Learn to control your orgasms and maximize pleasure through edging

In this Lustery sex guide learn what is edging sexually and the benefits of this sexual practice.

What Is Edging in Sex? A Guide by Lustery

A Beginner’s Guide To Edging

Don’t believe the headlines –– Travis Barker and Kourtney Kardashian didn’t 

 late last year. Edging in sex has been written about since 

, and with enough practice, it can take your orgasms to new heights of pleasure. It can be worked into plenty of kink scenarios, 

it can add new dynamics to partnered, as well as solo, sex.

Interested? If so, here’s everything to know about incorporating edging into your sex life.

close to orgasm –– to the metaphorical “edge” –– and then holding off. For visual examples, look no further than the Lustery

, but basically, it’s delaying your orgasm in hopes of a more intense climax.

The first and most obvious benefit is that edging prolongs sexual pleasure, stretching the ecstasy of an orgasm out for longer. Similarly, it can help you last longer with sexual partners (or multiple partners) if that’s what you all want, although orgasm doesn’t have to be the goal of sex.

More broadly, edging can help you understand your body better. You’ll have to pay attention to how close you’re getting to orgasm, and how you’re getting there. It often doesn’t involve penetration, which is great if you have a vulva, as 

 that most need clitoral or other forms of stimulation to reach climax, rather than just vaginal penetration.

What’s the difference between edging and orgasm denial?

Edging falls under a wide category of “orgasm control.” It’s different from 

, which usually involves a dom getting their sub close to cumming, but then forcing them to stop as a kinky display of control. Chastity cages are another way to practice orgasm denial. Edging, on the other hand, is always done with an orgasm ultimately in mind, it’s just about teasing out the journey to get there.

How can I express what I need to my partner?

If you’re not going it alone, edging requires communication. Tap into your slutty, verbal side by 

 exactly how close you are to climax, and talk dirty about exactly what they’re doing to get you there. You can do it nonverbally through moans too, but you’ll need to develop some way of letting your partner know to stop pleasuring you if edging is your goal.

Get creative, too. You could follow the lead of 

couple Juan and Delfine by incorporating 

 into your edging sessions, using sex toys to introduce a wider range of sensory experiences. By the time you eventually 

climax, it’s pretty much guaranteed to be explosive.

The most common edging technique is the self-explanatory “stop-start method”. Whether you’re going down on a partner, fucking them or masturbating, just stop whatever you’re doing when you can feel an orgasm getting closer. Be sure to wait at least 10 to 30 seconds to restart, and then repeat the stopping and starting until you want to cum.

For people with penises, there’s the squeeze method –– basically, squeeze the tip when you feel yourself getting close. There’s also ballooning, which involves rubbing the super-sensitive tip of the penis in a circular motion, but stopping for a one or two minute break when you feel you might climax.

Finally, for partnered sex, one tip is to switch positions or sexual practices when one of you is getting close. If you’re close to orgasm through penetrative sex, switch to fingering or eating out your partner instead. This is essentially edging, and it raises your chances of cumming simultaneously.

Edging can theoretically last for as long as you like, but it becomes gradually more difficult to stop your orgasm the longer you edge. Waiting too long can lower your chances of cumming at all, and if you try to edge but get the timing wrong, you might end up having a pretty dissatisfying experience.

Occasionally, for people with penises, edging can result in a “dry orgasm” –– when you feel like you’re cumming, but there’s no ejaculation. If you don’t time edging right, you might end up climaxing before you want to and these orgasms can feel lacklustre –– a half orgasm ––regardless of your gender or genitalia. So, be mindful of how long you’re edging for, as the longer you go, the more likely your chances of 

. Either way, this “half orgasm” effect isn’t permanent, and your body will return to status quo with time.