In my book, Sex Again: Recharging Your Libido,
The Taoist sexology texts contain a variety of instructions for using deep and shallow thrusts in alternating patterns, but I think one version is plenty to give you the general idea—and all the benefits. You can find this exercise, called Nine and Nine in Chapter 13 of Sex Again: Recharging Your Libido
To begin, the man will insert only the head of his penis into the woman’s vagina—nine times. Then the entire penis once. That completes one set of ten strokes. Next, decrease the number of shallow strokes by one, and increase the number of deep strokes by one, and continue doing so for a total of nine sets. The full pattern looks like this:
nine shallow; one deep
eight shallow; two deep
seven shallow; three deep
six shallow; four deep
five shallow; five deep
four shallow; six deep
three shallow; seven deep
two shallow; eight deep
one shallow; nine deep
The pacing is up to the two of you, but in general slower is better. A lot of couples prefer slower entries and quicker departures.
Beginning with more shallow and moving on to deeper thrusts maximizes pleasure. This alternates a feeling of being tantalized with a feeling of being satisfied, which is a highly pleasing combination for most—and a good path to orgasm, even for people who haven’t been able to orgasm during intercourse previously. Doing the Nine and Nine can speed up the path to orgasm and/or heighten the orgasm experienced.
While the varying of strokes creates a sense of anticipation that intensifies the experience for most, it also tends to spread out the intensity, helping extend intercourse by delaying the orgasm.
That said, one time through this whole exercise totals ninety strokes, and no matter how you spread out the area of stimulation, this can be a lot for many. If you finish a set of nine without having an orgasm, feel free to do the whole thing over again. But if it’s tricky getting all the way through, just do shorter sets, at least to begin with. Do sets of five, or four, say. Whatever works for you.
