I often get the question, “Hey Bob, when should I reset on NoFap?”
So, if you too are wondering the same, you will find your answer in this blog post.
However, first I have to ask you; well what do you mean by “reset”?
Do you mean…
- How long you should do NoFap before busting a nut?
- When you should reset your counter, as in what counts as a relapse?
We are going to answer both of those questions right now…
When Should You Reset By Ejaculating On NoFap?
This depends on what goal you have with your NoFap journey.
So let's take a closer look at this…
If you are doing NoFap without having a porn problem…
Let's start by when you should reset, as in ejaculate, if you are just doing NoFap without having any problems with porn.
The answer is short and simple; it's totally up to you.
- Some do it as a 90 day challenge
(After which they go back to their normal life with whatever ejaculation frequency they had then). - Some do it as a lifestyle
(They try to keep their ejaculations to an absolute minimum for the rest of their lives). - Some do it in cycles
(For example 90 days of no ejaculations then they “reset” and have a full week, or just one day, with ejaculation before going back on the 90 day cycle. It is also common with shorter cycles, like a 15 day cycle or a 30 day cycle. Then reset and ejaculate for one or two days and then jumping back on the cycle).
It's totally up to you!
Some guys find that longer is not always better and they find that they get much stronger NoFap benefits if they do it in cycles.
Then there are also a lot of guys who really do feel that the longer they go, the better they feel, and because of that they try to avoid ejaculation as much as they can for the rest of their lives.
It's different for everyone and both of those options are right.
Or, to put in another way, there is no “right” or “wrong”.
90 days as a “challenge”…
Now, some guys try to do NoFap as a fun little challenge to see if they can go 90 days without busting, and also to see what happens if they manage to go that far.
This is indeed a good experiment to do.
In fact, while I'm not dogmatic and think NoFap is some magic bullet that every man on the planet has to do in order to succeed in life, I do think that every man should try the 90 day challenge at least once in their lives.
Why?
Well, first: many guys who have done so have started to feel so good that they kept NoFap close at heart, even after the challenge. So they were immensely grateful that they “found” NoFap, so to speak.
Second: more important; a lot of guys who try the 90 day challenge found that they fail over and over again. They simply can't do it. In fact they try and fail for so long that they discover that they are actually addicted to porn. And if they never would have tried the 90 day challenge that might not have become obvious to them.
If you find, or already know, that you are addicted to porn, then we will discuss when to reset in your case a bit further down in the article.
When to reset your counter? (as in what is a relapse)
If doing NoFap: To many guys NoFap means staying away from both porn and masturbation. This means that a relapse for them would be if they intentionally watch porn or masturbate. So if they did any of those, well then they'd have to reset their counter.
Wet dreams are not a relapse. Neither is precum. Related post: is precum a relaspe?
For a lot of guys, sex is not a relapse while guys who do something called “hard mode” or “monk mode” would count sex as a relapse as well and so they'd had to reset they counter.
This is all up to you, of course.
Accidentally happen to see erotic stuff…
If you accidentally happen to see a porn scene, but you instantly shut it off, it's not a relapse because you didn't do it on purpose.
However, if you accidentally happen to stumble upon something and you keep watching it, then it's a relapse because then you are intentionally watching.
If doing semen retention: If you are strictly doing it with semen retention as the only goal, then a relapse for you would obviously be if you intentionally ejaculate. Sex or masturbation makes no difference, since if you believe in the power of retention, both of them means you are wasting your life force.
Wet dreams would not be a relapse. Sure you lose semen there as well, but it is not intentionally. And the definition of a relapse is simply the fact that you INTENTIONALLY break a rule you have set for yourself.
Check out the porn blocker & accountability software CovenantEyes below
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When to reset if you are trying to stop watching porn…
If you are trying to stop watching porn, you know, maybe you have a bit of a porn addiction going on there, then I would recommend that you go at least 60-90 days before resetting.
