How to Increase Your Sex Drive Naturally

By the NUUD team

Almost everyone we talk to about this has a version of the same first line: "I used to want it. I don't anymore." Or: "I want to want it. I can't seem to get there." The distance between the person you used to be and the person whose drive has gone quiet is short. The bridge back is specific, and it's what this guide is for.

The short answer

  • The single biggest natural lever is sleep — each extra hour is associated with a 14% jump in next-day partnered sex among women, and one week of 5-hour nights drops testosterone 10–15% in men.
  • Foundation work (sleep, stress, movement, food) shifts desire in 2–8 weeks; fast-acting single-dose formulas work in 30–60 minutes.
  • The plant ingredients with the strongest human research are KSM-66 ashwagandha, maca root, fenugreek (Testofen / Libifem), and tongkat ali.
  • See a clinician if the change was sudden, started with a new medication, or hasn't moved in 2–3 months of consistent baseline work.
  • For same-day effect, NUUD's libido gummies for women and libido gummies for men combine ashwagandha, maca, and a mushroom complex in a single 30–60 minute dose.

The short answer: you raise your sex drive naturally by fixing the foundation — sleep, stress, movement, and food — and then layering on the plant ingredients with real research behind them. That's the whole playbook. Everything below is a longer, honest version.

We make non-prescription libido supplements at NUUD, so take our view accordingly. We'll be clear when we're pointing at one of our own products.

Why "naturally" actually matters

The prescription path for low libido is narrower than most people realize. For women, the FDA has approved exactly two libido medications, both with notable side-effect profiles and modest efficacy data. For men, the most commonly prescribed sexual drugs treat erection mechanics, not desire itself — a distinction most primary-care conversations skip over. Testosterone replacement helps some people and not others, and the eligibility bar is narrower than the advertising suggests.

Natural doesn't mean weaker, and natural doesn't mean slower. It means using the levers the body already has — the ones that turn desire up when they're working and turn it down when they're not. Sleep, cortisol, blood flow, neurotransmitters, a handful of well-studied botanicals. None of this is exotic. Most of it is just not talked about in the right order.

The five levers (in order of impact)

If you gave us one hour with someone who wanted to increase their sex drive naturally, we'd spend it on these five things, in this order.

Lever 1: Sleep

Sleep is the single highest-leverage intervention for libido, and it's the one nobody wants to hear because fixing it is boring. A 2015 study in the Journal of Sexual Medicine found that each additional hour of sleep was associated with a 14% increase in the probability of partnered sexual activity the next day among women (Kalmbach et al., PMID: 25772315). In men, chronic short sleep is one of the most well-documented non-pathological causes of low testosterone — a single week of restricting sleep to 5 hours per night reduced testosterone by 10–15% in healthy young men (Leproult & Van Cauter, JAMA, 2011, PMID: 21632481).

Seven hours is the floor. Eight is better. If you're under seven consistently, no supplement will fully compensate. Fix sleep first. Magnesium glycinate at night, phone out of the bedroom, consistent wake time on weekends, and bedroom at 65–68°F will get most people there without prescription help.

Lever 2: Stress (and the cortisol it produces)

Sex hormones and stress hormones are built from overlapping precursors, and when cortisol is chronically elevated the body prioritizes stress chemistry over sex chemistry. This isn't a mindset problem. It's a biology problem that responds to inputs.

Things that lower baseline cortisol on a measurable timescale: regular moderate cardio, strength training, daylight in the first hour of waking, time in nature, meaningful social contact, reducing alcohol, and adaptogenic herbs (see Lever 5). Things that don't do much on their own: one-off meditation apps, bath bombs, and the generic advice to "just relax." If "just relax" worked, you'd have done it already.

Expect 2–4 weeks of consistent input before cortisol baseline meaningfully shifts. Expect the shift itself to feel subtle — slightly less edgy in the morning, slightly more energy at 4pm — long before it shows up as wanting sex again. The wanting is downstream.

Lever 3: Movement (especially strength training)

Exercise raises sex drive through three separate mechanisms. It lowers cortisol. It improves blood flow. And resistance training specifically supports testosterone — in men and women both. A 2017 meta-analysis found that resistance training reliably increased free testosterone in healthy adults, with effect size proportional to training intensity and duration (Vingren et al., reviewed in Sports Medicine).

You don't need a gym. You need resistance 2–3 times a week (bodyweight, bands, or dumbbells all work), cardio 2–3 times a week (walking counts; zone 2 is ideal), and enough recovery between sessions to actually adapt. Over-training lowers testosterone and desire both. The goal is consistency, not intensity.

