How to Get Harder: 7 Handy Erection Tips for Men

Are you wondering how to get harder erections?

You’re not alone.

Erectile dysfunction is a common male sexual disorder that millions of men across the globe experience every single day.

In fact, it’s shown to affect 18.4% of men over the age of 20, which is an astounding 18 million men in the US alone.

When a man has difficulty achieving or maintaining erections, it can cause frustration, embarrassment and performance anxiety. Fortunately, this type of sexual dysfunction can be treated by making simple lifestyle changes.

Here are 7 quick and practical tips for men on how to treat erectile dysfunction and get harder erections. Keep on reading.

What is a Healthy Erection?

When men become sexually aroused, this message travels along the nerve to the brain, stimulating the penis to get hard.

When it comes to a healthy erection, many biochemical, physical, and psychological factors are at play that can increase or decrease the strength of an erection. When men become sexually aroused, this message travels along a nerve to the brain, stimulating the penis to get hard.

From here, the combination of nervous signals, blood flow, hormone production (e.g., testosterone levels), and neurotransmitter activity helps facilitate a healthy erection. If any of the variables stimulating an erection are disrupted, you may risk experiencing erectile dysfunctions.

In improving erectile function, targeting these variables at their source will be the best method to achieve and maintain a harder erection. Let’s get into it!

7 Tips on How To Get a Harder Erection

1. Manage Your Diet To Boost Levels of Nitric Oxide

Diet is an essential part of our health and wellbeing. When we take care of ourselves on the inside, it can show (and, in this case, quite literally) on the outside.

When it comes to getting a harder erection, the most beneficial foods are those that cause increased blood flow to the penis, contain nitric oxide, and are rich in arginine (the precursor to nitric oxide).

The purpose of nitric oxide is to help cause penile muscle relaxation. Once relaxed, blood can easily flow into the penis to form an erection.

Some of the most beneficial foods for better erections include:

• Blackberries
• Watermelon
• Avocados
• Pomegranate juice
• Dark leafy greens (especially spinach)
• Salmon
• Oatmeal
• Coffee
• Dark chocolate
• Almonds, walnuts, cashews
• Citrus fruit (especially oranges)
• Chilly peppers

2. Maintain a Healthy Blood Pressure with Exercise

We have all been taught about the benefits of exercise on our physical and mental health. However, exercising for as little as 30 minutes every day can help regulate your blood pressure and allow you to get a harder erection!

Blood Pressure and Erections: What’s the Relationship?

Maintaining a healthy blood pressure throughout your lifetime can be an effective treatment for experiencing harder erections. As mentioned earlier, during an erection, the muscles surrounding the penis relax, which helps blood flow into the area to cause the penis to expand and stiffen.

Unfortunately, high blood pressure can create problems for your erections. As a primary culprit to ED, hypertension causes a narrowing in your arteries which leads to lower blood flow to your body.

For some men, this decreased blood flow to the penis makes it difficult to get and maintain an erection. For this reason, exercise is a beneficial treatment to keep your blood pressure under control.

Smoking Affects Your Blood Pressure Too

On a similar note, for those struggling to control their blood pressure, it is also helpful to quit smoking tobacco. Experts believe nicotine in cigarettes can cause a narrowing in your blood vessels, leading to a higher than normal blood pressure.

3. Symptoms of Stress or Performance Anxiety

Regarding psychological erectile dysfunction, nervousness and anxiety symptoms affect teenagers and young men. In contrast, personal and professional stress, such as relationship conflict or financial stress, affects middle-aged men.

In the case of an erection, stress and anxiety can cause an interruption in how your brain sends and receives signals from the penis. Ultimately, this can impact how much blood can flow to the penis to allow for an erection.

Experts believe that the distress and frustration of erectile problems can take a toll on men, leading them to experience feelings of emasculation. The National Institute of Mental Health finds that this may lead to higher rates of anxiety, low self-esteem and guilt, which can result in men losing interest in activities and potentially even developing symptoms of depression.

Tips to Treat Psychological Erectile Dysfunction

Overcoming mental barriers can be challenging, especially when treating psychological erectile dysfunction. Although difficult, it’s certainly not impossible.

Among the top expert-recommended tips, including therapy, meditation, and working on the trust between you and your partner, one technique, in particular, has helped nearly 70% of men overcome their symptoms of erectile dysfunction. This technique is known as guided imagery.

Guided imagery is a beneficial practice that helps you manage stress, improves relaxation, and empowers you to achieve an erection whenever you want. This practice lets you tap into your unconscious mind by listening to a script describing a vivid scenario.

With practice, guided imagery promotes greater relaxation and mindfulness, which can help men overcome sexual performance anxiety.

4. Try Supplements

Another advantageous way to improve your erections is through supplementation. Here are the top 3 supplements that can help transform your experience with sexual dysfunction.

