It turns out profanities aren’t just fun, they may actually be a secret superpower, boosting your strength and staying power, according to UK scientists. They say this may be because cussing helps us overcome our inhibitions and push harder in tests of strength and endurance. The team asked 192 people to either turn the air blue, or say something neutral, every two seconds while doing chair push-ups. They then asked them how they felt during the task, including disinhibition, positive emotions, distraction, humour, and self-confidence, as well as psychological ‘flow’ - when we become immersed in an activity. The foul-mouthed participants did more push-ups for longer than the others, and the scientists found this was because they experienced increased psychological flow, distraction and self-confidence – all important aspects of disinhibition.