Credit: Kues on Shutterstock

Swearing is ‘a calorie neutral, drug free, low cost, readily available tool at our disposal for when we need a boost in performance.’

In A Nutshell

• Swearing boosted performance on a short, intense strength task. Participants held a chair push-up position for about 2.5 to 3 seconds longer when repeating a curse word compared with a neutral word.
• The effect appears to work through psychological factors, not adrenaline. Flow, distraction from discomfort, and self-confidence each helped explain why swearing improved hold times. Humor increased but did not drive the performance gains.
• The mechanism may involve releasing mental brakes. The authors propose that swearing triggers “state disinhibition,” temporarily quieting the brain’s caution system and allowing people to push closer to their true physical limits.
• Applications beyond the gym remain untested. While the researchers speculate swearing might help in contexts like physical therapy, salary negotiations, or childbirth, the study only measured short-duration strength tasks in a controlled lab setting.

Forget expensive pre-workout supplements, fancy equipment, or elaborate training regimens. Research points to a performance booster that costs absolutely nothing: swearing. Scientists have found that repeating a curse word during short, intense physical effort can measurably help people hold on a little longer.

The study, published in American Psychologist, offers insight into why profanity appears to release hidden physical reserves. The authors propose that the mechanism involves something they call “state disinhibition,” a temporary loosening of the psychological brakes that normally prevent people from pushing their full effort. When someone curses, their brain may be signaling permission to stop holding back.

Lead author Richard Stephens of Keele University in England has spent over a decade studying swearing. His latest work with colleagues from both sides of the Atlantic suggests the effect involves a trio of psychological factors: increased focus, heightened confidence, and a flow state where distracting thoughts fade away. A strategically timed curse word might help a powerlifter grind out one more rep or a physical therapy patient overcome the mental hesitation that often follows injury. Whether the effect extends to longer endurance activities, like running a marathon, remains untested.

How Scientists Measured Swearing and Strength

Stephens and his team ran two experiments with a combined 182 adult participants, primarily recruited from a university campus in England. Ages ranged from 18 to 65, and anyone with health conditions preventingfull exertion was excluded.

Each participant completed a chair push-up task: sitting on a sturdy chair, placing hands under their thighs at a 45-degree angle with fingers pointing inward, then lifting their feet while straightening their arms to support their entire body weight for as long as possible. A 60-second safety cap was enforced. The exercise demands sustained muscular effort and becomes increasingly uncomfortable over time.

Every participant completed the task twice in randomized order. During one trial, participants repeated a self-selected swear word every two seconds at normal speaking volume. The swear word was whatever they might say after bumping their head. During the other trial, they repeated a neutral word, something they might use to describe a table. All sessions were conducted via video call with researchers following a standardized script. Afterward, participants completed questionnaires measuring psychological states including flow, humor, distraction, and self-confidence.

Letting a few swears fly allows us to let go of deeply ingrained inhibitions, both consciously and subconsciously. (Image by izzuanroslan on Shutterstock)

Cursing Added Measurable Seconds to Physical Performance

Both experiments confirmed the swearing and strength connection. In the first experiment involving 88 participants, average hold time reached 26.92 seconds during the swearing condition compared with 24.19 seconds during the neutral word condition. The second experiment with 94 participants produced nearly identical results: 26.97 seconds with swearing versus 24.55 seconds without. Those extra seconds may sound modest, but in athletic competition or physical rehabilitation, small margins often separate success from failure.

The psychological measures added depth to the numbers. Participants in the swearing condition reported higher levels of flow, that absorbed mental state where everything except the immediate task fades from awareness. They also reported that swearing distracted them from thoughts about discomfort or fatigue, essentially disrupting the mental rumination that can interfere with maximal effort. Positive emotions ran higher during swearing trials, and participants found the experience funnier, though humor itself did not explain the performance gains.

When the researchers combined their new data with results from a similar earlier study, the aggregated sample reached 300 participants. Statistical analyses confirmed that flow, distraction, and self-confidence each played a role in explaining why swearing helped people hold on longer. Humor, despite increasing during swearing trials, was not a significant mediator of the performance boost.

“In many situations, people hold themselves back – consciously or unconsciously – from using their full strength,” said study author Richard Stephens, PhD, of Keele University in the U.K., in a statement. “Swearing is an easily available way to help yourself feel focused, confident and less distracted, and ‘go for it’ a little more.”

How Cursing May Release Hidden Effort

The researchers interpret their findings through a framework involving two competing brain systems. The behavioral inhibition system normally functions as an internal brake, suppressing impulsive actions and prioritizing cautious behavior. The behavioral activation system does the opposite, narrowing focus toward immediate goals and driving action.