- Reset = ejaculating.
- Watching porn = never again!!! So there shouldn't even be a “reset” when it comes to pron.
Now just to be 100% clear, here you don't “reset” by watching porn. In fact the word “reset” is not really appropriate here because, if you are addicted, it is strongly advisable that you never watch porn again, for the rest of your life. Porn addiction is best fixed with no “reset” to porn again…zero…zip…nada!
You see, if you have developed real addiction related brain changes, then trying to go back to a moderate use is almost impossible.
It would most likely spiral out of control again.
Sure, there are some guys who can do it, but I would estimate that at least 95% of those who really developed a real addiction, can't (see the two videos further dwon).
Some can recover from a porn addiction while using porn free masturbation…
If you are trying to fix some sexual issues porn has created, like for example delayed ejaculation or weak erections, then, as I said, I recommend you go at least 60-90 days before busting a nut.
The reason for this is that it has been shown that guys tend to recover from those problems quicker if they stay away from ejaculating for a couple of months in the beginning of their reboot.
This is simple to give their sexual circuits in the brain a rest, and has is not really related to “overcoming the addiction itself.
Can I overcome a porn addiction if I masturbate without porn?
You can indeed overcome the addiction itself if you keep doing porn free masturbation during your reboot.
Some guys actually find it easier to overcome the addiction like that. Those are often older guys who learned to masturbate before there was such a thing as internet.
You can >>Download<< my Quit Porn Guide for FREE right now!
It's different for everyone…
Younger guys who grew up with internet porn often find porn free masturbation too difficult.
Since they have grown up with internet porn and fapping, side by side, those two has become completely intertwined in their brain so one simple reminds of the other too much. This means that if they try to masturbate without porn, they just end up relapsing after a few days.
However, even among the younger guys there are exceptions, as some of them can indeed keep doing porn free masturbation and still overcome their porn addiction.
When to reset your counter? (as in what is considered a relapse if you are porn addicted)…
Whenever you intentionally seek out artificial arousing stuff you are feeding your addiction and thus it should be considered a relapse.
This goes for porn “substitutes” as well, like for example watching booty shaking videos on YouTube, of surfing from one hot finess girl to the other on Instagram.
Why no substitutes? Why so strict?
If you want to overcome your addiction you shouldn't feed it because that makes it stronger.
It is indeed the same with substitutes as it does indeed mimic your porn surfing. I mean, come on now, you are hardly watching booty shaking videos for any other purpose than to get aroused by them, right?
Take a look at these 2 videos about the four big brain changes and you'll get a clearer understanding about how porn addiction works…
Watch Part 1:
If you found the video informative, consider checking out my YouTube channel here.
Watch Part 2:
Read about >a good online course to quit porn here<
NoFap – When To Reset
Conclusion and Final Words
So there you have it.
You reset your counter on NoFap whenever you intentionally break any of your own rules and on semen retention you reset when you “waste” your life force.
As far as when to reset on purpose, it depends on how long your retention cycles you want to have are. Some common cycles are…
- 15 days
- 30 days
- 60 days
- 90 days
- Or forever (as in trying to never release)
If you are a porn addict then you can also experiment with ejaculation frequencies, however, if you have sexual problems caused by the porn, then try to go for at least 60-90 days without any ejaculations to give the sexual circuits in your brain a complete rest. And remember…
…if you are addicted to porn, there is no “resetting” back to watching porn again. You should do your best to stay away from that digital heroin, for the rest of your life. Ejaculations are natural, but today's online pornography is not, because it's too stimulating for the brain's reward system to be able to handle.
Thanks for reading.
-Scandinavian Bob-
Related posts:
P.S. If you have problems quitting porn or if you keep relapsing all the time, then here are two options for you…
- You could reach out to me personally for 1 on 1 coaching session ==> Do so here!
- Check out the best online course for overcoming porn addiction ==> Do so here!