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Would you be willing to endure some social sneers if it meant increasing your pain tolerance by 20% and your athletic performance by 8%? According to research, swearing every few seconds during physical exertion can do just that. But this isn’t just about amusing scientific studies—it’s a powerful window into what we’re truly capable of.

In episode #32 of the Live Long & Well podcast, I explored how swearing impacts physical performance, why grunting in sports has long been accepted, and what these findings tell us about our untapped potential. The science is fascinating, the findings are unexpected, and—most importantly—it reinforces the idea that we are stronger than we think.

Grunting and Performance: The Gateway to Swearing

Before diving into swearing, let’s start with something more socially acceptable—grunting. If you’ve ever watched professional tennis, you’ve likely heard it. Maria Sharapova’s grunts reached 100 decibels, Serena Williams was known for it, and Jimmy Connors helped popularize it decades ago. But beyond being a quirk of elite athletes, grunting has been shown to actually improve performance.

In a study of 32 collegiate tennis players, researchers found that when players grunted during serves and forehand strokes, ball velocity increased by 5% and muscle force output rose by 20% (source). Another study looked at 30 young men and women performing a two-second maximum effort hand grip. Simply exhaling increased grip strength by 11%, but grunting improved it by a staggering 25% (source).

However, not all strength-based exercises benefit from grunting. A separate study on deadlifts found no significant impact on force output (source). So while grunting can help in some situations, it doesn’t translate across all forms of exertion.

Swearing: A Forbidden Performance Enhancer?

Unlike grunting, swearing is still considered taboo in many social settings. But what if its very taboo nature is what makes it so powerful?

Swearing is defined as the use of potentially offensive taboo words, and its history of prohibition dates back centuries. The Bible warns against taking the Lord’s name in vain, and the earliest recorded “F-word” was fart in the year 1250. By the 16th century, a monk scribbled the modern “F-word” into the margins of a manuscript—suggesting that swearing, while common in speech, was rarely written down due to its forbidden nature.

This brings us to the psychological and physiological effects of swearing, particularly its link to pain tolerance. Multiple studies have shown that swearing increases a person’s ability to endure discomfort. In one study, participants submerged their hands in ice water and researchers measured both their time of pain onset and overall tolerance. When swearing, subjects could keep their hands in the ice bath for 20% longer compared to those who remained silent or used made-up words like fouch (source).

Swearing and Strength: What the Science Says

The real kicker? Swearing doesn’t just help with pain—it also boosts strength and power output.

A systematic review of six studies examined the effects of swearing on athletic performance (source). In these experiments, participants followed a “swearing protocol,” uttering a curse word every three seconds while performing an intense 30-second anaerobic power test, such as cycling or grip strength exercises.

The results were eye-opening:

• Power output increased by 4.5%
• Grip strength improved by 8%
• Chair push-ups rose by 15%
• Wall-sit endurance jumped by 22%
• Plank duration extended by 12%

To put this into perspective, elite weightlifters who train all year might hope for a 3% improvement in their performance. In the Olympics, the difference between first and eighth place in a 100-meter sprint is often only 1%. And yet, swearing alone led to improvements of 5% to 10 times that amount.

However, there’s a catch: swearing was less effective for those who already swore frequently in daily life. This reinforces the theory that its taboo nature plays a role in the brain’s response.

Why Does This Work? The Leading Theories

If swearing boosts power and pain tolerance, what’s actually happening in our brains and bodies? Researchers have proposed three main theories:

1. Physiological Response (Sympathetic Nervous System Activation)
   • Hypothesis: Swearing triggers a fight-or-flight response, increasing heart rate and blood pressure.
   • Evidence: Studies measuring these effects found no significant changes, suggesting this isn’t the primary mechanism.
2. Psychological Arousal (Emotional Activation & Risk-Taking)
   • Hypothesis: Swearing wakes up the brain, making us feel more confident, excited, or uninhibited—perhaps via amygdala activation.
   • Evidence: While plausible, there is little direct data to confirm this.
3. Pain Tolerance (Distraction & Perception Shift)
   • Hypothesis: Swearing acts as a distraction, shifting focus away from discomfort and allowing for greater endurance and power.
   • Evidence: The ice bath studies strongly support this, showing a direct link between swearing and increased pain tolerance.

The pain tolerance theory seems to be the most supported, aligning with both the athletic performance findings and real-world anecdotes.

Testing It for Myself: An N-of-1 Experiment

Curious whether this effect was real, I conducted my own N-of-1 experiment. During a long run, I tried different strategies:

• Grunting: No noticeable effect.
• A made-up swear word (fouch): Also ineffective.
• Swearing out loud: Immediate impact—my focus shifted, discomfort eased, and I ran stronger for short bursts.

This experience reinforced the idea that the taboo nature of swearing plays a role. The word itself needs to feel “forbidden” for it to work.

Final Thoughts: You’re More Powerful Than You Think

This study was fun to explore, but the deeper message is this: we often perceive limits that aren’t real. Whether it’s lifting a car in an emergency or pushing through an intense workout, we all have more strength, resilience, and potential than we realize.

So, should you start swearing at the gym? Well, social norms still apply—but if you want to test this theory yourself, maybe try it in a private setting first. You might just surprise yourself.

And if you do, let me know! I’d love to hear about your N-of-1 experiments.

Live long, well, and powerful.