The authors propose that swearing may temporarily quiet the inhibition system while activating its counterpart. Utteringtaboo words could signal to the brain that normal restraints are suspended. The result, they suggest, is a measurable performance boost as people tap into reserves they might otherwise keep in check.

Flow connects to this framework because it represents the absence of self-consciousness. Distraction fits because swearing appears to disrupt task-related rumination, the anxious thoughts about discomfort or fatigue that can lead someone to quit early. With fewer cognitive resources devoted to worry, people may be more likely to push through. Self-confidence aligns with activation of the goal-focused system and reduced self-doubt. Together, these factors create conditions where someone is more likely to exert full effort rather than unconsciously holding back.

The authors’ best guess is that swearing nudges you into a more “go for it” mindset. They did not directly prove a single on/off mechanism in the brain.

Swearing could potentially help with that elusive ‘one last rep,’ but remember to keep it PG in public! (Credit: MDV Edwards on Shutterstock)

Potential Real-World Applications

The tendency to hold back appears across many life situations. Job applicants often hesitate during salary negotiations. People with public speaking anxiety sometimes underperform because fear prevents them from expressing their ideas. Athletes returning from injury frequently demonstrate hesitation that interferes with recovery. The authors also raise childbirth as an example of a context where people may hold back due to fear of judgment, though this study did not test swearing during labor.

Stephens and his co-authors propose that swearing could potentially serve as a low-cost tool across some of these contexts. A physical therapist working with a patient recovering from surgery might encourage strategic cursing to help overcome psychological hesitation. Someone preparing for a difficult conversation might use profanity beforehand to enter a more assertive mindset. These remain speculative applications that would need direct testing.

Previous research has shown related effects for other vocalizations.Grunting increases tennis racquet power by 19% to 26%, and shouting can boost grip strength by 7%. Swearing appears to operate through similar pathways but may carry additional psychological weight due to its taboo nature.

What Scientists Still Don’t Know About Swearing and Strength

Several limitations apply. All datasets came from the same research group, so independent replication would strengthen confidence. The chair push-up task is a short-duration exercise lasting under 60 seconds; whether swearing helps during longer endurance activities remains untested. Participants could not be blinded to condition, making placebo effects impossible to fully rule out.

The combined statistical model explained approximately 14% of the variance in performance gains. While the authors describe this as meaningful given the many factors that influence strength, other mechanisms likely contribute. Expectancy effects, emotional arousal, and other pathways may play roles that future research will need to examine.

The mediation analyses also relied on measured psychological variables rather than experimentally manipulated ones. An alternative interpretation remains possible. Perhaps people who performed better subsequently felt more confident or absorbed, rather than those psychological states causing improved performance.

Despite these caveats, the core finding appears solid. Across multiple experiments and hundreds of participants, swearing consistently improved physical performance on a demanding short-duration task.

A well-chosen curse word costs nothing, requires no equipment, carries no banned-substance risk, and appears to produce genuine if modest benefits. For anyone looking for an edge on their next heavy lift or demanding physical task, the research offers a straightforward suggestion: let loose.

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Paper Notes

Limitations

All three experimental datasets originated from the same research group at Keele University; independent replication from other laboratories would strengthen confidence. The physical task measured was a short-duration strength exercise lasting under 60 seconds, and the researchers did not test whether swearing benefits longer endurance activities. Because participants knew whether they were swearing or saying a neutral word, placebo effects cannot be entirely ruled out. The aggregated statistical model explained approximately 14% of the variance in performance improvements. The mediation analyses relied on measured psychological variables rather than experimentally manipulated ones, leaving open an alternative interpretation that perceived performance quality influenced the psychological measures rather than the reverse.

Funding and Disclosures

The paper includes standard disclosure details; readers should consult the full published article for funding sources and conflict of interest statements. Preregistrations, study materials, datasets, and analysis code are publicly available on the Open Science Framework at https://osf.io/qyv3b/. The study received ethical approval from Keele University Psychology Faculty Research Ethics Committee. All participants provided informed consent.

Publication Details

Title: “Don’t Hold Back”: Swearing Improves Strength Through State Disinhibition

Authors: Richard Stephens, Harry Dowber, Christopher Richardson (School of Psychology, Keele University, United Kingdom); Nicholas B. Washmuth (Department of Psychology, University of Alabama in Huntsville, United States)

Journal: American Psychologist

Publisher: American Psychological Association

DOI: 10.1037/amp0001650

Preregistration Numbers: aspredicted.org No. 83682 (Experiment 1); aspredicted.org No. 123103 (Experiment 2)

Open Science Materials: https://osf.io/qyv3b/

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