Let’s face it: not being able to get it up is a sexually-active man’s worst nightmare. Sure, your partner can offer comforting words like, “it happens”, or “it’s ok, it’s not your fault” every single time your mini-me fizzles out on you in bed, but do they in any way make you feel better? Didn’t think so.

There are, however, ways you can try to avoid being put in that situation, and were not talking about buying a truckload of that little blue pill. Well, at least hold doing that off until you’ve at least tried doing the things listed below.

1. Quit smoking

Smokers, particularly those who have been heavy smokers for a long time, run a greater risk of becoming impotent. Or suffering a stroke. Or a heart attack. Or getting lung cancer. I could go on forever…

2. Cut back on the booze

Better to stop drinking altogether, but if you can’t, it’s fine, as long as you drink in moderation. Imbibing alcohol in copious amounts shocks the nervous system and does damage to blood vessels, leading to impotence.

3. Eat healthy

Eating heart-friendly food is good for sexual potency as well, so veggies and fresh fruits should always be on your diet. Food high in cholesterol and sodium should be avoided as much as possible.

4. Get regular exercise

It doesn’t take a genius to figure out that exercise does wonders for the body, even for just a few times a week. Men who exercise at least three to five hours weekly cut their risk of having erection problems by up to 30%.

5. Get laid on a regular basis

Sex is basically some sort of exercise for the penis. The more frequent the erections, the more regular blood flow into the penis becomes. For those without partners, you know what to do.

6. Check your meds

If you’re under medication for any sort of health condition, ask your doctor if some of the meds you’ve been prescribed have any side effects on sexual potency.

7. Manage your stress

Stress is commonly blamed for most cases of impotence, so managing it is essential to overcoming the condition. It’s not the easiest thing to do, but there are ways, and it’s up to you to seek out what works for you.

8. Catch enough zzzzzzz’s

Ideally, eight hours of sleep should do it. Get a whole lot less shut-eye and your body will be stressed out, and all that stress will soon take its toll on your sex life.

9. Do Kegel exercises

Kegel exercises, named after the doctor who devised them, are said to promote better sexual health by working the pubococcygeus (PC) muscle, which you can find by just tensing the muscles in your pelvic floor until you get the one that makes your thing jump. These exercises are reputed to help maintain and control ejaculations and erections, as well as increase blood flow to the penis.