By Alejandro Acrobat (Sexpert) – Email
Print Edition: October 29, 2014
While Men’s Health strongly recommends it, I think the creators of the “criss-cross” or X position intended their audience to be unrealistically flexible people. After attempting it, I learned very quickly I am not one of them. Beginning by lying opposite my partner, I had to place her left leg over my right, and her right leg over my left shoulder. This created an awkward position for me — my right leg was on top of her left, causing me to twist my body away from her. On top of this, I was balancing on one hand trying to correct my body angle, while at the same time manually stimulating my partner.
Right off the bat, we noticed that getting into the correct layout was the most difficult part of the X position. It only works if both players are positioned perfectly and are directly in line to each other. By the time we were finally ready to go, we had to get ourselves back into the right mindset because we had begun to lose our sexual appetite.
In theory, the X position does have some positive points. The shallow thrusting creates a longer sexssion, which definitely outlives any form of traditional sex. The rhythm is also very controlled and timely, allowing a slow buildup for a potential climax.
Having said that, the X position didn’t light any fireworks. The strange angle of penetration and shallow-diving didn’t hit any of the main soft spots that create an amazing orgasm. Plus, since both sets of feet are so close to each other’s faces, if either partner has a fear of feet, then this position can quickly become irritating. We tried it all — changing position, increasing the rhythm, manual stimulation, everything — and nothing worked. Although this position is supposed to benefit the male, the shallow thrusts didn’t create a stimulating experience.
This position honestly wasn’t that great. Even though the sex is slow in progressing, both participants are so focused on being in the correct position that it takes away from the overall sensation. I had a difficult time keeping my balance, and my partner was getting more and more frustrated because the key female components were being left unattended. Sure, the sex is slow, and that’s great. But when you’re spending more time focusing on the position than the actual activity, I think that’s when you’ve missed the entire point of sex.
I found the X position wasn’t really rewarding, but it did offer a challenge that some people might look for in sex. If you are scared to look silly or can’t laugh at the little failures that come with trying a new situation, then the X position probably isn’t for you.
