{"id":61880,"date":"2017-09-20T11:15:44","date_gmt":"2017-09-20T15:15:44","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/?p=61880"},"modified":"2021-08-18T14:52:12","modified_gmt":"2021-08-18T18:52:12","slug":"pelvic-floor-kegel-exercises","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/fitness\/pelvic-floor-kegel-exercises\/","title":{"rendered":"Here\u2019s Why You Have to Strengthen Your Pelvic Floor"},"content":{"rendered":"<figure id=\"attachment_61882\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-61882\" style=\"width: 620px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-61882 size-full\" title=\"Ladies, Here's Why You Have to Strengthen Your Pelvic Floor\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn-life.dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/09\/10021038\/Why-Women-Should-Strengthen-Pelvic-Floor-1.jpg\" alt=\"Ladies, Here's Why You Have to Strengthen Your Pelvic Floor\" width=\"620\" height=\"400\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn-life.dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/09\/10021038\/Why-Women-Should-Strengthen-Pelvic-Floor-1.jpg 620w, https:\/\/cdn-life.dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/09\/10021038\/Why-Women-Should-Strengthen-Pelvic-Floor-1-300x194.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 620px) 100vw, 620px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-61882\" class=\"wp-caption-text\"><i>Photo: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.twenty20.com\/photos\/8dec4bba-d539-459a-9e55-127eddd55427\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Twenty20<\/a><\/i><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Sure you might have heard about <a href=\"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/db\/glute-bridges-stronger-butt\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">glute bridges<\/a> and Kegel exercises, but strengthening your pelvic floor is more than just that. Whether you\u2019re a new mom or not, having a strong pelvic floor can help with both bladder and sexual health issues. Here\u2019s what every woman needs to know about her pelvic floor.<\/p>\n<p><strong>RELATED:<\/strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/db\/glute-bridges-stronger-butt\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">5 Glute Bridges You Can Do in Front of Your TV<\/a><\/p>\n<h3>What Is the Pelvic Floor?<\/h3>\n<p>The <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nichd.nih.gov\/health\/topics\/pelvicfloor\/conditioninfo\/Pages\/default.aspx\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">pelvic floor<\/a> is made up of muscles on the <a href=\"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/db\/365-crunch-ab-exercises\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">inside of your pelvis<\/a> that form a basket holding the bladder, urethra, small intestine, rectum, cervix, vagina and uterus in place. It also keeps the pelvis stable. According to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.spearcenter.com\/therapist-detail.aspx?tid=98\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Abby Bales<\/a>, DPT, a physical therapist in New York City, you\u2019ll know your pelvic floor is healthy if you don\u2019t have urinary or fecal leakage, especially when you\u2019re jumping, running or sneezing. Sex also shouldn\u2019t be painful, and you shouldn\u2019t experience hip, groin or pelvic pain.<\/p>\n<p><strong>RELATED: <\/strong><a href=\"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/fitness\/lower-ab-exercises-strong-core\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Quick Lower Ab Exercises for a Stronger Core<\/a><\/p>\n<h3>Pelvic Floor Disorders 101<\/h3>\n<p>Almost <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nih.gov\/news-events\/news-releases\/roughly-one-quarter-us-women-affected-pelvic-floor-disorders\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">one in three U.S. women<\/a> suffer from a pelvic floor disorder (when the pelvic floor muscles are weak or injured). Because pregnancy and birth put pressure on your pelvic, that rate that jumps among women who\u2019ve just had a baby. \u201cAt postpartum, up to 65 percent of women have incontinence, but that\u2019s only those who are reporting their symptoms to their doctors,\u201d says Bales. \u201cIt\u2019s probably closer to 75 percent, because most gynecologists aren\u2019t screening for it,\u201d she notes.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Common pelvic floor disorders include:<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Bladder control problems: <\/strong>Also known as incontinence, the leaking of urine and the strong, sudden urge to pee happens when the bladder drops because the pelvic floor can\u2019t support it.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Bowel control problems: <\/strong>Leaking of stool from the rectum happens when the rectum is out of place or the anal sphincter, which closes off the anus, is damaged.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Pelvic floor prolapse:<\/strong> When the pelvic floor muscles and fascia can no longer support the uterus, bladder and bowel, these organs can drop downwards into the vagina or anus. Symptoms include a feeling of puffiness, heaviness or achiness in the vagina or anus. You could also feel like something is dropping through the vagina or anus. \u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/www.acog.org\/Patients\/FAQs\/Pelvic-Support-Problems\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Pelvic organ prolapse<\/a> can happen to anyone regardless of whether they\u2019ve had kids, although it\u2019s associated with post-childbirth in women,\u201d says Bales.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>RELATED: <\/strong><a href=\"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/db\/core-moves-beginner-pilates-workout\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">7 Easy Pilates Moves for a Quick Core Workout<\/a><\/p>\n<h3>Can You Over-Exercise Your Pelvic Floor?<\/h3>\n<p>Although pregnancy and birth are the most common causes for a pelvic floor disorder, issues can occur even if you\u2019ve never had a child. Being overweight, having chronic constipation or having a chronic cough also put pressure on the pelvic floor. As women age, their <a href=\"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/health\/how-hormones-affect-your-health\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">estrogen<\/a> production lowers, which makes it harder to maintain muscle everywhere (including down there), says Bales.<\/p>\n<p>Bales also says that certain exercises can increase your risk of pelvic floor issues. Crossfitters and other high-intensity athletes may experience incontinence due to improper form. Women who <a href=\"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/fitness\/women-lift-weights-strength-train-benefits\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">lift heavy weights<\/a> may experience leakage because the weights bear down on the vagina or anus. But Bales says you can learn how to coordinate your breath with pulling in your pelvic floor as you lift.