Lever 4: Food (and the nutrients desire actually needs)

You don't need a diet. You need enough protein, enough fat, and enough of the micronutrients the body turns into sex hormones. The ones that matter most:

  • Zinc. Required for testosterone synthesis. Oysters, beef, pumpkin seeds, lentils. A 2009 review in Nutrition documented that zinc deficiency reliably reduces testosterone, and supplementation restores levels in deficient men (Prasad et al.).
  • Vitamin D. Behaves more like a hormone than a vitamin, and low levels correlate with low testosterone in both sexes. A 2011 trial found 3,332 IU/day raised free testosterone over 12 months in men with low baseline levels (Pilz et al., Hormone and Metabolic Research, PMID: 21154195).
  • Magnesium. Involved in hormone regulation, sleep quality, and muscle relaxation. Most adults in the U.S. are mildly deficient.
  • Dietary fat. Very low-fat diets (under 20% of calories) reliably lower testosterone. Desire needs fat. Olive oil, avocado, eggs, fatty fish, nuts — eat some at every meal.

And the inputs that reliably lower desire when over-consumed: alcohol, ultra-processed food, and sugar at quantities that spike insulin. None of them need to be cut to zero. They need to be moved out of the default.

Lever 5: Plant ingredients with real research

The supplement aisle is loud. Most of what's sold for libido doesn't have meaningful human research. Some of it does. The ingredients worth your attention:

  • KSM-66 ashwagandha. Best-studied adaptogen for sexual function in both sexes. A 2015 RCT of 50 women found 600 mg/day improved arousal, lubrication, and satisfaction vs. placebo over 8 weeks (Dongre et al., PMID: 26504795). A 2019 RCT of men found similar dosing significantly increased testosterone and DHEA-S vs. placebo (Lopresti et al., American Journal of Men's Health, PMID: 30854916).
  • Maca root. Peruvian tuber with the strongest evidence for SSRI-induced sexual side effects — a 2008 Massachusetts General Hospital trial showed 3 g/day significantly improved sexual function in women on antidepressants (Dording et al., PMID: 18801111). A 2002 trial in men found 1.5–3 g/day increased sexual desire without changing testosterone levels, suggesting maca works on the desire side rather than the hormone side (Gonzales et al., Andrologia, PMID: 12472620).
  • Fenugreek (Testofen extract). A 2011 trial of 60 men found 600 mg/day of Testofen fenugreek significantly increased self-reported libido and satisfaction over 6 weeks (Steels et al., Phytotherapy Research). A 2015 female trial with a Libifem extract showed similar improvements in sexual desire and arousal (Rao et al., Phytotherapy Research).
  • Tongkat ali. Southeast Asian root shown to support testosterone and lower cortisol in stressed adults. A 2013 trial of 63 adults with moderate stress found 200 mg/day of a standardized tongkat ali extract significantly lowered cortisol and improved mood (Talbott et al., Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition, PMID: 23705671).
  • L-arginine and L-citrulline. Amino acids that support nitric oxide production, which supports blood flow. Meaningful for both arousal and erection quality.
  • Functional mushrooms (cordyceps, reishi). Smaller research base than the above, mostly preclinical, but worth including as a complementary variable — cordyceps specifically has traditional use for sexual vitality and some promising animal data for testosterone support.

The real-world pattern we see: most people who've tried one of these in isolation at a sub-clinical dose didn't feel anything. Most people who try several of them together at meaningful doses, while the foundation is handled, do.

If you want something for tonight

Everything above builds a baseline. It doesn't help the specific Tuesday when you want to want your partner and the wanting isn't there.

That's the problem we built NUUD to solve. Our libido gummies for women, libido gummies for men, and libido capsules for women combine KSM-66 ashwagandha, maca, and a mushroom complex in a single-use dose designed to work in 30 to 60 minutes. No 14-day wait. No daily routine required. Take one 30–60 minutes before, and the formula does the rest in the background.

This isn't a replacement for the five levers above. It's a tool for the specific nights you want the baseline work to show up faster than biology is willing to deliver on its own. For couples who want to bring something home that works for both partners, our couples bundle pairs a women's and men's supply in one box.

"Took one before date night and actually felt the difference. Finally something that works same-day."

— Verified NUUD customer review

What about the things that don't help

For completeness, a short list of things that get recommended often and that the research doesn't really support:

  • Generic "testosterone boosters" with tribulus as the main ingredient. Tribulus has some evidence in women, especially menopausal women, but meta-analyses in men have consistently failed to show it raises testosterone.
  • DHEA as a general libido supplement. It's a hormone, not an herb. Useful in specific clinical contexts under a doctor's guidance; risky to self-prescribe.
  • "Just drink more water." Yes, stay hydrated. No, it's not the answer.
  • Anything marketed as "instant" or promising universal results. Red flags. Real supplements work probabilistically — most people, most of the time. Nothing is universal.

When to see a doctor

See a doctor if:

  • The change was sudden and happened alongside other symptoms — pain, fatigue, mood collapse, cycle irregularity, erectile changes, hair or weight changes
  • You've started a new medication and noticed a clear drop
  • You're in perimenopause or suspect it (women) or have symptoms of clinically low testosterone (men)
  • Things haven't moved in 2–3 months of consistent baseline work plus supplementation

A supplement is a tool. A workup is due diligence. They're compatible, not competitive.

