There’s a reason “Thanksgiving sex” just isn’t a thing. Before one of the most dense, sleep-inducing holiday meals of the calendar year, you might briefly see the appeal of sneaking off for a bit of quality time with your partner while everyone else heads into their well-deserved food comas — but that’s before you get all that sweet, sweet tryptophan (the stuff in turkey that knocks you out) into your system and before you find yourself extremely full and in need of a brief (or long) nap.
Now, it’s not that partaking in the holiday revels make sex impossible — because there’s no such thing as being too full for intercourse or other sexual acts beyond your feelings and interest. But the vibes may be off a little and some of your go-to positions and moves are probably not going to feel nearly as good as they would if you were at your baseline alertness and “normal” post-dinner comfort level.
But if you’re trying to have some intimate time on Thanksgiving (we’re rooting for you!) and are really somehow in the mood (a bunch of classic seasonal sides are aphrodisiacs, after all), here are a few pro-tips to maximize comfort and work with (rather than against) the post-feast energy.
Play the long game
So first off, don’t hesitate to raincheck the intercourse — cuddle up (maybe with a movie that keeps you in the mood) and wait for your second wind to come through. Realistically, if you find yourself in the mood for sex after your big holiday dinner but your body isn’t necessarily keeping up with you, there’s always the option to wait it out. Let the rest of your evening turn into foreplay and let your focus really shift toward being with your partner and enjoying their company.
And if you both have that 10pm second wind (which sometimes is used to raid leftovers early) you can always sneak off to hook up. No one’s gonna know.
Avoid positions on your back
So some good advice to remember for when you feel extremely full (whether you’re trying to get it on or not) is to avoid laying on your back, as Dr. Susan Besser, a family physician with Mercy Personal Physicians in Baltimore, Maryland, previously told SheKnows. Because that can exacerbate reflux issues or otherwise make the discomfort feel worse. Plus, if you are the partner on the bottom (either receiving penetration or doing the penetrating), the pressure of your lover’s body on yours might actually be less appealing for once.
Embrace the laziness
Instead of missionary or any other position that leaves one or both of you feeling that discomfort, some reliable positions for cuddly and lazy morning sex will instead be useful here. Think spooning (laying on your sides with the penetrating partner as the “big spoon” and the receiving partner as the “little spoon”), a slow and leisurely-paced 69 or something like the Thirst (laying face to face to your partner in what feels like a hug and allowing some shallow penetration). These positions let you get the most out of an encounter while doing the least.
Go beyond intercourse
You don’t need to have penetrative intercourse (whether that’s with bodies or toys or straps) to have some sweet sexual encounters. That’s a given. So if you’re in the mood but not necessarily that mood, take some time to explore other options to enjoy some sensuality and even get off (though orgasm isn’t necessary for a good sexual encounter either!)
Instead, check other erogenous zones that may get overlooked when you’re considering intercourse as the main event. Do some sleepy, slow exploration. You may just find some new territory that you’ll want to revisit again and again.
Before you go, check out 69 sex positions to try before you die: