Why experts say you could be cheating yourself out of a great relationship.

Girls just want to have fun -- but when it comes to hooking up, are we cheating ourselves out of good, meaningful relationships? Sure, you might want to beat him at his own player game by beating him to the punch. If boys can have meaningless hook ups, then so can we -- right? But just because we think we can do anything guys can do -- but better! -- doesn't mean we're equipped to handle random trysts as well as they are. In fact, for women, engaging in multiple random hook-ups could actually cause some long-term damage.

That Little Somethin' Somethin'
It just comes down to biology: Women are more emotionally connected to people and therefore it's a lot -- yes, a lot -- harder to ignore that tug on our heartstrings we get from being intimate with someone. To participate in a random hook-up, you have to go against everything your body is naturally feeling -- and that can lead to a big explosion of feelings in the end.

So Much for the Afterglow
With so many hook-ups comes much squashing of the inevitable feelings that go along with them. Having to continually go against your natural instincts will eventually lead to depression. Also, through so many casual encounters, you don't really learn to trust people -- and that will make it harder when you finally find a guy worth turning those feelings back on for.

Outdated Ritual
We are STRONG supporters of the idea that men and women are perfectly equal, but when it comes to random hook-ups, avoid this seemingly "manly" practice. It may seem like an old-fashioned idea, but trust us, if you go out and find a guy who you really dig and find compatible and then leave him wanting more -- the power is all yours, lady!