Foot Workout for Your Pelvic Floor 

By rjoachim | February 7, 2023

Kegel exercises strengthen the pelvic floor muscles, which support the uterus, bladder, small intestine and rectum. You can do Kegel exercises, also known as pelvic floor muscle training, just about anytime.

Start by understanding what Kegel exercises can do for you — then follow these instructions for contracting and relaxing your pelvic floor muscles.

Many factors can weaken your pelvic floor muscles, including pregnancy, childbirth, surgery, aging, excessive straining from constipation or chronic coughing, and being overweight.

You might benefit from doing Kegel exercises if you:

  • Leak a few drops of urine while sneezing, laughing or coughing (stress incontinence)
  • Have a strong, sudden urge to urinate just before losing a large amount of urine (urinary urge incontinence)
  • Leak stool (fecal incontinence)

Kegel exercises can also be done during pregnancy or after childbirth to try to improve your symptoms.

Kegel exercises are less helpful for women who have severe urine leakage when they sneeze, cough or laugh. Also, Kegel exercises aren’t helpful for women who unexpectedly leak small amounts of urine due to a full bladder (overflow incontinence).To identify your pelvic floor muscles, stop urination in midstream. Once you’ve identified your pelvic floor muscles you can do the exercises in any position, although you might find it easiest to do them lying down at first.Perfect your technique. To do Kegels, imagine you are sitting on a marble and tighten your pelvic muscles as if you’re lifting the marble. Try it for three seconds at a time, then relax for a count of three.

  • Maintain your focus. For best results, focus on tightening only your pelvic floor muscles. Be careful not to flex the muscles in your abdomen, thighs or buttocks. Avoid holding your breath. Instead, breathe freely during the exercises.
  • Repeat three times a day. Aim for at least three sets of 10 to 15 repetitions a day.
    • https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/womens-health/in-depth/kegel-exercises/art-20045283
Posted in Exercise & Fitness