Vitamin D

As a steroid hormone, vitamin D is found to be associated with sexual functioning and cardiovascular health — both of which are essential factors when it comes to stimulating a healthy erection.

Recent peer reviewed studies have found that vitamin D can help increase the strength of an erection by improving blood flow and stimulating the release of nitric oxide into the bloodstream.

L-Arginine and L-Citrulline

L-arginine is an amino acid precursor that raises levels of nitric oxide in the blood to help induce relaxation of the penis muscles. In addition, experts believe L-arginine can help treat high blood pressure.

Similarly, L-citrulline is shown to stimulate nitric oxide and increase blood circulation to a man’s genitals. Current studies discovered that when L-citrulline is taken in combination with L-arginine, evidence suggests a significant blood pressure-lowering effect compared to when they are each taken on their own.

L-Theanine

L-theanine is a beneficial amino acid that can help treat erectile dysfunction uniquely. Similar to a sedative, L-theanine is shown to be a safe and natural supplement that works to relieve symptoms of stress and anxiety that affect erectile function.

Herbal Supplements Can Help Too!

For those looking to elevate their mood, minimize sexual performance anxiety, and achieve longer-lasting erections, herbal supplements may help you!

Here are some of the best products for men:

• Panax Ginseng
• Ginkgo Biloba
• Passionflower
• Bitter Orange
• Sage
• Maca

5. Change It Up in the Bedroom

Exploring new positions, sex toys, and even exciting role-playing techniques can not only get you harder in the bedroom but can also lead to a more pleasurable sexual experience for both yourself and your partner. Remember to be patient and communicate your desires with your partner in advance.

New Positions, Tips, and Techniques

When it comes to getting a harder erection, sometimes all you need is a new routine. Rather than doing the same old song and dance in the bedroom, try experimenting with new ideas — whether new foreplay techniques or different sex positions.

Sexologist, Dr. Chris Fox explains that “broadening your definition of sex will increase your ability to experience pleasure without an erection”. Instead of focusing on the act of intercourse itself, try exploring different foreplay techniques such as kissing, caressing, genital play, and oral stimulation — all of which can be enjoyed without having an actual erection.

Often, trying new techniques or positions can lead to increased arousal levels, which helps stimulate an erection.

Sex Toys and Lubricants

Sex toys and lubrications are great ways to add excitement to the bedroom. In fact, finding the right product can sometimes lead to harder erections and even more explosive orgasms for men.

While vibrators are a fun and pleasurable toy on the clitoris and vagina, men can enjoy them too! Aim for gentle vibrations as you explore the different sensations of each male erogenous zone, including the penis head and shaft, around the scrotum, along the perineum, and even around the nipples.

It’s helpful to use a lubricant or essential oil to stroke the shaft of the penis and massage the scrotum to add more sensational stimulation. The moistened touch can play a beneficial role in enhancing sexual stimulation and levels of arousal.

6. Limit Your Alcohol Intake

Alcohol is known to impair blood flow and nerve sensitivity — two important components of sexual arousal. If you’ve ever experienced “whiskey dick”, you can attest to the frustrations of alcohol-induced erectile dysfunction.

Suppose your sex life is currently under stress due to performance anxiety, inadequate testosterone levels, or any underlying medical condition. In that case, alcohol can heighten your erectile dysfunction even further.

Although alcohol-induced erectile dysfunction is temporary, excessive consumption can reduce sexual responses and lead to more severe symptoms.

Among the different tips for men on how to get rock-hard erections, limiting your alcohol intake is a surefire way to improve your erections — especially before engaging in any sexual activity.

7. Erection-Enhancing Products That May Help

Another excellent tip for men on how to get a harder erection is to test out an erection-enhancing product. Among the different inventions, erection creams, penis pumps, and cock rings are the safest, most popular options.

Erection Cream

Erection cream is a rub-on solution that can be applied directly to the shaft of the penis. It works by releasing a nitric oxide gas that expands your blood vessels to allow more blood to flow into the penis. For best practices, apply a small amount of erection cream to the head and shaft before sex and wash it off after.

Penis Pump

Penis pumps are a helpful product that improves erectile function. Medically referred to as “vacuum erection devices”, penis pumps are considered safe and many are even FDA-approved. It uses suction to draw more blood into the penis, causing it to swell and create a temporary erection.

Cock Ring

Cock rings are another safe and effective product that can be combined with a penis pump. After stimulating an erection, cock rings fit around the base of the penis to help keep the blood flow in the area to maintain the erection. Cock rings are made of rubber, plastic, or silicone material and are generally quite comfortable.

The Steady Freddy Team

We create this content to help couples and individuals better understand sexual wellness, with a focus on premature ejaculation, one of the most common male sexual dysfunctions. To address this issue, we've developed a medically formulated delay spray designed to help men last longer and perform better during sex. Learn how to use delay spray to maximize its effectiveness. Our articles are thoroughly researched, backed by data and studies, and medically reviewed for accuracy to provide reliable and insightful information.