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What are soaking and jump-humping? Bizarre sex acts by Mormons take TikTok by storm

Some Mormon teens have devised a bizarre way to get around the 'no-sex' dictate

The Mormon mandate against pre-marital sex has been followed by the religious hardliners for decades. However, with increased awareness and freedom around sexuality in society, present-day Mormon teenagers are finding it a tad difficult to adhere to the rule. It has recently been revealed that some Mormon teens have devised a bizarre way to get around the "no-sex" dictate and yet enjoy the pleasure of sexual intercourse. They follow the act of "soaking", a concept that has now taken TikTok and other social media platforms by storm. 

Soaking primarily refers to the act of penetration without "thrusting", where a man inserts his penis in a woman's vagina, without applying any thrust thereafter. “When I returned from my Mormon mission and moved to Provo, Utah, I heard rumors about ‘soaking,’ which is when a male places his penis in a woman’s vagina and that is it. No moving. No thrusting. No orgasms,” said Gary Knauer, whose Mormon friends have engaged in the act. Presently, a video about soaking has gone viral on TikTok, with the term garnering over 25.5 million tags. 

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What is soaking? 

According to Knauer, who was a former member of the Mormon church, young Mormons have engaged in the act for years. "While on my mission, I had several discussions with my fellow missionaries concerning sex in general. Some talked about soaking. Some would discuss that anal sex is also away to ‘keep one’s virginity," he revealed, adding, "I never practiced soaking. I was the sinner who actually finished the job.”

Briana O'Neal, another former Mormon, confirmed that even though soaking is considered forbidden, it is currently a trend among the US Mormon community, who comprise two percent of the total US population. “It is definitely a real thing in the community, among teens and single Mormon college students. It’s kind of like a hush-hush thing. Everyone knows it goes on, but you wouldn’t come out and say, ‘Oh, yeah I soaked with my girlfriend’ or whatever," O'Neal added, while speaking to New York Post. 

The idea was also confirmed by 32-year-old former believer Carah Burrell, who, however, mentioned that they had never heard of anyone admitting it. "Soaking’ makes its rounds every now and then and people are shocked and fall over in laughter. The thing is, I’ve never heard of a single person actually admit to doing it. It’s always a friend of a friend or a rumor. Mormons have very strict rules about touching over the clothes or under the clothes and no petting, so it’s all very much against the law of chastity and would still require the man and woman to confess to their bishops to be able to become good standing members in the church. So it really just makes no sense. My take is that it’s probably 99% rumor and joke and a handful of idiots try it,” Burrell explained.

Along with soaking, the term 'jump-humping' is also gaining traction on TikTok. For any couple enjoying the act of soaking, a friend can help them out by bouncing on an adjacent bed or 'jump-humping.'

Soaking also prompted a flurry of memes on Twitter with people making fun of the weird sex act. Have a look at some of the most liked ones we found.