Do Your Kegels!
By: Aleksandra Bojic
Keep your bodily fluids inside your body! Kegels can be done while sitting or standing, at work or waiting in line. It is multi-tasking at its finest! Why are Kegels prescribed? They help with stress, urge incontinence, and improve pelvic floor weakness. Not sure if you need to do Kegels? If you find yourself with an inability to control urine flow with physical activity, laughing, coughing, sneezing or lifting. A more serious condition, uterine prolapse, occurs when pelvic organs start to sag. For this condition, Kegel exercises are extremely important! Men can have urinary incontinence as well, especially because of their prostate. Everyone pees. What are Kegels? It is when activation of muscles below the bladder are activated to control the flow of urination. Activating these muscles come as a result of being able to slow or stop the flow of urine.
1, 2, 3 Kegel!
The first thing to remember with these exercises is that technique must be mastered correctly. Finding the right muscles is the first step. To find the pelvic floor muscles, try and stop your urination, when peeing, in midstream. I know, a big goal but definitely achievable. Once you’re able to stop your urination in midstream, then you will have successfully activated your pelvic floor muscles.
Using this contraction method, squeeze the pelvic floor muscles for at least 5 seconds and then relax for five seconds. This should be done for at first 5 to 10 times in a row. If five feels like a challenge, then start that as your goal. Soon enough you will be able to hold this muscle for up to 10 or even 15 seconds. Make sure to relax between contractions for about the same amount of time that you are holding the contractions. How often should you repeat this exercise? About three times a day, 10 times each session.
Some things to keep in mind…First off, do not hold your breath! You will end up feeling over worked and fatigued. In addition, it is easy to end up tightening the wrong muscles. Therefore, be careful that you are not flexing or squeezing the abdomen, or glutes. Breath regularly.
Be warned!
Strengthening the glutes, legs and core are also vital. One can not merely do kegel exercises and ignore the rest of the body. By strengthening the surrounding muscles of the pelvic floor, you gain better control and strength. This means there is less of a chance of pelvic floor dysfunction.
Lilly Physical Therapy promotes all types of health and wellness.If you or a friend are experiencing any type pain, call and make an appointment today! Don’t let your pain hold you back from life’s opportunities, take charge of today!
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