Skip to main content
Blog

Tips to Quit: What Sleep, Food, and Exercise Have to Do With Quitting Porn

When you are tired, hungry, or in bed all day, it can impair judgment and propel someone to make unhealthy decisions, like giving into a porn craving.

3 minute read.

The following post is geared toward those in recovery from a struggle with porn. While Fight the New Drug is not a recovery-focused resource, we encourage anyone in need of help to check out our friends at Fortify. Visit Fortify if you’re interested in resources aimed at recovery.

When you think of ways to help in the fight against pornography, how often do sleep, food, and exercise come up?

You might be surprised at how often research connects compulsive patterns to these basic lifestyle factors—especially what is called the Big Three—sleep, food, and exercise. Each of these makes a huge difference in the quality of a person’s mood and overall mental and emotional well-being—including depression and anxiety, or how well we can focus our attention at any given moment.

But you don’t need any scientist to tell you that. Think of the last time you binged on sweets or spent the whole day sitting around inside. When we’re paying closer attention, something that seems pleasant in the moment can actually really tank our mood over time. And when we don’t feel well, it’s all too easy to scramble for some way—any way—to feel better.

Related: As More Women Like Me Admit To Watching Porn, I Realize How Harmful It Can Be

Let’s take a closer look at each of the Big Three, and how they can help someone who struggles with porn on their journey to freedom.

Get some sleep

Research studies consistently find that both teenagers and adults are seriously deprived of sleep. For most people, they’re simply not getting what they need.

Sufficient sleep is especially crucial for anyone wanting to find freedom from addiction. Not only does the brain recharge and repair during sleep, but there are also ripple effects that impact the whole body. Going without sleep has been connected to lower immune function, serious disease and weight gain—as well as impaired ability to reason and think clearly.

Related: Can Watching Porn Make Existing Mental Health Issues Worse?

When you’re tired you’re just not yourself; your brain’s not running at full capacity.

Bottom line: a tired body and cloudy mind will leave someone who struggles more vulnerable and less prepared to fight.

Make healthy amounts of sleep a top priority. If anything is getting in the way of getting enough sleep, take it very seriously, because if it’s interfering with sleep, it’s probably messing with their fight for recovery, too.

Eat the right fuel

In addition to sleep, another way to recharge the body is to check out what kind of fuel it’s getting.

How far would you get in your car if you put maple syrup or Coca-Cola in the gas tank? It sounds dumb, but let’s be honest: we’re sometimes just as dumb with our own body by taking in stuff the body hardly recognizes as nourishment. And then we act surprised when the body doesn’t run so well.

Related: Everything You Need To Know About Fortify, The Porn Addiction Recovery Platform

Want to build strength in this battle? Take a look at the food you’re taking in.

Rather than only listening to others tell you what to eat, why not listen to your own body—try paying closer attention to what your body needs and wants.

BHW - General

Start moving

One more example. While recharging your body through rest and good fuel is important, if you really want to supercharge it, then try something really radical: move around more!

Although there is a lot of discussion about physical activity these days, we still do a ton of sitting around.

You might be asking what the problem is with sitting so much. So let’s look at the facts: without enough movement and activity, we are starving our brain in another way and setting us up for the same old patterns.

Related: Why This Guys-Only College House Decided To All Ditch Porn Together

What about the reverse? What if we bumped up our activity level? In the late 1990s, Dr. Van Praag and his colleagues at the Laboratory of Genetics at the Salk Institute in San Diego, California, showed that exercise increases neurogenesis (or the birth of new brain cells).

When you exercise, a flood of oxygen heads to your brain and a number of other processes are triggered that help your brain grow. So by exercising, you’re actually rewiring the brain in a healthy way and giving your brain an extra boost to function at peak performance.

Fortify

Get started

Studies are showing that poor health can cause humans to be more susceptible to impulsive decisions. When someone is tired, hungry, or in bed all day, it can be much harder to resist those cravings when they come. However, it doesn’t have to be that way. Even simple adjustments in the Big Three—sleep, diet and exercise – can super-charge someone’s path to freedom in surprising ways.

Related: Why I’ve Never Been Happier Since I Stopped Watching Porn

By recharging your body with the sleep, fuel, and energy it needs, you can give yourself an even better shot at kicking porn to the curb, for good. We may not be running this marathon with you, but we are cheering for you the whole way.

Need help?

For those reading this who feel they are struggling with pornography, you are not alone. Check out Fortify, a science-based recovery platform dedicated to helping you find lasting freedom from pornography. Fortify now offers a free experience for both teens and adults. Connect with others, learn about your unwanted porn habit, and track your recovery journey. There is hope—sign up today.

Fortify

Fight the New Drug may receive financial support from purchases made using affiliate links.