol is not a bad thing. It only becomes a bad thing when you become addicted - dependant - or you are over indulging.

newport2 wrote: »

There is a point you can reach where "ordinary" one-to-one sex with your partner doesn't do it as much for you any more

That can happen of course but I do not think it so common - or that one automatically follows from the other. Just like eating fast food will not put you off Really Good Food when you are offered it - masturbation is not going to put someone off the real thing that easily - or that often. But if you are eating LOTS and TOO MUCH fast food - you are simply going to be incapable of eating anything else.

So again if we are assuming excessive use or excessive dependence then of course such knock on affects are going to arise. But just like above - when I said we should be hyper alert to switching too easily between "porn" and "masturbation" - we should also be hyper alert when we switch from talking about porn and masturbation in and of themselves - and excessive and dependence behaviour.

"No FAP" is clearly going to be beneficial to people who are over indulging - dependant - or addicted. The same is true of alcohol. We would risk simply stating the obvious.

So when talking about this "challenge" in general - we should not be assuming over indulgence or addiction. We should be assuming we are talking about the average person - what affects this challenge will have on them - and whether it will be beneficial or not.

designbydan

I think it would be different for everyone,

Personally I find that when I don't for a long time I'm generally happier and more productive (although that could be through using my spare time better and being happier due to that)
This is only the case if I'm also having regular frequent sex with my gf, if we haven't had sex in a long time and I haven't helped myself along either, then I can get very frustrated.
If we are having sex infrequently I find I fap a lot more then, and it can become fairly addictive for me.

Although I have a fairly high libido I think, I usually need sex once a day to stay satisfied / unwanting to fap. Ideally some kind of sexual contact twice a day if I'm honest.

I think fapping is a healthy thing, but definitely like anything else, overuse/too much can be addictive and bad for your health in general.

qo2cj1dsne8y4k

I didn't for years, now I can't imagine not doing it, and i do have regular sex too. I don't know, it's weird. It's never something I would have ever thought would be important to me, but there you go.

Galwayguy35

When having regular sex I never bother doing it, I found that it was giving me erection problems when doing both in the same day which was a bit of a worry at the time.

Elessar

I did it last year for a while and lasted about 2 weeks. I was amazed at the result. I became much more focused, more testosterone build up I assume which led to more drive, more confidence and a laser sharp focus on women, much more than normally. I was much more assertive also. I was training a bit in the gym as well so this may have had an impact, but I train regularly enough and never noticed effects like this before. I found when I did "break" the challenge the orgasms were more powerful also.

It made me feel more of an alpha male if that makes sense??

SPM1959

Elessar wrote: »

I did it last year for a while and lasted about 2 weeks. I was amazed at the result. I became much more focused, more testosterone build up I assume which led to more drive, more confidence and a laser sharp focus on women, much more than normally. I was much more assertive also. I was training a bit in the gym as well so this may have had an impact, but I train regularly enough and never noticed effects like this before. I found when I did "break" the challenge the orgasms were more powerful also.

It made me feel more of an alpha male if that makes sense??

I can fully relate to this.

Gael23

I see no point in trying to do this.
Its a daily ritual in the life of any single male.

Limewater

ryanf1 wrote: »

I see no point in trying to do this.
Its a daily ritual in the life of any single male.

It really is worth it cutting back. Try just once or twice a week and and see what changes you notice.

thehomeofDob

Anyone interested in the idea of No Fap and in relation quitting porn might find the following of interest.

Art of Manliness 4 Part Article on Porn (parts 2 - 4 at the bottom of the first)
http://www.artofmanliness.com/2014/10/06/men-and-porn-an-introduction/

Reddit's NoFap subreddit including the FAQ
http://www.reddit.com/r/NoFap/
http://www.reddit.com/r/NoFap/wiki/index

AndonHandon

thehomeofDob wrote: »

Anyone interested in the idea of No Fap and in relation quitting porn might find the following of interest.

Art of Manliness 4 Part Article on Porn (parts 2 - 4 at the bottom of the first)
http://www.artofmanliness.com/2014/10/06/men-and-porn-an-introduction/

Reddit's NoFap subreddit including the FAQ
http://www.reddit.com/r/NoFap/
http://www.reddit.com/r/NoFap/wiki/index

Fascinating article in the art of manliness.com, I know that there is a difference between masturbating to internal imagery and external imagery; however, at the back of my mind there would be this uncomfortableness, something I'm not quite comfortable with when I masturbate to porn. As soon as I finish I would almost feel guilty. This compares to not masturbating with porn where I would feel, following completion, that I have been destressed and relieved; and ready to attack the world again.

As a previous poster said about feeling the confidence and the benefits in the gym together with the general good feeling in everyday life I would echo this. If I masturbate just before I go to sleep I find it far more difficult to get up in the morning. My own feeling is that prolonged periods of no masturbation leads to a greater focus on everything in life, which in turn leads to healthier relationships with, not just women but everyone. As a result of this I find I do better when I go to chat up girl. I think the reason I do better with the girl is that I am not focusing on getting the girl into bed but instead I am actually, genuinely interested in getting to know the girl.

efb

Ive gone without it for months when on a depressive episode.

The desire to knock one off again is a great feeling what it happens

Gael23

efb wrote: »

Ive gone without it for months when on a depressive episode.