<\/p>\n<p>It\u2019s also possible to have an overly tight pelvic floor due to over-exercising it with workouts like <a href=\"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/db\/core-moves-beginner-pilates-workout\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Pilates<\/a>. Symptoms include difficulty urinating, painful intercourse, pain around vaginal area, bladder urgency or frequency and constipation, says <a href=\"https:\/\/5pointpt.com\/stacey-futterman\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Stacey Futterman, M.P.T.<\/a>, a pelvic floor physical therapist in New York City. If you notice any of the above, a specialist can help you diagnose and treat the issue.<\/p>\n<p><strong>RELATED: <\/strong><a href=\"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/db\/glute-exercises-squats-butt-lift\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Hate Squats? 7 Glute Exercises for an Instant Butt Lift<\/a><\/p>\n<h3>Treating Pelvic Floor Disorders<\/h3>\n<p>The good news is that you can easily treat pelvic floor issues. \u201cYour pelvic floor is just like any other muscle: You can train it to make sure it\u2019s responding as it should,\u201d Bales says. That\u2019s true even if you have a post-birth tear that your doctor can\u2019t repair surgically. \u201cTechniques can compensate for muscles that are damaged during birth,\u201d she adds.<\/p>\n<p>If your symptoms are moderate and you\u2019re wearing pads, see a professional pelvic floor physical therapist. They can out rule any other issues you may have and can show you how to engage your muscles properly. (Your ob-gyn isn\u2019t trained to treat pelvic floor disorders.) \u201cSometimes it\u2019s not just your pelvic floor but other muscles, like <a href=\"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/fitness\/50-butt-exercises-strong-glutes\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">weak glutes<\/a> or transverse abs, or tighter mobility in your joints. You might also be too tight, in which case exercises won\u2019t help,\u201d says Futterman.<\/p>\n<h3>How to Do Kegel Exercises<\/h3>\n<p>You\u2019ve probably heard of Kegel exercises \u2014 which engage your pelvic floor to improve your muscle tone and sexual health. You can test the strength of your pelvic floor and know what a Kegel should feel like by trying to stop the flow of urine when you go to bathroom.<\/p>\n<p>Here\u2019s the right way to do a Kegel: As you exhale, draw your vaginal muscles up and together, squeezing and pulling your belly button inward and upward. Visualize closing the vaginal opening, bringing your tailbone toward you pubic bone and stopping gas, suggests Futterman. You should be able to isolate your pelvic floor and feel the contraction. If you can\u2019t, it likely means your muscles are either too tight or too weak, she says.<\/p>\n<p><strong>RELATED:\u00a0<\/strong><a href=\"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/fitness\/best-stretching-exercises-myths\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">7 Reasons You\u2019re Stretching All Wrong (and How to Fix It)<\/a><\/p>\n<h2>Exercises to Support Your Pelvic Floor<\/h2>\n<p>Keep in mind, Futterman doesn\u2019t recommend relying solely on Kegels as your exercise Rx. It\u2019s a myth that you have to do 100 Kegels a day to keep your pelvic floor healthy, Futterman says. Because the pelvic floor is supported by your glutes, abs, <a href=\"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/fitness\/tight-hip-flexors-stretch-strengthen\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">hip flexors<\/a> and diaphragm, it\u2019s essential to strengthen those surrounding muscles. \u201cA lot of women have weak glute muscles, so activating those muscles and incorporating them into your exercise routine is important,\u201d says Futterman.<\/p>\n<p>Bales recommends adding Kegels to your exercise routine two to three times a week, whether that includes Pilates, <a href=\"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/db\/barre-exercises-abs-barre-harmony\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">barre<\/a>, weight training or running. Futterman says one high-quality set of 10 pelvic floor exercises per day \u2014 such as the <a href=\"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/fitness\/pilates-home-exercises-reformer\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Pilates clam<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/fitness\/squat-exercises-strength\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">squats<\/a> \u2014 along with good posture and technique is a great base.<\/p>\n<p>Also, think about activating your pelvic floor only 50 percent during exercise to avoid overworking your muscles, Futterman suggests. If you focus on Kegeling for your first few reps, you\u2019ll usually find that your pelvic floor will remain engaged throughout your workout. If you have an injured pelvic floor, Bales recommends doing 60 reps of pelvic floor exercises four to five times a week.<\/p>\n<p><strong>\u00a0<\/strong><strong>RELATED: <\/strong><a href=\"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/db\/beginner-core-exercises-for-ab-workouts\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Hate Crunches? 6 Better Core Exercises for Beginners<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u201cMix up your workouts to keep your body in balance. Have fun and be mindful. If something doesn\u2019t feel right, it most likely isn\u2019t,\u201d says Futterman.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Did you know that you can over-exercise your pelvic floor? Here\u2019s what every woman needs to know about pelvic floor disorders, Kegel exercises and more. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":105,"featured_media":61884,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"","_seopress_titles_title":"","_seopress_titles_desc":"","_seopress_robots_index":"","site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[6,14],"tags":[434,213,281,341,396,324,286],"class_list":["post-61880","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-fitness","category-strength-training","tag-barre","tag-pilates","tag-strength-training","tag-tax1living-well","tag-tax2womens-health","tag-women","tag-yoga"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/61880","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/105"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=61880"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/61880\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/61884"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=61880"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=61880"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=61880"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}