The honest summary

How to increase your sex drive naturally, in the order that actually works: sleep more, stress less, move regularly, eat enough real food with enough fat and enough protein, and add a few well-studied plant ingredients at meaningful doses. Give it 4–8 weeks to stack. Use fast-acting supplements for the specific nights the baseline hasn't caught up to what you're trying to have.

And — because the whole point of this isn't a checklist, it's the life underneath it — remember what you're doing it for. Not peak anything. Not optimizing anything. Just bringing the wanting back, then having fun with it.

The five levers, in order

  1. Sleep. Get to seven hours minimum, eight when you can — the single highest-leverage intervention for desire in both sexes.
  2. Stress and cortisol. Lower baseline cortisol with cardio, strength work, morning daylight, less alcohol, and adaptogens; expect 2–4 weeks before the shift registers.
  3. Movement. Resistance training 2–3×/week plus zone-2 cardio 2–3×/week — supports testosterone in men and women, improves blood flow, lowers cortisol.
  4. Food. Enough protein, enough fat (don't drop below 20% of calories), and the micronutrients desire needs — zinc, vitamin D, magnesium.
  5. Plant ingredients with real research. KSM-66 ashwagandha, maca, fenugreek (Testofen/Libifem), tongkat ali — stacked at meaningful doses, not single-ingredient at sub-clinical amounts.

Which NUUD format fits your routine?

Format Onset Duration Best for
Gummies 30–60 min Up to 3 days Weekend rituals, slow build
Capsules 45–90 min Up to 6 days Daily support
Sex Bites 15–30 min 4–6 hours Planned date nights
Intimacy drink 15–30 min 2–3 hours The "drink before the drink"

FAQ

How can I increase my sex drive naturally?

Start with sleep, stress, movement, and food — the four baseline levers that move desire within weeks. Then add plant ingredients with real research (ashwagandha, maca, fenugreek, tongkat ali). For same-day effect, a single-use formula like NUUD's libido gummies combines several of these in one dose designed to work in 30 to 60 minutes.

What's the fastest way to boost libido naturally?

The single fastest intervention is adequate sleep — you can feel the difference within days of going from 6 to 8 hours. For same-day effect, a well-formulated libido supplement combining ashwagandha, maca, and mushroom extracts typically works in 30 to 60 minutes.

What foods increase sex drive?

Foods high in zinc (oysters, beef, pumpkin seeds), vitamin D (fatty fish, eggs), magnesium (dark leafy greens, nuts), and healthy fats (olive oil, avocado, nuts) support the body's sex-hormone pathways. There's no single food that raises libido on its own, but a consistent diet that provides these nutrients matters more than any single superfood.

Does exercise raise sex drive?

Yes — both cardio and strength training. Exercise lowers cortisol, improves blood flow, and resistance training supports testosterone in both sexes. Consistency over 4 to 8 weeks is what produces the shift. Overtraining lowers libido, so recovery matters as much as the sessions.

Which natural supplements actually work for sex drive?

The ones with the strongest human research are KSM-66 ashwagandha, maca root, fenugreek (Testofen or Libifem extracts), and tongkat ali. Single-ingredient supplements at low doses often underperform; formulas combining several well-studied ingredients at meaningful doses tend to produce better real-world results.

How long does it take to raise sex drive naturally?

Sleep and stress interventions can shift desire within 2 to 4 weeks. Supplementation effects typically show up in 2 to 8 weeks for daily products and same-day for fast-acting formulas. Deeper hormonal shifts — postpartum, perimenopause, post-SSRI — can take 3 to 12 months.

Can stress really cause low libido?

Yes. Chronic stress elevates cortisol, which suppresses sex-hormone production through shared biochemical precursors. This is one of the most common mechanisms behind low libido in otherwise healthy adults, and it's one of the most responsive to lifestyle change and adaptogen support.

Disclosure: NUUD Pleasures sells libido supplements. This post reflects our perspective as a brand in the category.

FDA disclaimer: These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease. Consult your healthcare provider before starting any supplement, especially if you are pregnant, nursing, taking medication, or managing a medical condition.

For an on-demand option alongside the lifestyle changes above, NUUD makes supplements to increase sex drive for women: one gummy, plant-based, hormone-free.

For a no-prescription option, NUUD's natural arousal supplements come as a gummy, drink, or capsule on one botanical stack.

Keep Reading

For the deep-dive on evidence-graded ingredients, see our guide to aphrodisiacs that actually work. For the adaptogen research specifically — Cordyceps, Reishi, Ashwagandha — read mushrooms for libido and sex drive. For couples where long-term familiarity is the challenge, the Coolidge Effect explains the biology and what to do about it.

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