The desire to knock one off again is a great feeling what it happens

That desire also happens in the shower or at times when undressing which usually results in an erection leading to the desire to knock one out, for me anyway.
Did you not find that masturbating relieved some tension during a depressive episode?

efb

ryanf1 wrote: »

That desire also happens in the shower or at times when undressing which usually results in an erection leading to the desire to knock one out, for me anyway.
Did you not find that masturbating relieved some tension during a depressive episode?

I had zero sexual desire, its common when suffering a depressive bout.

JasperGeorge.

Limewater wrote: »

It really is worth it cutting back. Try just once or twice a week and and see what changes you notice.

It actually is healthy for men to masturbate. Doing it daily decreases the risk of prostate cancer.

I find this whole attitude very odd.

DoYouEvenLift

Surprised this was locked so hastily without at least considering it could have actual serious discussions, which it has, but glad to see that was changed and it was reopened. Lots of forums already have chats and actual dedicated groups for this.


I have tried it in the past, unintentionally for the most part though. The longest I went was almost a month I think. From my understanding it's meant to make you more energetic and motivated (to have sex and fulfill your now heightened urges, which masturbation quenches) since apparently it can cause an increase in testosterone. I haven't got or seen any scientific evidence to prove or disprove any of the claims of no gap though (someone really needs to get on that opportunity though srs) so I'll just talk about my own personal experiences.


When I go longer I find that it actually does the opposite than what I expected. I feel less energetic and bothered, almost even depressed at times. Usually nowadays if I refrain it's with the aim to get even bigger loads, we all know how that is. I actually think that around 3-5 days, give or take one, without fapping is the best way to go. Feels like I have higher testosterone levels on the days in between and my energy and motivation, definitely libido, are almost peaking. So if you found a system similar to this that works and feels the best for yourself I'd advise trying it for a while.


What I will say though is that I am all for supporting 'no porn'. Fapping and porn obviously go together perfectly but while fapping is harmless I don't think porn is. At least not in really frequent use. I'm sure you can find decent details on this topic if you cared enough to learn about it but I'm going off of my own opinion and basic understanding. When you watch porn frequently it can become a bad habit like any other and some people even get addicted. This can cause you to be less motivated to actually have sex and I'm sure some of you here will even know how that feels where you have/had girlfriends and can easily have sex but choose not to because what's even easier is just not moving and opening a new incognito tab. It can also skew your expectations of women. I'd talk more on this but it may break charter rules.


So try what I suggested but without porn for what will probably be the best results.

Pat Mustard

Mod:

Posting this after several posts had to be deleted.

There was a clear warning that jokes and messing were unwelcome on this thread.

Any more posts with jokes or messing will simply be deleted and posters will receive cards/bans.

Pugzilla

Day 30

Macavity.

I can't and don't want to refrain from masturbating for an extended period of time. Need that dopamine.

Faith+1

Pugzilla wrote: »

Day 30

Jesus. :eek:....Any noticable changes?

Pugzilla

Faith+1 wrote: »

Jesus. :eek:....Any noticable changes?

I've more of 'don't give a f***' attitude to things in general. Get less stressed out.

Average women look more attractive.

My record is 84 days back in 2013, but I got bored and then broke it.

Reboot is supposed to take 90 days, so that's what I'm aiming for at the moment.

D'Agger

Pugzilla wrote: »

I've more of 'don't give a f***' attitude to things in general. Get less stressed out.

Average women look more attractive.

My record is 84 days back in 2013, but I got bored and then broke it.

Reboot is supposed to take 90 days, so that's what I'm aiming for at the moment.

What do you mean by reboot pugzilla?

Galwayguy35

Surely there are no real benefits to not doing it for weeks at a time other than to see how long one can manage without cracking one off.

Macavity.

I have no intention of going a week without masturbating. Always find myself getting aggressive and feeling dysphoric when I haven't masturbated for a number of days.

No Fap holds no value to anyone other than those with serious masturbation and/or porn addictions.

veganrun

Think the longest I've went is about 4 weeks. Sometimes though if I go too long I start to feel "uncomfortable", like I'm carrying around a big load and need relief.

I'm trying to knock it on the head now anyway, mostly for personal reasons.

Pugzilla

D'Agger wrote: »

What do you mean by reboot pugzilla?

Addiction to anything ,inlcuding fapping, alters your brain chemistry. 90 days is seen as a landmark for starting the healing process.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wSF82AwSDiU

JaseBelleVie

Serious question: if having an orgasm/ejaculating releases dopamine anyway, is this 90-day period all for nought if you're having sex too? I mean, surely if this 90-day and healing process and beating an addiction is all about orgasms (regardless of how they are achieved) it shouldn't be just a "no fap" thing, but a no orgasms at all, right?

Or am I missing something?

Pugzilla

JaseBelleVie wrote: »

Serious question: if having an orgasm/ejaculating releases dopamine anyway, is this 90-day period all for nought if you're having sex too? I mean, surely if this 90-day and healing process and beating an addiction is all about orgasms (regardless of how they are achieved) it shouldn't be just a "no fap" thing, but a no orgasms at all, right?

Or am I missing something?

Real sex is allowed and encouraged.

Problem with fapping to digital images is that you're brain can't differentiate it from the real thing. You get a dopamine hit from it which builds dependence.

Cavemen didn't have porn on demand.